Zac Gallen went into the July 29-30 weekend tied for the lead among all Major League Baseball pitchers with 11 victories. He was hoping to get to a dozen on Aug. 1 against the San Francisco Giants when the ‘Backs open a pivotal four-game series against one of the two teams they are trying to catch in the National League West.

Arizona has six games remaining against the Giants and five against the Los Angeles Dodgers -- teams that entered the weekend separated by just four games in the divisional standings.

There is plenty of baseball left this season, and the Aug. 1 trade deadline will be an opportunity for every team that turned its attention elsewhere after the Angels decided they were going to keep Shohei Ohtani for the rest of the season and then see what the free agent market looks like in the offseason. The Angels are within reach of the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros in the American League West, and a wild-card berth would get them where they need to be.

Arizona is squarely in the mix for the wild card, too, and time will tell whether the D-backs make a move at the deadline, perhaps to bolster a pitching staff that ranks 24th in earned run average. A stud starter is one of the things general manager Mike Hazen will be hunting for to improve the Arizona Diamondbacks roster.

Who are the Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitchers in MLB 2023?

Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Tommy Henry and Ryne Nelson are currently the top four starters with Zach Davies on the 15-day disabled list (lower back). Brandon Pfaadt is temporarily taking Davies’ place, but with losses in 14 of their last 19 games entering the final weekend of July, acquiring a new starting pitcher might become the D-backs’ top priority.

Arizona Diamondbacks Pitcher History

The Diamondbacks have had some of the top pitchers in major league history, including Randy Johnson, Curt Schilling, Brandon Webb, Ian Kennedy, and Zack Greinke. In the past, Arizona has been bold about making the proper acquisitions at the proper times when the team has been playing well, and moving great players for prospects when circumstances called for it. This season, the Diamondbacks are squarely in the mix for contention, so we should expect them to be buyers rather than sellers.

What Diamondbacks pitcher threw a no-hitter?

Randy Johnson (May 18, 2004), Edwin Jackson (June 25, 2010), and Tyler Gilbert (Aug. 14, 2021) have thrown the three no-hitters in D-backs history, with Johnson’s a perfect game against the Atlanta Braves. Seven perfect games have happened since, most recently Domingo German’s for the New York Yankees against Oakland on June 28 of this year.

Ranking the Top 10 Greatest Arizona Diamondbacks Pitchers of all time

  1. Doug Davis

Years with D-backs: 2007 to 2009
Career Stats with D-backs: 28-34, 4.22 ERA, 402 strikeouts.

A native of Sacramento, Calif., Doug Davis signed a three-year, $22 million contract with Arizona after being acquired from Milwaukee. In his first season for the Diamondbacks, Davis went 13-12 with a 4.25 ERA and 144 strikeouts in 192⅔ innings, and the next season he took a perfect game into the seventh inning against San Diego. Davis' 2008 season was cut short due to injury after he made 26 starts and finished with a record of 6-8. He went 9-14 in 2009 before returning to the Brewers as a free agent.

  1. Robbie Ray

Years with D-backs: 2015 to 2020)
Career Stats with D-backs: 47-46, 4.11 ERA, 998 strikeouts
Honors and Awards: National League All-Star (2017)

Robbie Ray had an unremarkable start to the 2017 season, with a 4.57 ERA through eight starts. At that point, Randy Johnson, who was serving as a special assistant to the Diamondbacks' president, spoke with Ray and told him, "You better figure this out, because you never know what your last pitch is going to be." From there, Ray went on a 27⅓-inning scoreless streak that included his first career shutout, leading to his All-Star selection.

  1. Patrick Corbin

Years with D-backs: 2012 to 2018
Career Stats with D-backs: 56-54, 3.91 ERA. 897 strikeouts
Honors and Awards: National League All-Star (2013, 2018)

A left-hander from Clay, N.Y., Patrick Corbin was acquired from the Angels in the Dan Haren trade, and in May 2013, after he had compiled a 5-0 record and 1.53 ERA in five starts, he was named Pitcher of the Month. He was named an All-Star after he boosted his record to 11-1 record with a 2.35 ERA, which was third-best in the National League at the time. In 2016, Corbin had a 4-12 record and a 5.58 ERA in 24 starts through mid-August, with a 7.68 ERA over his last nine starts, so the Diamondbacks moved him to the bullpen. He responded with 13 consecutive appearances without allowing a run to end the season. He was supposed to start Game 4 of the 2017 NLDS, which ended in a sweep for the Dodgers. He was also a 2018 NL All-Star.

  1. Miguel Batista

Years with D-backs: 2001 to 2003, 2006
Career Stats with D-backs: 40-34, 3.99 ERA, 454 strikeouts
Honors and Awards: World Series Championship (2001)

The native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, spent four of his 18 MLB seasons with the Diamondbacks and had his best years in Arizona, which is saying something since he played for 11 teams. He pitched 7⅔ shutout innings at Yankee Stadium in Game 5 of the 2001 World Series and faced one batter in Game 7 of that World Series -- getting the second out of the eighth inning before Randy Johnson finished the game. Batista is a published poet and also dabbles in philosophy.

