Pitching struggles derailed the Arizona Diamondbacks' momentum as they lost a three-game series to the Washington Nationals.
For the first time in nearly three weeks, the Arizona Diamondbacks have dropped back-to-back games.
Despite taking game one from the Washington Nationals, 3-2, they dropped the next two, 5-3, and 10-5.
Arizona racked up eight hits in the series finale but it wasn't enough as they allowed the Nationals to score 10 runs on 15 hits.
In the midst of a four-team, 10-game road stretch, the Diamondbacks currently sit at 2-2. They fall to 55-51 on the year as it's impossible not to think about what losing a game like this could do in the long run.
Take nothing away from the Nationals, a team that is now 54-52, but these are the games that the D-backs need to win if they want to be taken seriously in the Wild Card race.
Ninth-inning rally was too little, too late
Going into the ninth, the Diamondbacks found themselves in a five-run deficit. A leadoff walk made things interesting, and then the D-backs chased Matt Krook when he ended up walking all three of the batters he saw.
After scoring a pair of runs, Arizona re-walked the bases loaded. At this point, the go-ahead run was coming up to the plate with two outs. Sadly for the Diamondbacks, their eighth hitter of the inning grounded out and Clayton Beeter avoided what would’ve been a disastrous collapse for the Nationals.
Rough day for Diamondbacks' pitching staff
Ryan Thompson was the lone Diamondbacks pitcher not to allow a run in this game. For what it's worth, he only recorded two outs and he still allowed a hit.
Rookie Kohl Drake struggled in his second start, but that's to be expected of the 26 year old. Drake allowed four earned runs to score on five hits, two of which were home runs. Not only that, but he walked more batters (two) than he struck out (one).
From there, the rest of the bullpen didn't have his back. Jonathan Loaisiga allowed a pair of earned runs on two hits while Brandyn Garcia allowed two earned on four hits. Kevin Ginkel later made an appearance, one that saw him give up an earned run of his own.
Gabriel Moreno stays hot, Ketel Marte homers
Ketel Marte is a key piece of this Diamondbacks postseason push, and he picked up his 19th homer of the year. It may have been his only his of the game, but it helped Arizona chase Miles Mikolas after just four innings of work.
Officially, Gabriel Moreno was the lone Diamondbacks player with multiple hits in this game. It was extremely impressive to see Geraldo Perdomo draw three walks, especially since he touched home plate once. That said, there's nothing quite like another two-hit game for Moreno.
Moreno led the team with two RBIs as he continues to make a case for a contract extension. Should the D-backs be buyers at the deadline, it's clear he's one of their untouchables as one could argue he's just as important as Marte now that the season is heating up.
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