What D-backs' Rough Series Loss to Pirates Told Us

The Arizona Diamondbacks lost their third straight series on Thursday afternoon, dropping two of three games to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Though it is still early, there are officially some serious concerns about what's taking place on the field, and those issues were highlighted in this series.

Below are two main takeaways, plus a burning question from Arizona's most recent series loss.

What D-backs series loss to Pirates told us

1: Starting pitching starting to level out

Apr 22, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez (57) throws against the Chicago White Sox in the first inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

The Diamondbacks had not seen a starting pitcher go six innings since their series against the Toronto Blue Jays. The rotation had not only been a source of concern, it was entirely ineffective for two turns.

That flipped almost immediately in this series, and to an extreme degree. Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez fired his best start yet as a D-back in game one, going seven scoreless innings with seven strikeouts.

Michael Soroka followed that up by going toe-to-toe with Paul Skenes in game two, though his 6.1 innings of one-run baseball charged him with the loss in a 1-0 game.

Even Zac Gallen, who had an uneven start, held the damage to four runs. More importantly, he provided six innings of coverage to prevent entirely exhausting the bullpen.

It wasn't enough to win a series, but Arizona certainly needed that type of effort in these three games, and they got it.

2: D-backs offense too inconsistent, and it's officially worrisome

May 6, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks infielder Ketel Marte reacts after grounding out in the fourth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

It looked like an offensive breakthrough had occurred in game one, as the D-backs put together a patient, well-rounded offensive effort against Pirates righty Bubba Chandler in a 9-0 win. It was the largest margin of victory of the year for Arizona. Walks were taken, productive outs were utilized, and Arizona's approach looked airtight.

But in game two, the approach went out the window. Granted, facing Paul Skenes is no easy task. When the Cy Young-winning Pirates ace is on, there's often little that can be done to stop him.

But the D-backs employed an early-swinging approach, expecting a wealth of hittable strikes. When that approach was clearly flawed, no adjustment was made, and Arizona gave up quick out after quick out on the way to eight innings of Skenes dominance.

Game three was not much better. Arizona scored just two runs, and allowed righty Mitch Keller to cover 6.1 innings with four hits and two walks allowed. Base traffic was squandered. Quick outs were given. A Corbin Carroll solo home run was the only run provided beyond the first inning.

This offensive pace is simply not a sustainable way to win games if a club does not have one of the game's elite pitching staffs. As anyone who has followed the D-backs well knows, Arizona does not have that.

What they do have is quality hitters. Carroll, Ketel Marte, Geraldo Perdomo — among other rising stars — are not producing enough consistently enough. The Diamondbacks' once-vaunted offense has been silenced at a much higher rate, and has completely failed to reward the surprisingly-numerous quality pitching performances given to them. That has to change, and soon.

1 big question after D-backs series loss to Pirates

Are D-backs digging their own grave?

Apr 21, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo reacts in the eighth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

No game, series or homestand us a "must-win" scenario before summer even arrives. But the D-backs may not have the luxury of waiting around to get hot.

In a National League that is full of talent, and an NL West that offers nothing but brutal difficulty, the D-backs have to be able to take care of the less challenging opponents.

It's not that any major league team is an "easy" opponent, but losing series to the White Sox, Pirates and Brewers, while failing to even earn one victory against the Cubs, suddenly put an even greater amount of pressure on Arizona's matchups with the Padres, Dodgers and Giants — and even an improved Rockies club.

Those divisional wins will not be easy to come by, and failing to stack some series wins ahead of those matchups could take Arizona out of the playoff race much sooner than the final week of the season.

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