Jordan Montgomery up, Ryne Nelson sent to IL and Jace Peterson designated by D-backs

The Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday recalled starting lefty Jordan Montgomery to make his debut with the team Friday against the San Francisco Giants and sent fellow starter Ryne Nelson to the 15-day injured list.

Arizona on Friday also designated infielder Jace Peterson for assignment and recalled outfielder Pavin Smith from Triple-A Reno.

Nelson exited a series-opening loss to the Giants on Thursday after a ball came back to hit his throwing arm at Oracle Park.

On the second inning’s final out, Giants’ Mike Yastrzemski connected with a pitch, sending the ball right back at Nelson. The ball ricocheted off of Nelson’s throwing arm, but Nelson was able to finish fielding the ball to complete the out.

“It’s a little stiff right now,” Nelson said after Arizona’s 5-0 loss. “It doesn’t feel too great. Got hit right in the sweet spot, right on the elbow. So we’re just going to see how it feels tomorrow in the morning. Give it some rest and we’ll know more tomorrow.”

“I met with him in my room this afternoon and we just decided instead of getting up to the start line and wonder how your engine is going to run, let’s pull back a little bit and you just go up there when you’re 100% ready to go fully gassed up,” manager Torey Lovullo told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo. “His spot will be waiting for him when he returns.”

Montgomery has ramped up in the minors since signing with the D-backs just as the 2024 season began.

Over two starts in Triple-A Reno, he pitched 7.2 total innings with nine earned runs, nine strikeouts and five walks combined. Much of that damage came in a Saturday start in which the 31-year-old allowed two home runs and seven runs.

Peterson has a single hit in 22 at-bats this year. He was acquired last season and played 40 games with Arizona, batting .183.

Smith has yet to appear for the D-backs this year but is slashing .298/.417/.873 in Triple-A Reno this year. The utility man was on the postseason roster as the Diamondbacks made a World Series run in 2023, and he recorded three hits in just 10 at-bats.

“Jace is a great teammate and a good player. This was a tough conversation for us to have,” Lovullo said. “He just wasn’t executing, it wasn’t happening, it wasn’t working the way we needed it to work. Right now, we need some offense. Pavin can hit, he can flat-out hit and he’s gonna get some opportunities.”

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