Diamondbacks set return dates for Corbin Carroll, Merrill Kelly

GLENDALE — The Arizona Diamondbacks have set dates for the returns of outfielder Corbin Carroll and starting pitcher Merrill Kelly from injury this week in spring training.

Carroll (broken hamate bone) will be the designated hitter for the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday against the Athletics at Salt River Fields, manager Torey Lovullo announced on Tuesday.

Carroll received seven at-bats on the backfields on Monday as he continues to swing pain-free and prepare for Opening Day, which is more than two weeks away on March 26. He had surgery to remove the broken bone at the base of his hand on Feb. 11 and will get into game action exactly one month later.

Merrill Kelly pitching for Diamondbacks Friday

Kelly (intercostal nerve irritation) will start Friday’s game in Surprise against the Kansas City Royals.

He will pitch one inning, as his back issue set him back in stretching out for the regular season.

There are moving parts when it comes to the decision to place Kelly on the injured list or slot him into the back of the rotation to start the year. If Kelly would only be able to go four innings, that would put stress on the bullpen in the opening week of the year at a time when starters are not fully built up to go deep into games yet. The D-backs’ five starters averaged five innings during their first turn through the rotation last year.

“I don’t know what that answer is. We don’t want to hamstring our bullpen. We want to make sure everybody’s comfortable, stretched out,” Lovullo said before Tuesday’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“The first two times through the starting rotation, anything is possible. You’re not sure how far your starting pitchers are going to go and it’s usually very taxing on the bullpen. We got to see how far we can take this with Merrill and then make that decision.”

Brandon Pfaadt misses bats vs. Dodgers

Brandon Pfaadt started on Tuesday at Camelback Ranch, and he drew 11 whiffs on 19 swings in 2.2 innings pitched, according to Statcast. Six of seven swings against his sweeper came up empty, as he continues to find a feel for that pitch after an underwhelming 2025 campaign.

“I think today was a step in the right direction from all the work we put in with that pitch specifically, and it feels good to see it going in the right direction,” Pfaadt said. “Shape being consistent, the feeling out of my hand, throwing strikes with it and getting the chase and swing-and-miss with it.”

Pfaadt struck out four batters on Tuesday.

It was not a perfect performance for Pfaadt, who allowed one run with two walks and a hit-by-pitch, but against a Dodgers lineup with most of L.A.’s typical starters, Pfaadt felt positively about his second Cactus League outing.

“We did a good job with the righties, I think we could have done a little better job in the first with the lefties, but overall I think it felt great, the body felt great,” Pfaadt said. 

Learning moment for Jordan Lawlar

Tuesday was an eventful day for center fielder Jordan Lawlar, who led off the game with a home run against Dodgers right-hander Tyler Glasnow.

The seventh inning, however, provided a scary teaching moment.

Ryan Fitzgerald hit a ball to deep left-center field, and Lawlar and left fielder Ryan Waldschmidt went hard after it. The two collided by the warning track, with Lawlar diving for the ball and Waldschmidt getting undercut. Waldschmidt came up with the catch.

Both players were fine, staying in the game and taking their next at-bats, but Lovullo pointed to that moment as one for Lawlar to learn from as a new center fielder.

“I think in Lawlar’s case, he’s gotta really clear everybody out of there and call it for a good 60 feet,” Lovullo said. “They’re closing in on each other quickly. Just keep calling it until you catch the ball. That’s the mindset. I think he was calling it a couple times and Waldy didn’t really necessarily hear him. So a good lesson to be learned and we got away with potential disaster. Both guys are doing just fine.”

Anything new on Adrian Del Castillo?

Catcher Adrian Del Castillo told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo on Monday that he was weeks away from being full-go, as he continues to rehab from a calf injury that will keep him out to start the regular season.

“I think probably around two to three maybe four weeks,” Del Castillo said. “I don’t want to tweak it again. … I’m gonna trust what they tell me and go from there.”

Del Castillo has been taking live at-bats on the backfields with Carroll and outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and he has been able to catch bullpens. Running at full speed is a hurdle to clear.

He said the injury occured while he was fielding grounders when he took an awkward step.

“Went to go get this grounder, it was like a chopper and then just pop, I felt like I got hit by a ball in the back,” Del Castillo said. 

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