(This story was updated to add new information.)
MILWAUKEE – It was not so long ago that the worst-case scenario seemed possible. The Diamondbacks were struggling. Rival clubs were surging. A playoff appearance that had seemed certain suddenly felt — kind of, sort of, maybe — in jeopardy.
But after a fourth consecutive win on Saturday, the latest being a 5-0 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field, those fears no longer feel realistic. The Diamondbacks not only control their own destiny. They seem to be in total control of it.
Joc Pederson, Jose Herrera, and Ketel Marte connected for home runs, Herrera’s being the first of his big league career. Merrill Kelly worked five impressive innings before leaving with more cramping, this time in his right calf. The Diamondbacks beat the Brewers for the third consecutive day — and will go for the rare four-game sweep on Sunday.
With the win, the Diamondbacks maintained a three-game lead on a playoff spot. They are up by a game on the New York Mets for the second wild-card, with the Mets leading the Atlanta Braves by two games.
The prospect of the Diamondbacks getting passed by both clubs grows increasingly unlikely with each passing day. All three clubs have seven games remaining, and the Mets and Braves will play each other three times. Someone will have to lose those games, and no matter who it is it will strengthen the Diamondbacks’ chances to play in October.
“We’re peaking at the right time,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. “We can simplify the game when we need to. We can slow it down when we need to. We can execute at a high level, ramp up. It’s a very dynamic team.”
The win moved the Diamondbacks to 87-68. Four more wins would get them to 91, a number that the Braves and Mets cannot both reach, meaning it would clinch a spot for the Diamondbacks. That is not to say the Diamondbacks have to get to 91 in order to take a wild-card spot, but if they do get 91, they cannot be passed by both teams.
Once again, Kelly’s health is something of a concern. It was the second time in three starts that he exited a game early due to cramping and the fifth time in the past two seasons.
He said he felt his calf starting to cramp up at the end of the fifth inning, then had it continue to grab at him on every warm-up pitch he threw prior to the sixth. He angrily screamed into his glove as he walked off the field with a trainer.
“I don’t think I could be any possibly more hydrated than I am going into the games,” Kelly said. “We’re going to hopefully get some other inputs and go back to the drawing board and see what we can do to hopefully figure something out moving forward.”
What opinions he or the training staff will seek remains to be seen.
“Obviously, I’ve had a bunch of talks with our training staff, but, obviously, what we’ve been doing right now may not be working,” Kelly said. “… I don’t think there’s really a cramp specialist out there; I don’t think anybody operates that way. It’s definitely gotten to the point for me where I want to talk to whoever I can try to figure out what’s going on.”
If there is a bright side to the situation, it is that it never seems to bother Kelly too early in games, only in the middle or late innings. The Diamondbacks have always managed to get at least four or five innings from him.
But in Kelly’s mind, the five innings he gave the Diamondbacks on Saturday only made him feel worse about having to come out of the game.
“I think that’s probably one of the more frustrating parts,” he said, “is that was probably the best I’ve felt since I’ve been back.”
With one out in the first, Pederson launched a two-run homer off Brewers right-hander Aaron Civale to give the Diamondbacks a quick, 2-0 lead. The home run was Pederson’s 23rd of the year.
Herrera connected for a solo shot in the fifth to make it 3-0. It took Herrera 350 career plate appearances to hit his first homer, a swing that sent the Diamondbacks’ dugout into a frenzy.
“It’s been a conversation the last few weeks that I’ve been hitting the ball better and my teammates were waiting for it,” Herrera said. “Today I put a good swing on a couple of balls and one of them got out. I’m glad about it.”
Marte blasted his 34th homer of the year to add a pair of insurance runs in the ninth.
In the fifth, Lovullo sent Randal Grichuk to the plate to hit for Pederson, and television cameras caught Lovullo and Pederson having what appeared to be an animated discussion in the dugout.
Lovullo said it was “nothing that it appeared,” and though he did not want to reveal the topic of conversation he did say Pederson was not unhappy about being removed.
“No,” Lovullo said. “No. Nuh-uh. No. … What I was talking about and what was seen was long after the conversation of him being told he was being pinch hit for, so there is nothing here whatsoever.”
Diamondbacks at Brewers, 11:10 a.m., Cox, Ch. 34
Diamondbacks LHP Jordan Montgomery (8-7, 6.23) vs. Brewers RHP Frankie Montas (7-11, 4.50).
At American Family Field: Montgomery gave up three runs in 4 2/3 innings in Colorado on Tuesday. He allowed a double on a ball that defenders lost in the twilight sky that started a two-run Rockies rally, then served up a solo homer to SS Ezequiel Tovar. … It was his first start since Aug. 21 in Miami; he had been bumped from the rotation in favor of RHP Ryne Nelson but moved back in when Nelson hit the injured list. … In five career starts against the Brewers, Montgomery has a 2.93 ERA. … Montas, whom the Brewers acquired from the Reds at the trade deadline, has logged a 3.55 ERA with 60 strikeouts in 50 2/3 innings since the trade. He has struck out 10, eight and 10, respectively, in his past three starts, with a 3.08 ERA in 17 2/3 innings. … He faced the Diamondbacks on May 7, striking out seven in six innings while allowing two runs (one earned).
Road to October: 2024 MLB postseason: Magic number for Arizona Diamondbacks to make playoffs
Coming up
Monday: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (3-3, 5.09) vs. Giants TBA.
Tuesday: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Brandon Pfaadt (10-9, 4.66) vs. Giants RHP Hayden Birdsong (4-5, 4.74).
Wednesday: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Zac Gallen (13-6, 3.74) vs. Giants RHP Logan Webb (12-10, 3.58).
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Diamondbacks run win streak to four by blasting Brewers again
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