The Arizona Diamondbacks just began the 2025 MLB season, but they are already trying to secure a potentially big piece of their future. Right-handed starting pitcher Brandon Pfaadt and the organization have agreed to a five-year contract extension worth $45 million, per the D-backs' official X account.

Zac Gallen, who scuffled in a 10-6 Opening Day loss to the visiting Chicago Cubs on Thursday, is set to enter free agency at the end of the year. Arizona's decision to lock up the 26-year-old Pfaadt suggests that it is protecting itself for Gallen's possible departure.

Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen shrewdly extended Corbin Carroll before his 2023 Rookie of the Year campaign and is now hoping to solidify the team's long-term relationship with another young, promising talent. Although Pfaadt has a 5.06 ERA through 51 career games, he has impressed Arizona's shot-callers with his composure in big spots and gradual development. The fifth-round draft pick's new deal includes a $21 million club option in 2031 and a $25 mutual option in 2032, per FanSided's Robert Murray.

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Pfaadt seized a sizable role in the pitching staff in 2023, serving as the No. 3 starter during the Diamondback's rip-roaring National League pennant run. The rookie was no workhorse, but he allowed manager Torey Lovullo to stretch out his bullpen during a time when his starting rotation was noticeably thin.

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Brandon Pfaadt was especially valuable in the NL Championship Series versus the Philadelphia Phillies, allowing just two runs while striking out 16 batters in 9 2/3 innings of work (across two starts). His four-inning outing in Game 7, which took place in a raucous Citizens Bank Park, was an example of a performance proving far more impactful than the box score indicates. Quite simply, the snakes would not have slithered their way to the World Series without him.

He was wildly inconsistent in 2024, finishing with a 4.71 ERA in 32 starts. However, Pfaadt did accumulate 185 strikeouts and exhibited solid control, both of which are signs that he could evolve into a steady presence in the rotation.

That is what the Diamondbacks are banking on, anyway. If the Louisville, Kentucky native can make further strides in his third MLB season, then a starting staff that also boasts Corbin Burnes, Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly and Eduardo Rodriguez could become the most lethal unit in the sport.

Pfaadt will try to immediately reward Arizona's faith when he makes his season debut against the Cubs on Saturday night.