Diamondbacks’ Ryne Nelson makes statement in gem outing vs. Phillies

PHOENIX — Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Ryne Nelson walked off the mound to a standing ovation in a final showcase start to remain in the rotation Friday against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Nelson threw 7.1 innings with only two earned runs, and his battery mate Adrian Del Castillo hit a walk-off home run in his first Chase Field home game to pick up a 3-2 win.

Manager Torey Lovullo said postgame the D-backs need to make statements through the rest of the season, and Nelson made his own.

Merrill Kelly will likely return from the 60-day injured list on Sunday, and the D-backs need to pick their starting five. Zac Gallen, Kelly, Brandon Pfaadt and Eduardo Rodriguez make up the top four, while Nelson and underperforming big-ticket free agent Jordan Montgomery are options for the fifth spot.

There will not be a six-man rotation, and Nelson’s latest performance will make it that much harder to go away from him during this postseason race. Lovullo said postgame he was not ready to announce any decision.

“I try not to think about stuff like that, but there’s always those thoughts that creep in every once in a while,” Nelson said. “I try to be able to flush that and go out there and compete and do whatever I can to make their decision as hard as it can be.”

Over his last eight appearances since July 2, Nelson has a 2.90 ERA, and the D-backs have won seven straight of his games.

Nelson began his outing Friday with four perfect innings for the first time in his career before Philadelphia’s Alec Bohm dropped a flare into right field. Corbin Carroll just missed robbing Bohm with a sliding effort after having made a jumping catch in the third inning.

Nelson responded to the double with three straight strikeouts, lighting up Brandon Marsh and J.T. Realmuto with gas. He hit 98.8 mph above the zone to draw a Realmuto whiff, then K’d Nick Castellanos with a slider.

“It was one of those special nights where a lot of pitches were working,” Lovullo said. “A lot of things were going where he wanted with the direction, with the backspin and the velocity. I just wanted to get out of the way of it. I enjoyed it. I was a fan there watching a really good pitcher get after it.”

The shutout bid ended on a Bryce Harper solo home run in the seventh inning, an opposite-field shot. Nelson had not allowed a home run since July 7, throwing four starts without one. Nelson struck out the other three batters to come up during the inning.

Ryne Nelson’s 3Ks in the 5th. pic.twitter.com/8q3s24UQk0

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 10, 2024

His outing ended after a one-out walk to Castellanos in the eighth inning, Nelson’s first walk of the night. He finished his night with three hits allowed and nine strikeouts, the latter of which tied a career high.

The right-hander attacked the zone all night, throwing first-pitch strikes to the first 17 hitters he faced. Through 70 pitches, he threw 55 strikes. That can be dangerous against a team with so much power — especially since the Phillies hit fastballs well and Nelson throws a lot of them. But Nelson hit his spots to avoid the middle of the plate.

“I think on the mechanics side, I’m in the best spot I’ve ever been,” Nelson said. “I think there’s a mentality, when you go back and watch games where you struggled a little bit, you learn from those mistakes. I think it’s just been a super intentional mentality of getting ahead and winning those counts, winning the 1-1 counts where the at-bats kind of switch.”

Nelson said he has shortened his stride to avoid dragging his arm, getting out in front and dotting the strike zone.

That paired with the mental adjustments he’s talked about have lifted him this month.

“Whatever happens, happens,” Nelson said of what comes next.

Ryne Nelson on whether he’s thought about his spot in the rotation with Merrill Kelly coming back. pic.twitter.com/AuFWdbyETc

— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) August 10, 2024

A.J. Puk entered out of the bullpen and gave up a game-tying double to Johan Rojas, giving Nelson a no decision and the second earned run.

Justin Martinez threw a scoreless ninth inning, and Del Castillo launched the first pitch from Philadelphia’s Jeff Hoffman out of the park to win it.

The Diamondbacks (64-53) turn to Gallen on Saturday against Aaron Nola of the Phillies.

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