Overview
- Rating: 5.13
- 2025 stats: 42 G, 34.1 IP, 4.19 ERA, 3.63 FIP, 0.2 bWAR
- Date of birth: March 19, 1999 (age 26 season)
- 2025 earnings: Major-league minimum
- 2026 status: Pre-arbitration, two minor-league options remaining
2025 review
I was a little surprised to realize Morillo appeared in as many as forty-two games for the D-backs this year. Only Jalen Beeks and Ryan Thompson pitched more often, and Juan took the mound more often than
many more well-known names. It may be because he didn’t see very many high-leverage situations: just 43 of his PA were classified as such – fewer than, say, Kyle Backhus. Though Morillo actually did pretty well there, holding batters to a .190 average (6-for-31); on the other hand, he did walk more (10) than he struck out (9), suggesting he was being cautious in such situations. He also dialed up five double-plays, which certainly helped.
It’s actually quite impressive, considering he wasn’t on the radar, or even in the Arizona organization, at the end of last season. He was with the Dodgers, who had originally signed him out of Venezuela, all the way back in 2015. Between COVID and injury, Morillo’s path through the minor leagues was severely derailed, the pitcher making just one appearance in 2020-22. In 2024, he was still pitching in Double-A, and had a mediocre 4.76 ERA there, with an underwhelming K:BB of 50:29 across 51 innings. In November, he chose to become a free agent, and the D-backs picked Juan up ten days later, in a move which nobody appears to have noticed at the time.
Morillo spent the winter in the Venezuelan league, and something appears to have clicked there, in particular to trust his undeniably impressive stuff, with a fastball capable of touching three digits, and throw strikes. That had been a problem all the way with LA, but he said in April, “I think I learned [a lot] in winter ball last year. I think it helped me a lot to get in there, to throw the ball over the plate all the time, because that’s all we have to do. That’s what we practice every day. That’s what we do every day.” He drew the attention of future team-mate, catcher Jose Herrera, who helped nudge the pitcher towards Arizona: “I knew there was something special in that arm.”
When spring rolled around, Morillo made a strong impression in the Cactus League, striking out ten over seven innings, while walking just one. That got him his first taste of Triple-A baseball, and he performed well in his debut there too. Despite the tough environment of the PCL, Juan gave up one run over 6.1 innings, with a solid K:BB of 8:2. With the Arizona bullpen losing arms faster than the Crazy 88s, he was one of the relievers called up to the majors on April 19. He got to share an Uber from Reno with fellow right-handers Drey Jameson and J.P. Feyereisen, though Morillo was the only one of the trio who not to have pitched in the big leagues previously.
He made his debut the same day against the Cubs, striking out Kyle Tucker and Michael Busch in a scoreless seventh inning. His last pitch, getting Busch swinging, was clocked at 99.9 mph. Morillo would eventually crack three figures on May 2nd, against Trea Turner, and later in the year touched a season high of 100.8 mph. The walks were still occasionally a problem – there were several games where he walked more batters then he retired – and he was sent back to Reno on three separate occasions. However, his ability to remain healthy meant his stays in Triple-A were never longer than a month, allowing Juan to rack up the appearances, as noted above.
All told, Morillo ended the year with 36 strikeouts across 34.1 innings, a rate trailing only Shelby Miller among the fourteen D-backs to throw 30+ innings. However, he also walked 20, a rate trailing nobody in that same group. So it appears Juan was more or less as advertised. His average fastball of 99.0 mph put him in the ninety-eighth percentile of pitchers, and his xERA was below his actual figure, at 3.80. Below you’ll find a quick montage of batters striking out swinging at Morillo offerings, and that should give you some idea of what his potential can be, when he can spot his pitches.
2026 outlook
As rookie seasons go, I’d have to call Morillo’s last campaign a success. If the season were to start right now, he would probably be one of the arms in the Arizona bullpen, though this is partly due to attrition and injury. I believe the team will be looking for a number of more experienced relievers – right now, the projected bullpen is mostly comprised of people with less than one year’s service time. With Morillo still having minor-league options left, I would expect him to get pushed down the depth chart significantly between now and Opening Day, and it would be no surprise if he were to start the year off again with the Reno Aces.
However, I think he’s going to be high on the list of arms considered for a call-up. While I hope he would not be needed in the middle of April, as was the case this season, I would definitely not be surprised to see him here at some point during the first couple of months. There are still questions about his control, and whether Morillo can fix that or not, is likely to determine the duration of his stay in the majors. If all goes well, he could develop into a worthwhile high-leverage option for the seventh or eighth innings. I would particularly enjoy seeing him pitch against the Dodgers, and rubbing their nose in it after Los Angeles decided to let him go.
