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Gallen was just mopping up, but he did okay in that role, allowing only two hard-hit balls and striking out two. It was Gallen’s first ever relief appearance after 196 starts as a major leaguer. He might get a start next week if the D-backs fall out of the Wild Card race, a scenario which seems unfortunately likely at the moment.

Gallen pitched fine here given the circumstances, he just wasn’t particularly on point. He heavily leaned into his slider given that it was the only pitch he could confidently command in the zone which helped him stay away from his fastball. That pitch has gotten crushed all season and came in two ticks slower than its average velocity, so it made sense that he shied away from it. The only earned run he let up came via a long home run to Carter Jensen on a slider that hung, which is the game a pitcher plays when they’re so in-zone-slider dependent. Similar to Corbin Burnes yesterday, Gallen returned after throwing one short rehab outing at Triple-A followed by about a 50 pitches appearance in a Bridge League game last week. He’s lined up for what’s likely to be another abbreviated outing at home against the Marlins next week.

Gallen will start against the Royals on Wednesday after missing two months with elbow inflammation. He pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings in his one rehab start with Triple-A Reno. He’s 3-9 with a 6.34 ERA in 19 starts for the Diamondbacks this season.

The plan is for both of them to throw about four innings and 60 pitches. If those outings go well, that could set one or both of them up to be options to return from the injured list next week in Kansas City.

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said Gallen was sitting in the low-to-mid 90’s with his fastball. He figures to make at least one traditional minor league rehab start since he isn’t eligible to come off the 60-day injured list until September 7. He’s been out with elbow inflammation since early July.

Gallen was cleared to resume throwing in late July after hitting the injured list with elbow inflammation just prior to the All-Star break. He’s going to need at least a couple additional weeks to build up his arm strength and pitch count before returning to Arizona’s rotation mix. This is a step in the right direction.

It’s merely a procedural move as Gallen is going to be sidelined until the late stages of the second half due to an elbow injury. The 31-year-old resumed a throwing program last week but remains without a definitive return timeline.

Gallen was given the green light to resume throwing after a visit with specialist Dr. Dr. Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo told reporters that Gallen has been throwing for the last couple days. The 30-year-old was shut down to undergo evaluation and imaging after hitting the injured list with elbow inflammation prior to the All-Star break.

Gallen will get a second opinion from Dr. Neal ElAttrache on Monday to map out a timeline for his return to the mound. Things could obviously change in the coming weeks, but it sounds like the Diamondbacks are holding out hope that Gallen can avoid surgery and return to action at some point before the end of the 2026 season.

Lovullo continued to say, “We’ll just keep putting that off until we get everything complete.” It sounds as if the initial opinion was not great news, but Gallen is doing his due diligence before deciding on a course of treatment. Second opinions can often lead to surgery, which would keep Gallen out for the majority of the 2027 season, but we will wait and see what the results of his additional meetings are.

Gallen was scratched from Sunday’s start against the Dodgers due to the issue with the expectation that he would also be placed on the injured list. The 30-year-old hurler has had an abysmal season for the Diamondbacks, registering a 6.34 ERA, 1.56 WHIP and a 61/31 K/BB ratio over 98 innings of work. There’s no clear timeline for his return.

He’s likely to go on the IL, with Mitch Bratt being called up to start in his place against the Dodgers. Gallen is just 3-9 with a 6.34 ERA through 19 starts this season. He’s been even worse while losing each of his last four starts, posting a 9.67 ERA and striking out just 11 in 22 1/3 innings. He’s on a one-year, $22.05 million contract after struggling to find a multiyear deal in free agency last winter.

Gallen’s woes continued against the Padres on Tuesday. San Diego got to him for four runs in the first inning, including a three-run homer by Jake Cronenworth. He’d settled in to give the Diamondbacks five more scoreless frames, ending his day after six with five strikeouts. The 30-year-old right-hander will take a 6.34 ERA, 1.56 WHIP, and a 61/31 K/BB ratio across 98 innings into a start against the Dodgers in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Gallen getting released by the D-backs when Michael Soroka comes off the IL has to be on the table at this point. He just isn’t showing MLB-quality stuff right now, and there’s nothing to suggest it’s about to change. Through 19 starts, Gallen has given up 116 hits versus 56 strikeouts. He’s surrendered 17 homers in 92 innings. In 2022, he gave up 15 in exactly twice as many innings (184). His velocity hasn’t changed much, so maybe there’s still hope for a turnaround. Still, this is a Triple-A pitcher right now. He’s due to face the Padres next.

Gallen, who failed to strike out a batter on Friday, ran into trouble early in this one. A walk to Yandy Díaz in the first inning was followed by him hitting Jonathan Aranda with a pitch to put runners on first and second. In the next at-bat, Gallen was taken 455 feet to center field by Junior Caminero to give the Rays a 3-1 lead before Gallen could record an out. Gallen would get through the next five innings without allowing a run, but was hit around again in the seventh inning, allowing a solo homer to Cedric Mullins while also giving RBI hits to Días and Aranda. The righty continues to struggle as he now falls to 3-7 on the season and finds himself sitting on a 6.15 ERA at the end of June. He’ll look to turn things around in his next start, which is scheduled for Wednesday against the Giants.

Remember how some pundits thought it was a good idea to give Gallen a multiyear deal as a free agent over the winter? The warning signs were all obvious, and he’s 3-6 with a 6.10 ERA through 16 starts this year. The D-backs have to stick with him after losing two of their other starters to the IL, but only a modest rebound should be expected at this point. He’ll make his next start Thursday in St. Louis.

Gallen struck out four and walked two, allowing two homers as the Diamondbacks went on to win 5-3. JJ Bleday and Noelvi Marte each tagged him for a solo shot on the afternoon. The right-hander re-signed with Arizona on a one-year deal this past offseason and will become a free agent again after the year. His next outing comes at home against the Twins.

There was a little speculation that the D-backs might be ready to DFA Gallen after he struggled against the Dodgers last time out. It seemed like reach then and it’s probably still a reach now, but it’s just hard to find optimism at this point. Gallen has a 5.43 ERA and just 48 strikeouts in 69 2/3 innings through 14 starts. He’ll face the Angels next week. which seems like good news for Mike Trout and companty.

Gallen’s K rate, which already plummeted from 25 percent in 2024 to 21.5 percent in 2025, is down to 15 percent this year, and nothing here is going to get much better unless he figures out how to turn that around. He’s sitting at 3-5 with a 5.32 ERA through 13 starts. He’ll pitch on the road against the Marlins and Reds next week, but he seems like a poor bet in mixed leagues then.

Gallen allowed three homers on the day, one to Julio Rodríguez, and two to J.P. Crawford. The 30-year-old dealt with plenty of trouble outside of those home runs, as he allowed eight hits, walked one and only struck out two. Gallen continues to be shaky at best in 2026, and this mediocre outing — at best — pushes his ERA to 5.16 on the campaign. He could have a hard time bouncing back against the loaded Dodger lineup in his next scheduled outing.