LOS ANGELES -- After taking two out of three over the Dodgers to end August with a 17-12 record, manager Torey Lovullo described his ballclub as “improving, but incomplete.”
“I want us to play our best baseball right now,” Lovullo said. “I want us to play meaningful games in September -- that’s all I ask these guys. Just go out and play hard so we can scoreboard watch a little bit in September. You’ve got to earn the right. So we’re going to turn the calendar month, and we’ve got to keep our heads up. We’re in this.”
The D-backs would have preferred to leave L.A. with a sweep, but Will Smith spoiled that chance with a pinch-hit walk-off home run to hand Arizona a 5-4 loss in Sunday’s finale.
“If you told us we could come in and take two out of three, by all means that’s what we’re trying to do,” said Brandon Pfaadt, who struck out five but gave up four runs across 4 1/3 innings. “To win a series in August against the Dodgers kind of speaks volumes on the baseball that we’re playing.”
That August resurgence is largely thanks to a few key trends: young players stepping up and strong defense and starting pitching.
Contributions from throughout the lineup
The D-backs’ top-of-the-order bats -- Geraldo Perdomo, Ketel Marte and Corbin Carroll -- all swung hot bats in August, combining for a .305 average with 15 homers and 51 RBIs.
But since the departure of Eugenio Suárez and Josh Naylor at the Trade Deadline, a different supporting cast has emerged.
That starts with Blaze Alexander, who hit seven homers for the month and ended it on a 6-for-17 (.353) tear, good for a 1.300 OPS over his past five games.
“Since he’s come up here, I think he’s really controlling the zone, not chasing, [which] is leading to him barreling up a lot of baseballs,” said Lovullo.
Arizona has also been bolstered by the return of Gabriel Moreno, who had missed more than two months with a broken right hand. In eight games since returning, the catcher posted a .321/.333/.571 slash line with nine RBIs.
The D-backs also got key hits in the series from Ildemaro Vargas -- who hit a crucial three-run homer Saturday -- and Adrian Del Castillo, who went 2-for-3 with an RBI in the finale.
“When [the Deadline] happened, we got a few younger guys in the clubhouse trying to prove themselves, and I think that’s exactly what’s happening,” said Pfaadt.
Defense, defense, defense
Throughout the L.A. series, Lovullo emphasized the importance of playing clean defense, which he said is integral to the D-backs’ identity.
“I think we got really athletic [after the Deadline],” Lovullo said. “That’s who we are. We talk about pitching and defense, and it showed up in a big way [Saturday]. We make plays the way we have, we turn double plays and get out of innings, that goes a long way with who we are.”
That focus was on display throughout the weekend.
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. cut down Kiké Hernández at home plate Saturday to complete a crucial double play. Alexander made multiple highlight-reel plays, from his tumbling tag at third to nab Freddie Freeman on Saturday to a nice diving play up the middle on Sunday to take a hit away from Mookie Betts. Perdomo made a nice sliding grab, too.
Entering Sunday, Arizona was tied for 10th in Statcast's Fielding Run Value (+8 runs) and tied for 11th with +6 Outs Above Average.
Resurgent starting pitching
The D-backs have been bitten hard by the injury bug. But in the absence of Corbin Burnes and Justin Martinez, who both underwent Tommy John surgery in June -- plus Merrill Kelly, who was traded at the Deadline -- Zac Gallen and Eduardo Rodriguez have given Arizona a boost.
Gallen set the tone for the series win with his eight-strikeout gem, capping a superb month in which he tossed five quality starts with a 2.57 ERA and 28 K’s. Rodriguez followed that up with a scoreless six-inning quality start of his own.
The D-backs end August with a 4.08 team ERA -- not exactly dominant, but solid enough to keep them in games, especially against tough lineups like L.A. and Milwaukee.
Now they enter September at 68-70 and with a chance to make things interesting in the NL Wild Card race.
“Obviously, absolutely not where we wanted to be at the start of the year,” said Carroll. “But I think all things considered, with what happened at the Deadline, to still be playing meaningful baseball right now is what we really were hoping to do.”