AZ Snake Pit - Game #45: 5/24, Diamondbacks 8, Royals 6An unofficial Arizona Diamondbacks community and bloghttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47033/azsnakepit_f.png2022-05-25T01:04:41-04:00http://www.azsnakepit.com/rss/stream/229044052022-05-25T01:04:41-04:002022-05-25T01:04:41-04:00Diamondbacks 8, Royals 6: Luplow had a good PH appearance...
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<img alt="MLB: Kansas City Royals at Arizona Diamondbacks" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Me7XRyjjlJAljC9FrKtdZraQxb0=/0x0:6045x4030/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70907804/usa_today_18346802.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p id="fKextH"><strong>1st inning</strong><br>Whit Merrifield lead of the ballgame with a double down the 1B line. On 1-1 to Benintendi, Gallen steps off and looks at Merrifield. Benintendi lines out to Perdomo, who doubles off Merrifield easily. Maybe don’t be dancing around back there like that. Bobby Witt Jr, son of former Dback Bobby Witt (14 games, 43 innings pitched), pops up to Thomas in shallow CF. <br> Varsho to lead it off for us. Long fly to straight=away CF and it’s gone! (444 feet) That was the first ever leadoff homer by a Dback catcher. Pavin Smith with a 3-1 count, nothing really close, ball 4 way up. Marte flies out to LF. Walker grounds into a routine 6-4-3 double play. <br><strong>2nd inning</strong><br>Hunter Dozier to lead things off, works it full, checks his swing and the 1B ump says he didn’t go so he walks. Melendez launches one into the RF bleachers. 2-1 KC. Santana grounds out to Perdomo playing on the right side of 2B. Ohearn grounds out to Christian Walker, who tosses it to Gallen. Blanco strikes out on an inside changeup and Gallen doesn’t look happy with himself walking off. <br><br>Peralta strikes out. McCarthy walks on 4 pitches. Thomas struck out swinging. The Dbacks have 33 [now 36] home runs this month, the most in the NL. Perdomo walked. Jake Hager with 2 on and 2 outs. Why do I have no faith he’ll do something useful? 3-0 count, walked on a pitch low and inside. So I guess I was wrong. Varsho now with the bases loaded, wild pitch , everyone moves up. Heasley threw another into the dirt 4 pitches later, another ball. Full count to Varsho, strikes out looking. Tied 2-2.<br><br><strong>3rd inning</strong></p>
<p id="tk9Snn">Lopez flies out to CF. Merrifield singles to RF. Benintendi doubled past a drawn in Hager at 3B. Witt grounded out to Perdomo as Merrifield scores. Dozier flies out to CF. <br><br>Smith popped up to Witt in foul territory to lead our half inning. Marte dumps one into no mans land in between Blanco and Benintendi for a single. Christian Walker grounds into a 4-3 double play. <br><br><strong>4th inning</strong><br><br>Melendez hit a little tapper, but it’ll roll foul, then grounds out to Marte. Melendez showing he has some speed for a catcher as he made it close. Santana completely shattered his bat on a ground out to Hager. The Royals are challenging the out call at first. The call is overturned so Santana gets an infield single. Ohearn strikes out, but it gets away from Varsho and Santana advances to 2B. Blanco struck out on a pitch in the dirt and it looked like he said something Varsho?<br><br>Peralta homers to LF to lead us off. It is now 3-3. McCarthy walked on 5 pitches. Thomas hit a little comebacker to the mound and it gets knocked down. KC can only get the out at 2B. Perdomo tried to bunt for a hit but it went foul, then pops up to Santana. Heasley at 65 pitches, he has walked 5 so far, and when he is missing it isn't even close. Hager strikes out looking to end it.<br><br><strong>5th inning</strong><br><br>Gallen strikes out Lopez. He is at 74 pitches now. Merrifield lined out to RF. Benintendi, nobody on the left side of the infield, he flies out to Thomas almost at the CF warning track. <br>Varsho walked, 6 walks now for Heasley. Pavin strikes out looking on a pitch inside, the way Heasley is going, I am surprised he got THAT call. Marte hit a hardground ball that hit Varsho, so he is out. Nothing Varsho could have really done to get out of the way. Walker flies out to CF.<br><br><strong>6th inning </strong><br><br>Gallen has set down the last 5 Royals in a row. Witt hits a rocket to Marte, ate him up, can’t get the out. Gallen throwing over to first a ton. Walked Dozier, I think Gallen was paying too much attention to Witt over there, IMO. Mantiply is up in our bullpen. Melendez with a full count, hits a double off the chain link fence in RF. Only 1 run is in. Santana, with 2 on and no out, 3-0 count to him he lines out to Walker. Gallen at 96 pitches and Mantiply is ready and comes in to the ballgame. Mantiply’s first pitch to Ohearn is skied to shallow CF for the out. Blanco hits a single up the middle, both runs score. Lopez grounds out to 3B to end it. The score is now 6-3, Royals. Gallen’s line tonight is 5.1ip, 6ERs, 7 hits, 4ks and 2 walks. <br><br>New pitcher for the Royals, Amir Garrett. Heasley walked 6, only 1 of whom scored. Peralta struck out on a full count. McCarthy singles past 2B, the third time he has been on base tonight. Thomas walked. Royals will bring in Taylor Clarke. Perdomo, 2 on and 1 out, full count strikes out looking on an inside pitch as the Umpire over enthusiastically rang him up. Welcome to the Ump Show. Luplow to PH for Hager, Way back! Three run homer over the bullpen in LF and we are tied! Varsho dumps a flair over a jumping Benintendi, it is off the wall, Varsho thought about trying for a triple but wisely stayed at 2B. Pavin Smith hits a 2 run bomb to the bleachers in RF! Do you miss Taylor Clarke?? lmao. Marte grounds out to 1B. It is now 8-6 Dbacks.