Gabriel Moreno Placed on 10-Day IL with Thumb Injury

Moreno's injury is the latest in a long line of injury setbacks suffered by Diamondbacks players this year.

Apr 29, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks catcher Gabriel Moreno (14) looks on against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the fourth inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports / Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Diamondbacks have suffered yet another injury blow, losing catcher Gabriel Moreno to the 10-day injured list. He has a sprained left thumb. Jose Herrera has been called up from Triple-A Reno and activated for Saturday's game.

Moreno was removed from Friday night's game with a strained left thumb. The injury occurred on a foul ball from Phillies outfielder Cristian Pache. The ball caught him on the glove and he could be seen wincing with a slight shake of his glove hand after the play.

This appears to be the foul tip where #Dbacks catcher Gabriel Moreno injured his thumb on last night. Came in the third inning with Cristian Pache batting pic.twitter.com/39qK6crscV

— Jack Sommers (@shoewizard59) June 22, 2024

The thumb grew increasingly sore and he was removed from the game in the sixth inning. While x-rays were negative, this injury is still going to need some time to heal.

This is an injury the Diamondbacks can ill afford. While Moreno's bat has not been as good as last year, he had a big two-run homer in Friday's game. He's batting .230/.313/.346, .659 OPS.

More importantly, Moreno is an excellent defensive catcher. He won the Gold Glove for the position in 2023 in just his first full season in the majors, and has been more than solid again this year,

Moreno is one of the best catchers in the league at controlling the running game. He's thrown out 13 of 37 would-be base stealers for a 35% rate. His pitch framing has improved from -1 last year to +2 this year, according to Baseball Savant.

Backup catcher Tucker Barnhart will need to take over at least half or more of the catching reps while Moreno is out. While he's been serviceable as the backup, increasing his playing time could be an issue. The 33-year-old is batting .164/.291/.194 with a 43 OPS+ in 81 PA. He has just two extra-base hits, both doubles.

On defense Barnhart has caught four of 15 base stealers, 27%. He rates -2 for Pitch Framing, and -2 for Blocking. So the drop offs both at and behind the plate could be significant.

Herrera meanwhile lost the backup catching position heading into 2024 when the team signed Barnhart. In 244 career plate appearances, he's hit .198/.272/.231 hitter with a 43 OPS+. He is also good at throwing out base runners, rated as +4 by Baseball Savant. But his framing is rated -3 and blocking is -1.

Suffice to say losing Moreno creates a major problem for a team that had just climbed back to .500 for the first time in over two months. This is just the latest injury concern for a team that has had more than it's share to deal with this season.

Diamondbacks Injury Roundup

Last night Lourdes Gurriel Jr. was removed due to a sore left elbow, which has been a lingering issue. He is day-to-day.

Ketel Marte has been battling some fatigue and possibly back soreness. He DH'd on Thursday and sat out Friday night's game altogether. He is back in the lineup on Saturday however.

The team is still waiting to get Zac Gallen back into the rotation from his hamstring injury. That looks to be another week or more away. He's been on the injured list for the entire month of June after throwing just six pitches against the Mets on May 30th.

Alek Thomas was back playing centerfield in the Arizona Complex League Friday night. The team had hit the pause button on his rehab from a "high Grade-1" hamstring strain after he reported some "soreness" He'll likely head out to Triple-A Reno soon for a handful of rehab games there before returning to the team. Thomas was hurt just three games into the season.

Merrill Kelly is out until mid-August, according to the pitcher himself. He suffered a shoulder strain in his Teres Major muscles throwing in between starts back in April. He last pitched in a game on April 15th.

Eduardo Rodriguez has not thrown a pitch for the Diamondbacks this season. He suffered a shoulder strain in his left lat muscle and also had multiple setbacks and a slow rehab process. Scheduled to throw off a mound this weekend, he is out until after the All-Star Break but could preceed Kelly by a couple of weeks back to the active roster.

Reliever Miguel Castro is still working his way back from a shoulder strain and has not pitched in a game since April 20th

Left-hand rookie starting pitcher Blake Walston was sidelined with an elbow injury just 13 innings into his major league career. There is no timetable for his return.

Left-hand reliever Kyle Nelson was lost for the season due to Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, which required season-ending surgery,

Right-hand reliever Drey Jameson is out for the year due to Tommy John Surgery, which he had last fall.

The team was also without starting shortstop Geraldo Perdomo for over two months due to knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus . He returned on June 11th.

Closer Paul Sewald missed the first six weeks of the season due to an oblique strain. He has been a perfect nine for nine in save chances since coming back. Prior to his return the bullpen was in disarray and blowing games late, much like 2023 prior to Sewald's arrival.