James McCann needed one pitch to change everything.
The Diamondbacks catcher broke up a scoreless game in the eighth inning Wednesday night, launching a 409-foot homer on the first pitch he saw from Jonathan Bowlan to lift Arizona to a 1-0 win over the Phillies in Phoenix. The victory kept the D-backs from being swept and pushed them back into the third and final NL wild-card spot.
Arizona’s win, paired with San Diego’s loss in Cincinnati, moved the Diamondbacks one-half game ahead of the Padres. The D-backs had dropped three straight and four of six coming in, and their offense had been stuck in place throughout the three-game set, managing three runs and 18 hits while going 0 for 16 with runners in scoring position.
This one belonged to the arms.
Seven Arizona pitchers held Philadelphia to three hits, and the bullpen finished the job after starter Andrew Painter turned in seven scoreless innings. Painter allowed just two singles and no walks, struck out six, and came out after 93 pitches. He had retired 19 of 20 before the Diamondbacks finally broke through.
The opening came after Lars Nootbaar singled to start the first, then Geraldo Perdomo lined a single to left with one out in the seventh. Perdomo moved to second on a groundout, but Painter answered by striking out Tim Tawa to end the inning. Gabriel Moreno was the only other runner against him, reaching on a two-base error in the fourth when third baseman Bryson Stott couldn’t handle a 104 mph line drive.
Philadelphia’s bullpen couldn’t hold the line in the eighth. Bowlan came in for Painter, and McCann greeted him with the game’s only run. Jonathan Loaisiga, the sixth pitcher used by Arizona, worked a clean eighth, and Juan Morillo handled the ninth for his third save.
Morillo struck out Kyle Schwarber and Trea Turner before issuing a two-out walk to Bryce Harper. Luis Arraez then grounded out to end it. Morillo has now strung together 17 straight scoreless appearances.
Harper kept his own run going, extending his career-long on-base streak to 35 games with a single and two walks. He finished the series with seven hits, three walks and two RBIs. He singled to open the seventh against Brandyn Garcia, but Arizona escaped when Garcia forced a play at second and struck out two hitters to close the inning.
Bryan De La Cruz accounted for the Phillies’ other two hits, a double in the third and a single to start the sixth. Jose Cabrera came on and struck out Schwarber, then got Turner to ground into a double play to end that frame.
The Phillies, who had won six straight and 15 of 17, saw that momentum halted by a game decided on one swing and a parade of Arizona pitchers. The Diamondbacks, meanwhile, got exactly what they needed: a shutout, a home run, and a place back in the playoff picture’s top three.
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Now the first real test arrives in the form of Centennial High School in Las Vegas, a matchup that should say more about where Perry stands than a season opener ever could. Snyder gives the offense a proven leader, and Hathcocks arrival adds another layer of intrigue, but the bigger question is whether this fast start can hold up once the schedule starts asking harder questions. [Read more 🡒]