<br><br><strong>7th inning</strong><br><br>Noe Ramirez in to pitch for us and Drew Ellis checks in at 3B. Merrifield, full count, walks. Benintendi (the first time tonight I could spell that without looking lol), strikes out and Varsho throws out Merrifield. Strike him out, throw him out double play. Witt strikes out.<br><br>LHP Gabe Speier in for the Royals. Walker to lead off, which is probably for the best since he has hit into 2 inning ending double plays tonight. He flies out to CF. IPK is throwing in our pen. Peralta strikes out. McCarthy strikes out on a full count. <br><br><strong>8th inning</strong><br><br>IPK in the game. Dozier hits a liner that Marte makes a great jumping catch to rob a hit. Melendez flies out to Thomas in CF. Santana flies out to LF. <br><br>Speier still on the hill for the Royals. Thomas flies out to Benintendi in LF, who had a long run to get it. Perdomo doubles in the gap between LF and CF. He now has a 5 game hit streak. Drew Ellis first at bat tonight after coming in a couple innings ago, he walks. The Royals will have the bottom 3rd of their order up next half inning. Varsho strikes out. Pavin Smith strikes out. <br><br><strong>9th inning</strong><br><br>Melancon in the ballgame to try and close things out. Ohearn singles past 3B Ellis. Blanco, 0-2, coming with a cutter and Blanco strikes out! Lopez has an 0-2 count now, fouls one off, he lines out to Ellis. Whit Merrifield the last chance for the Royals. 0-2 to him as well, bounces one in the dirt, foultip, tapper to the mound 1-3 and that’s the ballgame! <br><br>Both teams had 9 hits, the Royals left 4 runners on to our 6. The important thing is the final score and that is 8-6 Dbacks. Time of the ballgame 3 hours and 9 minutes. </p>
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<p id="TdTGrP"><a href="https://www.fangraphs.com/livewins.aspx?date=2022-05-24&team=Diamondbacks&dh=0&season=2022">https://www.fangraphs.com/livewins.aspx?date=2022-05-24&team=Diamondbacks&dh=0&season=2022</a></p>
<p id="4PIY9w">The only two sedona red comments (as of when I clicked out of the GDT 15-20 minutes ago) So this will be your COTN.</p>
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https://www.azsnakepit.com/2022/5/25/23140645/diamondbacks-8-royals-6-luplow-had-a-good-ph-appearanceJustin272022-05-24T21:30:00-04:002022-05-24T21:30:00-04:00Gameday Thread, #45: 5/24 vs. Royals
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<img alt="Bob Dylan Performa at Hyde Park - London" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/zG_FbJU1QpalpNSDGTVeI1q-ln0=/0x0:1484x989/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70907463/1161652368.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Dave J Hogan/Getty Images for ABA</figcaption>
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<p>On this day in 1941, Bob Dylan, American singer-songwriter, was born. </p>
https://www.azsnakepit.com/2022/5/24/23140386/gameday-thread-45-5-24-vs-royalsJim McLennan2022-05-24T20:01:00-04:002022-05-24T20:01:00-04:00Diamondbacks Game Preview #45: 5/24 vs. Royals
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<img alt="MLB: Colorado Rockies at Arizona Diamondbacks" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/wP0vnkR4HwHaWIOrzJonfwvRWR0=/0x0:3720x2480/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70907214/usa_today_18230710.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>How good has Zac Gallen been this year?</p> <div id="pTDh6M">
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<h3>Today's Lineups</h3>
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<th align="left">ROYALS</th>
<th align="left">DIAMONDBACKS</th>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Whit Merrifield - RF</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Daulton Varsho - C</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Andrew Benintendi - LF</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Pavin Smith - DH</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Bobby Witt - SS</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Ketel Marte - 2B</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Hunter Dozier - 1B</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Christian Walker - 1B</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">MJ Melendez - C</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">David Peralta - LF</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Carlos Santana - DH</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Jake McCarthy - RF</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Kyle Isbel - CF</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Alek Thomas - CF</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Emmanuel Rivera - 3B</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Geraldo Perdomo - SS</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Nicky Lopez - 2B</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Jake Hager - 3B</td>
