Diamondbacks call up former Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel from minors

Dallas Keuchel will start for the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday after the team called up the former Cy Young winner from the minors, manager Torey Lovullo told reporters Saturday night.

Keuchel, 34, began the season with the Chicago White Sox, but was designated for assignment near the end of May after starting the year with a 2-5 record and a 7.88 ERA through eight starts. The Diamondbacks scooped up Keuchel on a minor league contract and he pitched twice in the Arizona Complex League. 

"He threw the ball really well in his last outing," Lovullo said, via the Arizona Republic. "We've been having a lot of discussions. We had some internal options. We feel like he deserves this opportunity and he's been working really hard to make this happen."

Keuchel earned the 2015 Cy Young and two trips to the All-Star Game during a seven-year run with the Houston Astros. In 2019, he joined the Atlanta Braves on a one-year deal before joining the White Sox in the following offseason. Keuchel finished his first season in Chicago with a 6-2 record and a 1.99 ERA, but struggled in 2020 with a 9-9 record and career-worst 5.28 ERA.

The Diamondbacks have struggled to find a consistent pitcher to fill the fifth and final spot in the team's starting rotation. While starters Madison Bumgarner, Zach Davies, Zac Gallen, and Merrill Kelly each have an ERA below 4.00, Arizona has rotated through Caleb Smith, Humberto Castellanos, Tyler Gilbert, and Luke Weaver in the fifth spot. The latter four have a combined 7.93 ERA.