No
secrets as D-backs host Rockies in NL wild-card game
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[October 04, 2017]
By Jack Magruder, The Sports Xchange
PHOENIX -- The Arizona Diamondbacks and
Colorado Rockies are about as close as teams can be.
They share a spring training facility in Scottsdale, Ariz., their
clubhouses separated by a couple of concrete walls and about 400
feet of stadium grass. They opened spring training against each
other this year and met 19 times in the regular season.
All to get to the one contest that counts, the National League
wild-card game on Wednesday at Chase Field.
The Diamondbacks (93-69) and Rockies (87-75) meet for the chance to
continue another NL West rivalry against division-winning Los
Angeles in a best-of-five NL Division Series that begins Friday at
Dodger Stadium.
The staff aces, Colorado's Jon Gray and Arizona's Zack Greinke, will
meet for the first time this season in a game that features two top
NL Manager of the Year candidates: the Rockies' Bud Black and the
Diamondbacks' Torey Lovullo. Both are in their first year on the
current job. Lovullo is in his first season as a manager.
"There are no secrets here," Black said. "They know our players.
We'd like to think that we know their players and what they like to
do. You know, it comes down to our side trying to halt the things
that they like to do. Make our pitches in certain locations, where
we feel we have to pitch certain hitters. And they feel the same
thing. They know our hitters' tendencies, they know our pitchers'
tendencies, and we know theirs.
"So it comes down to really execution. And if you don't (execute),
you know, the hitters are going to make the pitchers pay. If
pitchers make their pitches, more likely than not, hitters will be
out."
Arizona won 11 of the 19 meetings this season and is on a bit of a
roll, having won nine of the past 13 head-to-head matchups. The
Diamondbacks outscored the Rockies 101-69 in the regular season.
Mitigating any apparent numerical advantage is the fact that Greinke
and Gray have had success against the other side.
Gray (10-4, 3.67 ERA) beat the D-backs twice in three starts this
year, both at Chase Field. He struck out a season-high 10 in each
turn in Arizona. Gray is 2-2 with a 4.75 ERA in five career starts
versus the Diamondbacks.
Greinke (17-7, 3.20 ERA) beat the Rockies in Arizona and at Coors
Field this season, going 2-1 with a 3.41 ERA in five starts against
Colorado. Four were quality starts, and the other was two outs
short. He is 9-5 with a 3.93 ERA in 25 career games (24 starts)
versus Colorado.
Call both teams prepared.
"In baseball, I think we are all adrenaline junkies," Lovullo said.
"We love these moments. We live for them. We prepare for them. We
know now to navigate through them. I enjoy feeling pressure. I feel
like the entire clubhouse feels the exact same way."
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The D-backs completed a 24-game turnaround this season, the biggest
in the NL, while Colorado was a plus-12.
The Rockies led the NL with 824 runs and feature a pair of MVP
candidates in center fielder Charlie Blackmon and third baseman
Nolan Arenado. Blackmon set a major league record with 103 RBIs from
the leadoff spot, and Arenado had his third straight 130-plus-RBI
season. Each had 37 homers.
Arizona scored 12 fewer runs but finished third in the NL in team
ERA (3.66), improving by nearly a run and a half after having the
worst ERA in the majors (5.09) last season. The D-backs have their
own MVP candidate in first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, who amassed 36
homers and 120 RBIs.
A case could be made that Arizona right fielder J.D. Martinez, who
bats behind Goldschmidt, is the best trade-deadline acquisition in
many years. He erupted for 29 homers and 65 RBIs in 62 games after
begin acquired from the Detroit Tigers on July 18. Martinez had 16
homers in September, tying Ralph Kiner's NL record for the month.
Surprised?
"If I say yes, it's like I don't think I can do it," Martinez said.
"If I say no, it's like I'm arrogant, cocky. It's one of those
things where I go up there and expect to hit the ball hard. I just
feel like right now I'm having success in being able to do what I
want to do up there. I feel comfortable in the box and I'm getting
the results."
Greinke is 13-1 at home, one victory short of Randy Johnson's
single-season record for wins at Chase Field, and he always has
given his team a chance to win in the postseason. Greinke is 3-3
with a 3.55 ERA in nine postseason starts and has been better than
that of late, making six starting quality starts for the Dodgers
from 2013-15. Although he was only 2-2 in those six, his ERA was
2.38 and he had 41 strikeouts in 41 2/3 innings.
Gray, whose fastball was clocked at 98 mph in the sixth inning of
his victory at Arizona on Sept. 12, is making his first postseason
start in the Rockies' first playoff appearance since 2009. He was
5-3 with a 4.06 ERA on the road this season.
There have been three previous intradivisonal wild-card games since
the current playoff format was adopted in 2012. The team with the
better regular-season record won all three: the Pittsburgh Pirates
over the Cincinnati Reds in 2013, the Chicago Cubs over Pittsburgh
in 2015, and the Toronto Blue Jays over the Baltimore Orioles last
year.
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