Koch signed a minor-league contract with the Rockies on Nov. 22 and received an invitation to major-league spring training.
Koch spent the 2022 season with the Mariners, and struggled to an 8.31 ERA over 4.1 innings of work in four appearances. The right-hander has an outside chance of making the Rockies out of spring training with a strong showing in the Cactus League.
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Mariners' Matt Koch: Outrighted to minors
Rotowire
The Mariners outrighted Koch to Triple-A Tacoma after he cleared waivers Thursday.
Koch's stay on the Mariners' 40-man roster and in the big-league bullpen lasted just over two weeks before he was designated for assignment last Friday. He appeared in four games for Seattle, giving up four earned runs on five hits and a walk over 4.1 innings.
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Mariners' Matt Koch: Designated for assignment
Rotowire
Koch was designated for assignment by the Mariners on Friday.
Koch had been with the team for just over two weeks, allowing four runs in 4.1 innings of relief. He'll be removed from the 40-man roster to clear space for Mitch Haniger, who returned from the COVID-19 injured list in a corresponding move.
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Mariners' Matt Koch: Contract selected by Seattle
Rotowire
Koch's contract was selected by the Mariners on Wednesday, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.
Koch began the regular season at Triple-A Tacoma and struck out five in two innings during a pair of relief appearances. He hasn't pitched in the majors since 2019 and should serve mainly in a low-leverage role out of the Mariners' bullpen.
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Mariners' Matt Koch: Joins Seattle on MiLB deal
Rotowire
Koch signed a minor-league contract with the Mariners on March 10.
He's been assigned to Triple-A Tacoma, where he's expected to serve in a relief role. The 31-year-old has made appearances at the big-league level in four different seasons, though he hasn't reached the majors since 2019.
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Indians' Matt Koch: Joins Triple-A Columbus
Rotowire
Koch was assigned to Triple-A Columbus on Sunday.
Koch last pitched in 2019 with the Diamondbacks, where he had a 9.15 ERA and 1.60 WHIP across 20.2 innings. He also saw time with Triple-A Reno, but posted an underwhelming 7.38 ERA and 1.65 WHIP in 100 innings, mainly as a starter, in the minors. Koch is unlikely to play much of a role in the majors in 2021.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Clears waivers
Rotowire
Koch cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Reno on Friday.
No team wanted to claim Koch after he posted a 9.15 ERA in 20.2 innings of relief to start the season. With a career 4.88 ERA and a 13.1 percent strikeout rate, there's little reason to believe he'll be a significant big-league asset any time soon.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Designated for assignment
Rotowire
Koch was designated for assignment by the Diamondbacks on Sunday.
Koch was quite poor in 20.2 innings of relief, posting a 9.15 ERA while walking just 9.4 percent of opposing batters. With a career 4.88 ERA in 125.1 innings and a considerably worse 5.99 FIP, it doesn't appear particularly likely that he'll be claimed off waivers. Jon Duplantier was called up to take his spot in the bullpen.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Needed again for length
Rotowire
Koch allowed two runs on two hits, two walks and two hit batsmen while striking out one over 4.1 innings of relief in Friday's 5-1 loss to the Cubs.
Starter Merrill Kelly had issues with his command throughout his 3.2 innings, walking seven and departing after 109 pitches. That's the ideal situation for Koch, who lost out on a bid to be a starter during spring training. This was the second time he's thrown four-plus innings in relief. It's been a rocky transition to the bullpen for Koch, who has given up 17 runs and six home runs over 13.1 innings.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Scratched from spring start
Rotowire
Koch was scratched from his upcoming spring debut Friday due to arm fatigue.
It's possible that this is just a minor spring maintenance issue, though it's not a great sign for a pitcher to fatigued before game action even starts. Nick Green will start the team's Cactus League opener in his place.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Allows one run in spot start
Rotowire
Koch allowed one run on five hits and three walks while striking out two over 4.1 innings in Tuesday's win over the Dodgers. He did not factor into the decision.
Koch was called on for a spot start and was only stretched out enough to throw 68 pitches (42 strikes). The righty was serviceable in that role Tuesday, lowering his ERA to 4.15, but if he makes another appearance over the final week of the season, it'll likely be out of the bullpen.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Shines in long relief
Rotowire
Koch struck out seven over four scoreless innings out of the bullpen Tuesday in the Diamondbacks' 9-1 loss to the Cubs. He gave up three hits and issued no walks in the 51-pitch appearance.
Koch's performance in long relief was one of the few silver linings on the day for the Diamondbacks, whose fading playoff hopes took another hit with the team dropping a fourth consecutive game. Though Matt Andriese received the starting nod in place of the injured Clay Buchholz (elbow), Koch could enter the rotation the next time the fifth spot comes up. Koch was the better performer of the two pitchers by a significant margin, as Andriese was tagged for five runs while lasting only two innings.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Will stick in bullpen
Rotowire
Koch will head back to the bullpen with Matt Andriese set to replace the injured Clay Buchholz (elbow) in the rotation Tuesday against the Cubs, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.
