Snake Pit Sim Season: 7/18 - Whoops!

This was not the sort of game the Diamondbacks needed coming out of the break, still looking for their pitching staff to recover. Robbie Ray was fine. He did not go deep, but he did go five innings and keep his team in the game. The three earned runs he allowed meant the game was tied when he left. The twelve strikeouts (10 swinging) elevated the veteran lefty’s pitch count, which in turn led to his early departure.

Unfortunately, Arizona’s offense went ice cold after the fifth inning. They weren’t exactly tearing the cover off the ball before that either. Miami’s starter, Sandy Alcantara was dealing. The right-hander managed 7 ¹⁄₃ innings of rather impressive pitching. While the Diamondbacks managed to put together three runs on four hits through the front five innings, the runs came through savvy base running and a bit of luck. Even the first inning home run by David Peralta barely left the field. After the Snakes scored in the fifth, they couldn’t buy solid contact with the ball again until the bottom of the ninth, where they threatened to walk the game off. Carson Kelly started the inning off by flying out to the warning track in left. Jake Lamb singled crisply up the middle. Daulton Varsho tagged a pitch, but it went right at Brian Anderson at third, who then gunned down Lamb at second for a fielder’s choice. Yairo Munoz then turned over a pitch, grounding out to first.

Yoan López made his return from injury, taking the ball in the tenth inning. The young right-hander, who has been nails in high leverage situations all season, coughed up a three-spot in only two-thirds of an inning. Things went south badly enough that Braxton Garrett was called upon to take care of getting the final out with two runners still on base.

Final Score: MIA 6 - AZ 3

The player of the game was Sandy Alcantara. The promising young pitcher for Miami put on a clinic of how to scatter hits and minimize damage.

Marlins and Diamondbacks will play the series rubber game tomorrow. Miami will be starting Caleb Smith while the Diamondbacks will be looking for an improved performance from Jon Duplantier.