Corbin Carroll’s pinch-hit walk-off home run in the ninth capped off an impressive comeback win over the Washington Nationals, 9-8 at Chase Field. Despite Jordan Montgomery turning in another stinker start for the Diamondbacks, the offense picked up their struggling lefty. Arizona trailed 5-0 before taking their first at-bats of the ball game, but they never gave up until the final out. Trailing by six with just four innings to go, they scored seven runs to cap off their most thrilling comeback of the season.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Here are some of the main takeaways from the game.
Diamondbacks fight until the last out, set up Corbin Carroll’s big moment
The Diamondbacks trailed 6-0 after two innings and 8-2 after six. However, they continued to fight until the last out. They scratched across a single run in the fourth, fifth, seventh, and eighth inning to cut the deficit to 8-4.
Then in the ninth inning, they jumped Nationals closer Kyle Finnegan. Alek Thomas led off the inning with a triple, then scored on a Geraldo Perdomo single. Ketel Marte turned on a fastball down and in to hit a low liner out to right field to push the Diamondbacks within one. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. singled to put the tying run on base and the winning run up to the plate. That’s when manager Torey Lovullo turned to his struggling star to deliver the big knock off the bench.
“It starts with our bullpen, coming in and shutting it down,” said Carroll on the postgame coverage on Dbacks TV. “You also got to give a huge shoutout to the offense. They job that they did to get me in that position to win the ballgame, you can’t say enough of it.”
In an 0-1 count, Carroll got a splitter that missed at the very top of the strike zone. With one swing of the bat, he turned a forgettable loss into a memorable win.
CORBIN CARROLL PINCH-HIT WALKOFF HOME RUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/923dqFuPzY
— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) July 30, 2024
“I was up there ready to hit a heater. Got a fastball, put a really good swing on it, probably one of my best all year.”
Jordan Montgomery continues a disturbing trend at home
It has not been a great season for Jordan Montgomery, especially at Chase Field. Entering this start, he has a 7.82 ERA and a 1.963 WHIP when pitching at home in 2024. Opposing hitters have put up a .355/.412/.559.
It only took a matter of six hitters for the struggling left-hander to pitch the Diamondbacks out of this game. After retiring C.J. Abrams to start the game, the next six Nationals reached. The big blow came from Alex Call, who crushed a curveball from Montgomery for a three-run homer to put Washington up 5-0.
In the second inning, the Nationals scratched across another run. Abrams doubled to right-center, stole third, and scored on Harold Ramirez’s two-out single up the middle. It marked the fifth time Montgomery has allowed six or more runs in a start this season. Four of those starts have come at Chase Field, where he has an 8.39 ERA, a 28-to-19 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and opponents are putting up a .368/.427/.579 slash against him.
Christian Walker leaves with left oblique tightness
Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker exited the game in the fourth inning. The team later announced Walker has removed from the game left oblique tightness, with manager Torey Lovullo clar. Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reported after the game that he’ll undergo an MRI on Tuesday to determine the extent of the damage and the concern level is “not minimal”.
Any sort of lengthy injury for their first baseman could be problematic for the Diamondbacks’ chances of staying in the Wild Card, or force them to make a last-minute trade at first base. Aside from being their best power threat and run producer in the lineup, his defense at first base was a huge asset to the club. Outside of Ketel Marte, Walker is Arizona’s most irreplaceable position player.
Should he need a stint on the injured list, which is looking very likely now, the only first baseman in the organization available would be Pavin Smith. While Smith is not a starter, he is a competent left-handed hitter who could fill in against right-handed pitchers. At the position, he would platoon with Kevin Newman, who replaced Walker in the game. While Newman is a middle infielder by trade, he is capable of playing all four spots on the infield.
Ironically enough, Walker’s spot in the lineup played a key role in the comeback. Newman went 2-for-3, driving in the Diamondbacks’ first run of the night with an RBI double in the fourth. In the ninth, Carroll pinch hit in that spot.
Next Game
The Diamondbacks will have an opportunity to win their fifth series in a row and their ninth of their last 10 with a win on Tuesday. Arizona will send Ryne Nelson (7-6, 4.85 ERA), who has pitched well of late, while Washington will go with veteran left-hander Patrick Corbin (2-10, 5.26 ERA). First pitch at Chase Field will be at 6:40 P.M. MST.
*Get the BEST Phoenix sports insider information, exclusive content, and access to our seasonal magazines! SIGN UP HERE to unlock our premium content!*
Michael McDermott covers the Arizona Diamondbacks, Arizona Cardinals, and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @MichaelMcDMLB
