Diamondbacks clinch playoff spot, lose to Astros again
Diamondbacks clinch playoff spot, lose to Astros again
With their offense still stuck in a deep freeze, the Diamondbacks lost, 1-0, to the Houston Astros on Saturday night, an outcome that was finalized about a half hour after they found out they had clinched a playoff spot anyway.
The Diamondbacks managed just five hits, giving them just 12 hits and two runs scored over the past 33 innings. The Diamondbacks have three games in a row and are 84-77 with one game left in the regular season.
On the bright side, right-hander Merrill Kelly turned in a solid performance, the second night in a row the Diamondbacks received a strong outing from one of their top starters. Kelly gave up just one run in seven innings, walking two and striking out five.
Right-hander Zac Gallen threw well the night before, giving up two runs in 6 1/3 innings.The Diamondbacks clinched while playing was ongoing in the bottom of the eighth inning by virtue of the Reds losing in St. Louis.
With the win, the Astros clinched a playoff spot, the second time this year two teams in the same ballpark clinched on the same night. On Sept. 17, the Orioles and Rays each clinched after a 5-4 Orioles win in Baltimore.
—Nick Piecoro
DBacks clinch playoff berth with Reds loss
The Diamondbacks clinched a wild-card spot on Saturday — advancing by virtue of a loss by the Cincinnati Reds — securing a trip to the postseason just two years after losing 110 games.
Astros leading Diamondbacks in 5th
Jose Abreu’s double off the center field wall drove home the Astros’ first run of the game on Saturday, and they lead the Diamondbacks, 1-0, after five innings.
Abreu has driven in all three of the Astros’ runs this series. With Kyle Tucker on second in the top of the fourth, he hit a hard liner that banged off the wall in center field.
The Diamondbacks’ offense remains stalled. They had just two hits through five innings against Astros right-hander Justin Verlander, though they did make Verlander throw 94 pitches.
Regardless of the outcome of this game, the Diamondbacks could end up clinching soon. The Reds are losing to the Cardinals, 11-5, in the bottom of the sixth in St. Louis. If the Reds lose, the Diamondbacks are assured of a wild-card spot.
—Nick Piecoro
Diamondbacks scoreless early but getting help elsewhere
The Diamondbacks and Astros are scoreless through three innings at Chase Field.
For the second straight day, the Diamondbacks have gotten a sterling starting pitching effort thus far, with Merrill Kelly having allowed just one hit. He allowed the first two batters of the third inning to reach base but responded with two strikeouts end the threat.
The offense, though, has continued its recent struggles. Since the fourth inning of Wednesday’s game against the White Sox, they are now 9 for 87 (.103) with two runs scored. The Diamondbacks have managed three walks off Justin Verlander but have not done anything with them.
Elsewhere, the Reds have trimmed their deficit against the Cardinals from 11-0 to 11-5 in the fifth inning. If they lose, the Diamondbacks will clinch a wild-card berth regardless of their own result.
—Theo Mackie
Cardinals jump on Reds, putting DBacks on verge of clinching
Before the Diamondbacks even took the field Saturday night, their work was seemingly done for them in St. Louis. Entering the day, they had two clinching scenarios: a win or a Reds’ loss.
And while their own game against the Astros is 0-0 in the first inning, the Cardinals have jumped out to a 10-0 lead over the Reds after two innings. The last-place Cardinals scored five times in the first inning and five more in the second — a jarring turnaround after the Reds won, 19-2, on Friday night.
If the Cardinals close out their win while the Diamondbacks are still playing, manager Torey Lovullo could look to remove Merrill Kelly from the game early in order to preserve his pitch count ahead of a wild-card game start next week. Catcher Gabriel Moreno is another candidate to get some rest. Moreno has started seven on seven consecutive days.
—Theo Mackie
Evan Longoria gets start vs. Justin Verlander in potential clincher
Since the trade deadline, Jace Peterson has been Torey Lovullo’s go-to starter at third base against right-handed pitchers. But with their season still on the line in Game 161 on Saturday, Lovullo turned to his veteran presence, tabbing Evan Longoria with the start against Justin Verlander and the Astros.
