Nelson allowed one run on four hits and one walk while striking out six over 4.1 innings in Friday's spring start against Colorado.
The battle for the final rotation spot is heating up late in camp. Prospect Brandon Pfaadt has been the most consistent throughout, but he would have to be added to the 40-man roster which could sway the decision toward Nelson. His spring got off to a rocky start, but the right-hander cobbled together a couple of strong outings the past week. The competition has evolved since the start of camp with Drey Jameson and Tommy Henry each topping the group on iterations of the projected roster from MLB.com's Steve Gilbert, but it's now looking more like Nelson or Pfaadt.
Nelson allowed one run on four hits and one walk while striking out two over 2.2 relief innings during Sunday's spring game against Colorado.
It was a day for the two leading candidates for the No. 5 starter job. Drey Jameson started for the Diamondbacks, giving up five runs over three-plus innings, while Nelson threw multiple relief innings. Statistically, Jameson has produced better Cactus League results, but Nelson is trending upward, including a promising stint in a "B" game that doesn't count toward his spring statistics. Others in the hunt for the same role are Tommy Henry and Brandon Pfaadt.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Throws B game
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Nelson allowed four runs on three hits and one walk while striking out six over 2.2 innings in a "B" game against the Rangers on Tuesday, Theo Mackie of the Arizona Republic reports.
Nelson made two Cactus League starts prior to this back-field work, and he's allowed multiple runs in all three appearances, although this third outing was the best of the lot. He's had issues throwing quality strikes this spring, but the right-hander was able to land his off-speed stuff in the zone Tuesday. Nelson is competing primarily with Drey Jameson for the final rotation spot, with Tommy Henry and Brandon Pfaadt in the mix to a lesser extent.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Has second rocky start
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Nelson allowed three runs on four hits and two walks while striking one over 1.2 innings in Thursday's spring game against the Dodgers.
Nelson, who is in the mix for the final spot in the rotation, had a second consecutive rocky outing to begin the Cactus League, raising his spring ERA to 23.63 through 2.2 innings. It's wise for fantasy managers to recognize that pitchers are working on things during spring training, so results aren't primary. That's a point the right-hander made to Michael Reynolds of MLB.com when discussing the two-run, first-inning home run Freddie Freeman hit on a changeup, a pitch Nelson wouldn't normally throw to a hitter like Freeman. "Sometimes my plan doesn't line up with how to attack these hitters [in spring training]," Nelson said. "I probably shouldn't have thrown that changeup in the zone, but I'm just trying to fill up the zone with all my pitches right now." Arizona manager Torey Lovullo is confident Nelson will settle in with more reps and innings.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Chased in second inning
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Nelson allowed four runs on four hits and two walks while striking out one over one-plus innings in Saturday's spring game against Colorado. "I think the fastball felt good, fastball command felt good," Nelson told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. "I threw some offspeed pitches I really liked, [but] I think there's still consistency with [offspeed pitches] that can be better."
Nelson gave up a pair of run-scoring doubles in the first inning, then was removed after he allowed the first two batters to reach base in the second. Those runners eventually came around to score while Eric Yardley was on the mound. Nelson is one of two leading candidates, along with Drey Jameson, to fill the fifth-starter job this season. Jameson allowed a hit and a walk over two scoreless innings in a split-squad game against the Athletics.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: To make Cactus debut Saturday
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Nelson (shoulder) will start the Diamondbacks' Cactus League home opener Saturday against the Rockies, Theo Mackie of the Arizona Republic reports.
Drey Jameson will get the split-squad nod over at the Athletics' minor league complex. Those two are the lead candidates to claim the No. 5 spot in the Diamondbacks' rotation out of camp this spring, though word is that top prospect Brandon Pfaadt might be somewhere in that mix as well. Nelson suffered a right scapula injury toward the end of the 2022 season but is now fully healthy at the start of spring training.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: In mix for final rotation spot
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Nelson (shoulder) is in the mix for the No. 5 starter job, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.
Nelson was shut down at the end of the 2022 with a right scapula injury, but at the time, the Diamondbacks did not expect the injury to impact him going forward. The right-hander had a nice three-start run in September before the injury ended his season, posting a 1.47 ERA and 0.82 WHIP over 18.1 innings. His primary competition figures to come from Drey Jameson and Tommy Henry with top pitching prospect Brandon Pfaadt having an outside shot.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Lands on injured list
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Nelson was placed on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with right scapula inflammation.
Nelson had X-rays come back negative after he was struck by a comebacker in the right forearm during Sunday's start against the Padres, but he's now headed to the IL with a inflammation around his shoulder. The 24-year-old will be eligible to return for the last couple days of the regular season, though it's unclear if he's expected to be ready to pitch by that point.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Avoids serious damage
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X-rays taken on Nelson's forearm following Sunday's loss to the Padres came back negative, Theo Mackie of The Arizona Republic reports. "It's just a bruise, we dodged a bullet," Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said of Nelson's injury.
