ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

Sedona Red Recap: Herrmann’s walk-off homer completes D-backs’ sweep of Mets

May 17, 2017, 5:35 PM

Arizona Diamondbacks' Chris Herrmann (10) celebrates his walk-off home run during the 11th inning o...

Arizona Diamondbacks' Chris Herrmann (10) celebrates his walk-off home run during the 11th inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Wednesday, May 17, 2017, in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks won 5-4. (AP Photo/Matt York)

(AP Photo/Matt York)

PHOENIX — The Arizona Diamondbacks wanted more.

Having already clinched the series, their first series win in May, they wanted the sweep. And the sweep they would get. In dramatic fashion.

Leading off the bottom of the 11th inning, Chris Herrmann crushed a home run to left-center field, the ball landing on the concourse, to deliver the D-backs a 5-4 win over the New York Mets in front of an announced crowd of 19.842 on Wednesday at Chase Field.

It was Herrmann’s first career walk-off homer as he squared up a 95-mph fastball on a 3-2 pitch from Rafael Montero (0-3) for the D-backs’ second sweep of the season and the first at home against the Mets since 2011.

Tom Wilhelmsen (1-1) earned the win, the last of five relievers who combined to throw five shutout innings.

The D-backs bullpen has a 1.46 ERA with 32 strikeouts in its last 24.2 innings of relief.

It went down as another comeback victory for the D-backs, their second in as many games and the 16th of the season.

On two different occasions the D-backs trailed: 2-0 and 4-3.

They rallied to take a 3-2 lead in the third on a Jake Lamb two-run home run, and they did so again four innings later when Yasmany Tomas tied the game at 4-4 with an RBI double in the seventh.

Chris Owings also drove in a run.

The Tomas hit took starter Patrick Corbin off the hook.

Corbin pitched six innings. The Mets, though, made him work. Corbin’s first clean inning was his last. He finished allowing four runs on nine hits, including a pair of home runs by Michael Conforto and Juan Lagares. Corbin walked one and struck out six.

His counterpart, Matt Harvey, also labored through his 5.1 innings.

The D-backs tagged Harvey, making his second start since a team-imposed three-game suspension, for three runs on six hits plus four walks.

The Mets have lost a season-high seven straight.

The D-backs finished the homestand 6-3, and at 24-18, they are a season-best six games over .500.

THE GOOD

In 362 prior plate appearances in the big leagues, Rey Fuentes had never tripled. He recorded the first of his career in his first at-bat against Harvey, lining a 1-2 fastball into the right-field corner to lead off the first inning. Fuentes then scored on Owings’ groundout to second base to cut the Mets lead in half, 2-1.

For a stretch covering the last out of the first inning and the first two outs of the third inning, Corbin struck out five straight batters faced. Each of the five went down swinging. The five strikeouts exceeded his total from his previous start (three vs. the Pirates) and was one fewer than his last two starts combined.

For the second time in the series and ninth time overall this season, Lamb put a baseball in the seats. With a runner on and one out in the third inning, he hit a 2-0 fastball, clocked at 97-mph, high into the left-field seats to give the D-backs a 3-2 lead. Lamb, who finished 1-for-2, has hit safely in 10 of his last 12 home games.

Though he didn’t homer, which he had done in the previous two games, Tomas came up clutch once again. With a runner on and two outs in the seventh inning, he cracked a double to left-center field to plate the tying run. Against the Mets, Tomas is a lifetime .356 hitter (16-for-45) with six home runs and 15 RBI in 12 games.

THE BAD

Two batters into the game and the Mets had a 2-0 lead. Reyes led off with a double and Conforto followed with a home run. The two-run shot came on a 3-1 pitch, clocked at 93-mph, that was deposited into the seats in left field. For Conforto, it was his 10th of the season, tying him with Jay Bruce for team-high honors.

Handed a 3-2 lead entering the fourth inning, Corbin was unable to record the shutdown inning. Instead, he lost the lead. First, Lagares hit a one-out, solo home run to tie the game at 3. Matt Reynolds then walked and scored on Reyes’ two-out double. It was Reyes’ third hit in as many at-bats and put the Mets in front, 4-3.

Entering the game with baseball’s fifth-best mark (.293) with runners in scoring position, the D-backs failed in their first nine chances through the fourth inning. They went 0-for-3 in the first, second and fourth innings; three times (Brandon Drury, Fuentes and Owings respectively) stranding a runner on second base.

STAT OF THE GAME, part I

11: Of the D-backs’ 16 comeback wins, 11 have come at home. The 16 come-from-behind wins are the most in baseball, tied with Houston.

STAT OF THE GAME, part II

0-for-10: The D-backs did not record a hit with a runner in scoring position. They finished 4-for-24 (.167) in the three-game series.

HE SAID IT

“Pretty nice team effort, team win,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “And obviously, it ended the way that you always hope, where the guys were excited with that big walk-off home run by Chris. It was a nice approach by him. I know offensively he’s been grinding but everyday he’s working on creating those types of moments by working hard and being ready, so I was really happy to see him step in and end the game that way.”

NOTED

– Corbin recorded a first-pitch strike to 19 of the 26 batters faced, including 12 of the first 14.

– Corbin and Harvey combined to throw 59 pitches (Corbin had 30) in a 31-minute first inning.

– Owings is now batting .333 (27-for-81) with four home runs and 16 RBI in his last 22 games.

– Drury went 0-for-5; he had hit safely in 13 straight home games, carrying an average of .412.

– Paul Goldschmidt went 1-for-4 and now has reached base safely in 29 straight home games.

– David Peralta (glute) was not in the lineup for a third straight game but he pinch-hit in the sixth.

– D-backs have posted a winning record in three straight homestands for first time since 2015.

– D-backs have opened season with three straight winning homestands for third time in history.

– With a first-pitch temperature of 77 degrees, the roof was open yet the panels stayed closed.

– Scottsdale resident and American Idol finalist Scott MacIntyre performed the National Anthem.

– Over 1,600 students from 21 local schools paraded around the warning track during pregame.

UP NEXT

Immediately after the game, the D-backs left for San Diego where they’ll spend their off-day Thursday before opening a three-game series against the Padres on Friday.

The opener pits right-handers Taijuan Walker and Jered Weaver. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. with pregame coverage beginning 40 minutes earlier on 98.7 FM, Arizona’s Sports Station.

The Walker/Weaver battle is a rematch from just last month.

Walker (3-3) won that meeting on April 27, besting Weaver (0-4) and the Padres 6-2 at Chase Field. Walker allowed the two runs and struck out a season-high 11 in eight innings. The D-backs, meanwhile, roughed up Weaver for five runs on six hits including three home runs in 5.2 innings.

That was Walker’s most recent win. He’s lost back-to-back outings and is winless in his last three appearances.

Walker is 2-1 with a 1.80 ERA in three career starts opposite the Padres.

In his first season in San Diego, and in the National League, Weaver has not pitched more than six innings in any one start and the 14 home runs he’s allowed are the second-most in all of baseball.

The D-backs are 4-3 against the Padres this season.

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