Zac Gallen, Dbacks' offense struggles, fall to Phillies in NLCS Game 5
Two days of optimism gave way to a momentum-shifting loss Saturday night, when the Diamondbacks dropped Game 5 of the NLCS. The 6-1 defeat put them in a 3-2 series hole heading back to Philadelphia. For the first time this year, they are one loss away from the off-season.
They got to that point in large part because of the disappointing performance of their ace, Zac Gallen. After allowing five runs in five innings of a Game 1 loss, Gallen allowed four runs in six innings Saturday.
Two scored in the first inning, when the Phillies used a trio of singles and a steal of home to scrape two runs across. Gallen then posted four straight shutout innings before succumbing to a very different type of attack, allowing mammoth home runs to Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper.
Alek Thomas got the Diamondbacks in the game with a seventh inning home run of his own, but it was too little, too late. The Phillies scored twice more in the eighth on a two-run shot from J.T. Realmuto and any life Arizona had was quickly deflated.
Game 6 is on Monday in Philadelphia, with the Diamondbacks needing to win two games in a stadium in which the Phillies have not lost a playoff game this season.
—Theo Mackie
Pivotal loss: Nick Piecoro's breakdown of NLCS Game 5 and what faces the Diamondbacks in Philadelphia
J.T. Realmuto home run deepens Diamondbacks' hole
The Diamondbacks got themselves back into Game 5 with Alek Thomas’ seventh inning home run, but the hope did not last long. They trail, 6-1, after Luis Frías served up a two-run shot to J.T. Realmuto in the top of the eighth.
The Diamondbacks could have avoided getting that far in the first place. But Ketel Marte bobbled a slow bouncer from lead-off batter Bryce Harper, allowing the inning to get to Realmuto with two outs. When it did, Torey Lovullo summoned Frías in place of the left-handed Joe Mantiply to get a right-on-right matchup.
It’s the second time in Saturday’s game that the Diamondbacks have allowed a run in part because of an error from Marte. In the first inning, he bounced a throw home that Gabriel Moreno could not secure, allowing a run to score on a double steal.
—Theo Mackie
Alek Thomas homers off Zack Wheeler; DBacks still trail
The Diamondbacks’ Game 4 hero was at it again Saturday. Alek Thomas homered to lead off the bottom of the seventh inning, getting the Diamondbacks on the board in an NLCS Game 5 they trail, 4-1.
Thomas homered just nine times in the regular season but now has four in the postseason. This one was hit 102.8 mph out to right field on a first pitch sweeper from Zack Wheeler. It was just the Diamondbacks’ second extra base hit of the game, following a double by Christian Walker an inning earlier.
Wheeler has made it through seven innings, allowing one run on six hits with eight strikeouts.
—Theo Mackie
Bryce Harper takes Gallen deep again; DBacks trail, 4-0
Two batters after Kyle Schwarber’s titanic homer, Bryce Harper smashed one of his own, drilling a ball way out to right field to extend the Phillies’ lead to 4-0 in the top of the sixth inning.
Harper’s blast left 112.4 mph. He has two home runs in this series, both of which came off Gallen.
Gallen entered the inning at 67 pitches and appeared poised to fairly deep into the game. It now appears questionable as to whether he gets through the sixth.
—Nick Piecoro
Kyle Schwarber blasts fifth homer of series, extends Phillies’ lead
Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber mashed his fifth home run of the National League Championship Series, adding to the Phillies’ lead over Zac Gallen and the Diamondbacks in Game 5 on Saturday night.
The Diamondbacks trail, 3-0, in the top of the sixth.
Schwarber turned on a 2-0 curveball from Gallen and sent it deep into the right-field seats, beyond the pool area. The ball left his bat at 114.1 mph.
—Nick Piecoro
Zac Gallen in control after shaky first, but DBacks still trail
Zac Gallen struggled in the first inning of Game 5, giving up a slew of hard contact as the Diamondbacks fell behind, 2-0. Since then, he’s been excellent.
Over the past three innings, Gallen has faced the minimum. The only batter he allowed to reach base — Nick Castellanos, via walk — was promptly erased on a double play. In the playoffs, Gallen has a 13.50 ERA in the first inning and a 2.76 ERA after the first.
The Diamondbacks’ offense, though, has failed to support him. Singles from Gabriel Moreno and Corbin Carroll have been their only base hits so far.
—Theo Mackie
Phillies score twice off Zac Gallen, lead DBacks 2-0
Bryson Stott lined an RBI single to right and the Phillies added a second run on a double steal, again putting right-hander Zac Gallen and the Diamondbacks in an early hole. The Phillies lead the Diamondbacks, 2-0, after a half inning in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series.
