Did Merrill Kelly find some answers in Diamondbacks’ Fourth of July win over Brewers?
Adrian Del Castillo welcomed a Fourth of July crowd with a three-run home run against the Brewers on Saturday, and the Diamondbacks held on for a 4-3 win.
Watch: Who is the Arizona Diamondbacks' biggest threat for the NL Wild Card? | 33 mins
PHOENIX — Adrian Del Castillo welcomed a Fourth of July crowd at Chase Field with a three-run home run in the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday, and the Arizona Diamondbacks held on for a 4-3 win.
Fireworks on the Fourth 💥 pic.twitter.com/eEfkhN0xln
— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) July 5, 2026
Arizona (44-44) was out-hit 12-4, as the Brewers (54-33) left 10 runners on base, but the D-backs never relinquished the lead.
They did not record another hit from the second inning until the eighth, but an insurance RBI double from Ildemaro Vargas made the difference when Milwaukee’s Jackson Chourio took D-backs closer Paul Sewald yard in the ninth. Sewald completed the save, his 20th of the season.
‘Enough was enough’ for Merrill Kelly
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said he had a gut feeling that pitcher Merrill Kelly would turn a corner based on recent conversations they’ve had and adjustments taking place.
For Kelly, his mindset was to be more aggressive and a better competitor after a brutal June (7.31 ERA).
“This last week was probably the straw that broke the camel’s back,” Kelly said. “It was an enough is enough-type thing. I just wanted to come out aggressive today and let it fly. Not try to be too fine or too precise. Just be aggressive and just getting back to competing.”
Kelly produced a bend-don’t-break outing in which he limited the Brewers to two runs in five innings but allowed eight hits with two walks. Milwaukee went 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position off Kelly, and their two runs came from a Christian Yelich two-run home run in the fifth.
Garrett Mitchell hit a 421-foot double that clanged off the gate in deep center field, and the fact that the ball stayed in the yard saved Kelly and the Diamondbacks two runs.
While fortune played a role, there were some clear quality signs for Kelly.
His velocity was up across the board, and he drew 13 whiffs after inducing only four in his last start in Tampa Bay. He struck out six batters, tying a season high, several of which with runners in scoring position to keep the scoring down.
“I feel like the league is adjusting to what I try to do, and I need to adjust back,” Kelly said. “I think I haven’t really done a very good job of doing that this year. And I think that just comes with establishing the fastball.
“I think everything, just like it has for however long baseball’s been around, they pitch off the fastball and everything else plays off the fastball. So going into today, I wanted to make that an emphasis and be on the attack and try to find myself in better counts than I have up to this point.”
View this post on Instagram
It was not perfect in that regard, as Kelly needed 92 pitches to get through five innings and threw 57 strikes.
But Lovullo credited Kelly before the game with being open about what he was feeling, and that gave the skipper optimism. Kelly will have one more start before the All-Star break (July 13-16) to try to continue that forward progress.
“I threw a bullpen this week, and it just was more of the same of what I’ve been doing,” Kelly said. “I had just had enough. I would say it was a look in the mirror-type moment. There’s two directions you can go, right? You can either continue to try to do what you’re doing or you can try to do something else and try to change it.”
The bullpen was critical to Arizona’s win.
Jonathan Loaisiga, Brandyn Garcia and Juan Morillo each pitched for a second straight game to bridge the gap to Sewald.
Did Adrian Del Castillo give Brandon Woodruff a look?
It sure appeared that Del Castillo gave Brewers pitcher Brandon Woodruff a look (or two or three) on his way to first base after the home run, but he assured that there was no tension.
“No, just heat of the moment,” Del Castillo said. “Just heat of the moment. I don’t know. I blacked out pretty much. Everyone was asking, but it’s nothing.”
Adrian del Castillo blasted a homer off Brandon Woodruff, then couldn't stop smiling and staring.
He said after the game hitting homers is fun and he blacked out in that moment.#Dbacks pic.twitter.com/k7JTVSxmAK
— Jake García (@Jake_M_Garcia) July 5, 2026
That was Del Castillo’s first home run since May 26, as the young catcher has struggled to get his bat going in various roles this season.
“Just trying to put the ball in play and I’m fouling off a lot of pitches and getting behind,” Del Castillo said. “Just got to be a little bit more aggressive and hit more for contact.”
As for Woodruff, he exited the game in the fourth inning with the athletic trainer after his velocity dipped. Brewers manager Pat Murphy told reporters in the visiting clubhouse that Woodruff will probably go on the injured list.
Fourth of July attendance
33,154 (35,562 last season vs. Royals, 41,670 in 2023 vs. Mets)
Sunday starters
First-time All-Star Eduardo Rodriguez will pitch for Arizona in the series finale, while right-hander Brandon Sproat will get the ball for Milwaukee.
The game will start at 1 p.m. MST on 98.7 and the Arizona Sports app.
Related
The Athletic’s Bowden lists Angels pitcher Jose Soriano as trade target fit for Diamondbacks
Diamondbacks try shaking up lineup to get stars going, loss sets up key rubber match vs. Nationals
Why are the Diamondbacks wearing hats that do not match their jerseys this weekend?
Eduardo Rodriguez delivers quality start, Paul Sewald bounces back in Diamondbacks win
Torey Lovullo: Corbin Burnes is targeting an early-September return
Tyler Locklear’s 1st home run of 2026 powers Diamondbacks to impressive win over Cardinals
Comments