What the Diamondbacks Get in Kade Strowd
The Arizona Diamondbacks traded Blaze Alexander to the Baltimore Orioles Thursday in a 3-for-1 deal. One piece of the return haul is right-handed middle reliever Kade Strowd. Here is what the Diamondbacks are getting in the hurler — who, despite debuting in 2025 still holds his rookie status.
2025 Relief Performance of Kade Strowd
Kade Strowd debuted on May 18 against the Washington Nationals after pitching 13 games for the Triple-A Norfolk Tides. After one appearance with the Orioles, Strowd returned to the Tides for another 11 appearances before coming back to the Orioles for two games. He returned to Norfolk for five appearances in July before re-joining the Orioles for good on July 26. He pitched in 22 games across the rest of the season.
Strowd held opponents scoreless in 20 of his 25 appearances, an 80.0 Scoreless Outing Percentage (ScOtg%; AL average was 72.5%). Across 26 1/3 innings, he allowed five earned runs (44 ERA-minus) and stranded all six runners he inherited. He allowed 16 hits and walked 13 for a 1.101 WHIP (AL avg: 1.282). Additionally, of the 105 batters he faced, he struck out 24, walked 13, and allowed one home run. This gave him the following percentages: 22.9 K%, 12.4 BB%, 10.5 K–BB%, and 1.0 HR%. For reference, the AL averages were 22.5 K%, 8.5 BB%, 14.0 K–BB%, and 3.2 HR%. Therefore, he was better-than-average in strikeouts and home run percentage. However, he was below average in walks and, consequently, strikeout minus walk percentage.
To be ranked, Reliever Roundup & Bullpen Bonanza required a minimum of 30 appearances, so Strowd did not make the final rankings. However, if that requirement were to be dropped to 25, he would have scored 17.8 points. That would have ranked eighth among AL middle relievers.
Pitch Mix
According to Statcast, Kade Strowd featured five pitches in 2025. Ranked in descending order of usage percentage, they were a cutter (41.1%), a fastball (18.5%), a sinker (15.0%), a curveball (12.8%), and a slider (12.6%). The average velocities of each pitch type were 91.7 mph cutter, 95.8 mph fastball, 96.3 mph sinker, 83.0 mph curveball, and 84.6 mph slider. Also according to Statcast, every pitch of his except the fastball ranked better-than-average with regards to keeping runs off the board.
Looking Ahead
In Kade Strowd, the Diamondbacks have picked up a reliever who saw success in 2025, albeit in a somewhat small sample size. However, given that the Diamondbacks relief unit ranked 14th out of 15 in the National League in 2025 — and 28th out of 30 in the majors — he will be a welcome addition to the team.
