Forget the Dodgers, the Diamondbacks have bigger challenges ahead

The Diamondbacks had one of those coat-the-clubhouse-in-plastic champagne celebrations late Wednesday night at Chase Field after they “Beat LA!” “Beat LA!” “Beat LA!” in their best-of-five National League Division Series.

“I don’t think anybody gave us a chance to be here,” manager Torey Lovullo said after the game, his T-shirt soaked and sticky. “I don’t think anybody gave us a chance to win the games that we’ve won.”

Now, it’s time to forget all that. Say bye-bye to the bubbly and get back to work. The only way the Diamondbacks can keep moving forward in this most improbable season is to stay thirsty.

There will be an impulse to relax. To realize that tackling the big, blue meanies in the playoffs is enough to make the season a success for countless Arizona fans with friends and family in California. To say, “Hey, we’ve exceeded ALL reasonable expectations, so anything else from here on out is gravy.”

And while all that would be true, it would also be a mistake.

'I love this group'

The Diamondbacks have a chance to win it all. Starting next week, they’ll be one of only four teams in the majors that can say that.

The thing I hope they remember is that it’s not guaranteed. These guys may never get here again.

This is the club’s first playoff run since 2017.

The only guys around who remember that season are Lovullo, Ketel Marte and Christian Walker.

Lovullo is already Arizona’s longest-tenured skipper. Marte is in his ninth season in the big leagues. Walker is 32 years old. So who’s to say they ever get back to this point in their careers?

There’s been a lot of disappointment over the last six years for those guys, with three sub-.500 seasons, including two last-place finishes and a year where they lost 110 games.

The good news for Arizona fans is that they know it. They understand completely.

“I wouldn’t change anything,” Walker said after teammates poured beer on his head and down his back. “That’s a part of it. That’s growth, right? Being able to be out of your comfort zone and still figure out a way. Still be able to execute and bounce back, regardless of all the noise that’s happening around us.

“To show up here every day and be brutally honest with each other and know what we need to do to win. I love this group.”

Read more: In an era of bullpens, Diamondbacks' starters carry them to NLCS

'We should cherish this moment'

The list of players who never got another crack at a title is jarring.

Carlton Fisk never got back to the World Series. Dan Marino never got back to the Super Bowl. James Harden hasn’t been back to the NBA Finals.

So young guys like Corbin Carroll, Gabi Moreno and Alek Thomas can’t take this lightly. To this point, they’ve done a great job of staying present.

“We’re definitely gonna enjoy it for today,” Thomas said, as clubhouse chaos cascaded all around. “We’ll see about tomorrow. This is a great feeling. I think we should definitely cherish this moment.”

The Diamondbacks are going to face a layoff. The National League Championship Series doesn’t start until Monday.

Sweeping the Dodgers was sweet. But Philadelphia and Atlanta are looming. That NLDS could last right up to the brink of the next round.

The 2006 and 2012 Detroit Tigers can attest to how easy it is to get rusty. In each year, Detroit had about a week between their American League Championship Series wins and the start of the World Series. Neither team won a championship.

And back in 1989, the Oakland A’s went down to Phoenix Municipal Stadium to stay sharp during a long layoff after an earthquake interrupted their World Series against San Francisco. When play resumed, Oakland took the title.

More Snakes: For Torey Lovullo and the Diamondbacks, trust proves key in stunning NLDS sweep

Lovullo has taken down two of the best teams in the National League, the Brewers and Dodgers. He’ll have to do it again to get the Dbacks to their first World Series since 2001. The Phillies are the defending NL champs. Atlanta won more games than any other team in the majors this year.

We’ll see whether Lovullo is up to that challenge, but it’s clear that he knows what’s ahead.

“I think our team is hungry,” he said. “We’re a connected team, and a connected team is dangerous. But we’re not the only team that’s connected.”

It’s been great, so far.

Now, it’s time to forget all that. Say bye-bye to the bubbly and get back to work. It’s the only way the Diamondbacks can keep moving forward.

Reach Moore at gmoore@azcentral.com or 602-444-2236. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @SayingMoore.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Diamondbacks can keep partying with Dodgers, Brewers out of the way