The Diamondbacks got the kind of win they badly needed Sunday in Boston, even if it came with plenty of stress attached. After dropping the first two games of the series while being outscored 20-5, Arizona held on for a 7-6 extra-inning victory over the Red Sox and avoided the sweep.
That mattered for more than just the standings math. The Diamondbacks have been trying to steady themselves after a rough stretch, and with the National League Wild Card race packed tight - plus the uncertainty surrounding Ketel Marte’s status for the rest of the season - every game has started to carry extra weight. This one wasn’t clean, but it got the job done.
Brandon Pfaadt entered looking like a pitcher who had been helping to stabilize things. Over his last seven starts dating back to July 10th, he had worked to a 1.22 ERA and a 2.56 FIP, a stretch that lined up almost exactly with the last time the club was .500 or worse.
He also hadn’t allowed a homer since his first start back from Reno, covering 49.1 innings. That streak ended fast.
Boston jumped on him immediately. Nick Sogard opened the game with a first-pitch solo homer, a 93 MPH center-cut fastball that he drove out for the first home run of his career.
Jarren Duran added another solo shot on the first pitch he saw in the third, this one on an elevated fastball. Then Mickey Gaspar, who had homered in each of the previous two games, went deep again with a three-run blast that tied the game and finished Pfaadt’s afternoon.
Arizona’s offense took a little while to get moving. Through the first trip around the order, the Diamondbacks managed only three hits and a walk, and a chance to score in the third disappeared when Jose Fernandez tried to score on a slow roller to third and was thrown out easily.
The breakthrough came in the fifth. Fernandez and Ryan Waldschmidt opened the inning with back-to-back doubles, and Gabriel Moreno followed with a two-run double off the Green Monster that scored both Waldschmidt and Corbin Carroll. One inning later, Torey Lovullo sent Lars Nootbaar up to hit for Jordan Lawlar, and Nootbaar delivered in a big way, launching his first Arizona home run into the bullpen to put the Diamondbacks ahead.
They still had one more push left. In the extra frame, Nolan Arenado lined an inside fastball just over the shortstop’s head to bring home Moreno, who started the inning as the ghost runner.
But Arizona couldn’t fully separate itself, and Boston got a chance to answer when Jovani Moran lost the strike zone. He walked the bases loaded, then forced in another run before Waldschmidt grounded into a double play to end it.
In Other News...
Diamondbacks Return Home With More Turbulence Than Fans Expected
The Diamondbacks were already navigating an uneasy week before their return trip ever left the runway, with All-Star second baseman Ketel Marte landing on the restricted list for an undisclosed reason and missing the first two games against the Red Sox. Arizona managed to steady itself enough to win the finale, but the off-field uncertainty had already given the homestand a jarring feel.
Then the flight home added another layer of disruption. The clubs charter plane could not land in Phoenix because of a storm and was diverted to Las Vegas, where the team stayed overnight before planning to make the final leg back to Arizona the next morning. For a team trying to put a tricky stretch behind it, even the travel schedule has turned into part of the story. [Read more 🡒]
Diamondbacks Just Lost Another Bullpen Arm With Something To Prove
Another arm with some intrigue has slipped away from the Diamondbacks, as right-hander Andrew Hoffmann is moving on after being claimed off waivers by the Phillies. Philadelphia sent him to Triple-A Lehigh Valley right away, a sign the organization still sees a reliever worth keeping in the fold as it sorts out its bullpen depth.
For Arizona, it is another reminder of how quickly fringe pitching depth can disappear, especially when a pitcher has shown enough in the majors and minors to draw attention elsewhere. The roster move also came with a corresponding shuffle in Philadelphia, where Felix Reyes was recalled and placed on the 60-day injured list with a right-wrist fracture, while Hoffmann gets a fresh chance to keep pushing his way back toward a big-league role. [Read more 🡒]