It is Longoria’s first start against a right-handed starter since Sept. 6 against the Rockies. On the whole, he has just 31 at-bats this month, hitting .161 with no extra-base hits in those opportunities.
But going against a Hall of Fame pitcher who, at age 40, remains among baseball’s best, Lovullo wanted Longoria’s experience in the lineup. No other Diamondback has more than 13 career at-bats against Verlander. Longoria has 36, hitting .250 with a .680 OPS against the Astros’ ace.
“Verlander pitches to certain areas in certain guys and targets weaknesses,” Lovullo said. “And I think that Longo's gonna be able to recognize where those pitches are going a little bit sooner than some guys who might take five or six pitches or have two at-bats before they figure it out.”
In that sense, Lovullo believes Longoria can get to the comfort level in his first at-bat that most hitters feel in their third at-bat against a starting pitcher.
Lovullo’s decision also tracks back to a conversation he overheard Longoria having with some Diamondbacks’ hitters earlier this week in Chicago. While breaking down White Sox closer Bryan Shaw, Longoria used his experience against the veteran Shaw to explain exactly how his pitches move and how to read them.
“I just thought, there's experience here,” Lovullo said. “We've gotta tap into that.”
—Theo Mackie
DBacks’ Brandon Pfaadt ready, willing to go on short rest
If the Diamondbacks find themselves in a do-or-die game on Sunday, they might turn to right-hander Brandon Pfaadt on short rest. The rookie starter is all for it.
“I feel good,” Pfaadt said. “Whatever they need, I’ll be ready.”
Starting pitchers typically go after four days of rest. In this case, Pfaadt would be starting after three days. He last pitched on Wednesday in Chicago, firing 5 2/3 innings of shutout ball against the White Sox.
Pfaadt does not have good numbers on the year, but he has been a far better pitcher since his latest demotion to Triple-A Reno. He had a 9.82 ERA after his first six starts but has logged a far more respectable 4.22 ERA in his past 13 games (12 starts). In that span, he has 73 strikeouts and only 16 walks in 70 1/3 innings.
Pfaadt said he is skipping his typical between-starts side session as a way of making sure he is fresh for Sunday.
“I don’t think it should be a problem,” he said. “I’ve been in the training room getting ready to go. Physically, I feel fine.”
Pfaadt, who could not recall the last time he pitched on short rest, noted that he hasn’t been heavily taxed in recent starts. He threw 87 pitches against the White Sox, the most he has thrown since the calendar turned to September. In his four other starts during the month, he threw between 70 and 81 pitches.
Pfaadt shook his head when asked if he needed much time to decide whether pitching on good rest was a thing he wanted to do.
“It was kind of, ‘Whatever, you need, I’m ready to go,’” he said. “Whatever the team asks for, I’m here.”
The Diamondbacks need to win on Saturday or have the Cincinnati Reds lose in order to clinch a wild-card spot.
—Nick Piecoro
Saturday's Diamondbacks-Astros pitching matchup
Diamondbacks RHP Merrill Kelly (12-7, 3.38) vs. Astros RHP Justin Verlander (12-8, 3.32).
With Friday's loss, the Diamondbacks are expected to give the ball to Kelly. … In his most recent start, he gave up two runs in five innings in a game the Diamondbacks would lose, 6-4, at Yankee Stadium on Monday. … Besides a rough outing at Citi Field on Sept. 14, Kelly has had a strong September, giving up one or two runs in his other four starts. … He has faced the Astros once in his career, firing 5 1/3 shutout innings in an outing last year. … Verlander turned in a vintage performance in his most recent start, giving up just one run in eight innings against the Mariners on Monday in Seattle. … He has posted a 3.57 ERA in 10 starts since returning to Houston at the trade deadline. … In six career starts against the Diamondbacks, Verlander has logged a 1.99 ERA. He faced them once last year, allowing two runs (one earned) in seven innings.
Coming up
Sunday: Regular-season finale, at Chase Field, 12:10 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Ryne Nelson (8-8, 5.35) vs. Astros RHP Cristian Javier (9-5, 4.67).
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Diamondbacks clinch playoff spot, lose to Astros again
