Brandon Pfaadt leads D-backs vs. Guardians in Game 1 of doubleheader

Brandon Pfaadt had yet another positive outing for the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first game of a doubleheader on Wednesday, a 7-3 win in Cleveland against the Guardians.

It was luck of the draw for the D-backs to have Pfaadt cued up in the rotation for the second game of the doubleheader, with manager Torey Lovullo logically flipping him to the first contest.

The right-hander has gone six innings 16 times this season, six more than any other D-back. While injuries have played a factor in that separation, Pfaadt has reached that mark in 73% of his outings while Zac Gallen is at 53% and Jordan Montgomery sits at 38%. Merrill Kelly’s 75% beats Pfaadt but he has the benefit of only four total starts this year.

Point is, either starter racking up their pitch count and requiring an early exit would have put the other bullpen at a disadvantage in the follow-up game.

Pfaadt tossed 6.1 innings and allowed two earned runs on four hits and a walk. Two-run homers for Geraldo Perdomo in the second inning and Corbin Carroll gave Pfaadt a cushion to work with.

The pattern of Pfaadt’s young career has been well documented to this point. For the majority of his starts, he will look sharp throughout, only to find trouble in one particular inning that changes it from a great day to just a fine one. Sometimes it’s the fifth or sixth inning and sometimes it’s earlier. Wednesday was a prime example of this phenomenon.

Pfaadt was perfect through four innings and it was convincing. The Guardians looked hopeless. Then, as if the clock struck midnight, Cleveland’s Josh Naylor homered off him to begin the fifth. Andres Gimenez singled to kick off three straight hits, with Daniel Schneemann and Brayan Rocchio smashing the next two to score the second run of the inning.

With one out and runners on second and third, Bo Naylor hit a tricky fly ball to right field that Carroll tracked well through the wind and adjusted to at the last second for the catch. Carroll was attentive and immediately fired a throw home, a beauty on the money for an inning-ending double play.

WHAT A PLAY. pic.twitter.com/09CV10M8au

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) August 7, 2024

Carroll’s known for having a weak arm in right and has had some shaky moments defensively this year, so it was a great moment for him and the team that if going the other way could have decided it.

Pfaadt still turned this into a pretty darn good day overall by leveling off in the sixth inning and getting one out in the seventh before he made way for A.J. Puk at a 4-2 scoreline.

All eyes continue to be on how Lovullo chooses to go about the closer role following Paul Sewald’s transition into middle relief. Ryan Thompson got the first few nods but entered the day with an earned run on his record in three straight appearances, the first time Thompson had done that in consecutive appearances as a D-back let alone three in a row.

Justin Martinez’s electric 10th inning for his first career save on Monday after Thompson notched a blown save the inning prior could perhaps be some momentum in the youngster’s direction but after Puk it was Dylan Floro with a three-run lead. He was smooth in his first two D-backs appearances previously and was on his way to replicating that before allowing three straight two-out singles that scored one run. Lovullo didn’t want to risk it with two on for All-Star Josh Naylor, so the other lefty Joe Mantiply came in.

Mantiply through a tough at-bat forced Naylor to ground out and hold a 5-3 D-backs lead. After Ketel Marte’s latest insurance home run in the ninth inning brought home two and no longer put a save situation on the board. Sewald then got the ninth and now has three scoreless innings since the move.

Eugenio Suarez added an RBI double in the eighth.

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