Diamondbacks DFA Left-Handed Reliever in Latest Roster Move

The Arizona Diamondbacks have made a roster move. As reported earlier Wednesday, the club signed right-hander Jake Woodford to a major league deal. In a corresponding move, the team designated left-hander Kyle Nelson for assignment.

Arizona also optioned flamethrowing righty Juan Morillo to Triple-A Reno. The team has since made this move official.

Arizona Diamondbacks DFA Kyle Nelson

Nelson served a prominent bullpen role with the Diamondbacks for parts of three seasons. From 2022-2024, Nelson appeared in 122 games and pitched to a sturdy 3.47 ERA.

His best season came in 2022, where he threw to a 2.19 ERA over 43 games, 37 appearances. But he battled injuries throughout his tenure in the desert.

In 2024, Nelson missed most of the season, undergoing Thoracic Outlet Surgery — a brutal procedure.

Upon his return, he was optioned to Triple-A Reno. Despite a rough stretch of bullpen injuries and a lack of left-hand depth at the major league level, Arizona never called on Nelson to make an MLB appearance in 2025.

That was likely due to the fact that Nelson sports an 8.47 ERA in the minors this season. Though he's only made 20 appearances, he'd given up 16 runs over 17 innings with a WHIP of 1.88 and a .324 average against in Reno.

It's tough to return from the procedure Nelson had, but his effectiveness appears to be all but gone for the time being. He may remain with the organization if he clears waivers.

Arizona Diamondbacks Sign Jake Woodford, Option Juan Morillo

Woodford, 28, has worked primarily as a starting pitcher in recent years. He has a 4.55 minor league ERA this season and a 4.88 career figure over five major league seasons.

He emerged as a reliever for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2022, but has struggled since then, bouncing around multiple minor league clubs in 2025.

Woodford throws a sinker, four-seam, cutter, sweeper and changeup.

"I generally work a little bit more east-and-west, and then my four-seam and my cutter and my changeup, kind of keep them honest north-and-south," Woodford said, speaking to Diamondbacks On SI's Jack Sommers.

"I just like to go out and compete, compete in the zone, try and get ahead and stay ahead, and just try and force their hand."

Meanwhile, Morillo's option is a bit of a surprise, as he'd been throwing the ball well in June. Morillo is able to touch triple digits with his fastball and had begun to find the strike zone at a much higher clip of late.

He'll head to Reno for the time being, with a 4.01 ERA in his 28 major league appearances.

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