|
 That was natural for a guy who ordered 50 tickets for friends and
family members and looked up to see nearly twice that many people in
his rooting section. By the 10th inning, the jitters were gone, even
though the stakes were much higher.
The Arizona third baseman delivered a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in
the top of the 10th, leading the Diamondbacks to a 4-3 win over the
Seattle Mariners.
"That was cool it worked out like that," said Lamb, who graduated
from Seattle's Bishop Blanchet High School and played baseball at
the University of Washington. "It was great to get the win and have
all those people there."
With one out, Lamb hit a shallow fly ball. Seattle center fielder
Austin Jackson caught the ball easily but had trouble getting it out
of his glove and made a late throw home. Arizona first baseman Paul
Goldschmidt easily scored from third, helping the Diamondbacks
(47-51) win for the fourth time in five games.
Reliever Oliver Perez (2-1) earned the victory after blowing the
save in the bottom of the ninth, while Andrew Chafin recorded his
second save of the season with a scoreless 10th.
Seattle catcher Mike Zunino sent the game into extra innings with a
two-out, RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning. That came off
Perez, who was trying to earn his first save since 2013 as closer
Brad Ziegler took the night off after three consecutive games of
work.
With Ziegler unavailable, the Diamondbacks initially turned to
right-hander Daniel Hudson to open the ninth inning while clinging
to a 3-2 lead.
Hudson walked leadoff hitter Robinson Cano but got pinch hitter Seth
Smith to ground into a double play. Former Diamondback Mark Trumbo
then hit a two-out double, and Arizona turned to Perez, whose last
save came on July 5, 2013, when he was pitching for Seattle, to face
left-handed-hitting first baseman Logan Morrison.
Perez threw a wild pitch on a full count, walking Morrison while
sending pinch runner Chris Taylor to third, before Zunino lined an
0-2 pitch into left field to bring in the tying run.
"It's awesome," Zunino said of delivering the big hit with two outs
in the bottom of the ninth inning. "That's what you want to be a
part of, a situation like that."
Seattle closer Carson Smith, who was supposed to get the night off,
came on in the 10th and gave up two walks while hitting a batter
before lefty Vidal Nuno came on with the bases loaded. Lamb then
came through.
The Mariners threatened in the bottom of the 10th, with third
baseman Kyle Seager on second base and two outs, but Chafin
intentionally walked Cano before striking out Smith to end the game.
The Mariners (46-54) have played extra innings in each of their past
two games and three of the last five.
The Diamondbacks got two early home runs on the way to a 3-0 lead,
and starting pitcher Robbie Ray did his part to keep Arizona in
front before the ninth-inning dramatics. Goldschmidt and catcher
Welington Castillo each homered, while Ray allowed just two runs on
six hits over seven innings.
[to top of second column] |
An RBI single from Morrison gave the Mariners their first run before
Cano cut the deficit to 3-2 with a solo home run, his 11th of the
year, in the sixth inning.
Cano went 2-for-3, while Trumbo had three hits -- two of them
doubles -- and an RBI for Seattle.
Mariners starter Mike Montgomery recovered from serving up two early
home runs to pitch 6 2/3 innings, allowing three runs (two earned)
on five hits and four walks.
"I felt good from the beginning," Montgomery said. "Really, those
two mistakes for home runs, they took advantage of them. After that,
I felt a lot better finding my fastball command."
Arizona had just five hits in the win.
The most important play didn't involve a hit -- Lamb's 10th-inning
fly ball. While most of the hometown fans at Safeco Field groaned
when it brought in the go-ahead run, there were about 90 Lamb
supporters who were happy to see it happen.
"I think they'd still like me if I didn't get the hit," Lamb said of
his sacrifice fly. "I'd like to think so anyway. But it was nice to
get the RBI."
NOTES: Before Monday's game, the Diamondbacks activated C Jarrod
Saltalamacchia from the 15-day disabled list. Arizona had a roster
spot available after optioning RHP Dominic Leone, a former Mariner,
to Double-A Mobile following Sunday's game. ... The Mariners and
Diamondbacks made a minor trade before Monday's game, with Seattle
acquiring RHP J.C. Ramirez for cash considerations. Ramirez, who
spent time in the Mariners' organization earlier in his career, will
join the bullpen of Seattle's Triple-A affiliate in Tacoma. ... The
Diamondbacks are in Seattle for the first time since 2009, when Ken
Griffey Jr. had a game-winning hit for the Mariners in the series
opener. Griffey was in his second tour of duty with Seattle at age
39.
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
