Beercap/HappyHourCap: D-backs 4 Rockies 1

Been a long, long, long week folks.

That makes this happy hour/beer time not only sought after, but needed.

So raise you glasses my fellow fans and be sure to buy your mom a drink as well (Mother’s Day on Sunday), and join me on this fun filled Friday as our Sneks take on the Rocks.

Inning 1

• Merrill Kelly, who’s started out the season VERY WELL, gives up a single and then a 2-out double to our old buddy Cron (I still pronounce it in the Conan the Barbarian way: Crom). Not a great way to start out the 1st, but Cron does have a hot bat, and the night is still very young. 0-1 Rocks after a McMahon can-o-corn to right field. Meh.
• Happy hour started today with a couple excellent hazy IPAs with my lovely wife at our fave taproom; Wandering Tortoise. Now though I’ve switch gears to an excellent ole fashioned, which I hope (since it’s huge) will last much of this game....let us hope.

Kuhl for the Rockies has also had an excellent start to the young season, and shows some of his tricks against our confusing offense here in the 1st despite issuing a walk to Pavin Smith.

0-1 Rocks going in to the 2nd.

Inning 2

• Back to back walks further mar Kelly’s outing, but thankfully we get out of this inning without any further runs. Kelly’s gotta clean things up though and start attacking the zone more or this will be a short night for him.
• Rojas, gone for a while with an injury, gets right back on track in the 2nd with a single to lead off the inning. Welcome back Rojas! Marte, still trying to find his groove this season, moves Rojas to 3rd with a clutch double and we got Sneks on 3rd and 2nd with no outs!

Beer! It wasn’t a glorious homer but I’ll take the RBI flyout to right to get us on the board though. Still not quite sure why Seth has yet to buy the #30 for his jersey...

A couple more good fights at the plate from Ahmed and Herrera but no more runs, so we’re going in to the 3rd tied at 1-1.

Inning 3

• Merrill appears to have calmed down here in the 3rd, and it looks like the strike zone that’s eluded him is very much back in his wheelhouse. Still tied going in to the bottom of the 3rd after a relatively uneventful 3rd.
• C Walk teases us on what sure looked like a homer on camera, but was just under the porch in dead center....sigh.......

Off to the 4th we are still tied 1-1

Inning 4

• Nothing doing for either team in the 4th as both sides go 1-2-3 in various ways. Maybe I’ll get a close or quick game after all?

Inning 5

• Kelly’s still doing work here in the 5th and boy has he settled in nicely. Kinda gives a fan a vague sense of hope for the rest of the season, but us Dbacks fans know that hope is a fickle thing.
• Not much to write about in the bottom of the 5th, outside of Herrera improving upon his irksome BA with a 1-out single, though nothing besides that. So we’re off to the 6th STILL tied 1-1.

Inning 6

• Kelly racks up 2 more Ks and a Cron ground out to end yet another solid frame. He aint Nolan Ryan, but Kelly is looking very very solid. After taking down the last 13 batters you earn that kind of praise.
• Our bats on the other hand are looking anemic. Mind you, they’re not as bad as week one of the season, but they still got a long way to go.

Inning 7

• Kelly’s perfect-ish night slows down a bit after he strikes out Blackmon to start the 7th as Grichuk gets a blooper single to drop just in to left field. That’s all he’ll allow though, and despite that slight blemish he’s retired 15 out of the last 17 he’s faced. 1-1 going in to the 8th.
• Kuhl’s night is done, but Stephenson fills his shoes quite well sending down the Dbacks for another 1-2-3 inning. Bleh. Thankfully this old fashioned is making up for the lack of excitement this game.
• Inning 8
• Wow. Despite a leadoff double Merrill will not be denied the glory he’s due. 10 pitches and we’re off to the the bottom of the 9th. Wow
• Varsho comes through once more! A one out solo shot puts us on top and here we go folks!

After a Pavin Smith single it’s Peralta who pours on the fun with a 2 run blast not to far from where Varsho deposited his. Now we’re 4-1 Dbacks and suddenly I think I might be due a celebratory pour of an expensive bourbon.

Inning 9

• Merrill Kelly’s is allowed the well earned chance to close this game out.

He strikes out the 1st two Rocks, but after allowing two back to back singles after that, his magnificent night is done.

Melancon comes in to close things things out, and despite giving up a walk he’s able to close things out and lo and behold we’re a above 500 team. Wow, just wow.

Cheers all!

Bells, whistles and post-game audio, by Jim and Jack

Just the one Sedona Red comment, but it's probably an early candidate for Premature Ejaculation of the season...

SafeTwire389, you missed the best pitched game by a Diamondback since Tyler Gilbert's no-hitter. It took the D-backs above .500: they'd be second in the NL East. Here are the postgame comments from Torey Lovullo, Merrill Kelly and Daulton Varsho:

Torey Lovullo

Merrill Kelly

Daulton Varsho

Same two teams at it tomorrow, with a 5:10 pm first pitch, and Zach Davies on the mound for the Diamondbacks.