D-backs GM Mike Hazen Hasn't Lost Faith in Zac Gallen Despite Brutal Season

It's an understatement to say Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Zac Gallen is having a poor season. With injury now added to insult, Gallen's 2026 season simply could not have been going much more poorly.

Gallen is currently on the 15-day injured list with what is being described as right elbow inflammation. He's currently awaiting second opinions on that injury. As many baseball fans know, that type of early diagnosis can turn out to be minor or severe.

As of this writing, it's unknown exactly which direction this particular instance will lean once the results are fully fleshed out.

But one thing is certain: Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen has not given up on Gallen's ability to pull himself out of a two-season-long slump and pitch like a quality arm once again.

Diamondbacks' Mike Hazen on Zac Gallen

Jul 1, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Zac Gallen (23) throws against the San Francisco Giants in the first inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Gallen, after struggling to a career-worst 4.83 ERA in 2025, is posting even uglier numbers this season. He has an MLB-worst 6.34 ERA this year, and his peripherals do not provide hope that he's getting unlucky.

"Zac hasn't had a great season," Hazen said, speaking to Arizona Sports 98.7's Wolf & Luke Show. "We've talked about that. He knows it. He's owned it. Where this medical thing takes us, we'll put that aside."

"I still very much believe in this guy. I always have. This guy has done so much for so long in this league, he has not forgotten how to pitch."

Hazen likened Gallen's situation to that of Eduardo Rodriguez, who posted back-to-back seasons of a 5.00-plus ERA before turning in a 2.29 in the first half of 2026 and earning an All-Star nod.

"I said this on the radio a couple weeks ago, I'll say it again: if we backed up 365 days ago and you guys were asking me about Eduardo Rodriguez, what would you have been saying to me?" Hazen said.

"There's nobody — nobody on planet Earth, including myself, that's currently alive — that would have looked us in the face and said Eduardo Rodriguez is gonna have one of the best first half of any Diamondback pitcher in history and is gonna pitch in the All-Star Game next year. That just wouldn't have been said, and he carried us and he's dominated.

"So I think these things do go in cycles sometimes, guys do get in ruts for longer than a couple starts here or there. But yeah, he's got to pitch better when he comes back. ... If this little blow here physically was what was ailing him to some degree in terms of getting the final finish on his pitches, then that could be a deciding factor in how this goes, too.

A year ago, Gallen began to turn his season around following the Trade Deadline. This year's deadline is less than three weeks away, lying on August 3. If Gallen comes back within the next few weeks fully healthy, his next two months' worth of starts will be of critical importance.

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