Nelson took a comebacker off the forearm of his pitching arm and was removed midway through the sixth inning after tossing a warmup pitch. He said he felt good and wanted to stay in the game, but Lovullo exercised caution and removed the young hurler. Nelson lines up to pitch Friday against the Giants, assuming he experiences no issues with his forearm during his between-starts bullpen session.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Exits with apparent injury
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Nelson was removed from Sunday's game against the Padres in the top of the sixth inning after being hit by a comebacker on his upper right arm, Theo Mackie of The Arizona Republic reports.
Nelson allowed four runs (three earned) on three hits and four walks while striking out three in 5.1 innings to begin Sunday's matchup, but his start was cut short due to his injury. He threw a few warmup pitches and seemed to want to stay in Sunday's matchup, but he was ultimately removed. If he's cleared to make his next turn through the rotation, he tentatively lines up to start at home against the Giants on Friday.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Stymies Dodgers in no-decision
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Nelson didn't factor in the decision against the Dodgers on Monday despite pitching six scoreless innings, during which he allowed two hits and two walks while striking out six batters.
Nelson impressed in his first big-league start last week, tossing seven shutout frames against San Diego. He was arguably as dominant against the league's top-scoring club Monday, yielding only two hits -- a single and a triple -- and keeping Los Angeles off the scoreboard through six frames. The rookie right-hander racked up 13 swinging strikes and fanned six batters, nearly matching the mark of seven strikeouts he registered in his debut. Nelson has thrown 13 straight scoreless innings to begin his career and will almost certainly remain in the rotation, with a rematch against the Padres this weekend looking like his next trip to the mound.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Awarded another start
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Nelson is slated to start Monday's game against the Dodgers at Chase Field, Eric Stephen of SBNation.com reports.
Nelson will unsurprisingly receive another turn through the rotation after he dazzled in his MLB debut Sept. 5 against the Padres, striking out seven over seven scoreless frames in a winning effort. The Dodgers present a stiff test for the 24-year-old righty, who will tentatively line up for a two-start week. His second turn comes next weekend at home in a rematch with the Padres.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Dominant in big-league debut
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Nelson (1-0) earned the win over San Diego on Monday, pitching seven scoreless innings during which he gave up four hits and struck out seven batters without issuing a walk.
Nelson wasn't overly impressive in the minors this season, posting a 5.43 ERA, 1.39 WHIP and 128:47 K:BB over 136 innings across 26 Triple-A starts. He looked every part a major-leaguer in his big-league debut, however, holding the Padres to four hits and no runs. The rookie right-hander threw 61 of 87 pitches for strikes in an efficient seven frames. Given his impressive performance Monday, Nelson is likely to get another turn in what currently shapes up as a six-man rotation.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Called up in advance of start
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The Diamondbacks selected Nelson's contract from Triple-A Reno ahead of his scheduled start Monday in San Diego.
Nelson will be making his MLB debut Monday, with his performance against the Friars likely to dictate whether he sticks around with the Diamondbacks as a member of the six-man rotation. The 24-year-old owns an unremarkable 5.43 ERA over 136 innings on the season, but he's shown significant improvement since making some mechanical tweaks in late May that enabled him to sharpen his command. Over his final three months at Triple-A, Nelson turned in a 4.61 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 85:31 K:BB across 95.2 innings.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Mechanical changes pave way to MLB
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Nelson, who will make his MLB debut for Arizona on Monday, implemented two mechanical adjustments late in May that improved his results going forward, Theo Mackie of The Arizona Republic reports.
Nelson was sitting on a 7.36 ERA through nine starts for Triple-A Reno in the Pacific Coast League, notoriously known as a hitters league. That's when the Diamondbacks spotted his arm path was long, meaning he was reaching too far back on each pitch. The right-hander was given exercises designed to shorten the path, and the results were immediate. "The carry came back," pitching coordinator Dan Carlson said. "The command came back. And also the breaking ball got much, much sharper and then with the slider and change, he was able to keep those things in the strike zone." Around that same time, Nelson ditched an adjustment to his lower mechanics, a shorter leg kick he implemented during the offseason. In 17 starts since, Nelson pitched to a 4.61 ERA, lower than the league average 5.43 ERA for the PCL.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Debuting Monday against Padres
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Nelson will be called up from Triple-A Reno to start Monday's game against the Padres, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.
The team will afford its starters an extra day of rest this turn through the rotation and give Nelson a look at the major-league level. A second-round pick in 2019, Nelson flashed some impressive strikeout stuff at prior stops in the minors. His strikeouts are down this season, however, and his flyball tendencies have led to some home-run issues in the Pacific Coast League.
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Diamondbacks' Ryne Nelson: Missing bats at Triple-A
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Nelson, who opened the year at Triple-A Reno, has allowed just two runs while striking out 13 in eight innings.
One of Arizona's top pitching prospects, Nelson could make his big-league debut this summer. He has allowed eight hits and surrendered one home run while issuing just one walk through two starts.
