Injury Added to Insult for D-backs as Pitcher Leaves with Trainer

The Diamondbacks may have lost Kade Strowd for a while

Feb 22, 2026; Salt River Pima-Maricopa, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Kade Strowd (24) delivers to the plate in the third inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Arizona Diamondbacks lost a game to the Washington Nationals 14-1 on Friday night. They may have lost a promising young reliever in the process.

Kade Strowd, making his season debut for the D-backs, came on to pitch the in the seventh inning in relief of Phillip Abner. He gave up a base hit and then got the next two outs to get out of the inning.

Strowd came back out to pitch the eighth inning. Facing four batters, he walked three of them, and could be seen shaking his arm repeatedly and walking around the mound between pitches. He was clearly uncomfortable.

Kade Strowd Suffers Injury

Kade Strowd talks in front of his locker the day he was called up to MLB, June 4, 2026, Chase Field Phoenix Arizona | Jack Sommers

Finally, following his 32nd pitch, Torey Lovullo went directly to the umpire to make the pitching change and trainer Max Esposito went out to talk to Strowd. Walking off with Esposito, and later sitting on the bench talking to the trainer, Strowd was visibly distressed.

The D-backs and ended up having to use catcher Arian Del Castillo to finish things off. Merrill Kelly started and was hit hard for seven runs in five innings.

Following the game Torey Lovullo told reporters, including Arizona Sports' Alex Weiner, said that Strowd "couldn't feel the baseball and throw it where he wanted to."

"He's been evaluated by our medical team. We might know more in the next 24 hours," said Lovullo. Lovullo likened the injury to a dead arm situation.

It's an especially tough blow for the 28-year-old right-hander. Included in the trade of Blaze Alexander trade to the Orioles, Strowd posted a 1.71 ERA in 26 innings for Baltimore in 2025.

But the right-hander struggled in spring training and was optioned to Triple-A Reno to start the year. His numbers there were not great either, as he was having a hard time throwing strikes. Strowd walked 16 batters in 20 innings for the Aces while posting a 4.95 ERA

But Strowd's stuff is promising, and the D-backs had a need for a reliever with Taylor Clarke on the Family Emergency Leave list until Sunday. So Strowd was the one called up along with Abner this week during a multi player move to buttress the bullpen.

Now he'll have to hope the injury is not serious and he can get back to pitching for the Diamondbacks soon. If truly just a dead arm phase, the recovery for that is generally fairly quick. Stay tuned for further updates as they become available.