Why Brandon Pfaadt's Start vs Dodgers was Extremely Encouraging

On Tuesday, Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Brandon Pfaadt delivered an extremely encouraging performance against a Los Angeles Dodgers lineup mostly filled with major-leaguers at Salt River Fields.

Pfaadt pitched 2.2 innings, allowing two base hits, two walks and one earned run. While he did serve up a hard-hit double to star first baseman Freddie Freeman, that was the only true blemish on his performance.

Pfaadt recorded four strikeouts while inducing an impressive 11 whiffs on 19 swings, punching out Mookie Betts, Andy Pages and Miguel Rojas twice.

Collecting more swing-and-miss is always important, but one factor made those whiffs particularly encouraging for Pfaadt's pivotal upcoming season — his sweeper usage.

Arizona Diamondbacks' Brandon Pfaadt Makes Encouraging Start

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Pfaadt (32) during spring training workouts on Feb. 10, 2026, at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale. | Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The young right-hander's most critical secondary pitch is his sweeper, a flat, horizontally-moving slider. Pfaadt's sweeper has been a weapon in the past, but was hammered in the 2025 season as he went on to post a rough-looking 5.25 ERA.

Pfaadt told AZCentral's Nick Piecoro that he had made some tweaks to his sweeper mechanics, hoping to sharpen the offering. On Tuesday, Pfaadt threw nine sweepers — six of them induced a swing-and-miss by members of the Dodgers' lineup.

“I feel like we were always tinkering with it last year,” Pfaadt told Piecoro. “But it’s been a great spot the last few bullpens. That’s a big pitch for me. When that’s on, I feel like I can pitch off of that pitch. I feel like last year we were kind of tinkering with it a lot, just searching for it. I think having that pitch and trusting that pitch more is the game plan this year.”

He also was able to balance his arsenal Tuesday, throwing a balanced mix of six different pitches. His nine sweepers were tied with his cutter and sinker for the most-utilized offering, and he only threw three four-seam fastballs.

The key for Pfaadt will be to rely on his arsenal depth, but that will only be effective if his sweeper continues to be a difficult offering to hit. If he's able to keep that pitch sharp, and rely more on his various fastball offerings at a balanced clip, he will have a much greater chance of achieving a necessary bounce-back.

2026 is going to be a big year for the 27-year-old, who signed a five-year, $45 million extension ahead of the 2025 season. He will be one of the x-factors in a D-backs rotation that has potential, but little recent stability.