The Diamondbacks shall be exercising their $7MM membership choice on Merrill Kelly for the 2025 season, in keeping with Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. The crew may even be declining their finish of a $4MM mutual choice on right-hander Scott McGough, as McGough will head into free company with a $750K buyout. He’ll be joined by Joc Pederson, who took a $3MM buyout after declining his finish of a $14MM mutual choice for the 2025 marketing campaign.
All three selections have been anticipated, even with Kelly lacking over half of the season attributable to a teres main pressure. The precise-hander was restricted to 73 2/3 innings over 13 begins, with a 4.03 ERA and a few fairly unimpressive Statcast numbers, save for a stable 6.3% stroll price.
Assuming good well being for Kelly subsequent 12 months, nevertheless, the $6MM resolution (there was a $1MM buyout connected) was nonetheless a straightforward one for Arizona to make, given how effectively he has usually pitched over his six seasons in a Diamondbacks uniform. Kelly didn’t make his MLB debut till age 30, after the D’Backs signed him to return to North America after a profitable four-season run within the KBO League. Over the course of two separate contracts with Arizona, Kelly has now earned $37.5MM over a seven-year span since getting back from South Korea.
The D’Backs have been hoping for extra reclamation success after they signed McGough to a two-year, $6.25MM deal within the 2022-23 offseason, as McGough had pitched effectively over 4 seasons with the Yakult Swallows of Nippon Skilled Baseball. Sadly, McGough posted a 4.73 ERA in 70 1/3 innings out of Arizona’s bullpen in 2023, after which a 7.44 ERA in 32 2/3 frames this season. The precise-hander’s residence run and stroll charges have been fixed points, whereas McGough’s strikeout price additionally plummeted from 28.6% in 2023 to only 16.7% this season.
Pederson nearly completely confronted right-handed pitching this season, and was utilized solely as a chosen hitter. Albeit inside this restricted scope, Pederson loved a monster 12 months, hitting .275/.393/.515 with 23 homers over 449 plate appearances. Amongst all position-player free brokers, solely six posted a better fWAR than Pederson’s 3.0 mark in 2024, and solely Juan Soto had a better wRC+ than Pederson’s 151.
Whereas Pederson resisted being a full-time platoon participant or DH earlier in his profession, embracing his specialist position has apparent upside, and will result in one other good payday as he enters his age-33 season. No scarcity of groups may use Pederson’s energy, and a return to the D’Backs is definitely a chance given how effectively the veteran slugger carried out in his first season in Arizona. Randal Grichuk additionally declined his finish of a mutual choice, leaving the Diamondbacks with out each items of their unofficial lefty-righty platoon. Relying on the asking costs, the D’Backs may maybe look to re-sign one in all Pederson or Grichuk, after which look one other complementary bat to fill the opposite facet of the digital platoon.
