Zach Davies Activated, Drey Jameson Recalled from Reno

The Diamondbacks have announced a series of roster moves, as they've activated right-hander Zach Davies from the 15-day injured list and recalled right-hander Drey Jameson from Triple-A Reno. To make room, right-handers Brandon Pfaadt and Luis Frías have been optioned to Triple-A.

Davies, 30, re-signed to a one year deal in the off-season and made two starts. He left his left oblique pull in the fifth inning of his start against the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 8th and was subsequently removed from the game. On the season he is 0-0 with a 5.79 ERA, with a team record of 2-0. As a result of his injury, the team turned to their younger starting pitchers to hold the rotation together in his absence.

"Zach Davies has been ready for this opportunity for today," said D-backs manager Torey Lovullo. We decided was what a good jumping off spot for him, he's been throwing the ball extremely well. Everything was crisp and on point. I love the experience, I love the mound presence, the ability to compete in a crisis situation. I know Zach is excited for it."

Jameson, 25, started the year in the bullpen before the Davies' injury put him back in the rotation. After three starts, including a disaster against San Diego on April 23rd, he was optioned to Triple-A Reno. He made five starts for the Aces, pitching to a 5.79 ERA in 28 innings. With Arizona, he's appeared in six games with a 3.71 ERA but a 16/12 strikeout to walk ratio in 17 innings.

"We were a little bit flexed with our starter only going 3 2/3 [innings] yesterday." Lovullo said. "We just needed some coverage in the bullpen. Jameson has been throwing the ball good, he's going into the fifth, sixth inning. We felt like with each start that was happening that he was getting more consistent with all of his stuff. He is ready for this opportunity."

Lovullo indicated that for now Jameson will pitch out of the bullpen but likely in a longer role to stay stretched out, giving them the opportunity to kick the can down the road a bit before making a final determination on his role for the rest of the year.

For his part Jameson said he worked especially hard on his slider, throwing it a lot more than usual to find that pitch. He's excited to be back up in the majors regardless of whether he's pitching out of the pen or starting. Asked what Lovullo told him when he first got back, he said "Compete, just come up and compete"

Pfaadt, 24, made his MLB debut on May 3rd after Jameson was sent down. In his first five MLB starts, he went 0-2 with a 8.37 ERA and an 18/8 strikeout to walk ratio in 23 2/3 innings. He was hit hard, as opponents hit .316 with a 1.017 OPS against him. He'll have an opportunity to reflect on what went wrong and make the proper adjustments in order to work his way back to the big leagues.

"Sending out Brandon Pfaadt was not anything that any of us had hoped to ever do. We thought there was an opportunity for him to come up and show us what he could do. The fastball command was a little bit inconsistent, landing the secondary stuff was not what we had expected. We saw glimpses of it, but I think yesterday he might need a bit more seasoning."

Frías, 25, was recalled from Triple-A on May 17th for his second stint on the big league roster. In five games this season, he has allowed eight runs in 6 2/3 innings with a strikeout to walk ratio of 8/7. Throwing strikes has been an issue for Frías at the big league level, who has a career 9.67 ERA with more walks (29) than strikeouts (25) in 23 games.

"I thought Frías was throwing the ball well. Every time he comes up there are small improvements, and we want that to continue. At some point, I'm going to have a conversation with someone else and we're going to keep Frías. It's just not that time for him right now, but he's on his way and he's been doing a great job of learning, growing with each outing."