Snake Bytes 4/29: Capitalizing in the Capital

Diamondbacks 4, Nationals 3

[D’backs.com] D-backs achieve feat unseen in NL since 1907 - Almost as much time had elapsed between World Series Championships for the Chicago Cubs as it took for a team to match their consecutive series victory streak to begin a season. The Cubs ended their 108 year World Series victory drought in 2016, and now the 2018 Diamondbacks have matched the 1907 Cubs to become the first National League team since that ball club to win their first 9 series to begin a season. Those 1907 Cubs hold the MLB record with 11 consecutive series victories to begin a season. It took 10 innings, and a shade over three and a quarter hours for the Diamondbacks to pull out a 4-3 victory over the Nationals.

“It just means that we’re doing a lot of things right and we’re a good baseball team,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “We’re excited about that. We know that we’re having a lot of success and it takes a different approach day by day. We’re always ready to play and perform.”

[Arizona Sports] D-backs beat Nationals on bases-loaded walk for 9th straight series win - David Peralta notched his first career multi home run game with solo shots to each side of the field off of former D’back Jeremy Hellickson. The Freight Train just barely missed three in the game as he took Hellickson’s first pitch of the game all the way to the warning track for a long fly out. Nick Ahmed and Daniel Descalso both had multiple hits in the game, with the former accounting for the game winning run on a bases loaded walk in the top of the 10th.

“When you have a good team, you never feel like you’re out of the game,” Pollock said. “You don’t know who it’s going to be, but we’ve had a lot of different guys step up throughout the year.”

[AZ Central] Diamondbacks find ways to win, clinch another series victory - Patrick Corbin and Jeremy Hellickson were extremely efficient in the early goings requiring only 22 minutes to complete the first two innings of play. Both pitchers surrendered a pair of home runs on the game. Corbin’s two run shot surrendered to Ryan Zimmerman in the 3rd inning could have easily been avoided. Arizona had Trea Turner caught dead on the base path attempting to steal second base, but Ketel Marte whiffed on a throw from Christian Walker thus preventing the Diamondbacks from ending the inning. That allowed Zimmerman to give the Nationals an early 2-0 lead. Fernando Salas, Archie Bradley, Yoshi Hirano, and Brad Boxberger all combined to go for 3 and ¹⁄₃ scoreless innings in relief.

“We haven’t made too many mistakes as a group,” catcher Alex Avila said. “We’ve been able to limit those. That’s one reason we’ve been able to pile up some wins. We’ve been limiting our mistakes, playing extremely sound baseball, whether it’s defensively, guys executing as a staff or us figuring out a way to get an extra run across. We’ve just been playing sound baseball.”

Diamondbacks News

[D’backs.com] Lamb’s full pregame work encourages D-backs - Jake Lamb is progressing back towards full game speed and might be able to return to the team when the D’backs come back to the Valley of the Sun to face the Los Angeles Dodgers. Steven Souza Jr. has begun his throwing program, but is only throwing at a distance of 70 feet currently, so it will be some time before he makes his return.

[The Athletic] When Hoskins met Goldschmidt: Sluggers share a first moment, after shared admiration from afar - Ever wonder what Paul Goldschmidt talks about with opposing players during the game when they reach fist base? To me, he always has this obligatory chuckle which says, “I acknowledge that you’re in my presence, but I’m more focused on the task at hand.” He shared a greeting with Phillies’ first baseman Rhys Hoskins during the Diamondbacks’ recent road trip through Philadelphia who has admired Goldy from afar.

“I’m definitely a fan of him,” Goldschmidt said. “He’s impressed me. I don’t know if that means anything. He probably doesn’t care about my opinion.” Hoskins does. He considers Goldschmidt as a source of inspiration. That is why the second-year player greeted the five-time All Star in the fifth inning Tuesday night with a message. Goldschmidt said their conversation was limited to, “Hello.” But Hoskins recounted their chat in greater detail. “Dude,” Hoskins told him, “you’re someone that I have modeled my game after for as long as I can remember.” “Oh cool,” Goldschmidt responded. “That’s awesome. That’s really cool to hear.”

[SB Nation] The Diamondbacks are making history to start 2018 - No doubt about it. The Diamondbacks are off to a historical start to the season. But we need to keep in mind that the regular season is a marathon and not a sprint. So far Arizona has won 16 games this April. The 2017 version of the Diamondbacks won at least 16 games in a month 5 times, also winning 17 games in May and June. Torey Lovullo is surely keeping his squad focused on the bigger picture as each contest passes.

[Yahoo Sports] Diamondbacks equal feat of success not achieved in 111 years - At the conclusion of this series against the Washington Nationals, the Diamondbacks’ schedule does not get any easier upon returning home to Chase Field. They will face the Los Angeles Dodgers for 4 games, followed by another 2 game stint against them in Los Angeles after a 3 game series against the defending World Champion Houston Astros. Afterwards, its the Nationals, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Mets, and Brewers again. I am doing what the Diamondbacks players certainly are not, looking too far ahead. As the saying goes on the Pit, all of those teams are probably thinking, “Damn, we have to face the Diamonbacks?”

[AZ Central] Arizona Diamondbacks’ Archie Bradley, a year later, reflects on his near-return to rotation -Last season, the conversation had with Archie Bradley was that returning him to the starting rotation would leave a bigger hole in the bullpen than the one he was filling for injured starter Shleby Miller. A year later, he held that truth to be self evident in the nation’s capital yesterday afternoon when he mowed through Bryce Harper striking him out on three straight fastballs.

“I was going to start against (Max) Scherzer that last day here,” Bradley said. But in the days leading up to that anticipated start, the Diamondbacks changed direction. Everyone involved is glad they did. “I still would like to start and see what I can do,” Bradley said. “But for what I’m doing right now and what this team is doing, it’s kind of the perfect spot for me. It just fits with what we’re doing.”

Around the League

[Press Herald] Sea Dogs feature sons of two MLB managers - Tate Matheny and Nick Lovullo, sons of Mike Matheny and Torey Lovullo, both play together for the Boston Red Sox minor league affiliate Portland Sea Dogs. There was a hilarious exchange between the two on Twitter after benches cleared when the Diamondbacks visited the St. Louis Cardinals at the start of this season.

Both men are attempting to follow in their fathers’ footsteps with the hope of one day reaching the Major Leagues.

[MLB.com] Panda pitching alert! Sandoval fires perfect 9th - The San Fransisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers split a doubleheader yesterday. In the matinee game, the Dodgers got out to an early 12-2 lead. Bruce Bochy, hoping to save his bullpen for the night cap, brought in Pablo Sandoval to face the Dodgers in the top of the 9th. It was the first time a Giants’ position player pitched in relief since Greg Litton on the 4th of July, 1991 according to MLB.com.