Arizona Diamondbacks win series against Los Angeles Dodgers

The Diamondbacks World Series came early this year when they traveled to Los Angeles to face the all-powerful first-place Dodgers. This series was the start of a 12-game stretch that could very well decide the Diamondbacks’ 2024 season and how they approach the trade deadline.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Diamondbacks made some roster moves by bringing Gabriel Moreno and The Young King Alek Thomas off the injured list, but the good injury news lasted only seconds as the team placed Jordan Montgomery on the 15-day injured list due to inflammation in his right knee. This unfortunately also meant the end of Blaze’s time on the MLB roster for the time being as they sent him back to Reno.

Tuesday’s heartbreaking first game wasn’t fun, but there were some positives for the team (yes, even Mr. Glass Half Full Brett) to look at and focus on. What caught their attention most were glimpses of the “Answerbacks” and their chaotic brand of baseball that we all came to know and love during last season, and we wondered if we can expect more of the same now that the lineup is back to some sort of normal. The guys also addressed Paul Sewald’s blown first save of the season and how much blame he really bears for this heartbreaking loss.

After the Game 1 loss that felt like a perfect summary of the 2024 season, the Dbacks let RHP Cristian Mena take over the starring role in Game 2 for his MLB debut. While his performance (especially the first inning, yuck, start) was nothing special (3 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 2 K, 2 HR), it got the team wondering if Mena could be a true back-end starter for this rotation, or if he’s another Slade Cecconi/Ryne Nelson-type pitcher better used out of the bullpen.

Throughout his career here in Arizona, Christian Walker has absolutely dominated the Los Angeles Dodgers whenever they traveled to California (Career stats @ Dodger Stadium: 42 games, 152 PA, 47 H, 4 2B, 19 HR, 32 RBI with a .341 Avg / .401 OBP / .783 SLG > 1.184 OPS and 216 wRC+). Since Christian was unable to see his son Clayton on this show, this dominance made the boys wonder if CWalk was giving up his fatherhood completely in order to spend more time with his son.

The Gallentines’ Independence Day is a double cause for celebration, but Gabriel focused on Zac Gallen’s potential pitching tip for the second straight start after his injury list. It wasn’t the most efficient outing for Zac, as his control of the fastball (he consistently hit 97/98 MPH) was a bit shakier than we’re used to. Gabe explained what he thought was the reason the Dodgers seemed to have something on Gallen.

Gift: “When he throws his fastball, his leg is way up. It’s above his waist, much closer to his own glove/hand, it’s very, very high. (Brandon shows curveball leg kick graphic) … it doesn’t go any higher. That’s a curveball, in fact, his leg is almost straight down… I noticed that, so I assume the 27 people in the Dodgers front office probably noticed that too and were prepared for it.”

Knowing this team was one pitch away from a potential sweep hurts, but still being able to go 2 of 3 in LA and do it with good pitching, hitting, small ball, and defense might be just what this team needs to get going and finish the first half full steam ahead.