Snake Bytes 8/23: What is Happening?

Arizona Diamondbacks 1, San Francisco Giants 5

[D’backs.com] 8 walks too much for D-backs to overcome - It was a contrast both on the mound and at the plate for the D-backs and Giants on Saturday night. The Giants’ Tyler Anderson threw strikes — he didn’t walk a batter in throwing his first career complete game — while D-backs pitchers gave up eight free passes. In the batter’s box, the Giants patiently worked those walks while 20 of the 27 outs the D-backs made came in three or fewer pitches. It all added up to the D-backs’ fourth straight loss, this one by a 5-1 margin at Oracle Park. The D-backs wrap up their five-game trip to the Bay Area on Sunday afternoon as they try to avoid a winless trip. “The name of the game is putting the ball on the plate and when we do, we have a lot of success,” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. “We can make some quality pitches and get some quick, easy outs. That’s what happened with their pitcher tonight. He was on the attack, he was changing speeds.”

[Arizona Sports] D-backs’ Gallen ties record for string of starts allowing 3 or fewer runs - Posting a one-run outing in the team’s 5-1 loss to the San Francisco Giants, [Zac Gallen] tied an MLB record with 21 games allowing three or less earned runs to start his career. Entering play Saturday, Gallen sported a 3-6 record with a 2.70 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP through 20 career games. Over that span, he allowed 33 earned runs and struck out 132. “It’s just a testament of trying not to let innings explode … but like I said last time it’s a testament to the guys making plays,” Gallen said after the game. “… It’s just one of those things of just trying to minimize damage and just keep us in the game. It’s kinda one of those records where if I’m successful I’m going to keep us in the game and give us a good shot to win.” But despite allowing just three hits, the earned run and four walks through 6.0 innings Saturday — on top of his previous outings — Gallen is still looking for his first victory of the abbreviated season. While the team has picked up four wins in his last six of his outings this year, Gallen has yet to be credited with a W.

[D’backs.com] Misery grows: Diamondbacks drop 4th straight in loss to Giants - When the Diamondbacks departed Chase Field last week, they looked like a team on the rise. Their offense had snapped to life. Their rotation was riding high. They looked entirely capable of ripping off a prolonged hot streak that would carry them into the stretch run. Since then, they have lost four games in four days. They have scored a total of five runs. Their pitchers have had trouble finding the strike zone. And they have watched their record dip back below .500. After a 5-1 loss to the San Francisco Giants on Saturday night at Oracle Park, the Diamondbacks are 13-15 and are just a half-game out of last place in the National League West.

Around the League

[CBS Sports] MLB schedule has 37 total games postponed due to positive COVID-19 cases - Major League Baseball’s season is one month old, and nearly 40 games have been postponed due to positive coronavirus cases. The Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals have both dealt with team-wide outbreaks. Both the Cincinnati Reds and New York Mets have had multiple games postponed because of positive tests. The Mets are the latest team dealing with an altered schedule. Two positive tests among the Mets organization caused the team’s series finale against the Marlins on Aug. 19 to be postponed and forced MLB to postpone the Mets’ three-game series against the Yankees from Aug. 20-22. As of Saturday, 37 different MLB games impacting a total of 13 teams had been postponed due to COVID-19 cases.

[Yahoo Sports] Nationals fire employee who allegedly threw hot coffee in woman’s face - A Washington Nationals employee has been fired after he allegedly threw two cups of hot coffee in the face of a female convenience-store employee in the Dominican Republic, ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel reported Saturday. Video posted to Twitter and shared by ESPN shows the Nationals’ employee, identified as Jazhiel Morel, exchanging words with the convenience-store employee. Before leaving, he’s seen picking up two cups and throwing the contents in the clerk’s face. After reviewing the footage, Nationals’ president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo says the team quickly terminated Morel.