Snake Bytes 6/15: Home Field Woes

Diamondbacks News:

[MLB] Collision in outfield costs D-backs in extras

“It just goes to show you that you can’t take anything for granted,” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. “You’ve got to work hard, you’ve got to bear down on your basic fundamentals. You know, I’ve watched us do things at a very high level all season long. We practice them over and over and over again in Spring Training. And that’s just the beauty of this game, every once a while it jumps up at you and beats you, because you let your guard down a little bit.”

[SI] Poor 10th inning execution dooms D-backs in loss to Philly

The obvious example of letting their guard down came in the top of the tenth. After retiring Kyle Schwarber on the first pitch of the inning on a foul pop up behind the plate, Scott McGough induced another pop up in shallow right field. It looked like Geraldo Perdomo had a beat on the ball, but a lack of communication between him and right fielder Jake McCarthy resulted in a collision that allowed the ball to drop and the go-ahead runner to advance from second to third. Lovullo chalked that up as “two very eager, young baseball players going after the same ball, trying to make a play”. Nick Castellanos would deliver a sacrifice fly to deep center to plate the eventual winning run.

[AZC] Diamondbacks lose 2nd straight to Philly

“I heard him and I was calling it too, but he didn’t hear me,” McCarthy said. “Just two guys going after the ball in a situation where the ball needs to be caught and we both want to catch it. We both got to be louder and I take responsibility for it.”

[AZDailySun] Carroll playing big despite small statue, boosting D-backs to top of NL West

Carroll has rewarded the D-backs’ confidence with a brilliant rookie season. Through Monday, he was hitting .313 with 13 homers, 34 RBIs, 17 doubles and 19 stolen bases, all while playing excellent defense in the outfield.

Even more impressive, Carroll’s arrival has helped cause a complete shift in franchise fortunes. Just two seasons ago, the D-backs were a laughingstock with 110 losses. These days, they’re in first place in the NL West with a 40-25 record, through Monday’s games, and on a six-game winning streak.

Baseball News:

[MLBTR] Nevada senate, assembly approves A’s stadium plan

JUNE 14, 8:02pm: The Senate has concurred with the Assembly’s amendments, tweets Howard Stutz of the Nevada Independent. The bill is officially headed to Lombardo’s desk for ratification.

[Axios] This season, MLB teams can’t buy wins

Wild stat: No division is currently led by the team with the biggest payroll in that division — and none of those teams are even in second place.