How well set up are the Diamondbacks for 2027?

The Arizona Diamondbacks are operating on a more stable foundation going into this offseason than at this point a year ago when it comes to their roster.

Pitchers Corbin Burnes and Justin Martinez missed most of 2026 after Tommy John surgery and are expected to be Day 1 contributors this time, with Burnes atop the starting rotation and Martinez in the back end of the bullpen.

Catcher Gabriel Moreno is coming off a career year as a batting champion.

Third baseman Nolan Arenado proved there was more in the tank at age 35 than he showed in his career-worst 2025 campaign.

Youngsters Ryan Waldschmidt, Tommy Troy and Jose Fernandez each got their feet wet in Major League Baseball, while former top prospect Jordan Lawlar showed signs of growth when healthy.

Anchored by the core of Geraldo Perdomo, Corbin Carroll and Ketel Marte, the structure of the roster presents the bones of another playoff contender, but the D-backs need to find the right mix to go from a mid-80s-win team to the next tier.

That does not mean this offseason will be simple, as this has been a goal for the past three years.

The roster had several problems that contributed to Arizona falling short of the postseason with an 86-76 record. General manager Mike Hazen took responsibility for certain plans, such as first base, falling flat.

“What I did with the position player group in the first half of the season, what I did at the deadline clearly didn’t do enough, left the team naked in places that it didn’t need to be left naked,” Hazen said.

The payroll is expected to go down, according to owner Ken Kendrick, although he did not specify how much so after the club spent more on its roster in 2026 than it ever had before. There are also Marte conversations to undertake, the search for a new pitching coach and a potential lockout to navigate.

But looking at the roster simply as is, Arizona’s holes are pretty “obvious.” Let’s evaluate those needs with Arizona intending to get back to the postseason next year:

Diamondbacks 40-man roster (under contract)

(Felisa Cárdenas/Arizona Sports)

Catcher: Gabriel Moreno, Adrian Del Castillo

First base: Pavin Smith, LuJames Groover, Tyler Locklear

Second base: Ketel Marte

Third base: Nolan Arenado

Shortstop: Geraldo Perdomo, Jose Fernandez

Outfield: Corbin Carroll, Jordan Lawlar, Lars Nootbaar, Ryan Waldschmidt

Utility: Tim Tawa, Tommy Troy

Starting pitcher: Corbin Burnes, Eduardo Rodriguez, Merrill Kelly, Brandon Pfaadt, Ryne Nelson, Mitch Bratt, Jose Cabrera, Kohl Drake, Blake Walston

Bullpen: Brandyn Garcia, Juan Morillo, Justin Martinez, Andrew Saalfrank, Juan Burgos, Gerardo Carrillo, Drey Jameson, Cristian Mena, Dylan Ray, Kade Strowd

Free agents: RHP Zac Gallen, RHP Taylor Clarke, RHP Kevin Ginkel, RHP Jonathan Loaisiga, LHP A.J. Puk, RHP Dennis Santana, RHP Michael Soroka (MO), RHP Ryan Thompson, C James McCann, INF Ildemaro Vargas

Burnes has an opt-out, while fellow starter Michael Soroka has a $10 million mutual option. Mutual options rarely get picked up, and USA Today’s Bob Nightengale has reported that Burnes will opt in.

The strengths of the team are the offensive core, back end of the bullpen and potentially the top of the rotation if Burnes can regain his form while Rodriguez and Pfaadt keep pushing after exceeding expectations. Young players can help fill roles and elevate the potential for this roster if the D-backs see the desired improvement from that group.

Most importantly, Carroll, Marte and Perdomo had down seasons compared to 2025, and bounce-backs would drastically change the ceiling for next year. That is, if the trio is kept together …

What do the Diamondbacks need?

Second base?

The elephant in the room is Marte and whether or not he will be traded.

Marte had much better underlying numbers than raw statistics in 2026, suggesting his production could swing back in the right direction.

On the other hand, Marte has put his team through four straight years of untimely absences and distractions which reached a new level of infamy this past season. He will turn 33 next week and had his lowest OPS and WAR totals since 2022. He is signed through 2031 (including a player option).

