But it's also hard to ignore pitcher Daniel Hudson's performance last Friday.

The pitcher, who has high expectations after coming off the DL in late May, was just awful against Oakland. The Athletics scored six runs and recorded eight hits, forcing Hudson out of the game in the 2nd inning.

But manager Kirk Gibson said Hudson shouldn't carry all the blame. "You've got to give Oakland a little credit," he said on Arizona Sports 620's Burns and Gambo's show on Tuesday. "They hit some pitches that were not that bad. Unfortunately it got into an extended inning and we couldn't get him out.

"Hudson's a guy who when things go wrong he gets very irritated, and that helps fuel the problem," Gibson added. "In reality, he wasn't that bad and he did a pretty good job of trying to power his way through it, but it just turned into one of those situations."

When asked if Hudson's intensity required maintenance by Gibson and his staff, the manager said "to an extent, but it's also what makes him good. It just came to a point where he needed to make a pitch and he couldn't do it."

Gibson maintains his confidence in the right-hander, citing Hudson's reaction after the D-backs snagged the win from the A's behind Ryan Roberts walk-off home run in the ninth inning.

"He was truly happy for his team," Gibson said. "He wasn't pouting and went right back to work the next day.

"He's looking to have a much better outing next time around."