This game had the feel of a pair of exhausted boxers desperately seeking a knockout blow, but never quite landing one. Instead, it was a series of jabs – each team created plenty of baserunning traffic – but no dramatic punch that could alter the match. The two teams combined to strand 13 baserunners on the afternoon and Cleveland managed to go a woeful 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position for the game. There was quite literally no lack of scoring opportunities, but each team managed to find a way to either run themselves out of an inning or struggle to land the kind of knockout blow both teams were so intensely looking for throughout the afternoon.
Brandon Pfaadt was erratic early, loading the bases in the opening frame on a pair of singles from Steven Kwan and Daniel Schneeman as well as a plunking of Kyle Manzardo on the foot. He was able to limit the damage to a single run though on an RBI-groundout from Bo Naylor that was hit too slowly for a double play. In the very next inning, Pfaadt gave up a hard line drive to C.J. Kayfus to right field that completely flummoxed Corbin Carroll as he whiffed on the ball and allowed it to bounce off the fence for a leadoff stand-up triple. Just two pitches later, Brayan Rocchio would plate Kayfus on yet another RBI groundout to recapture the lead for the Guardians 2-1.
Meanwhile, Parker Messick was excellent in his major league debut, going 6.2 innings of one-run ball on seven hits, one walk, and six strikeouts. The 12th-ranked prospect in the Cleveland system, Messick leaned on his fastball and plus-changeup to collect eight whiffs and kept the Arizona batters off-balance through much of his outing. Certainly some of that success came from a lack of a scouting report and the undoubtedly high adrenaline Messick was experiencing, but you have to tip your metaphorical hat to a young player already making a mark in his first taste of the big leagues.
The Arizona offense wasted no time creating some sparks of their own however. Ketel Marte started the game with a patient leadoff walk, advanced to second on a passed ball, moved to third on a groundout by Geraldo Perdomo, and then scored on a dunked single to right from Lourdes Gurriel Jr who continues to have an excellent August. They created another scoring opportunity that they quickly squander for themselves in the fifth as Alex Thomas collected a leadoff single and then was aggressively sent home on a shallow double from James McCann, but was cut down at the plate. Unfortunately, Thomas was out by a solid margin with an excellent relay from centerfield. It was a puzzling decision by third-base coach Shaun Larkin given the top of the lineup was looming, but the point was rendered moot by the double play Perdomo bounced into one batter later. Sadly, the send may have been one of the reasons why Larkin was removed from the third-base coach post just hours after gametime as the combined stress and scrutiny of the position combined with a loss of confidence from the players prompted the decision from Torey Lovullo.
After that tantalizing opportunity, the Arizona offense would once again go dormant for much of the remainder of the game. They had just one hit and baserunner – until the bottom of the ninth when Gurriel Jr decided to put the team on his back with a titanic blast to left field that tied the game and sent us to extras. It was the first homer closer Cade Smith has allowed against right-handed hitters all season, but its source shouldn’t be a surprise given the absolute tear Gurriel Jr has been on this month. After Andrew Saalfrank managed to put up a zero in the visiting half of the 10th, pinch-hitter Adrian Del Castillo called game with a floater on the first pitch he saw to plate Pavin Smith who had advanced to third on a picture-perfect bunt from Thomas. It marked Del Castillo’s second career walkoff hit and ended a surprisingly entertaining series against the Guardians.
As the D-Backs’ already flimsy playoff hopes have further deflated after the Trade Deadline firesale, it’s important to see how the younger players on the roster continue to develop while some of the remaining veterans demonstrate what kind of value they can bring either next season or as possible trade chips. Based on that criteria, this was a very successful series. It included another excellent outing from Pfaadt, clutch hits from youngsters like Del Castillo and Perdomo, and a continuation of stellar play from Gurriel Jr. Of course, we’ve seen this play this year far too many times to be fooled. This team is plenty capable of putting together a nice string of solid baseball with timely hitting, perseverant at-bats, and solid pitching to quickly turn around and do the opposite of all of those things. Thankfully, tonight’s dismissal of Larkin and the trades the team made at the Deadline demonstrate that the team can recognize the changes that need to be made and are unafraid of making those changes. We just have to hope that they can continue that pattern this offseason and next year to supplement such an exciting core of players that the team has accumulated.