After singles by Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper, the Phillies had runners on first and second with two out for Stott, who laced a curveball into right field. Schwarber, who does not run well, tested the subpar throwing arm of Diamondbacks right fielder Corbin Carroll and scored easily.
That put runners on the corners for J.T. Realmuto. On the second pitch of the at-bat, Stott took off for second, and when Diamondbacks catcher Gabriel Moreno threw down, Harper took off from third.
Second baseman Ketel Marte’s throw to the plate one-hopped Moreno and Harper slid home with the second run of the night. In the process, he clipped Moreno with his left shoulder, an apparently unintentional collision that left Moreno a little shook up. He remained in the game.
Michael Phelps shows smooth stroke with opening pitch
Saturday's ceremonial first pitch honors went to Olympic swimming legend Michael Phelps, who after his competitive career ended relocated to the Valley and spent some time with his old coach, Bob Bowman, now the head coach of the Arizona State program.
Phelps, attired in a custom Diamondbacks jersey and sporting a natty top knot that was a far different look from his usual traditional hairstyle, gave the sell-out Chase Field crowd a little show, waving and shaking his arms the way he used to before his incomparable Olympics career — 23 gold medals and 28 overall — and then lofting the ball to the plate.
Diamondbacks tweak lineup ahead of Game 5
In each of the past two games, the Diamondbacks have pinch hit for the struggling Tommy Pham in the late innings, replacing him with Pavin Smith, a left-hander. In Saturday’s Game 5, they’re sitting Pham altogether, using Smith as the designated hitter.
The move is one of a few changes to their lineup against Zack Wheeler, the Phillies’ right-handed ace.
Corbin Carroll and Ketel Marte are flipped, with Carroll leading off and Marte hitting second, as has been the case whenever the Diamondbacks face a right-handed starter. After his heroic home run in Game 4, Alek Thomas is back in the lineup in center field, moving Carroll back to his typical spot in right field.
The biggest move, though, is benching Pham. He started the postseason on a tear but is just 1 for 17 since Game 3 of the division series against the Dodgers. Smith, meanwhile, has come up big off the bench in the past two games, going 3 for 4.
Here is the Diamondbacks’ lineup in Game 5:
Corbin Carroll, RF
Ketel Marte, 2B
Gabriel Moreno, C
Christian Walker, 1B
Pavin Smith, DH
Alek Thomas, CF
Evan Longoria, 3B
Geraldo Perdomo, SS
—Theo Mackie
Diamondbacks-Phillies NLCS Game 5 pitching matchup
Diamondbacks RHP Zac Gallen (2-1, 4.96) vs. Phillies RHP Zack Wheeler (2-0, 2.37 ERA).
Gallen gave up five runs in 5 1/3 innings against the Phillies in Game 1, serving up homers on two of his first five pitches of the night. He gave up a third homer in the second inning. … A positive to the outing was the results he got with his breaking ball, eliciting five whiffs on 12 swings off the pitch. … Gallen pitched well in his two first starts of the postseason, holding both the Brewers and Dodgers to two runs to earn the victory in both games. … Wheeler was sharp against the Diamondbacks in Game 1, giving up just two runs on three hits and no walks in six innings. He struck out eight. The only damage he allowed came in the span of two batters in the sixth, when 3B Evan Longoria singled and SS Geraldo Perdomo homered to open the inning. … Wheeler has 26 strikeouts and one walk in 19 innings this postseason. … Wheeler generated 10 whiffs on his fastball in Game 1 while averaging 95.8 mph on the pitch.
NLCS schedule, results
All games on TBS
Game 1: Phillies 5, Diamondbacks 3
Game 2: Phillies 10, Diamondbacks 0
Game 3: Diamondbacks 2, Phillies 1
Game 4: Diamondbacks 6, Phillies 5, series tied 2-2
Game 5: Oct. 21, Philadelphia at Arizona, 5:07 p.m.
Game 6: Oct. 23, Arizona at Philadelphia, 2:07 p.m.; Diamondbacks RHP Merrill Kelly (1-1, 3.00) vs. Phillies RHP Aaron Nola (3-0, 0.96).
Game 7: Oct. 24, Arizona at Philadelphia, 5:07 p.m.*; Diamondbacks RHP Brandon Pfaadt (0-0, 2.13) vs. Phillies LHP Ranger Suarez (1-0, 0.64).
*-if necessary; time of Game 6 could change if ALCS is completed.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Gallen, Dbacks' offense struggles, fall to Phillies in NLCS Game 5
