Diamondbacks’ Zac Gallen makes trade desires very clear

The Arizona Diamondbacks are hovering right around .500 this season and will likely need a big run to make noise in the National League playoff race, but the front office has some tough decisions to make before they get to the home stretch of the season.

As it stands, the Diamondbacks are in fourth place in a loaded NL West division that could have three teams — the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants — all in the playoffs. Arizona is 44-45 after an impressive 7-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday, but it is still 11.5 games behind the Dodgers for the division lead and 3.5 out of the final wild card spot in the National League.

As a result, the team’s brass really needs to take a long look at whether this team can compete and get back to the heights it did in 2023, when it reached the World Series. If they determine that this version of the roster can’t do that, some of its star veterans could be out the door at the trade deadline.

One of those players is ace pitcher Zac Gallen, who will be highly-coveted around the league if the Diamondbacks end up being sellers. However, Gallen is hoping that Arizona keeps it together and instead tries to improve to make a playoff push, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

“I would like to not be in that discussion,” Gallen said. “I would like for us – and it starts with me – to put us in a position where the front office believes this is a team they can add to where we can finish this thing out and see what happens come October. Let’s see what happens.”

Gallen has just a 6-9 record in 18 starts so far this season and has not had his best stuff. In 104 innings, Gallen has a 5.45 ERA and has just 98 strikeouts to 42 walks, consistently dealing with traffic and pressure on the base paths when he is on the mound.

However, the Diamondbacks and the rest of the league surely know what he is capable of. He has finished in the top 10 in NL Cy Young voting in three of the last five seasons, so he has the chance to be a trade acquisition that truly changes the landscape in the National League. Gallen is clearly hoping that he stays put in Arizona at least through the end of the season.