Turambar’s Tidings: D-backs 3, Padres 4

Record: 39-52. Pace: 69-93. Change on 2021: -13.

Before I dive in to the meat of this I just wanna thank you all for your well wishes thrown my way last week. Grandpa was the best of us.

Now we have baseball to talk about, and though the playoffs are more and more of a pops dream at least we got Alek Thomas to watch.

The Youth Movement!!!!!

Inning 1:

Brutal heat means I get stir crazy sitting in my house all day. So like many Arizonans I like to change the scenery up a bit to another inside area; like a tap room.

God I miss being outside.

Why is Carson Kelly still a thing? Seems like a lifetime ago when I was singing his praises as the next Mike Piazza. Wouldn’t that have been nice?

Anyhow, the Anti-Piazza leads off with a dainty pop up to right field for our 1st out of the First. After that the Dbacks go down quite easily and now it’a up to the underwhelming Tyler Gilbert to keep the tie going.

Profar gets aboard to lead off for the Padres. After that things just kinda go are way and we’re off to the 2nd still tied at zero. Sweet.

Inning 2:

Slight excitement in the top of the frame with the young Jake McCarthy hustling out a infield-outfield double with 2outs, but our Buddy Kennedy just couldn’t bring him home. Bleh

Huh. Another solid Gilbert inner, thanks in part to a great play by Perdomo. Sweetness. Still tied at zero.

Inning 3:

Wow. Instant replay gets it right and Rojas did indeed barrrrrrreeeeeeellllllkyyyyyyyy hit the chalk in left field for a now ground rule double advancing Perdomo to third. KMarte quickly kills this good feelings with a potato ground out and we’re off to the bottom of the 3rd. Double bleh

Yet another solid frame by Gilbert. I’m starting to feel like I slandered him far too much earlier in this article. Lets hope he keeps proving me wrong. Still tied at zero going in to the 4th.

Inning 4:

Lollllllllllll. Luplow with the ground rule double thanks to the silly Profar misplay in Left. Seriously. Worth watching just for the LOL factor. Our Buddy Kennedy then comes through for us with a clutch triple to final get rid of the double zero. 1-0 Dbacks going in to the bottom of the frame.

Gilbert is really on track now. No perfect, but doing just fine with yet another solid frame. 1-0 Dbacks going in to the 5th!

Inning 5:

LOL at me. CKelly must have heard me somehow, because he crushes a two run bomb in the 5th to prove he’s still got it (kinda). So with humble pudding served to me we now have a 3-run leading going in to the bottom of the 5th.

Despite all my good feelings for Gilbert through 4 innings he’s not perfect, and with a Batten double to drived in Grisham we’re now down to a 2-run lead going in to the 6th.

Inning 6:

Nada for us after a solid inning prior, but we’re still leading so who am I to complain right?

A leadoff Cronenworth double, followed by a Machado walk, spells trouble for Gilbert here in the 6th. He strikes out Alfaro before Noe Ramirez comes in to relieve him.

Ugggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Relief is something Ramirez does not bring, as he allows a 3-run bomb to Voit, making this a 4-3 Padres game. FML.

Mantiply soon thereafter comes in to replace the struggling Ramirez and we finally get to put the fire out and move in to the 7th.

Inning 7:

San Diego trots out the bullpen here in the 7th to help keep that lead, but a series of hits and walks later see our Dbacks on all bases with two out and Peralta up to be the hero. No heroism is to be found though so our deficit is still intact as we go to the bottom of the 7th.

Luckily no further run hemorrhaging from our pen in the 7th and we thus maintain our deficit in to the 8th.

Inning 8:

Nada from our bats once more in the 8th, and it’s starting to feel like we’re toast.

Our pen holds up once more, but for what? For another false chance at glory? We’ll see.....

Inning 9:

Sigh, not surprised at all, but was hoping for more. At least we had some rain in the Valley today. Though we could use more W’s too.

Night folks!

Bells and whistles, by Jim

Michael did have the night’s only Sedona Red comment, but it’s a GIF, so doesn’t really translate well into a screen capture. Here’s your link. The first half comes to a (merciful?) end tomorrow afternoon, with another game against the Padres. Merrill Kelly starts the final game, with a 1:10 pm first pitch. It’s also the first round of the 2022 MLB draft later on, the D-backs having the second overall pick. That’ll be interesting.