The Arizona Diamondbacks needed to do what they had to against the New York Yankees on Sunday.
The Arizona Diamondbacks concluded their series against the New York Yankees with an 8-4 win on Sunday at Chase Field in Phoenix.
The win secured the series for the Diamondbacks, and it may have been the final game they play at Chase Field this season as they will now go on the road for their final six games and try to secure a Wild Card spot.
In trouble early
Arizona got on the board quickly when Geraldo Perdomo hit an RBI single in the bottom of the first inning to make it a 1-0 game. However, things went south quickly.
After a scoreless second inning for both teams, the Yankees got after Diamondbacks right-hander Corbin Burnes in the third. Burnes opened the inning by securing outs against the first two batters he faced, and things went wrong afterward.
Burnes followed those outs by giving up a solo home run to Heliot Ramos, a single, and a two-run home run to George Lombard Jr. New York was not done doing damage yet, though, as Burnes gave up a third home run, a solo shot to Spencer Jones, that capped off a four-run inning for the Yankees.
With a 4-1 deficit to overcome, Burnes' outing ended, and Arizona's offense needed to get to work, and it did.
A blazing response
The Diamondbacks were not able to get on the board in the fourth inning, but luckily, reliever Ryne Nelson retired the Yankees' side and struck out two of the three batters he faced.
In the bottom of the fifth, Arizona's batting order got hot.
After Tim Tawa popped out, Lars Nootbar hit a ground-rule double, and Ketel Marte followed it up with a single. Subsequently, Gabriel Moreno drew a walk to load the bases.
The Diamondbacks' momentum was in jeopardy when Perdomo struck out, but Corbin Carroll drew a two-out walk to make it a 4-2 game. Following Carroll's walk, Nolan Arenado crushed a grand slam to left field that gave Arizona a 6-4 lead and shifted the game in its favor.
The momentum shift positively affected the results on the mound, too, as the bullpen did its job following Burnes' short outing. Five relievers combined for a shutout effort, and the offense continued to work.
In the bottom of the seventh, Perdomo delivered an RBI triple, and Carroll added an RBI single to bring the Diamondbacks' lead to 8-4. Arizona's seven-run swing was commendable, but it was also required.
Moving forward
This was a series the Diamondbacks had to win. Even after defeating the Yankees, they are still four games behind the San Diego Padres for the third and final Wild Card spot in the National League that will feature in the postseason.
Essentially, Arizona is going to have to be nearly perfect over the next six games. The Diamondbacks will play those games on the road, starting with a series against the Colorado Rockies that they need to sweep.
If they can pull that off, and San Diego is swept or, at the very least, loses its series to the Los Angeles Dodgers, then it will set up an all-time, high-leverage battle between the Diamondbacks and San Diego that will decide the playoff fate of one of these clubs.