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<td class="td-last td-name"></td>
<td class="td-first td-name"></td>
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<td class="td-last td-name">Jonathan Heasley - RHP</td>
<td class="td-first td-name">Zac Gallen - RHP</td>
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<h4 id="EEdenj">Roster moves</h4>
<p id="bGlNhN">The Arizona Diamondbacks made the following roster moves:</p>
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<li id="rilBvE">Reinstated C Jose Herrera from the injured list.</li>
<li id="nrnECl">Returned C Grayson Greiner to Triple-A Reno following last night’s game.</li>
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<p id="9E1BJo">Gallen is certainly having a hell of a season. At 39.1 innings, he’s just a little short of qualifying for the ERA title. He would need to throw 5.2 innings tonight to reach the “1 IP per team game” mark necessary. But no qualifying pitcher has a better ERA than Zac’s current figure of 1.14. the best being the Marlins’ Pablo Lopez at 1.57. But even if you drop the number of innings to 25, Gallen has the best ERA in the league. It’s also there or thereabout when you look at D-backs’ history. Below are the lowest ERA as a starter by Arizona pitchers to this point in the season (min: six starts). </p>
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<p id="Tp7gYX">Gallen’s ERA is the lowest by three-tenths of a run, so it is not even close. However, a couple of things must be said in favor of Randy Johnson, the man occupying the second spot on the list. Firstly, he pitched in a much more offensively heavy environment. The NL ERA in 2000 was 4.63, and that was <em>with</em> pitchers hitting for themselves. The NL ERA this year is 4.01. Also, look at the number of innings the Big Unit pitched: more than twice as many as Gallen to the same point in the season. Part of that is more starts (10 vs. 8): Buck Showalter rolled RJ out there, every fifth day, off-days or not. But he had five complete games and didn’t record fewer than 20 outs. Gallen has reached that number just once so far. </p>
<p id="VJ7VmO">Now, I would not expect Gallen to continue to post an ERA beginning with one. However, even his fielding-independent ERA is 2.44, which is close to one and a half runs better than his career figure coming into 2022 (3.91). The main factors there are, Zac has really cut his walks back, to 1.8 per nine innings, half his previous career figure, and he has kept the ball in the park, allowing only one home-run to date. While the strikeouts have been a little lower than previously, as long as his K:BB ratio sits around it’s current figure, just shy of 5:1, it’s hard to be too concerned. He’s also in the top 10% in terms of avoiding hard contact, as measured by average exit velocity. That helps his fielders, and leads to a lower BABIP. </p>
<p id="IwX32l">Hopefully it’ll continue tonight, against one of the (save for the first inning yesterday!) one of the weakest offenses in the league. With Gallen under control through the end of 2025, he is well primed to be part of the next competitive D-backs outfit. I wonder if the team should look into locking him up, though as a Scott Boras client, that’s a difficult ask. </p>
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<ul>
<li id="n0J9bh">Not much changed from April to May. You’re going to have streaks like that in ever season, but having it at the beginning magnified the scrutiny. The process remained the same.</li>
<li id="m1QJXy">
<strong>Christian Walker</strong> put in a lot of work this winter as to where the holes in his swing and approach were. He has been very consistent, and gives pitchers a lot less options in terms of attacking him e.g. has been less vulnerable to heaters up in the zone.</li>
<li id="WH6994">Praised <strong>Daulton Varsho</strong> for accepting the increased work-load behind the plate. </li>
<li id="VLZ8kg">It’s “extremely important” for the team to be firing across the whole line-up, rather than putting all the pressure on <strong>Ketel Marte</strong>. That consistency is what he wants to see. </li>
<li id="DVkhxN">
<strong>Carson Kelly</strong> has worked a lot on lower-half adjustments, getting back to what he did earlier. A key will be that Kelly needs to trust that he is there, having put in the work. </li>
<li id="Z9PzK2">
<strong>Alek Thomas</strong> just needed to settle in, relax and wait for his time to come. We trusted the minor-league staff to get in the work, and keep him ready to go. “It wasn’t a ton of ‘make sure he’s working on this’.”</li>
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https://www.azsnakepit.com/2022/5/24/23140363/diamondbacks-game-preview-45-5-24-vs-royalsJim McLennan