D-backs Activate Gabriel Moreno, Place Paul Sewald on IL

The return of Moreno comes a day earlier than expected, while the Sewald injury is a surprise

Oct 24, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Paul Sewald (38) reacts with catcher Gabriel Moreno (14) after defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in game seven of the NLCS for the 2023 MLB playoffs at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

The Arizona Diamondbacks activated catcher Gabriel Moreno from the injured list on Sunday. He had been out since August 6 with a left groin strain.

In a corresponding move, reliever Paul Sewald was placed on the 15-day IL retroactive to September 12 with neck discomfort. The 40-man roster is at 39.

Though the Diamondbacks have been indicating for some time that Moreno's return was imminent, it came as somewhat of a surprise that he was activated prior to the team's road trip to Colorado. Moreno returns with a .262/.344/.385 slash line and a104 OPS+

Moreno was not in Sunday's starting lineup. In his absence Jose Herrera and Adrian Del Castillo have been holding down the position. While Castillo has been a hitting sensation, both he and Herrera have struggled with controlling the the running game. Since Moreno has been out, opposing teams have been successful in 40 of 45 base stealing attempts.

Asked a couple of days ago whether the team would consider carrying three catchers, manager Torey Lovullo said they had not yet discussed that option. But that's what they'll be doing, at least temporarily. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is expected to activated soon as well. One of the catchers will likely be optioned to Triple-A Reno when that happens.

Sending Sewald to the injured list comes as a surprise. While he had not pitched since September 8, there had been no public indication that he had suffered an injury. It's been a rough year for Sewald, and came at the worst possible time for him, from a career perspective.

A free agent at the end of this season, Sewald suffered an oblique injury in spring training that caused him to miss the first six weeks of the season. When he returned he recorded 11 straight saves and had a 0.54 ERA entering the month of July.

Things went south quickly as the calendar flipped. Three straight blown saves in early July created a crisis of confidence that he never seemed to truly recover from. Despite saving five more games, another blown save on July 28th spelled the end of his tenure as the closer.

While he's eligible to return September 28, there is a strong possibility this also means both the end of his season, and his time with the Diamondbacks. His season line is 1-2, 3.91 ERA, with 16 saves and four blown.

Sewald was a crucial addition to the Arizona Diamondbacks bullpen at the 2023 trade deadline and instrumental in getting the team to the World Series. Sewald was just named the team's nominee for the Roberto Clemente award, one of the most prestigious honors in MLB.

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