D-backs Justin Martinez Will Head to Reno for Rehab Assignment

The Arizona Diamondbacks will need to wait a while longer before getting their fireballing closer back into their beleaguered bullpen.

The morning following a disastrous 14-12 loss to the Colorado Rockies, manager Torey Lovullo announced that Martinez will head out to Triple-A Reno to pitch in a rehab game on Tuesday. Following that he will fly back to Arizona to be evaluated and determine next steps.

Martinez went on the Injured List on May 1 with shoulder inflammation. Up through April 17 he had thrown just seven innings (a pace for just 60), and worked on back-to-back days just twice all year. He had not allowed an earned run, and had two saves along with three holds while sharing closer duties with A.J. Puk. Puk went on the injured list on April 18 with a flexor tendon strain, leaving it up to Martinez to carry the full load.

Despite his moderate workload, Martinez began experiencing what Lovullo later referred to as a "dead arm phase" at the exact same time Puk went down. He was unavailable to pitch for the next five days. When he returned to pitching on April 23 he did so with significantly reduced velocity. That continued for two more outings, by which time his 100 MPH sinker had degraded all the way to 93.

Not surprisingly, those three games did not go well, as he walked five batters, hit another, and gave up four runs, three earned, while recording just six outs, taking a loss and a blown save in the process. The team finally sent him for imaging, and placed him on the 15-day injured list.

Ever since Puk and Martinez began experiencing issues starting on April 18, the Diamondbacks bullpen has posted a 6.73 ERA, the second-worst in MLB over that span. The team has stumbled to a 12-15 record as a result, blowing multiple leads and wasting several strong offensive performances.

Since being on the IL, Martinez rested for about a week and then began a throwing program. He pitched in an Arizona Complex League game on Saturday and topped out at 99 MPH.

Lovullo said, "I think everybody wants to know why he's not throwing 100 miles an hour. But he's going to get there, everything's trending in a very positive direction."

The pitcher has reported feeling no pain or discomfort at all through the rehab process. The velocity loss seems to remain somewhat of a mystery for the club.

"We're just trying to figure out where that extra velocity will come from. For me, I'm minimally concerned. I know he averaged over 100 miles an hour with his fastball last year, it's not quite there right now," Lovullo said.

Lovullo feels strongly that the rehab assignment in Reno was necessary to get him a real game situation, as opposed to the atomosphere at Salt River fields.

"You're in a different place, you're in a clubhouse, pitching in a very similar environment to what you're pitching in here, I think things might spike up a little bit."

The Diamondbacks will travel from Los Angeles to St. Louis on Thursday morning to begin a weekend series against the Cardinals on Friday. If Martinez checks out well following the rehab outing on Wednesday, he should be able to rejoin the team in St. Louis and be actiated for that series.

I asked Lovullo about the expectations for Martinez and what kind of a landing spot he might find himself in.

"He's going to find himself on the back end, I want to maybe give him a real smooth, early landing spot, but that doesn't always happen. And let him just migrate and take it from there. We're going to be patient with him," Lovullo said.

Patience is something that the fanbase has long-since run out of. The continued bullpen meltdowns and losses snatched from the jaws of victory have worn on everyone, both in and outside the organization. Like it or not, there will be a lot of expectations on Martinez to resume the closer's role and help stabilize the bullpen.