As free agent starters begin to find new homes , , , and have all signed in the past two weeks interest in the Diamondbacks collection of rotation arms has started to pick up, general manager Mike Hazen . The D-backs have at least six starters on the roster at present: , , , , and . Of the six, Montgomery is the most obvious trade candidate, following a rough 2024 showing and owner Ken Kendricks . In October, Kendrick openly lamented ever pushing his front office to sign Montgomery late in the 2023-24 offseason, calling it a horrible decision to have invested that money in a guy that performed as poorly as he did and our biggest mistake this season from a talent standpoint. Montgomery unsurprisingly even after being called out by Kendrick a straightforward decision for a pitcher coming off an injury-shortened year with career-worst marks in ERA (6.23), strikeout rate (15.6%) and walk rate (8.3%). For all the focus placed on Montgomerys struggles last year, the other veteran lefty signed by Arizona last offseason also fell well short of expectations. Rodriguez signed a four-year, $80MM pact with the Snakes but was limited to just 10 starts after opening the season on the injured list due to a shoulder strain. He pitched 50 innings of 5.04 ERA ball while showing diminished life on his four-seamer and sinker. Rodriguez is owed $20MM for the coming season, $21MM in 2026 and $19MM in 2027. Hes also guaranteed a $6MM buyout on a $17MM mutual option for the 2028 season an option that could automatically vest based on his innings tallies in 2026-27. While Montgomerys contract is underwater, the three years and $66MM remaining on Rodriguezs pact very likely make him even harder to unload. Any of the other four arms in Arizonas rotation would be Boban Marjanovic Jersey hard to pry loose. Ace Zac Gallen is a Cy Young contender when healthy, evidenced by fifth- and third-place finishes in 2022 and 2023 balloting. He mi sed about a month of action with a hamstring strain in 2024 and flashed worse command than usual (relative to his excellent standards, anyhow), but any team would love to have the right-hander. Hes to earn $14.1MM in his final season of club control before becoming a free agent next winter. Gallen is not being shopped, to be clear. Hazen even chuckled at the mere notion of Gallen being a prominent trade candidate in a mid-November appearance on (2:35 mark). Thats unlikely to stop other teams from trying. Kelly, like Gallen, is a free agent next offseason. He mi sed more than three months in 2024 with a shoulder strain but was generally effective when healthy, logging a 4.03 ERA with a slightly below-average 21% strikeout rate and a strong 6.3% walk rate. Arizona made an easy call to for the upcoming season. Nelson and Pfaadt are both controllable and thus quite valuable to the Snakes. The 26-year-old Nelson is under club control for four more seasons and just to sed 150 2/3 innings with a 4.24 ERA, 20% strikeout rate and outstanding 5.4% walk rate in 2024. Those numbers are skewed by a slow start, but from July onward, Nelson posted a 3.05 ERA, 24.8 K% and 5.0 BB% in 82 2/3 frames. Hes not yet eligible for arbitration. Pfaadt, also 26, paced the D-backs with 181 2/3 innings and 32 starts. His 4.71 ERA doesnt stand out, but his 24.3% strikeout rate, 5.5% walk rate, 3.61 FIP and 3.65 SIERA are all far more encouraging. He mightve worn down a bit late in the season as he pushed through that new career-high workload, as his worst months were August and September. A disproportionate amount of the damage against Pfaadt this season came in one nightmare September outing, wherein the Brewers tagged him for eight runs in just 1 2/3 innings. Lopping off even that one start would cause his season-long ERA to drop by nearly 40 points. Regardle s, the former top prospect is a 2025 breakout candidate when considering his pedigree and rate stats that far outpace his pedestrian earned run average. Of the arms on the big league staff, hes probably the most difficult for another team to acquire. Theres depth even beyond that sextet. Right-hander will be back from 2023 Tommy John surgery next year. Hes already had some big league succe s. There are another five starters on the 40-man roster and likely ticketed for Triple-A, all of whom have minor league options remaining and at least a bit of MLB experience: , , , and . Few organizations boast a stockpile of arms so deep. All of that is to say its hardly a surprise that clubs are calling the D-backs about their starters. The same is true of their outfielders, . Piecoro writes that (naturally) Montgomery is both the likeliest to move and the pitcher whom the team would most strongly prefer to deal. Hazen stated that Kendricks comments regarding the left-hander have zero impact on the urgency to trade him, though theres likely some public-facing lip service at play there. Piecoro adds that the D-backs would be willing to take on another contract of some note in return for Montgomery (if said player filled a roster need) or perhaps pursue more of a traditional salary dump, where they shed as much of the contract as po sible for little to no return. Of note, Hazen suggested that if hes to ultimately move Montgomery in deal that is primarily rooted in salary relief, the trade would need to come together before the bulk of quality free agents come off the board: At some point, it doesnt make sense because your pivot moves are picking at the edges rather than getting somebody (who is more of a target). Tyler Bey Jersey