Dbacks split series against Atlanta Braves

Back at .500 and looking to top that mark for the first time since April 4, the Diamondbacks welcomed the Atlanta Braves to the Valley for a 4-game series and the start of the final home series before next week’s All-Star Break in Texas.

Monday’s Game 1, a heartbreaking loss due to another Paul Sewald blown save, left a sour taste in the mouths of every Snakes fan, but that doesn’t mean the guys couldn’t continue to talk about Yilber Diaz and his impressive debut. Diaz’s 6 innings of 1-run shooting against a Braves lineup was something this rotation desperately needed (and still needs) and Yilbers’ performance couldn’t have come at a better time. Hopefully the pen can lock him down next time around so he can get his first MLB win under his belt.

Zac Gallen took over for Chris Sale in Game 2, hoping to have a slightly longer outing than his previous start against the Dodgers in Los Angeles. He would be facing Chris Sale, who has returned to his old CY Young ways in Atlanta, as we all predicted when they traded him. The record for this game looks a lot worse for Zac than it actually was, thanks to a Duvall HR in the 6th inning and a 3rd R. Torey’s throw to Zac in the 6th had the team wondering if they would have pulled Gallen earlier (the Braves had a lot of tough results that night) or if they would have done the same thing and kept Gallen out for that long.

After a tough 2-game series opener at home, we got to see the Answerbacks return to form in Game 3 as they got back into the win column. The Braves scored the first 2 runs in the 2nd inning, and I know many of us already had Jack Sommers’ tweet ready in the back of our minds, but all night long the Snakes continued to battle and match the Braves’ scores blow for blow. Seeing this team start to fight more, as well as the late game offense starting to show more effectiveness, gave the team hope that this was what this team was meant to be this year.

Thursday’s finale saw Dbacks stud Brandon Pfaadt face Braves ace Max Freid, and the two performed as expected and delivered a good old fashioned pitching duel with a combined 12 1-run innings. If it wasn’t for Eugenio Suarez’s hot streak continuing (3rd HR in the last 5 games), then Pfaadt might have missed out on his first win since June 13th against the Angels. The offense and their seemingly constant lack of support for Pfaadt led Brandon to ask Gabe and Brett why that might be the case. Could it be that they’re simply putting too much pressure on the plate when he’s on the bump, or could it be that the other team’s pitchers are simply well prepared for the task at hand.

In all walks of life, hindsight is always in order, especially when it comes to being a fan of an Arizona sports team. People can argue all day long that “the Dbacks could have had a 9-game winning streak if not for those blown saves” (and they’re technically not wrong), but I think it’s best to try to look at things from a more optimistic perspective if possible (I know, it’s weird to hear myself say that).

This team managed to come back from 7 games under .500 on July 31st, while having nothing but duct tape and plastic ties to hold the starting rotation together. Since June 1st, the D’Backs are 22-15 and have lost only 2 series total (to the Phillies, to the Twins) and have played consistently good baseball against very good teams (Dodgers, Phillies, Braves). It hasn’t been all sunshine and roses during this stretch, but we may be in the middle of the season’s turning point without fully knowing it.