"In the sort of move General Manager Kevin Towers is known for, the Diamondbacks made a low-risk pickup on Wednesday by acquiring left-hander Zach Duke from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for a player to be named later.

Duke is coming off the worst season of his career and was designated for assignment last week by the Pirates, who weren't willing to give him the raise on his $4.3 million salary he would have made in arbitration.

The Diamondbacks probably won't pay that much, either, but have until Dec. 3 to try to negotiate a deal with him. If they can't get Duke to sign for less than what he made this year, they'll likely non-tender him, thus making him a free agent.

Duke, who turns 28 in April, had a career-worst 5.72 ERA in 159 innings this season, one year after posting a 4.06 ERA in 213 innings in 2009. He has a 4.54 ERA in parts of six seasons in the majors.

"We're hoping that with a change of scenery we can get him back to where he was two or three years ago," said Towers, who is known for finding undervalued pitchers. "There's still a lot of upside for him."

Just five days after being designated by the Pirates, Duke said he was "pleasantly surprised" to land in Arizona.

"I'm excited at the opportunity," he said. "The team is a pretty strong team. They had a little bit of a down year last year, but the talent is definitely there in the lineup."

Duke called this season a "strange year," but said he was committed to improving next season."