Lost challenge flips Diamondbacks’ loss to Rangers on its head

PHOENIX — Major League Baseball’s Replay Command Center in New York could not definitively say Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Pfaadt’s heel hit first base.

That decision kept the fifth inning going on Saturday night at Chase Field, the Texas Rangers found new life and scored four runs with two outs to extend a 2-1 lead out to 6-1.

There were television angles that looked like Pfaadt’s heel scraped the bag on what would have been an inning-ending double play, and Corey Seager was not close to beating him there. MLB has more angles to work through.

But the call on the field was safe, a tough break for Arizona. It at that point became Pfaadt’s responsibility to not let that call become the sliding doors moment of the game, but three straight hits from Josh Jung, Brandon Nimmo and Ezequiel Duran rapidly changed the vibe at Chase Field.

The Rangers won 6-2.

Pfaadt was sure he touched the base.

“I was pretty confident on what I felt, and it felt like he was out,” Pfaadt said. “That’s kind of why I was so adamant on challenging it. I haven’t seen the replay, but I’ve heard it looks pretty good on our side of things. But it is what it is. I got to be better after that. I’ve got to bear down and get that last out.”

“It looked like his heel could have been on the bag,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “I think if he was called out, it would have stood. He was called safe, and I think it stood as a result. So it’s one of those things, 50-50 ball, we lost it, and then lost a little bit of focus.”

The play itself could have been executed smoother, as Pfaadt was looking for the bag with his foot even though he got there with time to beat Seager.

Pfaadt stuck his foot back out after he potentially touched the bag, which may have signaled to first-base umpire Bill Miller that he hadn’t.

“You got to locate the bag,” Lovullo said. “We had time. Ball was hit hard. You got to find the bag, put your foot on the bag, anchor and then stretch to the ball. So everything was done perfectly with the exception of Pfaadt slipping off the bag or moving too far off the bag.”

A lot more went poorly for the Diamondbacks in a costly loss, considering the San Diego Padres won their sixth straight game and took a 1.5-game lead in the race for the third National League Wild Card spot.

Arizona and San Diego are separated by more than a game for the first time in September.

As the D-backs (79-70) were looking to cut into the deficit during the fifth inning, there were multiple strike calls on pitches out of the zone against them.

Jordan Lawlar struck out looking to strand two runners on a pitch up-and-away. The ABS challenge system is in place to give teams the chance to address exactly that, although Ryan Waldschmidt blew a challenge earlier in the inning that perhaps changed the calculus for using the remaining one.

The issues in performance were apparent, as well, most notably the routine struggles against right-handed starters. Kumar Rocker only lasted four innings but was fortunate to escape with one earned run.

Over the last seven starts from righties against the Diamondbacks, Arizona has scored seven runs in 39.1 innings. That is an ERA of 1.60. The only pitcher to give up multiple runs in that stretch was Houston’s Peter Lambert, who went seven innings with three runs for a quality start.

Ketel Marte went 0-for-4 to snap a nine-game hitting streak, while Corbin Carroll hit a sacrifice fly on an otherwise 0-for-3 day with three strikeouts. Arizona’s star players looked the part in Friday’s 9-1 win, but the offense as a whole just never got into a rhythm on Saturday.

Pfaadt finished with 6.2 innings and six earned runs, all in the fifth inning. He did not walk anyone and struck out seven hitters, as his statline would have looked quite good if his foot was more obviously on the base (or he responded more effectively).

The Diamondbacks have won back-to-back series and the pressure is on for the finale against Texas. All-Star Eduardo Rodriguez will be on the mound, which helps with confidence.

Saturday attendance

34,300

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