D-backs Manager Thinks New Pitch Helped Fix Zac Gallen

For the first time all season, it's finally felt like Arizona Diamondbacks' right-hander Zac Gallen is pitching like an ace — at a consistent level, no less.

Gallen himself has said his confidence in his abilities has never wavered. He's been frustrated by game-spoiling homers and hard contact at the wrong times, but hasn't felt a blow to his overall mound presence.

Related Content: How Diamondbacks' Zac Gallen Rediscovered Ace Form

Gallen is a self-described "tinkerer," always looking to tweak, change or add things to his arsenal. But perhaps one of his more recent tweaks — a new sinker (or two-seam fastball) in his toolbelt — is serving him well.

Manager Torey Lovullo certainly thinks so.

Diamondbacks' Torey Lovullo Says New Pitch Helped Fix Zac Gallen

"I think the one thing that that has really pushed him to the next level is a two-seam fastball," Lovullo said to Arizona Sports 98.7's Burns & Gambo on Friday.

"That's going to be running in on right-handed batters, so he's got the four-seam that travels up at the top of the zone, he's got the four-seam they can drive down in a way to run in hitters, and now he's got a two-seam fastball that's kind of wrapped in barbed wire that's coming out of right-handers' hands."

"That's opened up a whole new avenue of the strike zone for me. He's gone out there and really, really executed a very high level," Lovullo said.

Gallen's fastball has always been the baseline metric of his overall abilities. When his fastball is working, the rest of his arsenal can be nearly unhittable.

That hasn't been the case often in 2025, but it has for his last seven starts.

Gallen has not allowed more than three earned runs in a start since July 27, and has given up just one run in his last 18 innings. He's struck out 20 against five walks in those three starts.

"He's dominating the zone with with three or four pitches and predominantly the fastball," Lovullo said. I think a lot of times teams will go out there and game plan for him and and realize at the end of the day that he's gonna spin the ball, get ahead of you, spin the ball.

"There's going to be some chase involved. But he then reverse the game plan a little bit to where he's going to start to finish you off with some good aggressive fastballs."

There's no longer much question — barring a complete meltdown over his final few starts — that the D-backs will extend Gallen the Qualifying offer. But as his ERA drops to 4.77 (the lowest point since May 6), he may be in position to decline it.

Perhaps the ace that helped carry his team to the World Series just needed a new wrinkle in his arsenal.

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