Diamondbacks To Acquire Lars Nootbaar

Nootbaar has one year of team control remaining beyond this season. He’s playing on a $5.25MM contract. If no cash is exchanged in the deal, Arizona will owe him roughly $1.5MM the rest of the year.

The Diamondbacks haven’t been able to find consistent production in left field. The club has cycled through eight different players who have combined for a .667 OPS, the fourth-worst mark in the league. Gurriel has taken the majority of the playing time, but he’s only been available for 48 games. The veteran has struggled to a 48 wRC+. Max Kepler, who joined the club after an 80-game PED suspension, hasn’t been much better.

It appears the Nootbaar acquisition is the Diamondbacks’ only move of the trade deadline. It’s a somewhat disappointing outcome for a club in the thick of the playoff race. Arizona has earned back-to-back series wins and currently holds one of the NL Wild Card spots. The division rival Padres are one game back and made a couple of big moves on deadline day, landing left-hander Robbie Ray and right-hander Casey Mize.

Eagen is the biggest name in the return. MLB Pipeline ranked him fifth in the Diamondbacks’ system. He was taken in the third round of the 2024 draft out of Presbyterian College. The righty is an older prospect, but moved through the system quickly. The 23-year-old made it to Double-A in his first pro season. Eagen struggled at the level last year and hasn’t pitched well again in a repeat with Amarillo. He’s tossed 87 1/3 innings with a 4.95 ERA. Eagen has a strong 29.2% strikeout rate in 20 starts.

Santana was Eagen’s teammate with the Sod Poodles this season. The reliever has put together a strong 2.14 ERA over 31 appearances in his first taste of Double-A. The 21-year-old has a strong 37% strikeout rate, though it’s come with a double-digit walk rate. Free passes have consistently been an issue during Santana’s pro career. He did not make the top 30 prospects on MLB Pipeline. FanGraphs slotted him at No. 33 over the winter.