As the Arizona Diamondbacks seek upgrades for their bullpen, one more reliever has found a home. The New York Post‘s Jon Heyman reports that right-hander Pierce Johnson is headed to the Cincinnati Reds.
The Diamondbacks showed interest in Johnson, as reported by Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro and The Arizona Republic‘s Nick Piecoro. The 34-year-old reliever has pitched for multiple National League West teams, including the Rockies, Padres, and Giants.
Johnson spent the 2025 season with the Atlanta Braves. The curveball specialist appeared in 65 games with Atlanta, pitching to a 3.05 ERA and a 24.8% strikeout rate in 59 innings. He became a free agent when the Braves declined a $7 million club option for 2026.
Diamondbacks Bullpen Situation Entering 2026
The Diamondbacks bullpen played a big role in the team’s disappointing 2025 season. Arizona relievers ranked 27th in ERA (4.82) and had the second-most blown saves (29).
It didn’t help that their best two relievers were out for most of the year. The Diamondbacks lost A.J. Puk for the year just 19 games into the season, and Justin Martinez a couple of months later. Both pitchers underwent elbow surgery in June and will begin the 2026 season on the 60-day injured list.
On top of not having Puk and Martinez to close out the game, the Diamondbacks don’t have many proven options. They retained right-handers Kevin Ginkel and Ryan Thompson in their final year of arbitration eligibility. Arizona is looking for a “bridge closer” who can fill in while they wait for their top arms to finish their rehab.
Ginkel might have been a possible closer candidate, but he comes with a mildly concerning injury history. He dealt with minor elbow issues in the spring of 2024 and spent two separate IL stints in 2025 for his shoulder. His injury did not require surgery, even though the right-hander sought a second opinion from Dr. Keith Meister.
Due to budget constraints, the Diamondbacks may need to run out a lot of young arms to get through the season. Pitchers such as Drey Jameson, Juan Morillo, Cristian Mena, Yilber Diaz, Brandyn Garcia, and Philip Abner could get more runway than initially anticipated. There are some other big arms in the minors who could debut with the club in Hayden Durke and Alfred Morillo as well.
Who’s Left for the Diamondbacks?
This offseason, contending teams worked quickly to snatch up all the top reliever options in the market. By Christmas, most of the relievers in line to command $10 mllion-plus per year had already signed.
With Johnson off the market, there are fewer proven guys out there for the Diamondbacks to consider. They already dealt one of their trade pieces, sending Jake McCarthy to the Colorado Rockies for a pitching prospect.
Right-hander Seranthony Dominguez remains the top reliever in the free-agent market. MLB Trade Rumors predicts a two-year, $18 million deal for the 30-year-old, while the median crowd-sourced projection on FanGraphs’ Free Agent Tracker has him getting $16 million over the same duration. Other free agent options include Michael Kopech, Luke Jackson, Rafael Montero, and Jose Leclerc.
The trade market offers very little as well. Dennis Santana serves as a somewhat proven option, as he took over following the Pirates‘ trade of David Bednar to the Yankees at the deadline.
Diamondbacks Lose Another Bullpen Target as Pierce Johnson Heads to Reds