A tough start turned into a long summer that eventually finished up with what can only be called a bad season now in hindsight. Arizona’s 80 win total is their fewest in 4 seasons, highlighted by a brutal stretch of injury luck and down years.

A Bright Spot
2023 Rookie of the Year Corbin Carroll bounced back from a step-back season in 2024 with career-best numbers (31 homers, 32 doubles, 32 steals, .884 OPS). He’s right back on track to being the cornerstone position player for this franchise (under contract through 2031).

A Big Concern
Starting Pitching. Zac Gallen is a pending free agent. Corbin Burnes (Tommy John) won’t be back until the All-Star break, Eduardo Rodriguez gave up a career-high 25 homers last season, & Brandon Pfaadt still hasn’t figured out how to be consistent at the MLB level.

Related Links
2026 Diamondbacks Financials
MLB Offseason Guides

Pending Free Agents

Gallen hits the open market for the first time coming off of a career-worst campaign (4.83 ERA, 1.1 WAR). A return isn’t out of the question, but with a payroll already approaching $180M, he’ll need to accept a deal at or around his value mark.

PLAYER MARKET VALUE
Zac Gallen (SP, 30) $18.7M
James McCann (C, 35) $5.8M
Jalen Beeks (RP, 32) $1M
Trevor Richards (RP, 32) Minimum

Option Decisions

Gurriel was a lock to opt-out of this contract and seek out a multi-year guarantee, until he tore his ACL in early September. An early timeline has him back in action at or around the All-Star break next season. Arizona holds a $14M club option ($5M buyout) in 2027.

PLAYER OPTION SALARY
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (OF, 32) $13M player option

Arbitration-Eligibility

Despite a few non-tender candidates at the bottom of this list, Arizona is garnering strong value from the vast majority of these players. McCarthy is a soft trade candidate for teams who miss out on desired corner outfielders this winter.

PLAYER PROJ. ARB SALARY
Ryan Thompson (RP, 34) $3.1M
A.J. Puk (RP, 31) $2.7M
Kevin Ginkel (RP, 32) $2.5M
Ryne Nelson (SP, 28) $2.4M
Gabriel Moreno (C, 26) $2.1M
Jake McCarthy (OF, 28) $1.6M
Alek Thomas (OF, 26) $1.5M
Ildemaro Vargas (2B, 34) $1M
Kyle Nelson (RP, 29) $850k
John Curtiss (RP, 33) $850k

Guaranteed Salary

The Diamondbacks need an awful lot more from the starting pitchers on this list before they can have visions of contending in the NL West anytime soon. Carroll and Perdomo are tremendous values heading into 2026.

PLAYER CBT SALARY
Corbin Burnes (SP, 31) $32.9M
Eduardo Rodriguez (SP, 33) $20M
Ketel Marte (2B, 32) $19.4M
Corbin Carroll (OF, 25) $13.8M
Geraldo Perdomo (SS, 26) $11.25M
Brandon Pfaadt (SP, 27) $9M
Justin Martinez (RP, 24) $3.6M

Team Tax Projections

Arizona finished 2025 with a $211M CBT payroll according to our data, 14th most in baseball. Early projections have them hovering around the $177M mark this winter, offering an estimated $67M of space to work with before we start getting into tax-bill conversations. With the Dodgers, Giants, and Padres all heavily invested, staying out of the tax is likely a priority for Arizona.

Spotrac's 2026 MLB Offseason Previews