Feb. 12, 2026, 2:59 p.m. MT
A day after undergoing a surgery that put his status for Opening Day in jeopardy, Diamondbacks right fielder Corbin Carroll was back at Salt River Fields — and working to stay ready.
With a soft cast over his right arm — on which he had a broken hamate bone removed — Carroll was outside the Diamondbacks’ facility, firing weighted balls against a wall on Thursday morning, Feb. 12.
“Just trying to do what I can to stay in shape,” Carroll said. “I think the biggest thing will be getting back to swinging again.”
Said manager Torey Lovullo: “I’m not surprised. That’s how he’s wired and that’s what makes him so special.”
Carroll said he is targeting a return by Opening Day, which is a semi-realistic possibility given that hamate injuries typically sideline players for about six weeks. The injury will, however, knock him out of the World Baseball Classic, in which he was slated to represent Team USA.
“Very disappointed,” Carroll said. “It was something I was really looking forward to — spending time around such quality players and getting to represent the country, obviously, would have been one of the biggest honors of my career. I’m definitely bummed to miss it.
“At the same time, happy this isn’t something that’s happening midseason and I’m missing a bunch of games.”
Carroll hurt the hand on a swing on Tuesday, Feb. 10, during a live batting practice session. He said he felt the broken hamate “wiggling around” in his hand, leaving little doubt that the injury was serious.
He said he won’t be able to do much training involving his right hand, at least not for a while, but plans to do all he can to stay in shape as best he can.
“When he’s able to get a bat back in his hands,” Lovullo said, “the other parts of his body — such as his legs, that’s very important as well, and his shoulder, where he can throw the baseball — they’re not going to play catch-up. We want to make this as short a time as possible to get him back.”
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. making progress
Left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. gave Lovullo an optimistic expected return date from the right ACL surgery that ended his season last year.
“He said ‘Opening Day’ to me yesterday when I saw him,” Lovullo said. “That’s how good he’s feeling.”
Lovullo added: “It is not going to be Opening Day, I can assure you of that.”
The Diamondbacks haven’t offered even a rough timetable for Gurriel’s return. He underwent surgery in September.
“I don’t want to start to give a target yet,” Lovullo said. “We’ve got to see how he is. When I talked to him yesterday, he’s been hitting, he’s been running, he’s been doing a lot of things he feels very comfortable with, which leads me to think he has been getting after it and is ahead of the game plan.”
Adrian Del Castillo delayed by injury
Lovullo said catcher Adrian Del Castillo is dealing with a “left calf issue” that will delay him at the start of camp. He did not make it sound like an overly serious issue but said Del Castillo will be “slow-played” for now.
When he returns, he will remain behind the plate, Lovullo said. There had been speculation that Del Castillo’s defensive ability would force a change in position, perhaps to first base, where he took ground balls before games last season.
“I told him, ‘When it’s time for you to get back there, you’re going to be evaluated as a catcher and you’re not a first baseman,’” Lovullo said. “‘What you do behind the plate, how you swing the bat, is very unique, and I want to capitalize on your ability to get behind the plate.’ He will continue to be a catcher.”
date: 2026-02-13 05:30:00
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