Right-hander Corbin Burnes’ next start will not come in the majors but will instead take place at bridge camp later this week, a reversal of what the Diamondbacks had been tentatively planning for their rehabbing ace.
The reason, manager Torey Lovullo said, is tied to bullpen preservation. Burnes threw only 17 pitches in his two-inning rehab start with Triple-A Reno over the weekend, then threw another 15 pitches in the bullpen.
If Burnes were to make his next start in the majors, he likely would be able to log only two or three innings.
The Diamondbacks already are preparing for their bullpen to take on a heavy workload on Wednesday, Sept. 2, in the series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies. If Burnes had slotted in on Friday, Sept. 4 —
the team is off on Thursday — it would have meant back-to-back days with a heavily taxed bullpen.
“We have a spot on Wednesday in our rotation that is a little bit of an unknown,” Lovullo said. “I want to believe that Jose Cabrera can go out there (on Wednesday) and dial it up, but we might get a little bit tapped out and we’re going to go into a situation on Friday where Corbin could probably give us 40 to 50 pitches and we would have to guard him a little bit and we might get tapped out in back-to-back outings.”
Instead, Burnes will pitch on Thursday in a so-called “bridge camp” game, likely with a pitch count in the 40 to 50 range.
Lovullo said it would be a “fair assumption” that Burnes would make his long-awaited return to the majors after that, which would line him up to pitch next week in Kansas City.
Ketel Marte’s hat choice raises eyebrows
Second baseman Ketel Marte was again a topic of conversation on Tuesday, Sept. 1, a day after he played in his first game since not showing up to the ballpark in Boston two weeks ago.
This time, the questions were about the hat he wore during his postgame interview on Tuesday night. The bright yellow hat had the words, “May the bridges I burn light the way.”
“I don’t know,” Lovullo said when asked about the hat. “I want to move past this Ketel stuff as quickly as possible. I think if you chop up those words, maybe he’s taking some accountability. He feels like he has done some things and he wants to get better. That’s how I read it.”
Not long after Lovullo’s session with reporters, Marte hit a 113-mph line-drive homer into the bullpen area in left field, where it struck a member of the grounds crew. Marte left the batting cage and jogged down to the bullpen to check on the man, who seemed to be OK.
Players were reluctant to say much on the record about Marte’s words to the team during a pregame meeting a day earlier.
“We’re just moving forward,” third baseman Nolan Arenado said. “He’s here, he’s ready to help us win ballgames. And that’s it. To be quite honest, I’ve gotten tired of talking about it. I’m not going to talk about it anymore.
"But he’s here, we want the best for him, we want the best for this group, and he makes our group better. So we just want to go out there and compete.”
Diamondbacks add bat, arm as rosters expand
The Diamondbacks added outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and left-hander Blake Walston to their roster on Tuesday as rosters expanded to 28 with the start of September.
Gurriel figures to see time against left-handed pitching, Lovullo said, though Gurriel was not in the lineup on Tuesday night against Phillies lefty Jesus Luzardo.
Gurriel had a tough time on his rehab assignment with Triple-A Reno, going just 3 for 28 (.107) in eight games.
Once Walston gets in a game, it will mark his first appearance in a major league game since Sept. 24, 2024. Walston underwent Tommy John surgery in March 2025.
Ryne Nelson making progress toward return
Right-hander Ryne Nelson threw a 21-pitch live batting practice session on Tuesday, his first time facing hitters since landing on the injured list in June with a right elbow strain.
Nelson said his next outing likely will come in a minor league rehab game.
“I think there’s still time for me to come back and have an impact and help this team to get us to where we want to go,” Nelson said. “Hopefully we’re playing for another month and a half, two months.”
The Diamondbacks have talked about using Nelson as a multi-inning reliever once he returns from the IL.
Phillies at Diamondbacks, 6:40 p.m., Cox, Ch. 34.
Diamondbacks LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (14-4, 2.50) vs. Phillies LHP Jesus Luzardo (12-5, 3.09)
At Chase Field: Rodriguez fired seven scoreless innings against the Chicago Cubs last week in an outing he said might have been the best he has felt all season. … He allowed two hits, walked three and struck out nine. He also was bailed out by a missed call by the umpires on a would-be balk that would have forced home a run. … In five career starts against the Phillies, Rodriguez has a 2.79 ERA. He faced them twice last season, giving up three runs in 11 1/3 innings. … Luzardo, in his second season with the Phillies, has turned in a strong year, and he helps form a tough Top 3 in their rotation alongside LHP Cristopher Sanchez and RHP Zack Wheeler. … The Diamondbacks gave him trouble during a game in April, scoring five runs off him in 4 2/3 innings. All of their runs came in the fifth inning.
Coming up
Wednesday, Sept. 2: At Chase Field, 12:40 p.m., Diamondbacks TBA vs. Phillies RHP Andrew Painter (3-8, 5.95).
Thursday, Sept. 3: Off.
Friday, Sept. 4: At Houston, 5:10 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Merrill Kelly (9-12, 5.08) vs. Astros RHP Cristian Javier (1-5, 6.45).
Saturday, Sept. 5: At Houston, 4:15 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Brandon Pfaadt (7-2, 3.49) vs. Astros RHP Peter Lambert (8-7, 3.66).
(This story has been updated to add information.)
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phillies vs Diamondbacks live. Latest on Burnes, Ketel Marte's hat
