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Dodgers Rival Loses Veteran Pitcher for 2025 Season

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Mike Ostrowski | Last updated Mar 25, 2025 2:45 PM ET

The Arizona Diamondbacks bulked up their starting rotation in the offseason, adding Corbin Burnes as one of the top pitchers on the market. While the Dodgers will have to contend with the defending All-Star arm, they've just learned that the big addition of Arizona's previous offseason is no longer a concern.

Left-handed starter Jordan Montgomery told reporters that he will miss the entire 2025 campaign as he undergoes Tommy John surgery. Montgomery, who opted into the second year of a $47.5 million contract, has already undergone the surgery once and is coming off the worst season of his major league career, where he posted a 6.23 ERA across 117 innings.

Jordan Montgomery says he will be having Tommy John surgery next week.
— Nick Piecoro (@nickpiecoro) March 25, 2025

Montgomery was supposed to be one of the best free agents after 2023, when he helped guide the Texas Rangers to their first-ever World Series Championship. However, he ended up settling for a one-year deal with Arizona that included a player option. After last year’s disaster, he quickly opted back in, to the dismay of D-Backs owner Ken Kendrick, who called it "a horrible decision" on his part to sign Montgomery.

The 32-year-old had admittedly looked a lot better in Spring Training and was competing for either the final rotation spot or a place in the Arizona bullpen. He last pitched six days ago, so the severe injury news is rather sudden.

It's not the first time a big name has blown up on the D-Backs. Former Giants star Madison Bumgarner had an ERA over six in his first year with Arizona, and it never got much better, leading to his release with almost two full years left on his contract. They'll hope the new $210 million arm of Burnes doesn't follow suit in their attempt to make it back to the playoffs.

The Dodgers don't play Arizona in the first month of the year. Their first meetings will be at Chase Field on May 8-11.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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