Grant Holman’s waiver run continues, with Dodgers claiming him after Diamondbacks acquisition

Grant Holman’s path to the majors has taken another turn in October, with the Dodgers claiming the right-hander after he had already been claimed once this season off waivers by the Diamondbacks. The situation reflects how teams value bullpen depth and upside, especially once a pitcher has shown enough across a small sample to attract interest during roster crunches.

Holman entered the year after pitching for the Athletics across a combined 40 major-league games over the previous two seasons. Despite that exposure, he did not make the Diamondbacks’ major-league roster at the start of the campaign. According to the report, that led to him being placed on waivers, where Arizona received him after an earlier claim by the team.

In the span of the season, his waiver movements created the central storyline of the “report card” framing: the report points to a 0.00 ERA outcome, and pairs that with the reality of frequent team changes. The juxtaposition underscores a common challenge for MLB evaluations, namely that early-season performance metrics can be difficult to interpret without consistent context, workload, and opponent quality.

After Arizona’s stint, the next stage came when Holman again cleared major-roster churn, being placed on waivers a second time. The Dodgers then claimed him, suggesting their front office saw something worth adding even after he had not stayed put on either club at the major-league level for long.

For fans, the waiver-to-waiver nature of Holman’s season means the key question is no longer whether he can reach a roster, but whether he can stabilize his role once he arrives. A pitcher can post promising results in limited innings and still face a steep adjustment curve, especially if usage patterns differ between teams or if a new club tries him in different leverage spots.

The timing also matters. October roster decisions and offseason roster construction often prioritize controllable bullpen options and organizational flexibility. A player like Holman, moving through multiple organizations within a single year, becomes a test case for how quickly teams can develop and translate short-term success into a repeatable major-league performance.

Going forward, the Dodgers’ primary task will be to define what Holman is, relative to their existing bullpen mix. Whether he is viewed as depth for long relief, a situational arm, or a candidate for higher-leverage work will determine how long he can remain in the rotation of active pitchers, and whether this latest claim ends the waiver loop.