When the Arizona Diamondbacks take a look back at how they've started the 2026 MLB season, they can thank reliever Paul Sewald for his hard work.

On Thursday, though, Sewald melted down in the clutch against the Chicago White Sox. Chicago picked up a 4-1 victory over the Diamondbacks at Chase Field.

Seeing Sewald not able to keep the game tied in the ninth inning is a rare occurrence. Yet that's what happened.

Sewald came in to pitch in the ninth with the score tied at 1-1. He walked two batters, then the White Sox's Andrew Benintendi touched him up for a three-run home run. The Diamondbacks weren't able to rally in their half of the ninth, and the White Sox escaped the Valley of the Sun with a victory.

But Sewald wasn't ducking questions from reporters after the game at all.

"It happens a couple of times a year," Sewald said, according to MLB.com. "You throw enough where you just feel like you don't know where [the ball] is going. And today's one of those days. You just hope somebody lines out, pretty much."

Michael Soroka was excellent in making the start for Arizona. In five innings of work, Soroka only allowed one run. White Sox starter Chris Martin was on his A game on Thursday, giving up just one run himself in 6 1/3 innings of work.

Adrian Del Castillo's RBI double in the bottom of the first inning provided the Diamondbacks with their only offense.

Martin's outing left an impression on Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo after Thursday's loss.

"We really couldn't solve the puzzle with their starting pitcher," Lovullo said. "He had real good stuff. Was challenging us in the zone. We had some hard-hit balls and some opportunities, but we just couldn't cash in at the right time, the right situation."

Sewald apparently could not get his ace pitch over the plate when it mattered. It was foremost on his mind after the game.

"Just couldn't really throw the slider for a strike, couldn't throw the fastball for a strike," Sewald said. "There's no way to alert the team … it's a little too late before you realize that you can't throw strikes.

"So just disappointing," Sewald continued. "I let the guys down and didn't give us a chance there in the ninth, but we'll get back after it this weekend, and hopefully it'll be better."

D-backs fans, though, know that Sewald is pretty reliable most of the time. Don't be surprised if Sewald goes on a run of collecting saves after this rare misstep.

The Diamondbacks are headed to Mexico City after a day off on Friday. They'll play the San Diego Padres in a two-game series on Saturday and Sunday.

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