  1. Dan Haren

Years with D-backs: 2008 to 2010
Career Stats with D-backs: 37-28, 3.56 ERA, 570 strikeouts
Honors and Awards: National League All-Star (2008, 2009)

When Dan Haren was traded to the Diamondbacks by Oakland prior to the 2008 season, he was coming off a 2007 season that saw him record 15 wins, a 3.07 ERA and 192 Ks. In 2008, Haren, from Monterey Park, Calif., was selected to his second consecutive All-Star team before finishing the season with a 16-8 record, 3.33 ERA and 206 strikeouts. He was named an All-Star again in 2009 and increased his career-high seasonal strikeout total to 223, while lowering his ERA to 3.14. He was traded to the Angels on July 25, 2010.

  1. Ian Kennedy

Years with D-backs: 2010 to 2013, 2022
Career Stats with D-backs: 52-41, 3.92 ERA, 705 strikeouts

After a so-so debut season in 2010, Ian Kennedy returned in 2011 to lead the National League in wins with 21 against only four losses for an .840 winning percentage that helped the D-backs earn a surprising NL West title. During his remarkable 2011 season, the Huntington, Beach, Calif., native never lost consecutive starts, He also ranked among the leaders in the NL with 198 strikeouts, a 2.88 ERA, and 222 innings pitched. He was Arizona’s Opening Day starter in 2012 and 2013, but a 21-game losing streak by the Diamondbacks later that year led to a midseason trade to the San Diego Padres.

  1. Zack Greinke

Years with D-backs: 2016 to 2019
Career Stats with D-backs: 55-29, 3.40 ERA, 683 strikeouts
Honors and Awards: National League All-Star (2017, 2018, 2019), Gold Glove Award (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019)

On Dec. 8, 2015, Zack Greinke signed a six-year, $206.5 million contract to come to Arizona. In 32 starts in 2017, Greinke finished with a 17-7 record, 215 strikeouts, and a 3.20 ERA in 202⅓ innings. The Diamondbacks finished with a 93-69 record and clinched a wild-card spot in the postseason, but lost to the Dodgers in the Division Series. In his All-Star 2018 season, the Orlando, Fla., native went 15-11 with a 3.21 ERA in 33 starts and won his fifth consecutive Gold Glove Award. In 2019 before he was traded to Houston, he was 10-4 with a 2.90 ERA.

  1. Brandon Webb

Years with D-backs: 2003 to 2009
Career Stats with D-backs: 87-62, 3.27 ERA, 1,065 strikeouts
Honors and Awards: National League All-Star (2006, 2007, 2008), NL Cy Young Award (2006)

A shoulder injury brought a premature end to the career of Brandon Webb, who became Arizona’s No. 2 starter after Curt Schilling was traded before Webb’s second MLB season. Through his first 13 starts in 2006, Webb had a perfect 8-0 record, which included a 30-inning scoreless streak. A native of Ashland, Ky., Webb earned the 2006 Cy Young Award after finishing the season at 16-8 with a 3.10 ERA. His win total marked the lowest ever for a starting pitcher who won the Cy Young after playing a full season. Webb threw three straight shutouts and 42 consecutive scoreless innings in 2007 -- the longest shutout streak since Roger Clemens did the same for Toronto in 1998.

  1. Curt Schilling

Years with D-backs: 2000 to 2003
Career Stats with D-backs: 58-28, 3.14 ERA, 875 strikeouts
Honors and Awards: World Series Champion (2001), World Series Co-MVP (2001); National League All-Star (2001, 2002)

During Arizona’s championship 2001 season, Curt Schilling went 22-6 with a 2.98 ERA to lead the majors in both wins and innings pitched. He also went 4-0 with a 1.12 ERA in the playoffs, which ended with the Diamondbacks beating the New York Yankees in seven games to claim the 2001 World Series championship. Schilling was 1-0 in that World Series with a 1.69 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 21 innings, although he also allowed a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning of Game 7. In 2002, the Anchorage, Alaska, native went 23-7 with a 3.23 ERA. He struck out 316 batters while walking 33 in 259⅓ innings. He finished second to teammate Randy Johnson in Cy Young voting in both 2001 and 2002.

  1. Randy Johnson

Years with D-backs: 1999 to 2004, 2007 to 2008
Career Stats with D-backs: 118-62, 2.83 ERA. 2,077 Strikeouts
Honors and Awards: World Series Champion (2001), World Series Co-MVP (2001), National League Cy Young Award (1995 with Seattle, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002 with Arizona), NL All-Star (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004), Baseball Hall of Fame Inductee (2015)

There is no question that the Big Unit was the face of change for the Diamondbacks in 2001 when they went from sometimes contenders to World Series winners. Johnson even made a rare relief appearance in Game 7 of the Series against the New York Yankees. The 6-foor-10 left-hander from Walnut Creek, Calif., was one of the most imposing pitchers in baseball history and ranks second behind Nolan Ryan for career strikeouts. Randy is the greatest player in Arizona Diamondbacks history. 

Parameters of Ranking

When it comes to Diamondbacks pitchers, it is a matter of who ranks behind Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling. What we looked for were players who had some of the best years of their careers in Phoenix, because the D-backs are an odd franchise when it comes to retaining their top pitchers. They tend to use them until the team needs a rebuild, then flip them for prospects. A few of the players on this list were traded for each other. Again, the Aug. 1 trade deadline will be telling, because Arizona is in need of a hurler who will make this list next season.

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