AZ Snake Pit - Game #126, 8/21: Diamondbacks 5, Angels 4An unofficial Arizona Diamondbacks community and bloghttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47033/azsnakepit_f.png2018-08-22T01:46:53-04:00http://www.azsnakepit.com/rss/stream/175306272018-08-22T01:46:53-04:002018-08-22T01:46:53-04:00Diamondbacks 5, Angels 4: Pollock bunts them off
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<img alt="Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim v Arizona Diamondbacks" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/kdN_58NdxGgtcG5WojBKosIgFq0=/0x0:2237x1491/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/60977439/1021019014.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Close game ends in sudden and dramatic fashion</p> <p id="8Ubpw2"><span>Patrick Corbin</span> came out strong in the first inning of tonight’s game. He got <span>Kole Calhoun</span> to ground out and then a line out from <span>David Fletcher</span> before giving up a walk to Albert Pujols. He didn’t get further than first, though, as Corbin ended the inning with a strike out to keep the <a href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a> in check.</p>
<p id="9i13fN">In the bottom half of the inning, the Dbacks pounced quickly. With one out, <span>Eduardo Escobar</span> walked on four straight pitches to bring up <span>David Peralta</span>. Peralta then took a 2-1 slider and put it in the seats to give Arizona a quick 2-0 lead.</p>
<p id="dkVqCk">Corbin came out firing in the top of the second. He got the first two batters out on strike outs before giving up a double to Kaleb Cowert. He let Cowert get to third on a wild pitch, but got his fourth straight strikout to end the inning, persevering the lead. </p>
<p id="DhNPQX">He wasn’t quite so lucky. <span>Calhoun</span> doubled with one out and then came home on a Fletcher single. Pujols walked to keep things moving, and then Aldrelton Simmons singled home Fletcher, tying the game. After a mound visit, Corbin held them there, though. He struck out <span>Rene Rivera</span> on three straight pitches for the second out. <span>Taylor Ward</span> then flew out on the first pitch he saw to end the inning. Tied at 2</p>
<p id="vAS8E7">It didn’t stay that way for long. Pollock was hit by a pitch with one out and went to second thanks to a single from Eduardo Escobar. Peralta then got his third RBI on the evening thanks to a single of his own, though Escobar was thrown out trying to go to third. Goldschmidt continued the stretch of singles by getting one of his own, and Peralta went to third. Souza Jr. scored Peralta on yet an other single, extending the lead back to two. <span>Marte</span> walked to load the bases, but <span>Nick Ahmed</span> struck out swinging to end the inning. 4-2 <a href="https://www.azsnakepit.com/">Diamondbacks</a></p>
<p id="HQqoGY">After that, both pitchers really settled in. Both teams went down in order in the fourth, with only one of the six outs not being a strike out. The fifth wasn’t quite as clean. Corbin gave up a single, but erased it thanks to a Pujols double play. In the bottom of the inning, Peralta got a double, putting himself a triple away from the cycle. He was stranded there after Goldy struck out and Souza popped out to short. Both pitchers finished their evenings with 1-2-3 innings in the sixth and handed the ball over to their bullpens.</p>
<p id="UiaZEi">That didn’t go quite as well as the Diamondbacks would have hoped. Yoshi Hirano came in and got two quick outs in the seventh. However, he gave up a two out home run to <span>Jefry Marte</span> and was pulled after that in favor of Andrew Chafin. As I pointed out in the GDT, Chafin didn’t walk the first hitter he faced, however, he did get the same end result, as he gave up a single and was promptly pulled from the game. Bradley came on to replace him, and immediately gave up a triple to David Fletcher, scoring the runner. He left Fletcher base thanks to a ground out from Pujols to keep the game tied at 4.</p>
<p id="RIqfjk">Bradley and <span>Brad Boxberger</span> recorded scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth respectively, sending the game to the bottom of the ninth with the tie still intact. <span>Jon Jay</span> lead off and was promptly hit by a pitch, as is becoming his signature way to get on base. Then the fun started. <span>John Ryan Murphy</span>, who had come in late in the game replacing Mathis behind the plate, tried to bunt him to second. He got down a good bunt, and it was good enough he was actually able to reach first in addition to moving the runner over. That brought up AJ Pollock, also trying to get down a sacrifice bunt. He got a sac bunt down, but the Angels reliever, <span>Cam Bedrosian</span>, threw to third. It went waaaaay wide, and <span>Jay</span> was able to walk home. Suddenly, Diamondbacks win. 5-4.</p>
