Gabriel Moreno is officially back in the Diamondbacks lineup tonight, stepping in as the designated hitter after a couple of days on the paternity list. The dude just had a baby girl, Gianna, and you can tell he’s beaming, telling reporters his wife and daughter are doing great, even if his son is a little jealous. Moreno looked happy and rested, and honestly, the D-backs need his bat in there, badly.
Moreno’s Return Brings a Much-Needed Spark
Moreno’s timing for paternity leave worked out perfectly, getting back home with the team for the birth without missing a beat on the road. You gotta love that. He said, “I feel good. Feel really good to go out there and do my job,” and his manager, Torey Lovullo, echoed that sentiment, saying Moreno “seems to be in a really good spot. Overall, just glad he’s back in our lineup.” When you’re hitting .298 overall, and a scorching .308 against right-handed pitchers, that bat is straight-up essential. With Moreno back, the Diamondbacks made a couple of moves, sending catcher/DH Adrian Del Castillo down to Triple-A Reno. They also had to put right-hander Ryan Thompson on the 15-day injured list for a strained lower back, calling up left-handed pitcher Philip Abner from Reno. That’s a lot of shuffling for one day, but getting Moreno back for the Padres game is huge.
Key Stars Sit as Slump Concerns Mount
While Moreno’s return is a shot in the arm, the Diamondbacks are hitting the field tonight without some serious firepower. Second baseman Ketel Marte and third baseman Nolan Arenado are both out of the lineup, getting what Lovullo called a “much-needed day off.” He talked about the “grind” and the sheer “amount of games” they’ve been playing, saying, “Those guys, especially Ketel, have been going extremely hard and it was just a day to get them off their feet.” And let’s be real, Marte’s been in a brutal slump. Since July 4, he’s hitting a dismal .178 with a .246 on-base and .290 slugging in 26 games. He’s 0 for his last 13 at bats, and just 7 for his past 46. Arenado, despite playing strong recently, is 35 years old and hasn’t had a full day off since July 5. Both have been lineup anchors, with Marte playing 109 and Arenado 108 of the 114 games this season. Lovullo wants to avoid them “going backwards physically,” trusting the “understudies coming in and getting the job done.” Outfielder Max Kepler is also out after fouling a ball off his foot on Tuesday, but he was cleared and is available off the bench if needed.
The Diamondbacks are certainly going to need those understudies to step up big time tonight against the Padres with two of their main guys resting. It’s going to be interesting to see if this forced rest, especially for Marte’s struggling bat, can actually spark something for the rest of the early season.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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