Brandon Pfaadt shelled for six runs in loss Saturday

Pfaadt gave up runs in the seventh and eighth to make what was an impressive start a relatively pedestrian one. It’s still good enough for him to pick up his eighth — and almost assuredly final — win of the regular season, and he struck out seven against two walks. If the Diamondbacks can catch the Phillies, Pfaadt will likely start in the Wild Card Series. If not, he finishes with a 3.77 ERA, and showed enough in 2026 to suggest there’s more good things to come.

Pfaadt, who had thrown just 64 pitches, was pulled from a scoreless game in the fifth after giving up singles to three of the four batters he faced that inning. Justin Martinez came in and stranded two of the three runners. The D-backs surely would have been more patient with Pfaadt under normal circumstances, but they’re all must-win games for Arizona now. Pfaadt is due to finish the regular season in San Diego on Friday.

Pfaadt gave up seven hits, walked two and struck out four. He has only eight strikeouts in 19 innings over his last three starts. Pfaadt isn’t a big strikeout pitcher, but has still managed a 3.53 ERA this year. He’s lined up to face the Rangers at home next weekend.

Pfaadt, who struck out just one, allowed two runs or fewer for the 10th time in 12 starts since rejoining Arizona’s rotation, but since there was little run support to be had tonight, he took his first loss since way back on Apr. 11. He definitely hasn’t been as impressive recently as he was in his first six weeks back in the majors, so those in daily leagues might have better options than to start him in Houston on Sunday.

Pfaadt gave up three of those runs on an Ian Happ homer, and also gave up an RBI single to Michael Bush. After going 32 2/3 scoreless frames in a row, Pfaadt has now allowed nine runs over his last two starts, although he pitched better than this line indicates outside of that roundtripper allowed to Happ. He’s slated to face the Phillies next Monday.

Pfaadt saw his remarkable streak snapped at 32 2/3 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run when Nick Sogard blasted a leadoff homer on the very first pitch of the ballgame. It was the first round-tripper he’s surrendered in eight starts dating back to June 30. He was burned by the long ball in this one, serving up three of them for the first time since last June. It was a three-run homer by Mickey Gasper with two outs in the sixth inning that accounted for most of the damage against him. He finished with a season-high eight strikeouts and didn’t hand out a free pass. The 27-year-old has earned fantasy managers’ trust again with a sustained run of success, allowing two earned runs or fewer in nine of 10 starts since returning to the majors back on June 30. He’ll face the Cubs on Tuesday in his next start.

He just keeps getting better. Drake Baldwin reached on an infield single to start the game and then Pfaadt retired the next 11 hitters. Then, Michael Harris slapped a single and Pfaaft retired the final 10 hitters he faced. He was pulled at just 87 pitches and likely would’ve gotten the seventh inning too, but the Diamondbacks had a long top of the frame. No matter, this was still a gem and was the fourth straight outing where Pfaadt has worked into the seventh and allowed zero earned runs. In fact, the last time someone scored one against him was all the way back on July 23rd as his changeup has reached a new level and adding more curveballs has taken tons of pressure off both that and his fastball. It’s been beautiful to watch him turn the corner and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the pitcher-needy Diamondbacks. Pfaadt is scheduled to face the Red Sox in Boston next time out.

It’s another brilliant outing for Pfaadt, but it’s one that comes without a win because the offense couldn’t solve Yoshinobu Yamamoto and didn’t get on the board until the ninth inning. The 27-year-old has not allowed an earned run in three consecutive starts, and no more than two in any outing since returning the rotation at the end of June. His next start is against Atlanta on the road scheduled for Friday, but the way he’s looked suggests he should be in fantasy lineups against everyone; even if regression has to come.

Pfaadt’s strong groundball rate has taken a hit in his last two starts, but it hasn’t kept him from pitching 13 2/3 innings without allowing an earned run. He allowed five hits, walked one and struck out three tonight. He has a 1.78 ERA in his last five starts despite striking out just 13 in 30 1/3 innings, but that strikeout rate is scarier now that he’s no longer racking up the grounders. Even with all of his recent success, he’s not a great play with the Dodgers next on the schedule.

Pfaadt departed with a six-run lead, only to watch Ryan Thompson give up three runs in the eighth and Paul Sewald surrender two homers to tie the game in the ninth. Before that, Pfaadt allowed six hits, walked one and struck out four. He had won five straight starts since rejoining Arizona’s rotation on June 30, but the best performance of the bunch wasn’t enough to make it six straight. He’ll likely make his next start Monday against the Padres.