Paul Sewald making adjustments as Diamondbacks continue exploring closer options

PHOENIX — As the Arizona Diamondbacks continue to work with a closer-by-committee, manager Torey Lovullo’s hope is someone will emerge as the clear ninth-inning option after Paul Sewald was removed from the position.

Justin Martinez has received the opportunity to do so for Arizona’s last three saves, and when it comes to closer stuff, he’s got it. No one else in the bullpen supplies a 102 mph heater nor a splitter so devastating, although he is a 23-year-old rookie with some growing pains had and to be had. He is scoreless in nine of his last 11 appearances.

Lovullo has not anointed anyone despite the trust shown in Martinez recently, and he continues to leave the door open for Sewald to walk back in.

“I think Justin is capable of a lot, I think we all see that,” reliever Ryan Thompson told Arizona Sports. “Having a lot of experience in various roles throughout my career in the bullpen, it’s good to have consistency and to get multiple high leverage opportunities for him. For him to get those experiences is really crucial for him. The way I see him, I can’t speak for the team, but the way I see him as the next, like, (Emmanuel) Clase-type closer.”

Clase is a three-time All-Star for Cleveland with a 100 mph heater and wipeout slider, high praise for the youngster who has significantly improved his control but has room to grow (12.3% walk rate compared to 8.3% league average).

Thompson and left-hander A.J. Puk have also recorded saves since the spot opened up.

Sewald, meanwhile, continues to make strides after a nightmare July — 10 innings, 12 earned runs and 18 hits with four blown saves. The veteran is throwing in lower leverage innings while working to find his form again.

Having a defined closer makes life easier for the manager to build out games from the ninth inning in and other relievers who better understand when they will pitch, as was the case when Sewald joined the club at the deadline in 2023.

“I don’t know how sustainable this is,” Lovullo told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo this past week.

“I know there’s some youthfulness down there and a lot of eagerness, and the guys are just willing to do whatever it takes. Our best team has Paul Sewald as a closer on the back end. He knows how to do it. He’s done it at a really high level, and he’s throwing the ball better. So when he’s getting it right and doing it the way we want him to do it, he’s gonna take that back and he’s gonna be our closer, but we got to get him there. I do like to have somebody on the back end like that, but we just haven’t made that decision.”

The Diamondbacks’ bullpen became a catalyst for their postseason run last year. That structure re-emerged when Sewald got back from an oblique strain that knocked him out for the first five weeks of the year.

Sewald believes the outside panic grew too quickly given his track record, which Thompson reciprocated, however such can be life as a closer for a team fighting for postseason position. Those were big games, including versus the Dodgers and Padres within the same week, and the D-backs deemed it was necessary to try elsewhere for the time being. Sewald has maintained his leadership role in the clubhouse throughout the process.

“What I’ve seen from him is really impressive,” Thompson said. “The ups and downs aren’t affecting him. … He’s one of our team leaders, his role difference hasn’t changed his leadership whatsoever. He’s a guy all of us look up to in the bullpen. I would love to see him be our closer again. I think that’s when our team is at its best. But at the same time, I do see Justin as our future. So however they decide to shake that out, I think it’ll be good.”

Paul Sewald making adjustments

For Sewald, getting away from his starting position proved to be a big deal. Looking at highlights from last season, Sewald was more hunched over before losing the closer’s role.

“My setup position was way different than it was last season, so that was a big red flag,” Sewald told Arizona Sports. “If you’re a golfer, the first thing they teach you in a lesson is to have the right grip. If you don’t have the right grip, you’re already starting off one foot behind everybody. So I had to make sure I got in the right position to start so I could let my body try and do what it’s supposed to do.”

His results have improved since his demotion, as he has thrown six scoreless innings with three hits and eight strikeouts. Sewald has hit the top bar of the strike zone with the fastball effectively and is seeing more movement on the sweeper. Both of his pitches have seen an uptick in velocity, with the fastball showing 92-93 mph more often (91.7 mph average this season).

Sewald said there has not been one pitch where it snapped into place, this will be a process.

Watching his teammates handle the ninth inning, Sewald said being the closer is not necessarily harder but different. Martinez is getting valuable experience with that. Martinez was not on the postseason roster, so every game from here on out will be the highest leverage of his young career.

“It’s really difficult to get reps in that spot because it’s the end of the game, it’s the most important spot,” Sewald said. “It’s hard to just be like, ‘Hey, I’m gonna give you 20 times to kind of try and figure that out.’ J-Mart had a couple that he didn’t do early in the year, and that’s not because he can’t do it, because everyone can see he can.

“It’s just different when there’s nobody else down there, you’re the last line of defense and the game is over after you’re done, it’s just a mental change and so you kind of pitch differently than you would in the sixth or seventh inning. That’s not necessarily fair. It’s just different. We’ll have eight people down there today, I trust all eight.”

Arizona’s bullpen in August thus far has a solid 3.78 ERA with an above average strikeout rate, although four blown saves is tied for the league lead. Arizona has 22 blown saves this season the fifth most in MLB.

Lovullo’s comments on the matter beg the question of whether it is certain Sewald will get another crack at closing. Perhaps it depends on how dependable Martinez can be to earn the title.

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