Gurriel's Big Day Spoiled By Another Bullpen Meltdown
The Diamondbacks couldn't quite seal the deal on sweeping the Washington Nationals, as the D-backs short-handed bullpen blew another ninth inning lead in a 9-8 loss. Tasked with protecting a 7-3 lead with three innings to go, Kevin Ginkel, Kyle Nelson, and Miguel Castro combined to allow six runs.
It was a slow burn for the bullpen in this game, as the Nationals scored in each of the last three innings, which differed from last night's big inning. Joey Meneses' three run home run off Castro, who had been in for his third game in a row, was the final blow that capped off a poor weekend for an exhausted bullpen.
"I think they're a bit tired," said D-backs manager Torey Lovullo. "It was a big ask for Castro. Within our model he was available, he looked like he had good stuff. Four pitches they scored three runs, you can't predict that. I think the bullpen is going to be fine. We got some guys throwing the ball well, Mantiply and Nelson. The guys that aren't, and need to, got to start to figure some things out. They'll get that done, that's how this game is, they get coached up and go out and execute. How do we fix this, just continue to create the right matchups and give guys the right opportunities".
The poor outing from the bullpen spoiled a strong day at the plate from Lourdes Gurriel Jr. Gurriel hit two home runs and walked twice in five trips to the plate today, finishing out the week 8-for-14 with four home runs, five walks, six RBI, and nine runs scored in four games. It's no coincidence that Arizona's offense has heated up alongside Gurriel, scoring 32 runs when he's in the starting lineup.
"I think he's doing a good of laying off of balls out of the zone," said Lovullo. "He's taking the hustle out of his swing in the right counts, and he's following the game plan. He's doing a good job of looking for and executing on the right pitch."
Another encouraging sign for the team is rookie right-hander Ryne Nelson, who despite laboring through a 34-pitch second inning, showed signs of progress. He was able to lock in for the third and fourth inning, landing his secondary pitches in the zone and maintained his top fastball velocity more than 80 pitches into his start. Nelson had been working on cleaning up his mechanics, as he'd been drifting towards the first base side of the mound. He was able to mix in his secondary pitches, landing them for strikes, to complement a fastball that averaged a season-best 95.6 MPH. He finished with three runs allowed on seven hits, one walk, and three strikeouts in five innings.
When asked about what the difference was for Nelson in the third and fourth inning, here's what Lovullo had to say.
"The second inning I thought he started to yank some pitches. He was inconsistent with his secondary stuff. It looked like he started to land the curveball and the cutter/slider. It was helping him get ahead, get back in counts. He just seemed to be around the zone with his secondary stuff. The fastball came out hot today, and I thought he was doing a good job with it. In that second inning, I thought all pitches left him and he pulled it back together. He did a good job of getting back into the game and landing all of his pitches."
The D-backs won't have much time to dwell on what could have been, as they face the Miami Marlins next for a three-game series at Chase Field. Arizona sends their ace, Zac Gallen, on the mound while the Marlins will start lefty Braxton Garrett. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40PM MST.
