Arizona Diamondbacks 2024 Player Review: Ryne Nelson

The young D-backs right-hander took a huge leap forward in his second season's worth of significant action.

Sep 3, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Ryne Nelson (19) gestures as he walks off the field after throwing against the San Francisco Giants during the fourth inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-Imagn Images / John Hefti-Imagn Images

This article is part of a series chronicling the individual seasons of players who appeared for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2024.

Reviews for players who still have rookie eligibility for 2025 will appear in our prospect season reviews. Players are presented in the reverse order of their aWAR, an average of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs WAR.

RHP Ryne Nelson

2024 Contract status: Pre-arbitration, $764,300.

Ryne Nelson 2024 and career statistics / Alex D'Agostino | Diamondbacks On SI

It's no secret that Diamondbacks young right-handed starter Ryne Nelson was one of their least effective starting arms in 2023. Last season, he pitched to an 8-8 record and a dismal 5.31 ERA over 144 innings (27 starts). As a result, by September of that year he'd been demoted to the bullpen.

As 2024 began, Nelson made the Opening Day rotation out of necessity due to left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez's injury, and appeared to be on a somewhat similar lackluster trajectory. His first start saw him give up five runs on five hits and four walks to the Yankees on April 1.

But the righty put together a pair of solid starts after, including six innings of one-run baseball against the St. Louis Cardinals. Then on April 18, after two scoreless innings in San Francisco, Nelson was struck with a comebacker in the right elbow, and was placed on the 15-day Injured List.

When Nelson returned in early May, he was shaky, surrendering a massive 39 hits in 24.2 innings over five starts, including an eight-run shelling against the Detroit Tigers. His monthly ERA was a poor 6.93, and he only surpassed five innings once.

But in June, things began to click. Although he did suffer a pair of poor outings in June, allowing six runs twice while failing to reach four innings, those bad starts were surrounded with excellent ones.

On June 3, he pitched into the eighth inning against the Giants, giving up just two runs on six hits while lasting 7.2 innings. On June 14, he dominated the White Sox with a then-season-high eight strikeouts, with just one earned run over six innings.

Nelson went seven strong innings again on June 20 against the Nationals, allowing two runs. Despite the high 5.20 monthly ERA, he was beginning to show serious signs of dominance, looking comfortable on the mound and locating his high-powered pitches well.

July was Nelson's best month yet, as he tossed three Quality Starts, pitched through the seventh twice, and struck out 33 against just eight walks. He capped off a stellar July with seven brilliant shutout innings against the Nationals, allowing just two hits and topping his previous season high with nine strikeouts, bringing his monthly ERA down to 2.41.

August was another solid stretch, as Nelson threw four straight Quality Starts while striking out 33 batters over just 31 innings. Both Nelson's swing-and-miss ability, and his ability to catch hitters looking were skyrocketing, and his command was sharp, walking just four batters in his five August appearances.

He opened September with another good outing against the Giants, going 6.2 innings of two-run baseball with another nine-strikeout day. But his next time on the mound, he stumbled, allowing four runs on six hits over 4.2 innings. His signature power-fastball, which began the night topping 99 MPH, dropped way down, sinking as low as 94 MPH.

On September 14, six days following his previous start, Nelson was placed on the 15-day Injured List (retroactive September 11) with right shoulder inflammation. The right-hander would only make one more appearance after returning, this time pitching three scoreless innings in relief against the Padres on September 29.

Despite the anticlimactic ending, Nelson's 2024 was an incredible one. His development into Arizona's best and most consistent starting arm cannot be understated. Because of some early inflated results, Nelson's final ERA was 4.24, but his FIP was down to 3.74, indicating he'd been even more effective than his results.

Overall, Nelson's ability to command his excellent fastball, with improved tunneling and a better grasp on his secondary pitches and sequencing, spelled a major leap for the 26-year-old. His four-seamer surpassed 95 MPH regularly, and even hovered around 97 MPH at times.

He tightened his slider, making it nearly indecipherable from his cutter, adding more vertical movement while decreasing its sweep. He also added velocity, and his execution and delivery became tighter and more consistent.

The pitcher that greatly struggled through his 2023 season has begun to realize his potential, and Nelson could be a key piece of Arizona's rotation if he continues at this pace.

2025 Outlook

2025 Contract status: Pre-Arbitration

Nelson, entering his age-27 season, is still pre-arbitration. His remarkable jump makes him an easy return candidate, and, barring injury or severe regression, should begin the year with the major league club, likely to become one of the anchors of Arizona's rotation.

Baseball is anything but predictable, so there's always a chance Nelson struggles again in 2025, but with the raw potential his stuff has, it feels as if the young righty is just scratching the surface of his potential, and is likely to become a major part of Arizona's future.

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