How Diamondbacks' Unsung Hero is Finding Unconventional Success

"He's not going to be there more than a month," Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Nabil Crismatt's parents said, as the 15-year-old departed his native Colombia for the Dominican Republic with a major league scout.

A year and eight months later, Crismatt returned home for the first time. He'd signed with the New York Mets — an organization for which he'd spend seven years pitching.

"I feel it was one of the best decisions to make, to make me do what I love to do," Crismatt told Diamondbacks On SI's Jack Sommers.

"In that moment, I appreciate that my mom and dad [made] the decision to take me to the Dominican Republic in that time."

Arizona Diamondbacks' RHP Nabil Crismatt's Journey

After a brief stint with the Seattle Mariners, Crismatt finally earned his call-up with the St. Louis Cardinals in the midst of a decimated pandemic season in 2020.

With flights restricted, Crismatt hopped in the car (alone) and drove 10 hours from Springfield to Milwaukee — 10 hours of thinking about his impending debut, nine years in the making.

But it wasn't meant to be. With COVID working its way through the Cardinals' roster, St. Louis' entire weekend series with the Brewers was postponed. Crismatt finally got his chance on August 17, but he would pitch just 8.1 innings in six appearances that season.

So he worked his way through the NL West. Crismatt pitched for the Padres, Diamondbacks and Dodgers from 2021-2024.

After a minor league deal with the Phillies offered little opportunity, he landed back with Arizona for the second time in three seasons.

On August 17, 2025 — five years to the day of Crismatt's MLB debut — the D-backs' battered, decimated pitching staff needed his services, as Merrill Kelly was traded away and Anthony DeSclafani landed on the IL.

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Since that day, the right-hander has made four starts with Arizona, earning an efficient 2.14 ERA.

It's the first time he's been a consistent pitcher in the majors — he made one three-inning start in his previous five major league seasons.

"I feel more like who I am as a starter," said Crismatt. "To be honest, I've been loving it. Being a starter, that's what I feel more comfortable with."

Of course, Crismatt echoed the selfless, team-first sentiment that has been a prevalent identity in GM Mike Hazen's and manager Torey Lovullo's tenure in the desert.

"The way the game is teaching me every day, I'm here for whatever they need," he said.

"If they tell me one inning, one inning, if they tell me go start, go start, I've been, all the time, open to that opportunity. Whatever they give me, when they give me the ball, I just go out there and try to compete."

The veteran righty averages just 89 MPH on his fastball. His primary pitch is an 81 MPH changeup — a pitch that moves, bends and drops into the zone in a baffling manner. He's not your typical arm in today's game, where velocity and pure stuff are king.

"The game has evolved and taken a totally different turn over the past 15 years," manager Torey Lovullo said. "I can appreciate what Crismatt has been doing. It works. When you throw the ball in the teacup and you know where it's going, there's a lot of value in that."

"It's fun to watch him. He dissects the hitters. He negotiates with the hitters. He gets information, makes an adjustment pitch to pitch, can spin balls, throw fastballs anywhere he wants, throw the changeup anywhere, anytime he wants. It's been a lot of fun for us to watch," Lovullo said.

Crismatt's unconventional (by today's standards) style is an amalgamation of his inspirations.

The righty cited Kyle Hendricks, Johan Santana, and, of course, Greg Maddux — dominant arms who relied not on their velocity, but on their ability to change speeds, paint corners and use movement to leverage hitters.

"For me, the game is about changing speeds, no matter how you throw," he said.

"That's why I feel really like finding my best version of myself when I start. ... just moving the ball. I feel that's what the game is about for me. It's about pitching, changing speeds, and having fun all the time."

To Crismatt, being a starting pitcher allows him more of an opportunity to do what he does best: be different.

"I think different is his strength. I think different is something that he leans on," Diamondbacks pitching coach Brian Kaplan said. "His identity and feeling confident in who he is gets him where he needs to be.

"We're trying to take an approach where we're not trying to change anything, we're not trying to make him throw harder or make his pitches nastier. Just letting him feel confident that he can be himself and be the magician and the wizardry-type guy that he is out there," Kaplan said.

Kaplan said allowing Crismatt to start gives him a chance to pitch at his own pace, rather than coming out of the bullpen into an immediate high-intensity situation.

"When he gets to plan for who he's going to face, and he knows what day he's going to throw, and he knows how he wants to dissect the hitters, I think it allows him to slow down and think his way through a game," Kaplan said.

"I think that just strengthens what he is as a pitcher."

Regardless of how Crismatt's overall numbers end up at the end of the 2025 season, one thing is certain: the right-hander stepped up and delivered in the face of dire need.

The Diamondbacks are 3-1 in games Crismatt has started. In the lone defeat, he exited in line for the win after five innings of one-run baseball.

Crismatt is different — very different. And that is his strength.

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