In a surprising turn of events, reliever Kevin Ginkel went from being what Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo described as his closer on Tuesday to apparently being so ineffective he was optioned to the alternate site just three days later.
There is no debating how much Ginkel has struggled this season. In 16 innings, he has allowed 21 hits and 13 walks (two intentional) and has posted a 6.75 ERA. He has not resembled the dominant late-inning reliever the Diamondbacks saw when he was first called up late last season.
That said, Lovullo painted a different picture with reporters on Tuesday, saying Ginkel was “doing a good job with repeating pitches right now and getting a lot of swing and miss on his secondary stuff.