Torey Lovullo has D-backs Playing with a Chip on Their Shoulders

Don't expect the Diamondbacks to let up at all just because they scored a convincing 11-2 victory over the Dodgers last night in game one of the National League Division Series. They know they will be facing a determined and motivated Dodger team anxious to come out firing and avenge Saturday night's loss.

At the same time the D-backs, led by Torey Lovullo are exuding a calm, connected demeanor and even playing with a chip on their shoulder. Nobody expected them to make the postseason in the first place. Nobody expected them to beat the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Wild Card series. Certainly nobody expected them to do what they did to Clayton Kershaw last night. Asked if he feels his team is making a statement, Lovullo did not mince words.

"I hope so. The Milwaukee Brewers were not a pushover team. We played good baseball against them. I think this team has a chip on its shoulder. We take it personal when we watch some of the comments on television or read some of the things where everybody wanted to be re-seeded, the Braves -- re-seed this thing so the Braves can pick on the lowly Diamondbacks."

Lovullo went on, to drive home the point.

"I think this team takes that very personally, and hopefully people are recognizing that you can't just walk all over us. We're a good baseball team. We do things right. We do it in a very uncommon way. "

Presented with the same question, Monday's starter Zac Gallen echoed the sentiment.

"I would say so. I would venture to say that other than the 26 guys, 28 guys in that clubhouse, I don't know anyone else thinks that we should be here, thinks that we deserve to be here. So, yeah, I think the guys in the clubhouse know it's a good team. And I think anyone who has been following baseball knows we're a good team. We hit a little bit of a skid in the second half, you could call it. But I think it's definitely a team that's probably overlooked. I definitely think a chip on the shoulder is probably a good way to summarize it."

Lovullo also expressed a great deal of pride in how his players have internalized the teachings from him and his coaches, and now all sing from the same song sheet. An example of that was last night, as reported earlier this morning. Numerous players all speaking at the same time, all talking about connectedness, team work, and working hard, doing it the right way. Clichés for some, but a true culture that has developed inside the D-backs clubhouse.

"I don't really pick up on a lot of social media stuff. I'll have a lot of stuff clipped and sent to me in the form of a text message. And I'll hear it. And I'm like, yeah, that's pretty good. I was proud of the way player A or player B said that. That was something that we talked about four months ago when we were in San Francisco, that was the conversation I had with that player. And that makes me feel good. Makes me feel good because they actually listened to me. Sometimes you think nobody listens to you, but they actually listened."

It's often said the playoffs are a crapshoot. In a short series truly anything can happen. In the regular season even the worst teams win one out of every three games. The margin of difference between an 84 win team and a 100 win team is not all that great when we are talking a five or seven game series. The young D-backs players are playing with a calm and maturity beyond their years and their veterans are coming through both on and off the field in their leadership roles. This team is as dangerous as any other. Then again, the great Earl Weaver's quote is one that people cannot be reminded of too much.

"Momentum? Momentum is the next day's starter"