Snake Bytes 6/2: Undefeated in June

Arizona Diamondbacks 6, New York Mets 5

[D’backs.com] Locastro plays hero as D-backs rally, stun Mets - How fun is Tim Locastro to watch? I’ve always had an affinity for baseball players with elite speed, and he is one of those players. What has made Tim such a tremendous baseball player this season is his highly respectable .473 on base percentage. He is producing opportunities to showcase his elite speed and making the most of it. He currently tops all of MLB with a sprint speed of 30.4 ft/sec. If he can continue to find ways to reach base, he deserves to stick around as a reserve outfielder.

“An opportunity like that presents itself where I can get on base any way I can, then I can try and score,” Locastro said. “I can try and use my speed to try and score, steal a base, sac fly, passed balls, whatever it takes to score. That’s the name of the game -- score more runs than the other team. That’s just the way I was brought up, even in Little League, college, high school, so just have to continue to do it.”

[AZ Central] Tim Locastro lifts Diamondbacks over Mets in walk-off win in 11 innings - Of course, Arizona would not have been in position for an extra inning walkoff without a four run eighth. That frame was capitalized by an Adam Jones two run home run to left field to tie the game at 5 apiece.

“It was a team win,” Lovullo said. “These guys deserve to feel really good about things. These are the types of wins that push you in a really positive direction. Hopefully, we can continue to build on that and win a lot of games.”

[Arizona Sports] D-backs snap 5-game losing streak with extra innings win over Mets - Last night was billed as a pitcher’s duel between Zack Greinke and Jacob deGrom. It was anything but that. The Mets tagged Greinke for 4 runs and 7 hits through 4 innings, while deGrom had a relatively effortless outing through 7 innings. Zack Godley picked up where Greinke left off, and although he did allow a run himself he did not let the game get out of hand further.

We quickly discovered that [Greinke] had a little bit of neck spasm, neck cramp, and a little discomfort there, but everything kind of settled down by the time we got out there” Lovullo said on Greinke. “I stayed out there to talk over some strategy and Zack just really never got into a rhythm today.”

Diamondbacks News

[CBS Sports] 2019 MLB Draft: Diamondbacks have eight of the top 80 picks, but franchise-altering class seems unlikely - We’ve had tremendous draft coverage here at the Pit recently. If you’ve been paying attention, you’d know that just because the Diamondbacks have two handfuls of selections it does not mean they’re going to hit on every single one of them.

“The thing we won’t get swept up in is, ‘OK, we’ve taken a couple starting pitchers. We don’t need another pitcher,’” Hazen told the Arizona Republic. “We’re going to focus on getting the best available player, no matter what the position is, because I don’t want to get wrapped up in trying to build a baseball team with those eight picks. We’re trying to build a baseball organization.”

[D’backs.com] Cron back with D-backs as Swihart goes on IL - Would the D’backs have been as fortunate last night with Blake Swihart at the plate instead of Tim Locastro? We’ll never know, because the former is now on the disabled list. Kevin Cron was recalled from AAA Reno to take Swihart’s place.

[MLB Trade Rumors] Diamondbacks Outright John Ryan Murphy - No other team took a flier on John Ryan Murphy, so he remains within the organization. How long until the D’backs are running with three catchers again?

[AZ Central] David Peralta takes steps toward return from injured list - Who goes down to Reno when the Freight Train returns? It appears the team won’t be without David Peralta for much longer.

“It hasn’t been a tremendous amount of time where he’s stepped out,” Lovullo said. “I think the at-bats he can get here (in extended) would be sufficient for me. “I think he’s in a pretty good spot. The timing mechanism, the sightlines, those are the most important things, and I don’t think those go away after nine or 10 days.”

Around the League

[ESPN] Anarchy, ingenuity and a lot to gain: How one team could blow up MLB draft - Aluminum foil hats. Conspiracy theroies. What is going on here?

[The Athletic] Stark: 10 things we learned in May - I’m on my way out the door to go see Godzilla and am struggling to get you headlines from around the league in a timely manner this morning. Here’s a grab bag from The Athletic to hold you over.