The Arizona Diamondbacks have signed pitcher Mike Soroka to a 1 year, $7.5M deal which could escalate to as much as $9.5M if all incentives are hit.
Arizona figures to have plenty of innings to fill this offseason given the injury to Corbin Burnes (Tommy John surgery), the trade of Merrill Kelly, and the expected departure of Zac Gallen via free agency. By adding Soroka, the team hopes to be able to remain competitive in the cut throat NL West division, while avoiding being tied to term or contract length with the former All-Star.
The 28 year old debuted with Atlanta in 2018, but had a breakout campaign in 2019, posting a 13-4 record with a 2.68 ERA and 142 Ks across 29 starts. Unfortunately, his career was derailed by a pair of Achilles tendon tears, causing him to suit up for only 10 games total between 2020 and the start of the 2024 season.
When healthy, Soroka has shown the ability to miss bats, and keep the ball inside the yard. The right hander led all of Major League Baseball in terms of home runs allowed per 9 innings with 0.7 during his 2019 All-Star campaign. And that skill will prove to be especially important to harness moving out to Chase Field which Statcast ranks as the 4th most hitter friendly ballpark over the last 3 years.
After moving on from Atlanta, Soroka had stints with the White Sox, Nationals and Cubs. The 6’5″ pitcher made two postseason appearances for Chicago this fall out of the bullpen, but was hindered by a right shoulder strain suffered in early August.
Soroka figures to join Eduardo Rodriguez, Brandon Pfaadt, and Ryne Nelson in the D-Backs rotation, with additional depth still required prior to Spring Training.
Photo: Abigail Chipps. This file is a work of a U.S. Army soldier or employee, taken or made as part of that person’s official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, it is in the public domain in the United States.