{"id":522890,"date":"2026-01-16T04:21:18","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T04:21:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/522890\/"},"modified":"2026-01-16T04:21:18","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T04:21:18","slug":"familiar-face-returns-as-diamondbacks-sign-rhp-taylor-clarke-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/522890\/","title":{"rendered":"Familiar face returns as Diamondbacks sign RHP Taylor Clarke"},"content":{"rendered":"

PHOENIX \u2014 More signings have been made to reinforce the Arizona Diamondbacks\u2019 bullpen ahead of the 2026 season, and this time, it\u2019s a former D-Back.<\/p>\n

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Sep 20, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals pitcher Taylor Clarke (45) on the mound during the eighth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

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According to the team, right-handed pitcher Taylor Clarke has signed a one-year contract. In a corresponding move, right-handed pitcher Gus Varland was designated for assignment.<\/p>\n

Clarke previously pitched for Arizona earlier in his MLB career, emerging as a bullpen piece during his first stint with the club. From 2019 to 2021 in the desert, he posted a 4.99 ERA, a 1.39 WHIP, and recorded 147 strikeouts.<\/p>\n

With the Kansas City Royals in 2025, Clarke posted a 3.25 ERA, a 0.85 WHIP, and 44 strikeouts.<\/p>\n

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Aug 10, 2021; San Francisco, California, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Taylor Clarke (45) throws against the San Francisco Giants in the seventh inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports<\/p>\n

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The signing represents a low-risk move that adds experience and increases competition among the bullpen arms, giving the Snakes more options to work with as the season approaches.<\/p>\n

The Diamondbacks have evolved since Clarke last played for the team, but his familiarity with the organization brings value to a club with postseason aspirations. He isn\u2019t simply filling a role, but rather providing much-needed depth in an area that has been tested for Arizona over the past several seasons.<\/p>\n

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Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Taylor Clarke (45) throws against the Oakland Athletics during the sixth inning at Chase Field in Phoenix, April 13, 2021.
Athletics Vs Diamondbacks<\/p>\n

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More than just a reunion, the move adds more attention to the Snakes and their pursuit of another postseason run. Following major decisions such as re-signing Merrill Kelly and trading for Nolan Arenado, this signing represents another step toward contention.<\/p>\n

Arizona has needed to emphasize depth, and Clarke now has the opportunity to reestablish himself as a core contributor with a team that knows how to utilize his skill set.<\/p>\n

While the move may not capture major headlines, it\u2019s a signing that could prove valuable down the stretch.<\/p>\n

*Get the BEST Phoenix sports insider information, and exclusive content. SIGN UP HERE to unlock our premium content!*Wendy Lopez is a reporter for Burn City Sports. You can follow her on her X account, @wlopezde<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PHOENIX \u2014 More signings have been made to reinforce the Arizona Diamondbacks\u2019 bullpen ahead of the 2026 season,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":522891,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2404],"tags":[146,22,4314,5,69406,38,38862,2123,55,3183,10498,660,4,61,1086,1028,63,66,1630,70],"class_list":{"0":"post-522890","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arizona-diamondbacks","8":"tag-arizona","9":"tag-arizona-diamondbacks","10":"tag-arizonadiamondbacks","11":"tag-baseball","12":"tag-denny-medley-imagn","13":"tag-diamondbacks","14":"tag-gus-varland","15":"tag-kansas-city","16":"tag-kansas-city-royals","17":"tag-kauffman-stadium","18":"tag-mandatory-credit","19":"tag-merrill-kelly","20":"tag-mlb","21":"tag-new-york-mets","22":"tag-ninth-inning","23":"tag-nolan-arenado","24":"tag-oakland-athletics","25":"tag-san-francisco-giants","26":"tag-taylor-clarke","27":"tag-toronto-blue-jays"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115902866691033008","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/522890","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=522890"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/522890\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/522891"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=522890"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=522890"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=522890"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}