D-backs open the floodgates with 3 home runs in the 9th inning
Aug 12, 2018, 1:56 PM | Updated: 7:13 pm
Arizona Diamondbacks' Eduardo Escobar (14) celebrates with Ketel Marte (4) in the dugout after hitting a two-run home run off Cincinnati Reds relief pitcher Keury Mella in the ninth inning of a baseball game, Sunday, Aug. 12, 2018, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
(AP Photo/John Minchillo)
The Arizona Diamondbacks epitomize the weather in the Valley.
When it rains, it pours.
And when there’s a drought, the team wilts.
On Sunday, three D-backs hit home runs in the ninth inning. The team scored more runs in that frame than they did in the first two games this series combined.
The season has been encapsulated by this inconsistency.
Remember April, when the team couldn’t be beat? Then May rolled around, and the D-backs found themselves jostling for a position in the National League West.
This looked like it would be the beginning of Arizona’s easy stretch before a brutal September schedule. The D-backs were supposed to increase their division lead against the last-place Reds and pitchers Anthony DeSclafani (4.46 ERA) and Matt Harvey (4.61).
Instead, they couldn’t touch them.
Sunday was a reminder of what the D-backs can be when they’re clicking on all cylinders.
Infielder Daniel Descalso, one of Arizona’s better hitters in the first half, has only batted .221 since his average peaked at .281 on June 17.
His three-run home run in the first inning gave starting pitcher Zack Godley breathing room.
First baseman Paul Goldschmidt, who is been hitting .304 since June 18, hit two home runs and had three RBI on Saturday.
His second home run came two batters after infielder Eduardo Escobar’s two-run home run.
Escobar entered the game in the eighth inning as part of a double-switch. In doing so, he took the ninth spot in the batting lineup, giving him a chance to hit and give the D-backs insurance entering the final frame.
He did. Then Goldschmidt added some more.
On the next at-bat, left fielder David Peralta continued his crusade against baseballs, hitting his 21st home run of the season and his second in the last two days.
This month, Peralta is hitting .454 with five home runs, 20 hits and a .909 slugging percentage.
Over the next week-and-a-half, the D-backs will face the Rangers (last place in AL West), Padres (last place in the NL) and Angels (second to last place in AL West).
Then, they’ll face three foes fighting for playoff positions in the Mariners, Giants and Dodgers.
The D-backs will need this ninth-inning storm to turn into a full-blown monsoon season.
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