Diamondbacks totally botched Corbin Burnes' routine that Brewers nurtured for years

Here we are in the first full week of the new MLB season. But this point, assuming your ace was healthy, you have probably seen him pitch by now. The first three games typically consist of the game's best pitchers going head-to-head.

For the Arizona Diamondbacks, their newly acquired Cy Young award winner somehow hasn't taken the mound yet. Corbin Burnes didn't pitch in the team's four-game series against the Chicago Cubs.

Burnes being the D-Backs last pitcher to make a start this year is not related to strategy or him needing more buildup. Rather a miscommunication between Burnes and his manager Torey Lovullo led to this decision.

Former Brewers star Corbin Burnes had 2025 routine thrown off course

Before Opening Day, the Diamondbacks were one of the last teams to announce their starting pitcher for Game 1 of 162. Lovullo ended up choosing Zac Gallen and desired to pitch Burnes the day after.

Burnes ended up having an issue with this as the timeframe from his last spring training start, March 21, until the matchup against the Cubs on March 27, would have put him out of routine with two extra days in between outings.

This did not fly with Burnes. He ended up throwing in a camp game the day before Opening Day on normal rest and Arizona shuffled their rotation around as a result. Now, Burnes will debut on the road against the Yankees and is in line to make his home debut the weekend of April 11 against the Brewers.

Corbin Burnes' emphasis on routine started when he was with the Brewers

As a fourth-round draft pick by the Brewers in 2016, Burnes has always had the talent, velocity, and elite spin rates to be great. However, Burnes had to work a bit harder on the mental aspect of the game — which many consider to be the most important.

Burnes' mental health journey started in 2019 when he was demoted to the minor leagues. He began working with mental performance coach Brian Cain, in which establishing and sticking to a routine was a key element to his turnaround.

On numerous occasions, Burnes has shared that his path to greatness on the mound started with the simple task of making his bed every day. This concept, which turned his life around, relies on the principals of emphasizing routine, discipline, and attention to detail.

By incorporating all of that to his day to day, Burnes translated that to his professional career. He went on to become one of the game's best (and highest-paid) pitchers.

So to hear that Burnes prioritized routine over when the Diamondbacks wanted him to start the season, which they communicated poorly with him, is not surprising. Brewers fans are surely happy Burnes is continuing on with his process and are looking forward to seeing him next weekend.