The Arizona Diamondbacks had a chance to win their four-game series against the Colorado Rockies on Sunday, and they seized the opportunity in dominant fashion with a 9-1 win.

It was a game in which Arizona’s offense, led by a perfect 4-for-4 day by Corbin Carroll, and the pitching of Ryne Nelson and Taylor Clarke carried the Diamondbacks to an easy win. Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo praised the group afterward, starting with the defense and the pitching by Nelson.

"You’re curious about what your team's gonna look like to win a series on that last day," Lovullo said. "I thought the big double play ball in the first, the double play balls in the first and the second inning that we turned really got the momentum swinging in Nelly's direction. And he just kept going out there making pitches and pitched all the way through eight innings."

Nelson and Clarke were the only pitchers to step on the mound for the Diamondbacks on Sunday, and Nelson took on most of the workload by pitching eight innings while striking out three batters and allowing six hits, one earned run, and three walks.

Nelson delivered 103 pitches in the outing, and he took it upon himself to carry the Diamondbacks as far as he could and limit Lovullo’s need to turn to the bullpen.

"So, we really relied on him in a situation where we have been using guys in the bullpen for him to just kind of take charge and say, ‘I got you guys, and we will use one reliever today,’" Lovullo said.

"It was perfect for us getting ready to get up to San Francisco and hopefully get another great outing from some starting pitching. So overall, I was very pleased with the effort, the focus."

Lovullo also had plenty of praise for the offense, especially Marte and Carroll, who combined seven hits in eight at-bats with five RBIs. Carroll’s highlight moments came from two RBI triples that scored Marte both times.

"And, besides Nelly, the at-bats," Lovullo said. "We started to really lock in and hone in on [Jose] Quintana. And Marte had a great day; Carroll had a great day, and when those two catalysts are pushing this offense, that's the potential. 

"So, scoring nine runs and just kinda easing into the rest of the day behind Nelly," he added. "It was a really, really good recipe for the last day of a very, very successful home series."

The Diamondbacks have now won seven of their last eight games, and Lovullo highlighted the strength of the starting pitching alongside significant offensive performances as the recipes for their success.

"Starting pitching, I think it's really done a nice job of setting the tone, pitching deep into ball games," Lovullo said. "Timely hitting, better at-bats. I think we're checking off certain pitches, we're building innings.

"And then, the right guys at the right time have gotten hot and really picked up the slack for us in very critical moments," he added. "But for me, it's a no-brainer. The pitching and defense go hand-in-hand. And ever since we started to get some really reliable starting pitching, we've been a really good baseball team."

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