This is the single most complex issue of this offseason, considering Marte has a no-trade clause and dictates his own future.

Manager Torey Lovullo, president and CEO Derrick Hall and Kendrick have all weighed in on Marte’s future, suggesting a change in understanding and his “protection.”

When asked about Marte specifically, Hazen said, “I need to look at this team that’s been together since 2023, and is this the right mix of players to take that next level? I believe there’s some level of continuity that is good for us. It’s stabilized the floor. But we haven’t reached any ceiling since three years ago. That needs to change.”

If the D-backs move on, second base becomes a potential position of need, another consideration when looking at how it could impact winning next year.

There are internal candidates. Tawa can play all over the diamond, Troy is primarily a second baseman, while Arizona’s top prospect Demetrio Crisantes is a second baseman who reached Triple-A this summer and went through growing pains as a 22-year-old.

First base/left-handed power

Taking stock of the roster as it is constructed, the biggest needs that have already been talked about by club leaders are left-handed thump, starting pitching depth and bullpen.

“We’ve got to power up in certain places,” Lovullo said. “There were some bats missing, maybe a left-handed bat, a first baseman-DH type of thing. We’ll dig in and figure out not necessarily how to overcorrect and all of a sudden you’ve got nine left-handed hitters, but to balance that portion of the roster.”

The Diamondbacks ranked last hitting from the left side against right-handed pitchers, batting .218 collectively. Carroll and Marte rebounding against righties would help (they combined to hit .219 combined), as will Nootbaar’s presence on the roster after he joined at the trade deadline.

Looking at the list of players above, there is a hole that the D-backs failed to cover last winter at first base. A left-handed-hitting first baseman acquired via free agency or trade would kill two birds with one stone.

Arizona first basemen since the 2025 trade deadline have a collective .636 OPS, the worst in MLB. Ten players got reps at the position in 2026 alone, with Tawa earning the right to start for most of the second half.

In an ideal world, the Diamondbacks only have to worry about filling first base, relying on youth to take the next steps in outfield roles.

That means Carroll, Lawlar and Waldschmidt playing nearly every day in the outfield, allowing Nootbaar to DH against righties and fill some outfield innings.

Lawlar has been an injury concern throughout his career, however, while Waldschmidt has to show consistency after he had great moments as a rookie. That’s the argument to bring in a veteran, left-handed outfielder to compete in camp with the hope the youngsters play well enough to stay in the lineup, regardless of matchup.

Here is a list of left-handed batters hitting free agency:

• OF Trent Grisham (NYY)
• DH Joc Pederson (TEX)
• 2B Luis Arraez (PHI)
• INF Jazz Chishom Jr. (NYY)
• OF Daulton Varsho (HOU)
• SS J.P. Crawford (SEA)
• OF Cedric Mullins (TBR)
• INF Brandon Lowe (PIT)
• 1B Jake Bauers (MIL)
• 1B Nathaniel Lowe (CLE)
• 1B Dominic Smith (ATL)

Switch hitters who hit righties at an above-average level this season:

• OF Ian Happ (CHC)
• 1B/DH Josh Bell (MIN)

And right-handed first basemen:

• Alec Bohm (PHI)
• Paul Goldschmidt (NYY)
• Ty France (SDP)
• Ryan Mountcastle (BAL) — $7.5 million club option

Bullpen

Bullpen is a pressing need for the Diamondbacks despite the recent success of that group (fourth in win probability added). Garcia, Morillo and Martinez is a great place to start, but three of their four leaders in appearances are free agents (Ginkel, Clarke and Loaisiga).

The next wave is unproven, including recent trade additions Burgos and Strowd. Saalfrank and Mena returning from shoulder injuries may help, but the D-backs essentially have to rebuild half of their bullpen, which as the club knows well, is one of the hardest things to do in baseball.

“We’re going to need to continue to build out the pitching staff appropriately,” Hazen said. “There are going to be some guys missed that we’re going to need to replace. … Strowd, Carrillo, Burgos hopefully will continue to take steps forward.”

Starting depth

The Diamondbacks have an experienced starting five before they make any moves with Burnes, Kelly, Nelson, Pfaadt and 2026 All-Star Rodriguez.

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