The Diamondbacks offense continues to struggle, dropping a 6-1 game at Globe Life Field. In their past five games, they’ve scored a total of seven runs and have a 1-4 record.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!“We got to understand what our offensive identity is,” said a frustrated manager Torey Lovullo. “Hard contact in the middle of the diamond, grinding out at-bats, being stubborn in the zone, swinging at the strike we’re looking for. Those are all reminders I know the players are getting on a daily basis, and we got to be better than this.”
While they failed to deliver the big hit in this game, they certainly had their chances. In five separate innings, they advanced a runner into scoring position but collectively went 1-for-8 and stranded 12 runners on base. While they were able to build innings throughout the game, they couldn’t get the big, two-out hit to put runs on the board.
The Diamondbacks made some noise in the ninth inning to make the game somewhat interesting, with the first three hitters singling to get on the scoreboard. Corbin Carroll drove in the Diamondbacks’ only run with his third hit of the day, but that’s as far as the rally went. All three hits were line drives, perhaps an encouraging sign that the team’s star outfielder is getting closer to making the type of impact he made last season. However, the rally stalled as a couple of ground balls to shortstop from Ketel Marte and Christian Walker led to the final three outs.
Ryne Nelson, perhaps pitching for his rotation spot, turned in a decent start. He allowed just four runs in six innings, marking only the second time this season he’s pitched past the fifth inning. Despite dealing with traffic on the bases, he limited the damage to a single run in the third and fourth innings. However, one pitch he’d like to have back was against Corey Seager in the fifth.
Already trailing 2-0 at that point, Nelson left a cutter on the inner third of the plate that Seager turned around for a two-run home run. It marked Seager’s eighth home run in eight games. Adding his impact in the World Series, the Rangers shortstop has homered five times in his last seven games against the Diamondbacks.
“He got to a quality pitch, it was a cutter in, off the plate, and it was difficult to get to,” said Lovullo. “When he’s hot, he barrels up anything that’s thrown near the zone. We got to be a little better there too.”
The Diamondbacks will travel eastward to take on the struggling New York Mets. Zac Gallen (5-4, 3.12 ERA) will take the mound for Arizona while rookie Christian Scott (0-2, 3.97 ERA) will go for New York. First pitch at Citi Field will be at 4:10 P.M. MST.
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Michael McDermott covers the Arizona Diamondbacks and Arizona Cardinals for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @MichaelMcDMLB
