Ryne Nelson Does Well Out of Bullpen, D-backs Beat White Sox

In the final road game of the Cactus League, the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the White Sox 8-4 behind good offense and great pitching

Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Ryne Nelson throws to the Athletics in the first inning during a spring training game at Hohokam Stadium on March 12, 2025, in Mesa. / Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Arizona Diamondbacks capped off their road trip in the Cactus League with a victory over the Chicago White Sox by a score of 8-4 in a game that featured a heavy dose of minor leaguers.

In front of a thin crowd in Glendale, the D-backs were out-hit by the White Sox by a margin of 10-9, but thanks to two big errors by the White Sox, the D-backs were able to get in some small-ball performances and timely hits.

Ryne Nelson was scheduled to start this game, but was switched out at the last moment for Jeff Brigham to start instead. After manager Torey Lovullo announced Nelson was moving to the bullpen, the team decided to bring him out in relief later in the game.

That he did when he came out to start the bottom of the third inning following Brigham's two inning, two-runs-allowed outing.

It was rocky start for Nelson as he gave up an immediate home run and hits to four of the first six batters he faced. He allowed two runs allowed over 0.2 innings.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, he struck out two batters and gave up a hit as it was a quick inning for the new long reliever. In the bottom of the fifth, Nelson faced three more batters, walking one, and procuring two flyouts.

With one out remaining, Nelson's day was done after 2.2 innings. In total, he threw 52 pitches and 33 strikes. He barely eclipsed the critical 50-pitch limit that would keep him stretched out for any potential starts in the future, though once the regular season starts, it will be difficult to find that amount of pitches and innings for Nelson.

Beyond Nelson, five Diamondbacks' pitchers combined to give up two runs, five hits, one walk, and eight strikeouts. That includes Landon Sims excelling over 1.1 innings, getting soft early contact, and Juan Morillo's standout performance in which he struck out three over two innings.

As for the offense, it was a strong day from the starting lineup of regulars and prospects. Alek Thomas led the lineup off with two walks and two runs. Newest major-leaguer Garrett Hampson went 1-2 with two runs and two walks.

Both players achieved their goal of being table setters for the clean-up hitters as Pavin Smith, Caleb Roberts, and Tommy Troy drove in a collective four runs. Smith went 1-1 with a run, two RBI, a walk, and a sacrifice fly.

Jack Hurley showed his hitting ability, going 2-4 with a double to cap off his excellent breakout Spring Training performance. Corbin Carroll ended his Cactus League with a 1-4 performance and a run scored.

As Lovullo would say, the team linked together at-bats in the third inning when they scored four runs to take the lead. Thomas was hit by a pitch and then Hampson singled to get Thomas to second base.

Carroll came up and singled and reached second with Hampson reaching third thanks to a throwing error by the White Sox with Thomas scoring. Putting the ball in play can cause chaos as the D-backs know well.

Smith showed a patient approach at the plate with a walk while Roberts came up and hit a sharp single to left field to plate one and keep the bases juiced for Troy.

Troy came up and hit a ball hard up the middle to plate another and keep the merry-go-round on the bases moving. While Hurley struck out, Catcher Aramis Garcia hit a deep sacrifice fly to left field to plate the fourth run. The inning ended when Connor Kaiser hit a diving line drive to center field that Michael Taylor made a diving catch on.

A.J. Vukovich showed off his power in the top of the 9th inning with a two-run blast to left field that traveled 386 feet and had an exit velocity of 102.3 mph. It was a great way for Vukovich to cap off his power-display in the Cactus League.

Box Score