Brandon Pfaadt discusses his start in the Diamondbacks loss vs Marlins
Starting pitcher Brandon Pfaadt talks about his performance in the Arizona Diamondbacks’ 8-7, 10-inning loss to the Miami Marlins on Saturday.
The Diamondbacks lost to the Marlins 6-4 on Sunday, completing a three-game sweep and dropping their record to 41-42.Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo expressed frustration with his team’s pitching, citing 10 walks in the game as “unacceptable.”
Relief pitcher Jalen Beeks walked the bases loaded in the eighth inning and couldn’t get the one out he needed to preserve a one-run lead, and the Miami Marlins scored five runs in the inning en route to a 6-4 victory Sunday, June 29, and a sweep of the three-game series at Chase Field.
The slumping Diamondbacks are back under .500 at 41-42.
Beeks (2-1), charged with three runs in an 8-7 loss the previous day, was rocked for five runs on two hits and four walks (one intentional) in two-thirds of an inning in the series finale.
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said the crush of injuries was no excuse, but did talk about a failure to execute the fundamentals during his postgame conference with reporters.
“Ten walks in one game? You’re never gonna win those games,” he said. “That’s unacceptable.”
Beeks and the Diamondbacks were loudly booed as the Marlins, who won their seventh straight game and swept an NL West team for the second consecutive series, made Beeks pay for his free passes.
Otto Lopez drove in two with a single, and Kyle Stowers followed with a three-run double before Lovullo changed pitchers.
“What I saw there today was unacceptable,” Lovullo said. “We gotta do better than that. That’s ultimately on me. And we’re gonna figure this out.”
The Diamondbacks held a 2-1 lead after Ketel Marte’s solo home run in the third inning, and made it hold up until the eighth. In the meantime, their offense went dormant.
The Diamondbacks did manage two runs in the bottom of the eighth when José Herrera scored on a wild pitch and Geraldo Perdomo scored on Eugenio Suarez’s two-out single. But the Diamondbacks left two runners on base.
In the top of the ninth, Diamondbacks catcher Herrera and Marlins hitter Jesús Sanchez went face to face at home plate, leading to both teams leaving their dugouts. But nothing came of the brief confrontation.
“We’ve just gonna keep grinding,” Lovullo said. “We’re gritty. We’re the Arizona Diamondbacks. And this is a gritty state. We represent the state the best way we can. We gotta find a way to get through this.”
Starter Eduardo Rodriguez pitched well again for the Diamondbacks, limiting Miami to a run on four hits with three walks and six strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings and 108 pitches.
Diamondbacks clinging to one-run lead
The Diamondbacks lead the Marlins 2-1 at Chase Field on Sunday, June 29, as play enters the bottom of the fifth inning.
After a Jake McCarthy triple scored Lourdes Gurriel Jr. with the tying run in the second inning, Ketel Marte crushed a pitch from Cal Quantrill out to right field for his 17th home run of the season in the third.
After giving up a triple to the second batter of the game, then a run-scoring infield hit with two outs in the top of the first inning, Diamondbacks starter Eduardo Rodriguez has settled down. He has six strikeouts through five innings and worked out jams in the fourth and fifth innings.
Rodriguez has thrown 98 pitches.
Naylor, Carrroll injury updates
The Arizona Diamondbacks were once again without first baseman Josh Naylor on Sunday, June 29, as Naylor was not in the lineup for the second straight game.
Naylor is feeling better, but he is still dealing with pain in his right shoulder and neck. The plan was to test out his right side on June 29.
Outfielder Corbin Carroll is able to do his work on fundamentals but has yet to swing a bat. Carroll is on the 10-day injured list with a broken bone in his left wrist.
“He’s got to be asymptomatic, get that level of pain down to a level where he can swing the bat,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said of Carroll. “I don’t think he can do any more damage to it, it’s just more about tolerance.”
Right-handed reliever Kendall Graveman was at Chase Field in the morning for a workout. He’s been on the 15-day injured list with a hip injury since June 8 but is scheduled to throw another bullpen session on Tuesday, July 1, Lovullo said.
Coming up
June 30: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Ryne Nelson (4-2, 3.71) vs. Giants RHP Logan Webb (7-5, 2.52).
July 1: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Zac Gallen (5-9, 5.75) vs. Giants RHP Hayden Birdsong (3-2, 4.13).
July 2: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Merrill Kelly (7-4, 3.49) vs. Giants RHP Landen Roupp (6-5, 3.43).
(This story has been updated to add new information.)