SnakeBytes, 7/22: Sweep Edition

A sweep.  That's...  Well, it's just sort of depressing that it took that long, but it's great to see the team actually pull it off.  And to do it by beating the Mets, the least-favorite team of my childhood, is even better.  Good series, guys.  You can call this a legitimate, actual win streak, Gibby.  Now take that momentum and carry it on to the next game.

Recaps:

• [dbacks.com] In a pinch, Snyder gives D-backs win in 14th - "I [left] a pitch a little bit up to Barajas that just got out over the fence that cost about three hours of our lives." You owe us, Haren!

• [nj.com] After 14 punchless innings, Mets lose, 4-3, to complete sweep by Arizona Diamondbacks - I'm just amazed- 8 scoreless innings from the bullpen?

• [azcentral.com] Arizona Diamondbacks sweep New York Mets on Chris Snyder's walk-off hit in 14th inning - "They played like a very good team today." We haven't seen enough of that recently.

• [fangraphs.com] Five Key At-Bats From The Late Night Marathon - Fangraphs gives us a look at the five most important at-bats, as judged by leverage index. Interestingly, Snyder's at-bat that won it came in #4.

• [miamiherald.com] San Francisco Giants (52-43) at Arizona Diamondbacks (37-58) - The Giants are sitting in second place, having moved up from fourth at the All Star break.

• [cbssports.com] Giants-Diamondbacks Preview - How is it that, this far into the season, we've faced the Cardinals nine times and the Giants only five times?

DBacks News:

• [dbacks.com] 'Gibby Ball' encouraging D-backs to run -There's been a definite, noticeable change in the way the DBacks have played on the basepaths since Gibby took the reigns.

• [mlb.com] Band of brothers: Pastime unites siblings - A look at brothers in the Majors. With three players, I wonder if we lead the league?

• [mlbtraderumors.com] Tigers Have 'Serious' Interest In Dan Haren - According to the report, the DBacks requests for Haren are starting "to get more reasonable." Apparently, there were a lot of scouts in attendance at last night's game.

Around Sports:

• [foxsportsarizona.com] Arizona's Grand Old Game - Vintage baseball is such a fun game to watch. If you get the chance to catch a game, I highly recommend it.

• [YumaSun] Baseball league dissolves Yuma Scorpions agreement - Apparently Yuma's GBL franchise hasn't been living up to their responsibilities. 
  

• [azcentral.com] No shortage of players willing to sacrifice to play in Arena Football League - Sort of along a similar line, here's a look at what it's like to play arena football.  It's professional sports, but it's not nearly as glamorous or high paying as playing in the "big four" leagues.  

• [fangraphs.com] Is Timmy Broken? - We're facing Tim Lincecum on Sunday, but before that, FanGraphs looks at Timmy's pitch velocity in his last start, and wonders if there's something wrong.

• [SBNation.com] Are Baseball Umpiring Standards Declining? - Are umpiring standards in decline this season? We review some recent high-profile incidents.

There's your links for the afternoon.  We face off against the Giants and Matt Cain tonight- can we stretch this win streak a little?