Diamondbacks must keep newfound attitude flowing post-All-Star break

Last dances matter. So do last stands, especially for a baseball team, an era and a long-tenured manager who keeps defying the odds.

The Diamondbacks are not done yet.

In an alternative universe, the Diamondbacks might be reeling and tumbling into the All-Star Break, a broken team with no hope, swept by the Dodgers in Los Angeles. In that world, Torey Lovullo might’ve been fired any day now, if only to give a new boss and new voice to a team that is too often lifeless and sloppy.

Yet over the weekend, the Diamondbacks flipped the script. They swept the Dodgers on the road for the first time in nine years. They did it without much help from their three offensive stars (Ketel Marte, Corbin Carroll, Geraldo Perdomo). They did it with an intensity and spirit that jumped off the screen, a team full of players who do not want to be traded to a different organization and a different city by the Aug. 3rd deadline.

Maybe that’s a tribute to Lovullo’s gentle touch, a manager with a care factor that is rare in professional sports. Or maybe it’s the benefits of living full-time in Arizona, when the entirety of the Cactus League can be spent at home with your family. After Sunday’s victory in Los Angeles, closer Paul Sewald said the trade deadline has provided great motivation and urgency to the entire group.

Many fans liken the team’s sudden uprising to the breaking of a curse. When the Diamondbacks designated Pavin Smith for assignment, they were getting anemic levels of production from first base that hadn’t been seen since the 1920’s. And when Zac Gallen landed on the injured list, many fans assumed the Diamondbacks had finally seen enough to take the ball from a fallen pitcher, inventing a respectful way of parking him on the sidelines.

In terms of public perception, these are important maneuvers. Smith was the first player chosen by Mike Hazen as general manager of the Diamondbacks, a player selected from Virginia with the seventh overall pick in 2017. Meanwhile, Gallen is a highly decorated former ace earning $20 million this season. Both players symbolized how painfully loyal the Diamondbacks have been to many veteran players, often at the expense of youth, growth, and the future. They also illustrate how this franchise frequently finds its way to the right answer.

Obviously, the Diamondbacks need to keep this attitude flowing when they return to the field. Ketel Marte needs to remain available, a player who did not want the attention of having to veto potential trades at the deadline. Gabriel Moreno needs to stay hot, a catcher looking like the All-Star we all imagined in 2023. Carroll needs to lay off the high fastball and get back to hitting triples. Drip Vargas needs to finish the season the same way he started. And on it goes, all the way down the line, until maybe they have a chance.

Are the Diamondbacks hungry to atone and make a postseason run in 2026? Or are they looking to avoid the trades, the moving vans, the unhappy families and the unfamiliar clubhouses?

Here’s hoping they make this last stand something to remember.

Reach Bickley at dbickley@arizonasports.com. Listen to Bickley & Marotta weekdays from 6 a.m. – 10 a.m. on Arizona Sports 98.7.

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