Brandon Pfaadt’s dominant mound presence and Nolan Arenado’s pursuit of a historic 2,000-hit milestone propelled the Arizona Diamondbacks to a bounce-back victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Arizona Diamondbacks improved to 50-48 as they took down the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-3, on Saturday.
This was a much-needed victory for manager Torey Lovullo and the rest of his staff as the Cardinals won the series opener in one of the D-backs' ugliest games of the year.
Thankfully, things looked much better in the second game. Arizona now has a chance to win this series, mostly thanks to Brandon Pfaadt and Nolan Arenado's contributions.
Pfaadt may have given up a pair of runs late, but he once again shined as he continues to be a major part of this team's rotation. As for Arenado, the third baseman drove in another two runs as he eyes a historic career milestone.
2,000 hits is within reach for Arenado
With Arizona ahead 1-0 through the first two innings, Arenado gave the team a huge boost as part of their three-run third inning.
The first two Diamondbacks reached in the third but a double play nearly halted all of their momentum. Ketel Marte would score on a wild pitch, and then a single and walk led to Arenado's massive two-out, two RBI double.
Arenado already had a pair of hits in his first two at-bats, and now he's just two hits shy of 2,000 in his illustrious career.
"Arenado had the big blow, a couple hits, charging at 2,000 hits," Lovullo said, according to MLB.com. "And we got to appreciate what he's doing every single day as he's getting ready for that accomplishment. This is a very special player that I'm honored to manage."
Arenado added, "I try not to get caught up in it too much. But I would love to get it done as soon as possible. But there's a lot of games left, I just want to continue to have good at-bats. The past two weeks have been a lot better, and I'm really happy with the work I've been putting in. [2,000 hits] would mean a lot."
Pfaadt has been tremendous
Prior to being optioned to Triple-A Reno, the 27-year-old had a 5.94 ERA in three starts and a 5.91 ERA in 10 relief appearances. Since his return, he's started four games, going 4-0 with a 2.14 ERA.
Pfaadt's season ERA is down to 4.58 with his WHIP sitting at 1.31. He pitched five flawless innings against the Cardinals before allowing two runs to score in the sixth. Lovullo pulled Pfaadt after 5.1 innings when he had given up two earned runs on six hits.
It should be noted that Pfaadt himself only gave up one run, but he was responsible for the second that scored when Ryan Thompson took over. Thompson was one of four D-Backs relievers to pick up a hold while Paul Sewald got back on track by picking up his 23rd save.
Join the Community
Don't miss out on our ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news!
It's completely free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!
