Corbin Burnes working on building rapport with Gabriel Moreno

The Diamondbacks new ace will be aiming to build a relationship with his primary catcher this spring.
Sep 26, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Corbin Burnes (39) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Sep 26, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Corbin Burnes (39) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Spring Training kicked off on Wednesday, with the Diamondbacks' new ace throwing his first bullpen. Corbin Burnes threw to starting catcher Gabriel Moreno, with the anticipation of the pair working together in the vast majority of his starts for the foreseeable future.

"That's a relationship that's going to take time to grow," Burnes told Alex D'Agostino of Diamondbacks on SI. "I've done kind of three years in a row now with a new catcher, so it's something I've gotten used to, but we've got seven or eight weeks here at camp to get it figured out. It's a relationship that will continue to grow throughout the entire year."

It's the type of relationship that manager Torey Lovullo considers the most important when he went onto Bickley & Marrotta ahead of the first workout.

"I think everybody is in that stage where they're getting to know one another, getting to know their teammates. I just talked to the team and I said there is no more important relationship than that between the pitcher and the catcher. You got to start having those conversations today and I know many of them have been having those conversations."

With both Burnes and Moreno in the organization for at least the next two seasons, there will be plenty of time for the two to come together and figure things out. He'll be on his third team in as many years, this is not a new experience. The pair will get their first start together in the regular season on Opening Day, when the Diamondbacks take on the Chicago Cubs at Chase Field.

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