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<p id="4YoxEO">★★★ <span>David Peralta</span>, 29.6%</p>
<p id="7ej2XX">★★ <span>Patrick Corbin</span> 15.8%, <span>Brad Boxberger</span> 15.2%</p>
<p id="cKluwz">★ AJ Pollock, 13.9%</p>
<p id="xFf22R">355 comments spread between 24 of us tonight. As usual, DC lead the way with almost double second place. All present were:</p>
<p id="59XaZK">AZDovs11, AzDbackfanInDc, DORRITO, DeadManG, GuruB, Imstillhungry95, Jack Sommers, Jackwriter, Jim McLennan, Johnneu, Keegan Thompson, Makakilo, Michael McDermott, MikeMono, MrMrrbi, Rockkstarr12, asteroid, coldblueAZ, david.munter, edbigghead, kilnborn, since_98, smartplays, suroeste</p>
<p id="8iEtkl">For the first time in weeks, you guys actually gave me a red comment to use for COTN and, in fact, you actually gave me <em>two, </em>so comment of the night goes to kilborn for this prayer to the Patron Saint of the Diamondbacks</p>
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<p id="zEvWs8">The <a href="https://www.purplerow.com/">Rockies</a> lost before the Diamondbacks’ game was over, and as I’m finishing this recap up, the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> also lost, so Arizona’s lead over those two teams increases by a game each. Same time tomorrow, as the Dbacks look to complete the two-game sweep!</p>
https://www.azsnakepit.com/2018/8/22/17767118/diamondbacks-5-angels-4-pollock-peralta-corbinImstillhungry952018-08-22T00:40:01-04:002018-08-22T00:40:01-04:00Diamondbacks 5, Angels 4
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<img alt="MLB: Los Angeles Angels at Arizona Diamondbacks" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/uFxJnwJgWZCA5T-4iXKrDWZKr2g=/0x168:3912x2776/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/60976917/usa_today_11115113.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p id="cW3o7J"><span>David Peralta</span> was the driving force behind the offense as usual tonight. He got the offense going in the first inning with a two run home run, and then knocked another run in with a single in the third. <span>Steven Souza Jr.</span> also added an RBI of his own in the third, completing the offensive output from the <a href="https://www.azsnakepit.com/">Diamondbacks</a> in the first eight innings of tonight’s game.</p>
<p id="kBK2PT">Corbin, on the other side, was as fantastic as we’ve come to expect. He went six innings and got eight strike outs, while only giving up five hits, two walks, and two runs. The only real blemish in his evening came in the third, where he got in some trouble and gave up both of the runs he gave up on the evening. He left the game with a two run lead.</p>
<p id="5FwIuy">However, Yoshi and Bradley could’t hold it, with a little assistance from Chafin. Yoshi gave up a two out solo home run in the seventh, Chafin let the only batter he faced reached, and then Bradley let him score to tie it up.</p>
<p id="HCecoB">Fast forward to the ninth. Game still tied. <span>Jon Jay</span> came on as a pinch hitter and promptly got hit by a pitch, as he does. <span>John Ryan Murphy</span> tried to sacrifice him over, but managed to leg it out and reach. AJ Pollock then tried to sacrifice both of them over, but the <a href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a> pitcher threw it away, allowing <span>Jay</span> to score and walk the Diamondbacks off. Full recap to follow shortly!</p>
https://www.azsnakepit.com/diamondbacks-gamedays/2018/8/22/17767324/diamondbacks-5-angels-4-quick-recapImstillhungry952018-08-21T21:30:02-04:002018-08-21T21:30:02-04:00Gameday Thread, #126: 8/21 vs. Angels
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<img alt="‘The Art of The Brick’ : Nathan Sawaya’s Exhibition At Porte De Versailes In Paris" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/FAlN5HQSpmECL0Cd3r2rcDbYfJc=/0x0:4896x3264/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/60974811/473467702.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Thierry Chesnot/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">August 21 - 1911: France - the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris by employee, Vincenzo Peruggia, who wanted it returned to Italy. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/history?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#history</a></p>— Today In History (@Yesterday_Today) <a href="https://twitter.com/Yesterday_Today/status/1031937293861437441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 21, 2018</a>
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https://www.azsnakepit.com/2018/8/21/17766652/gameday-thread-126-8-21-vs-angelsJim McLennan2018-08-21T21:00:02-04:002018-08-21T21:00:02-04:00Preview, #126: 8/21 vs. Angels
