Snakes Alive: Previewing the Arizona Diamondbacks Opening Day, 2025 season

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Opening Day is upon us, and it’s no surprise that the Arizona Diamondbacks are among one of the highly-anticipated teams to watch this season.

After a heartbreaking doubleheader loss caused the team to miss the playoffs by a hair last season, the Snakes are alive and well, looking to return to that championship-caliber 2023 team. With some new additions this offseason, the Diamondbacks have a chance to not only make it to the playoffs but maybe even the World Series again.

The Extra Point Podcast: Preview of the Diamondbacks 2025 season:

Opening Day Starter

Manager Torey Lovullo took his time to decide who would take the mound for the Snakes for Opening Day 2025, ultimately deciding to go with Zac Gallen, “The Milkman,” over newbie Corbin Burnes.

This will be Gallen’s third time starting for the Diamondbacks on Opening Day, and he had a very successful outing last season. Last year, the Snakes romped the Colorado Rockies 16-1, with Gallen throwing five innings and only giving up three hits and one run.

So, what did it boil down to in the end for Lovullo? Tenure.

“At the end of the day, Zac’s been here for a long time,” he explained. “I have a very strong bond with Zac. He’s seen some darkness here, he’s come out the other end. And I’ve just known him a long time, and I’ve relied on him in a different way that I will eventually know I’m going to rely on Corbin. I just haven’t gotten there yet.”

The Diamondbacks, who usually aren’t big league spenders, signed Burnes to the largest contract in franchise history this offseason — six years and $210 million. Many believed Burnes, a four-time All-Star and the 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner, would be the Diamondbacks Opening Day starter.

But Burnes reiterated that there was no bad blood between the two All-Star pitchers, respecting his new manager’s decision.

“Happy for [Zac]. Obviously Zac’s the guy, he’s been here for the last couple of years and done the last couple of years. I don’t get paid to make that decision, [Torey] does. Just have to go with it and roll on,” he said.

How will Burnes stack up in the Diamondbacks pitching rotation?

The right-handed Burnes joins a starting rotation that could very well be one of the best in baseball. Burnes joins Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Eduardo Rodriguez, and Brandon Pfaadt, who have all shown success in the big leagues.

The deal was critical in keeping the “Snakes Alive” in a stacked NL West division, and going after the top free-agent pitcher on the market was no easy feat. Plus, the Snakes are trying to keep up with the Los Angeles Dodgers’ big spending, who also signed lefty Blake Snell to a 5-year, $182 million contract this offseason.

What is a bit surprising is that Burnes will be fifth in the rotation to begin the season, and Lovullo contributed this to Burnes’ need for consistency and stability. Since Lovullo decided on the Opening Day starter so late, Burnes would be left with little rest before the start of the season.

Burnes told Lovullo he wished to stay on a five-day schedule, so his Diamondbacks’ debut will be pushed to the Snakes’ first game against the Yankees in New York.

Loss of Montgomery

Just days before Opening Day, the team was already dealt with a blow to its pitching core. The team announced that pitcher Jordan Montgomery would be out for the season for Tommy John surgery.

The loss of Montgomery affects the reliever situation of the season. While he was bumped from the starting rotation this season for Pfaadt, he was slated to be used as a long-form reliever (a very expensive reliever to be paid $25 million this year).

The team must now rely on Bryce Jarvis, Joe Mantiply, Ryan Thompson, Ryne Nelson, and Shelby Miller. Not a bad lineup in the bullpen.

Montgomery’s Diamondbacks career has been an up-and-down roller coaster. He had a bleak 2024 season — racking up a 6.23 ERA in 25 starts. He’s also had a rough start this Spring Training, posting a 15.00 ERA in just two appearances.

Diamondbacks owner Ken Kendrick hasn’t been silent about Montgomery’s pitching troubles. During a radio interview with a local Valley station, Kendrick called the signing “a horrible decision” and took responsibility for the multi-million dollar deal.

“Looking back, in hindsight, a horrible decision to invest that money in a guy who performed as poorly as he did,” Kendrick said. “It’s our biggest mistake this season from a talent standpoint. And I’m the perpetrator of that.”

And this isn’t the first time Montgomery has had Tommy John. During his time with the Yankees, he underwent surgery in the summer of 2018 and returned to the big leagues the next fall.

No Designated Closer?

It seems like the talk of the offseason was the Snakes’ pitching, and one of the questions that emerged was, “Who will be the Diamondbacks’ closer?”

For now, there won’t be a designated closer. Lovullo is opting for a game-by-game approach based on the opposing team’s lineups. But we could very well see the closer situation split between lefty A.J. Puk and righty Justin Martinez.

