Diamondbacks take down the Phillies, cut wild-card deficit to 1 game

The Diamondbacks moved to within one game of a playoff spot by beating the Philadelphia Phillies, 9-2, on Sunday afternoon, Sept. 21, at Chase Field.

With six games remaining in their season, the Diamondbacks, at 79-77, are behind both the New York Mets and Cincinnati Reds, who, after the Mets lost and Reds won earlier in the day, own identical 80-76 records.

Corbin Carroll blasted his 31st homer and stole his 30th base this season, making him the first player to compile a 30/30 season in Diamondbacks history. He is the fourth player in the majors to accomplish the feat this season, joining Juan Soto, Jose Ramirez and Jazz Chisholm Jr., and the 76th in baseball history.

Add in Carroll’s 17 triples, and he is in even more exclusive company. He joined Willie Mays and Jimmy Rollins as the only players with 30 homers, 30 steals and 15 triples in a season.

Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez fired six scoreless innings and the Diamondbacks’ offense scored six times in the first two innings off Phillies lefty Ranger Suarez. The Diamondbacks took advantage of sloppy and/or lackadaisical defense from the Phillies.

The game included a tit-for-tat exchange between the two teams.

After the Diamondbacks’ Ketel Marte was hit on the leg by a Tim Mayza pitch in the sixth — and then stared at Mayza before going to first — Rodriguez appeared to try to retaliate against Weston Wilson an inning later.

Rodriguez’s pitch missed, going to the backstop, and warnings were issued for both teams.

The win keeps the Diamondbacks squarely in the hunt for a wild-card spot, an improbable reality for a team that has been battered by injuries throughout the season and dealt five veterans off the roster at the trade deadline. They have played well, going 28-19 since Aug. 1, but have mostly benefited from the Mets’ collapse. In that same span, the Mets have gone 18-29.

The Diamondbacks still have a tough road ahead, with three-game series remaining against the Los Angeles Dodgers at home and the San Diego Padres on the road.

The Mets will play their final six on the road against the Chicago Cubs and Miami Marlins. The Reds will host the Pittsburgh Pirates before finishing on the road against the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Diamondbacks would own a head-to-head tiebreaker against the Mets but not the Reds, and if all three teams finish with identical records, the Reds would advance because they won the season series against both teams.

—Nick Piecoro

Diamondbacks call on Austin Pope to help out

Right-handed pitcher Austin Pope was brought before manager Jeff Gardner in Albuquerque and told he wasn’t going to get to the target of 30 innings of work this season with the Reno Aces, with the last day of the Triple-A season on Sunday, Sept. 21. Pope had a flight booked for New York to return home for the offseason.

Then he was told he’d get to 30 innings — Pope was at 29 ⅓ — with the help of a trip to the major leagues. Pope, 26, got called up to the Diamondbacks on Sunday, and when he pitches, will make his major league debut.

The Diamondbacks designated RHP Jake Woodford for assignment to make room for Pope.

Pope was a 15th-round draft pick of the Diamondbacks in 2019. It’s the only big-league organization he’s ever known, so for him it was special to reunite with former minor league teammates now with the Diamondbacks.

“I consider a lot of people in this building family, and it’s definitely special to be here,” Pope said before Sunday’s game.

Pope had knee surgery last offseason, and when he got to Reno he saw a lot of new faces. That’s when he realized that most of the guys he knew were up with the Diamondbacks.

“In Reno, to be successful there … it’s the walks,” Pope said. “Walks score. If you walk a guy, you’ve got to get a double play ball, or else that guy’s scoring.”

Pope’s family members were able to get an early-morning flight from the East Coast to make the game on Sunday.

—Jose M. Romero

MLB: Looking down the stretch for the Arizona Diamondbacks

Lovullo: Lawlar likely limited to DH duties

Jordan Lawlar’s struggles in the field likely mean he won’t be playing defense the rest of the season, manager Torey Lovullo said.

Earlier this month, Lawlar made errors that led to a loss against the Boston Red Sox and committed two more that the team was able to overcome in a win over the Minnesota Twins.

“We’ve gotten down to the studs on his foundation and we’ve got to get things kind of built back up,” Lovullo said. “He understands that. I want him to play. I want him to be on the field. I want him to be as good as everybody has been telling me he possibly could be.

“But this is real stuff. This is big-boy stuff here. We’ve got to figure it out. We’re going to row that boat with him. While we’re in it, I’m going to focus mostly as a DH.”

Lovullo said there could be in-game maneuvers that lead to Lawlar playing defense, but for now, he likely will be limited to starts at designated hitter — which is where he is for the Sunday, Sept. 21, series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies — against left-handed starters.

Lawlar has been working before games at third base with the club’s infield coaches, but hasn’t played defensively since the team was in Minnesota.

“He wants to play,” Lovullo said. “He wants to contribute. He wants to be on the field for every inning of every game. And I respect that. But I think he respects that we see something that needs to improve. He’s very willing to go out and make some minor adjustments.”

—Nick Piecoro

(This story has been updated to add new information.)

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Diamondbacks take down the Phillies, cut wild-card deficit to 1 game

Diamondbacks take down the Phillies, cut wild-card deficit to 1 game

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