Last week, we had five elimination rounds, all of which contained five potential nominees in the first AZ SnakePit award category for the 2016 season. The selections which gained most votes in each group, have qualified for this final vote. Here’s a reminder of the finalists.
4/18 - Lamb last strike homer
Group 1 winner: 57% of the vote. The opening game against the Giants this year looked lost, after Arizona let San Francisco reclaim the lead in the bottom of the eighth. But, down to his last strike with two outs in the ninth, Jake Lamb homered off Santiago Casilla, tying things up, and the D-backs won in 11.
5/6 - Castillo/Ahmed throw out/tag
Group 2 winner: 43% of the vote. When it came to throwing out base-runners, Welington Castillo's numbers this year were among the best in the major leagues. But in this case, it took an amazing throw around the batter, on a pitch in the dirt, plus a great assist from his infield, in the shape of Nick Ahmed, to nail the runner.
6/24 - Weeks catch at wall
Group 3 winner: 35% of the vote. This was certainly a game saver. With two men on base and one out in the bottom of the ninth inning, and Arizona clinging to a 10-9 lead at Coors Field, anything but a catch would certainly have tied the game, if not given Colorado a walk-off. But Rickie Weeks Jr came through.
7/2 - Castillo's clutchiest homer
Group 4 winner: 38% of the vote. This was the year's biggest hit by a D-back, in Win Probability terms. Down two runs in the bottom of the eighth, Welington Castillo's three-run shot was worth +59.9%. As a yardstick, only three D-backs had better games in terms of impact, all this season.
10/1 - Bradley fields comebacker
Group 5 winner: 63% of the vote. Last but not least in these top-rate plays, we have Archie Bradley's last start, where he didn't just strike out a career-high 11 batters, he also delivered this impressively athletic play to get the out at first. Given his previous history, even just fending off the ball was impressive!