The Diamondbacks just completed a tough three-series stretch against the Dodgers, Padres, and Braves. Over those 10 games, they went 6-4 with two series wins and a series split. Against three teams who currently occupy a playoff spot, that’s a good sign.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!In nine of the 10 games, Arizona held a lead in the ninth inning. Three of their four losses came after a blown save by Paul Sewald, perhaps adding some frustration to an otherwise solid stretch. It ended with the Diamondbacks closer locking down back-to-back saves over the Braves. While it could have been a 9-1 stretch with a better pitch from Sewald here or there, it would be silly to discount the 6-4 stretch because of that.
The offense has come alive in July, with a team putting up a .272/.338/.496 triple slash at the plate with 18 home runs. That’s propelled them to score 64 runs in 10 games. Eugenio Suárez has come alive in the month of July with seven extra-base hits and 12 RBI. Christian Walker tortured the Dodgers pitching staff for three games, to the point of fans renaming Dodger Stadium as “Christian Walker Stadium” and selling it on t-shirts.
They’ve shown the ability to win in slugfests, low-scoring games, and coming from behind. Two of the team’s seven wins when allowing five or more runs came in their last 10 games. They beat Max Fried and Dylan Cease on days they pitched very well, with both games decided by a Suárez home run. They picked up two of their three wins on the season when trailing by two or more runs, coming back against the Dodgers on July 3 and the Braves on July 10.
Entering play on July 12, the Diamondbacks are just a game back of both the San Diego Padres and the New York Mets for the final Wild Card spot. They’ll have an opportunity to make up that one game later this season, with the opportunity to claim the season tiebreaker should they win both series. However, the task will be to handle the series up ahead with the Toronto Blue Jays. With the All-Star break coming up, it has the potential to be a trap series if the Diamondbacks let that happen.
Depending on how the rest of the season goes, with 64 games left on the schedule, this could be the 10-game stretch where the Diamondbacks were finally able to start putting together on the field. Should they make that final push into the postseason, this is the part of the schedule to go back and circle as the turning point for their season.
Diamondbacks face difficult 13-game stretch to stay alive in Wild Card race
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Michael McDermott covers the Arizona Diamondbacks, Arizona Cardinals, and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @MichaelMcDMLB
