Diamondbacks to activate veteran outfielder from injured list

Randal Grichuk appears to be on the verge of his Diamondbacks debut, as John Gambadoro of 98.7FM Phoenix (X link) reports that the outfielder is expected to be activated from the 10-day injured list prior to Friday’s game with the Braves.  Outfielder Jorge Barrosa was already optioned to Triple-A today to create room on the active roster.

Due to a January surgery that removed bone spurs from Grichuk’s ankle, he missed some of his usual offseason prep work and thus additional ramp-up time was likely to be required at the start of the season.  A firmer timeline was put in place as Grichuk landed with the D-backs on a one-year contract worth $2M in guaranteed money (with a mutual option for 2025) and Arizona indeed put him on the 10-day IL so Grichuk could get some more outfield work in via a rehab assignment at Triple-A Reno.  His IL placement was retroactive to March 25, so Grichuk’s stint lasted beyond the minimum 10 days only due to the fact that the D’Backs didn’t have a game today.

The 32-year-old veteran is expected to primarily face left-handed pitching this year, serving as a right-handed hitting counterpoint to the lefty-swinging group of DH Joc Pederson, utilityman Jace Peterson and outfielders Jake McCarthy and Alek Thomas.  Corbin Carroll will naturally play every day in the outfield, and Thomas was himself sent to the 10-day IL earlier this week due to a hamstring strain.  Since it appears as though Thomas’ injury is moderately serious, it could open up more playing time for Grichuk right away.

Grichuk delivered a league-average 100 wRC+ over 471 plate appearances with the Rockies and Angels in 2023, hitting .267/.321/.459 with 16 home runs.  Grichuk’s splits have become increasingly slanted in recent years, and last season saw him hit .244/.294/.401 over 337 PA against righties and a far superior .328/.388/.607 slash line in 134 PA against southpaws.  A platoon role seems like the best use of Grichuk at this point in his career and he’ll now get a chance to contribute for a Diamondbacks team that is clearly in win-now mode.