Notes: Martin to Triple-A; Buchter joins 'pen

The D-backs optioned right-hander Corbin Martin to Triple-A Reno on Thursday, and they hope the next time he comes to the big leagues it's for good.

Martin was sent out to make room for left-hander Ryan Buchter, who had his contract selected from Reno. To clear a 40-man spot for Buchter, right-hander Luke Weaver, who is out with a right shoulder strain, was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Martin, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the D-backs' No. 7 prospect, made two starts for Arizona and allowed nine earned runs over nine innings.

D-backs manager Torey Lovullo met with Martin after Wednesday night's game to deliver the news.

"There were certain things that we challenged him with, such as finishing off hitters with the fewest amount of pitches, putting the ball on the plate, landing breaking balls, driving fastballs into the zone consistently," Lovullo said. "And when he does that, he's very, very good. It's just a matter of that consistency that we're looking for."

Martin, 25, was the centerpiece of the deal that sent Zack Greinke to the Astros, and the D-backs are bullish on his future. He underwent Tommy John surgery in June 2019 and spent last summer working his way back at the team's alternate training site.

"We feel like there's still some more growth and development that he could be doing down in player development," Lovullo said. "And it just made sense for us to allow him to go ahead and continue to work on that and challenge him that the next time he comes here, that will be the last time he ever has to turn around to go back to the Minor Leagues."

Buchter added to 'pen
After Jon Duplantier was moved from the bullpen into an emergency starting role for Thursday night's game, the D-backs needed some coverage in the bullpen, which the left-handed Buchter provides.

Buchter appeared in nine games in relief for Reno, compiling a 2.79 ERA after failing to win a job with the D-backs this spring as a non-roster invitee to camp.

"He’s been throwing the ball really, really well in Reno," Lovullo said. "A credit to him, he accepted the news that he was going to go down and had to continue pitching and performing to get back to the big leagues at the end of it. I know he had other goals in mind, such as to make the team out of camp. When that doesn’t happen, it gets a little frustrating. He managed to pick himself up."

A misreading of the play
In the ninth inning on Wednesday, pinch-runner Tim Locastro, who represented the tying run, did not tag up from second base on Stephen Vogt's fly ball to center. Had Locastro gotten to third base, it's possible the inning would have turned out differently, as he would have later scored on Josh Rojas' single to left.

Because he didn't, he was only able to advance to third on Rojas' hit and was stranded there.

"For me, I felt like it was a misread and I felt like Tim could have tagged and gotten to third base," Lovullo said.