“Everybody’s throwing really, really well,” Lovullo explained. “I want somebody to emerge in the moment and see where that goes. If we got a wall of righties in the 8th, why wouldn’t I throw Puk in? Or a wall of righties in the 9th, why wouldn’t I throw someone like Martinez or Ginkel? And I don’t want to dismiss Joe Mantiply, he’s a really good lefty. I don’t know what the answer is, but I’ll probably go more matchup-based for right now until it’s the right time to make that decision.”

Last year, Lovullo never specifically designated Ginkel as closer after Paul Sewald lost the job, but Ginkel ended up winning the role as the season progressed.

“I don’t know if I said to Kevin Ginkel, ‘You’re the closer,’ I just kind of leaned on him, like ‘Hey, you’re going to get these last three outs.’ He started to take off in that role. Paul Sewald was our closer,” Lovullo said.

However, Ginkel will start the season injured, pushing back his opportunity to possibly step into the closer role again and provide depth to the Snakes’ bullpen. Towards the end of Spring Training, he had shoulder inflammation, which placed him on the IL list.

Avoid last season’s September collapse

It’s no secret that last season was not the ending the fans and team hoped for, especially after coming off a World Series appearance. The Diamondbacks had a seven-game lead for a Wild Card spot, only to drop five of their last seven games — all coming down to a doubleheader between the Braves and Mets. All three teams held the same 89-73 record, all vying for a spot at victory.

The Diamondbacks needed either team to sweep the other in the doubleheader, but they were eliminated from postseason contention after the Braves and Mets split the series.

While the team was disappointed at missing the playoffs by a mere game, outfielder Jake McCarthy said the magical mid-season run was one of his favorite moments from last season.

“We went on a pretty good run there. I don’t know how many series in a row we won, but throughout the middle of the season we were winning a ton of games, probably from like May to, oh I guess, think before September. September towards the end, not so much, but that was definitely a fun run in the middle,” he said.

Looking to avoid that this season, I believe the team has the best bet if they start out strong early by winning a lot of series before the All-Star break. If they go into the break with a good record, and if, by chance, another collapse happens, they won’t be depending on other NL teams to make a playoff spot. The team could still have a chance by giving themselves a good cushion after the All-Star break.

Winning games against fellow division opponents will be critical, especially as teams are still finding their footing to start the year. Jump on the chance early and win series.

New players in the mix - but familiar faces depart

There will be some new faces for the Snakes this season following the departure of first baseman Christian Walker and designated hitter Joc Pederson. It didn’t take long for the Diamondbacks to fill the first baseman spot, picking up Josh Naylor from the Guardians this offseason.

Naylor could be the new heavy bat that will replace Pederson this season. While he won’t necessarily fill the DH role in the batting lineup, he could be the power hitter the club needs, especially after belting 31 homers and 108 RBIs last season. This should add nicely to the small ball the Snakes are known to play, with Marte and Carroll consistently getting on base.

With Naylor, the Snakes are getting a two-for-one deal — filling two critical spots.

For now, the designated hitter spot in the lineup is a bit up in the air. Grichuk, who resigned with the team in the offseason, or Pavin Smith could fill the role. Both necessarily aren’t known to be power sluggers, with Smith hitting nine homers and 12 for Grichuk last season.

However, the Diamondbacks don’t necessarily need someone to try and kill the ball every at bat. Play smart baseball, get on base, score runs. The small-ball mentality served the Snakes well in the past, so why not continue the recipe for success? Especially with how the lineup stacks against fellow teams. On paper, the Diamondbacks may have one of the best lineups in baseball.

Take a look at how the Diamondbacks’ projected lineup stacks up against their NL West rivals:

Snakes Alive in 2025

Now, it’s time for the team to deliver, and fans will be with them every step of the way to cheer them on this season.

“Opening Day is always exciting. You know, it’s nice that we get to do it here in front of our fans. Spring went by pretty fast this year, so I’m just glad we’re all healthy, and we have a good team this year,” said Jake McCarthy. “It always feels like the first day of school. It’s like the first spring training game I’m always nervous. Then Opening Day, there’s always a lot of stuff going on before. There’s always like flyovers and stuff like that. It’s definitely different, but as a player, I feel like you just have to treat it the same.”

My prediction: Diamondbacks sneak in on a Wild Card spot and make a deep run in the playoffs (hopefully back to the World Series!)

Julia Lopez’s prediction: Diamondbacks topple Dodgers, Padres to clinch the NL West

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