The Diamondbacks came into the night hoping for a cleaner finish to a tense series, but instead they got another tight game that slipped away late. Kansas City avoided the home sweep behind one massive swing from Bobby Witt Jr., and the loss left Arizona still battling San Diego for the final Wild Card spot after the Padres completed a sweep of Washington and pushed their win streak to four.
Zac Gallen took the ball in another short-handed spot for Arizona, coming off injury and working under obvious limitations. He threw strikes - 62 percent of his 68 pitches - but the stuff wasn’t overpowering, the baserunners kept coming, and the ball left the yard too often.
It wasn’t a disaster, and he gave the Diamondbacks a chance to hang around even with a short leash from Torey Lovullo and some shaky defense behind him. Still, it didn’t look much like the ace version of Gallen from earlier in his career.
He also came with a very different mix than usual, almost shelving his four-seamer in favor of more slider and knuckle curve usage.
Kansas City opened the scoring in the first with consecutive singles from John Rave and Kyle Isbel, then tacked on another run after a double steal and a bad throw from James McCann to third allowed Rave to score. The Royals added again in the third when Carter Jensen crushed a hanging slider into the Kaufmann fountains.
Arizona’s bullpen situation kept forcing the issue, and after Derek Law turned in another scoreless outing, the Diamondbacks went to Michael Soroka for his first relief appearance of the season. Soroka helped cover four innings and did steady things overall, but one sequence changed the game. In the inning that hurt him, Isaac Collins opened with a single, Jensen drew a walk on six pitches, and Witt Jr. jumped on the first pitch he saw and launched it deep into the Kansas City night for the go-ahead blast.
The Diamondbacks had chances of their own but never cashed in. They started the game by putting two runners in scoring position with one out and came away empty after a sharp play by third baseman Nick Loftin.
In all, Arizona finished 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position and couldn’t make much of the traffic against Royals starter David Lynch or the relief arms that followed. If the Diamondbacks are going to stay in the postseason race, the offense has to find its earlier-season rhythm again.
Maybe the off day and the long flight home will help reset things before the final homestand.
In Other News...
Diamondbacks Offseason Search Just Got Linked To A Big Bat
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Arozarena brings the kind of track record that naturally draws interest, with three All-Star selections and a reputation as a bat that can change a game in a hurry. Arizona is being viewed as an early possible landing spot if the market develops in that direction, but for now it is only a link, not a done deal, and the Diamondbacks' pursuit remains one of the more interesting threads to follow this winter. [Read more 🡒]
Torey Lovullo Faces A Familiar Diamondbacks Debate Again
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Lovullos situation lands in the same broader conversation that always seems to surround late-season managerial reviews, where contract status and team trajectory can matter as much as the final record. Some skippers are clearly secure, others are in real danger, and a few are left in the middle with no easy read. Arizonas decision will hinge on how the front office weighs all of that, which is why this one still feels open even as the season winds down. [Read more 🡒]
Corbin Burnes Gives DBacks A Boost But One Concern Remains
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Still, there was a small wrinkle in an otherwise encouraging first step, because his curveball did not have the bite the Diamondbacks would have wanted to see. In a season where every contender is tracking the playoff race closely, details like that matter, especially for a club trying to build around proven pitching. Arizona will take the boost Burnes provided, but it will also be watching closely to see whether the second gear is there the next time he takes the mound. [Read more 🡒]