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<img alt="Gatorade All-Star Workout Day" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/neflwj2VEwS8z7Lw3LBMFOs7dEY=/0x0:3832x2555/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/60974779/1000353866.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Strap in. For pretty much every game is significant the rest of the way.</p> <div id="mq7Qyp">
<div class="pane sports_data_widget lineup clearfix">
<h3>Today's Lineups</h3>
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<th align="left">ANGELS</th>
<th align="left">DIAMONDBACKS</th>
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</thead>
<tbody>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Kole Calhoun - RF</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">A.J. Pollock - CF</td>
</tr>
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<td class="td-last td-name">David Fletcher - 2B</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Eduardo Escobar - 3B</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Albert Pujols - 1B</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">David Peralta - LF</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Andrelton Simmons - SS</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Paul Goldschmidt - 1B</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Rene Rivera - C</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Steven Souza - RF</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Taylor Ward - 3B</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Ketel Marte - 2B</td>
</tr>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Kaleb Cowart - LF</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Nick Ahmed - SS</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Eric Young Jr. - CF</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Jeff Mathis - C</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Felix Pena - RHP</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Patrick Corbin - LHP</td>
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</tbody>
</table>
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<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="cIS7w3">
<p id="nTX0ZR">I hope you enjoyed your off-day - there’s another one along on Thursday, and I recommend you make the most of them, and relax as much as you can. Because I get the feeling that there’s going to be a lot of stress over the final 37 games of the season. Likely considerably more than last year, for at this point, the division was out of reach. After 125 games in 2017, the D-backs trailed the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> by 21 games. We were all about the wild-card, where we were half a game behind the <a href="https://www.purplerow.com/">Rockies</a>, but had a three game edge over the <a href="https://www.brewcrewball.com/">Brewers</a> for the second-spot. On that date, August 21, Fangraphs gave us an 81.5% chance of a wild-card spot, so we were very much a favorite. Tension? What tension? </p>
<p id="jbHNwb">This season, the overall <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/odds">odds</a> are not as good, but we occupy first-place, albeit by the slimmest of margins over the Rockies, with the Dodgers 2<sup>1</sup>⁄<sub>2</sub> games back. Unlike last season. we have a legitimate chance of winning the division - but if that option fails, then the fight for the wild-card slots looks likely to be a real battle. Seven games today have playoff implications of one kind or another, so the scoreboard watching promises to be fast and furious. I’m kinda glad to have got a free MLB.TV subscription through T-Mobile: I suspect there will be a considerable amount of hate-watching going on over the next six weeks or so. Given I rarely bother watching any other team, that says a lot. </p>
<p id="XTr9Xa">The <a href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a> have been hovering around .500 for ever. They have been sitting in a -3 to +2 band for close to two months now (since June 26), but haven’t posted a winning month since April. They started the year like gangbusters, going 13-3, but then got swept by Boston, being outscored by a total of 27-3, and never truly recovered. Anaheim was tied for first on May 14, but have gone 38-47 since that point, and come to Arizona occupying fourth place in the hotly-contested NL West, sitting with an exactly even record. It looks very much like the best player of our generation is going to spend October once again on the sidelines, which is sad. </p>
https://www.azsnakepit.com/diamondbacks-gamedays/2018/8/21/17766584/preview-126-8-21-vs-angelsJim McLennan