Adrian

Del Castillo

Smith has not played since the opening series of the season after having surgery to remove loose bodies in his elbow. The 30-year-old hit .258/.362/.434 with eight home runs and 28 RBI in 288 plate appearances last season. He came into this season as the starter at first base against right-handed pitching. With Ildemaro Vargas playing well, Smith will likely replace Adrian Del Castillo as the team’s regular designated hitter.

Del Castillo is back at DH on Tuesday night after suffering a dislocated left finger during Sunday’s contest against the Padres in Mexico City. The 26-year-old’s playing time figures to take a hit once Gabriel Moreno (oblique) is ready to return from the injured list later this week.

Del Castillo suffered the injury while behind the plate. The 26-year-old was unable to continue and James McCann took over. Del Castillo may need a trip to the injured list, but his status should be updated in the coming days.

Moreno hasn’t played since April 10th, but it sounds like he won’t need a long rehab assignment, or any at all, before returning to the Diamondbacks’ lineup. His return would significantly cut into the playing time for Adrian Del Castillo.

In the top of the 10th inning, Del Castillo launched a 420-foot shot at 103.3 mph off the bat to give the Diamondbacks a three-run cushion. It was his first home run of the season, but Del Castillo has just found himself in a starting job with Gabriel Moreno (oblique) landing on the injured list. We know Del Castillo has big-time power, and he could be of interest in two-catcher formats while Moreno is sidelined.

It turns out Moreno was dealing with an oblique strain when the Diamondbacks said he was dealing with lower back soreness. It’s a bit unclear how much time the 26-year-old backstop is going to miss, but oblique issues can be tricky matters. It’ll be James McCann and Adrian Del Castillo handling the catching duties in his absence.

This is now the third straight game Moreno has missed. It had previously been reported that he would wind up on the injured list, but, so far, the Diamondbacks have not decided to make that move. Instead, Adrian Del Castillo will start behind the dish and bat fourth, which will allow Jose Fernandez to bat fifth and be the designated hitter.

No surprise here with an early-afternoon contest on tap after Moreno was pulled from Friday’s game with lower back soreness. It’ll be Adrian Del Castillo handling the catching duties in his absence. The 26-year-old will undergo an MRI to determine the extent of the issue. There should be a clearer idea of his status at some point this weekend.

Del Castillo, who missed the entire spring with a strained calf, is back with the Diamondbacks after going 0-for-8 in two minor league games. The team surely would have preferred to get him more at-bats before needing to use him here, but after already calling on Jose Fernandez, they don’t have any minor league position players on their 40-man roster. Del Castillo will probably do some DHing against righties and then get sent down when either Pavin Smith or Lourdes Gurriel Jr. returns.

Del Castillo, who was injured at the very beginning of the spring, is now back DHing in minor league games. He’ll probably be activated and optioned to Triple-A in mid-April.