After Buchholz was shut down after experiencing elbow stiffness during a pregame bullpen session last Thursday in Colorado, Koch was pressed into a starting role on short notice. Considering the circumstances, Koch did well to eat three innings for the Diamondbacks, though he was tagged for four runs on eight hits and two walks. With Koch having posted a 4.83 ERA and a measly 4.5 K/9 over 13 starts with the big club this season, the Diamondbacks weren't eager to look his way again for starts over the final two weeks, so they'll instead give Andriese a chance to prove his worth in the rotation.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Allows four runs in loss
Rotowire
Koch (5-5) threw three innings and took the loss Thursday, yielding four runs on eight hits and two walks in the 10-3 defeat against Colorado. He struck out two and gave up two home runs.
Koch was called on to spot start after Clay Buchholz (elbow) became a late scratch. Nolan Arenado took him deep in the first inning and Trevor Story hit a two-run blast off him in the third. The 27-year-old will likely stick around in the bullpen down the stretch.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Promoted from Triple-A
Rotowire
Koch was recalled from Triple-A Reno on Saturday.
The right-hander enjoyed a sizzling start to the 2018 season, spinning a 2.59 ERA in his first five starts, but Koch soon fell apart afterward with a 5.80 ERA in the following nine outings and lost his rotation spot in late June. He'll return to the majors as a depth piece in the bullpen with potential to step in for an emergency start.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Optioned to Triple-A
Rotowire
Koch was optioned to Triple-A Reno on Tuesday.
Koch was called up just before the break and tossed a pair of scoreless innings, lowering his season ERA to 4.28. He'll make way for the return of Clay Buchholz (oblique), who gets the start Tuesday against the Cubs.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Called up from minors
Rotowire
Koch was recalled from Triple-A Reno on Thursday, Zach Buchanan of The Athletic reports.
Koch will likely be utilized out of the club's bullpen over the next few days, though he could wind up re-joining Arizona's rotation after the All-Star break should Shelby Miller (elbow) require an extended stay on the disabled list. Across 13 appearances (12 starts) for the Diamondbacks this year, Koch has logged a 4.40 ERA and 1.20 WHIP with just 38 strikeouts in 71.2 innings.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Demoted to Reno
Rotowire
Koch was optioned to Triple-A Reno following Tuesday's start.
Koch will return to the minors after spending the past two months in the Diamondbacks' rotation. Over that span, he logged a 4.40 ERA and 1.20 WHIP with a 38:17 K:BB across 71.2 innings. Though his raw numbers were solid at the onset of his promotion, the right-hander has been been streaky throughout his time with Arizona, including an outing against the Angles on Tuesday during which he allowed five earned runs off seven hits, two walks and two hit batsman in 5.2 innings. Koch will receive regular starts in Reno moving forward. In a corresponding move, Jake Barrett was recalled.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Rotation spot in jeopardy
Rotowire
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said after Tuesday's 5-4 loss to the Angels that it's "yet to be determined" if Koch would make his next scheduled turn through the rotation Monday against the Marlins, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports. "We're going to huddle up and have some conversations and figure out what the next course of action [is]," Lovullo said, regarding the Diamondbacks' rotation plans for the upcoming week.
Expectations were low for Koch when he was promoted from Triple-A Reno in mid-April to replace Taijuan Walker (elbow) in the rotation, but the 27-year-old surprisingly proved to be a reliable back-end starter. He came out of the gates hot with a 3-0 record, 2.59 ERA and 1.05 WHIP through his first five starts, but his 4.9 K/9 and low groundball rate suggested a reckoning was coming. Koch has since delivered a 6.10 ERA in his last seven starts while surrendering 11 home runs, including two in the loss to the Angels. With Shelby Miller (elbow) coming off a strong four-game rehab assignment and checking out fine after a 40-pitch bullpen session Tuesday, it appears he may now be the top candidate to start the series opener versus Miami. If that's the case, Koch would shift to a long-relief role or head back to Reno to continue making regular starts.
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Diamondbacks' Matt Koch: Earns fifth win
Rotowire
Koch (5-3) allowed two earned runs on three hits and one walk while striking out five across six innings to earn the win Thursday against the Mets.
Koch overcame two solo home runs by allowing only two other baserunners across his six innings of work. It was a nice bounceback effort after he was knocked around for five earned runs in his last start, which came at Coors Field. His 11 starts have had plenty of ups and downs as he has allowed five or more earned runs on three occasions, but three or fewer in the rest. Still, his time in the rotation may be limited with both Robbie Ray (oblique) and Shelby Miller (elbow) in the midst of rehab stints.
