Right-hander Ryne Nelson noticed that left-hander Jordan Montgomery was stationed in the ’ bullpen on Friday
evening, but rather than assume what that might mean for his own status in the
starting rotation, Nelson did what he has done for most of the past month. He blocked it out and went to work.
It was not until after the game, in which Nelson turned in another sharp performance in a 12-2 smothering of the
at Fenway Park, that he learned what the club had planned for him. He found out, as it turned out, from a reporter’s question in his postgame media scrum.
It’s awesome,” Nelson said. “It’s been a weird month or so now. It’s kind of been, like, looming. But now the thing is to not l
et that change anything that’s going on. I just want to stay with my process and keep working, keep going out there and
keep giving my team the best chance to win.”
As August approached, changes in the Diamondbacks’ rotation appeared inevitable. Right-hander Merrill Kelly
and lefty Eduardo Rodriguez were nearing returns from injury. Kelly has been among the better pitchers in
baseball the past few years. Rodriguez was paid $80 million in December to shore up the staff.
Rookie Yilber Diaz was the first to cede his spot. It was widely assumed Nelson would be next, and even manager Torey
Lovullo seemed to admit before the game that he might have been leaning in that direction two weeks ago.
