PHOENIX — In an otherwise action-packed four-game series for the Arizona Diamondbacks against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chase Field this weekend, Sunday’s 8-1 loss was unceremonious.
The D-backs (21-20) split the four games, which on the surface looks pretty solid against the best team in Major League Baseball, especially considering Los Angeles had been rolling and Arizona has yet to get on an extended run this season.
The series was another reminder that the D-backs can and should be competitive with the best teams. At the same time, the club had opportunities to take more from their division rivals and could not quite get there.
“This is a tough game to stomach,” manager Torey Lovullo said of Sunday’s performance. “We never really got anything off going offensively. The Dodgers seemed like they were playing at a very different pace than we were.”
Diamondbacks drop finale to Dodgers
Arizona starter Zac Gallen dueled Los Angeles counterpart Tony Gonsolin through four innings.
Gallen allowed one run through four frames, but his final line was a pedestrian 5.2 innings and four earned runs. The Dodgers tagged him with 10 hits, five of which came after the fourth inning.
“ I feel like I made some good pitches and they made some good swings,” Gallen said. “Overall, I feel pretty good. I had pretty much everything working.
“For what the line shows, I felt like I threw a little better. I feel like I had a little bit better stuff than four runs on 10 hits, really.”
He exited with two outs and a runner on third base in the sixth, as the D-backs called on Joe Mantiply to go get Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani.
Mantiply had found previous success against Ohtani, as the reigning NL MVP entered Sunday 1-for-9 against the lefty. Ohtani won this round, however, with an RBI single to right to extend the lead to 4-0.
Freddie Freeman was a nightmare to face on Sunday, as he went 4-for-4, hitting two doubles and a sacrifice fly off Gallen and then a home run against Mantiply to take a 5-0 lead in the seventh inning. Freeman is batting .379 in 59 career games at Chase Field, driving in 54 runs.
The Dodgers (27-14) finished the game with 18 hits, which ties a season high allowed by the D-backs.
Arizona’s offense, meanwhile, had trouble with Gonsolin, who threw five shutout innings with only three hits allowed. He has a 2.74 ERA in his last 11 games pitched against the D-backs dating back to 2020 (49.1 innings).
A couple of run-scoring opportunities passed by early, and Arizona did not break through until the seventh with an RBI double by catcher Jose Herrera.
It was a quiet day for the top of the order, as Corbin Carroll and Geraldo Perdomo went 1-for-7 combined with a walk — Carroll was also caught stealing. Ketel Marte received the day off as part of his return-to-play program, and he went 0-for-1 as a pinch hitter.
Splitting the series
The Diamondbacks won the first game of the set 5-3 after an excellent start from Brandon Pfaadt. The second game was a heartbreaker, as Arizona overcame a five-run deficit to take an 11-8 lead into the ninth inning but lost 14-11 in a ninth-inning collapse from the bullpen.
The home squad bounced back on Saturday with a 3-0 win thanks to a gem start by Corbin Burnes.
“ I think we played pretty well,” Gallen said. “Obviously, the second game, letting that one slip is tough. And not being able to win the series today, we were looking for momentum, it’s unfortunate. I think the positives come from setting the tone in Game 1 and then bouncing back last night.
“I still think collectively there’s some things we just have to be a little bit better on, especially playing teams like that. … Overall, we’re coming into our own, starting to play a little bit better.”
Arizona’s starting pitchers overall, even with a blow-up outing by Eduardo Rodriguez (2.2 IP, 6 ER), outpitched Los Angeles’.
Burnes and Pfaadt combined for 13.1 shutout innings during the series. D-backs starters worked 21.2 innings with 10 earned runs, while L.A.’s provided 20.2 innings and 12 earned runs — Lovullo noted that Rodriguez was clearly tipping his pitches on Friday.
The offensive execution was a bit inconsistent, especially with runners on base. A couple positive signs: Marte got going over the first three games after a slow start off the injured list, and Pavin Smith has appeared to have dug himself out of a funk with six hits in his last three games.
The bullpen remains in a rough spot, but Kendall Graveman is expected to be back in San Francisco this coming week, while Justin Martinez may not be too far behind.
Overall, the D-backs snapped a streak of two straight series losses, but they’ve been stuck within two games of .500 for most of the season.
“I’m looking for this team to get on a run, a 10-game run and win a lot of baseball games,” Lovullo said.
Chase Field packed for Diamondbacks-Dodgers
As expected, the crowds were huge for this series.
Across the four games, Chase Field hosted more than 182,000 fans, according to the D-backs.
“This is my seventh year now, so to see the evolution of the games being a little bit more full, fans being a little bit more engaged, it was a lot of fun,” Gallen said. ”I think in years past when we played the Dodgers, it’s leaned a little more blue out there. I think this weekend, it was a good split.”
Diamondbacks’ next game
The D-backs continue their NL West slate on Monday at Oracle Park against the San Francisco Giants. The Giants enter the matchup with a 24-17 record, having just been swept by the Minnesota Twins.
Merrill Kelly (4.09 ERA) will start the opener for Arizona against Giants veteran right-hander Justin Verlander (4.50 ERA). Brandon Pfaadt and Eduardo Rodriguez round out the D-backs’ rotation in San Francisco, while the Giants will run out Robbie Ray and Jordan Hicks.
First pitch on Monday is at 6:45 p.m. on 98.7 and the Arizona Sports app.
