Diamondbacks Surge Ahead, Survive Late Drama to Escape Sweep in Toronto

TORONTO — Missing one of their catalysts and their main catcher and facing a pitcher who was 6-1 in his career against them, the roller coaster-riding
Arizona Diamondbacks
looked poised to be swept here in a three-game series by the
Toronto Blue Jays
.

Instead, their offense exploded and starting pitcher Ryne Nelson allowed one run on one hit in 5 2/3 innings, and the Diamondbacks left town with a 9-5 win and something positive from their series in Canada.

What was an eight-run lead turned into a stressful finish for the Diamondbacks at Rogers Centre, but they moved back to .500 at 37-37, and, with low-achieving teams up next on the schedule — the
Colorado Rockies
,
Chicago White Sox
and
Miami Marlins
— Arizona has an opportunity to go on a good run.

Start the day smarter. Get all the news you need in your inbox each morning.

“This team, even with rough patches and stuff, the vibes have never gotten too low,” said Nelson, who improved to 4-2 while lowering his ERA to 3.88. “You win a few, and the vibes have never gotten too high. I think that’s a good place for us to be. … We show up to the field the same way every day.”

Eugenio Suarez homered, doubled and drove in four runs, Pavin Smith homered and drove in three runs and Ketel Marte had three hits, helping the Diamondbacks end a three-game losing streak. Suarez

,

with 22 home runs and 62 runs batted in, is one of four Major League Baseball players with 20 or more home runs and 60-plus RBIs, joining the Yankees’ Aaron Judge, Seattle’s Cal Raleigh and Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Cubs.

He is the fifth Diamondbacks hitter to reach the feat before July 1 in franchise history.

“We’ve just got to continue to play good baseball and believe in our team, and I think we’ve got a really good opportunity to keep going,” Suarez said. “That’s got to be our mentality.”

Suarez credited the hitters in front of him in the batting order for giving him chances.

“They’ve been really doing a good job to get on base,” he said. “I’m not that guy who thinks I’ve got to drive them in always, because it’s having good at-bats and putting a good swing on it.”

Alejandro Kirk hit two solo home runs for Toronto, one off Nelson and one in the bottom of the seventh inning off reliever Anthony DeSclafani.

The recently arrived right-hander got in trouble in the eighth, giving up a solo home run to Jonathan Clasé to open the inning. Then Addison Barger singled with one out and came home to score on Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s double.

Guerrero was awarded third base when the throw from Diamondbacks left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit the protective netting down the third-base line for an error, and Kirk’s single drove in Guerrero to make it a four-run game.

Fortunately for the Diamondbacks, DeSclafani started a double play that ended the inning.

Closer Shelby Miller, who took the loss on June 17 when he gave up back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the ninth in a 5-4 defeat, finished the game with a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

“I felt this game was that important,” Lovullo said. “Giving him a chance to redeem himself was very important to me.”

Nelson was struck in the left ankle by a hard comebacker up the middle in the first inning. The pain affected him throughout the game, but he gutted it out.

Lovullo said Nelson had soreness and swelling, so in the sixth inning, he decided to remove Nelson for treatment.

“It didn’t feel great,” Nelson said. “Hurt initially and then went away for a little bit … it’s going to swell up pretty good probably, but it’ll be all right.”

The Diamondbacks tagged Toronto starter Kevin Gausman, who had been very tough on Arizona over his career. Gausman allowed seven earned runs on seven hits with three walks and hit a batter in 4 ⅓ innings.

No Corbin Carroll due to hand soreness

Star outfielder Corbin Carroll was out of the lineup for the series finale on June 19 against the Blue Jays.

Carroll was hit on the left hand by a pitch late in the previous day’s game and eventually left the game for a defensive replacement. He had imaging done on the hand, but no broken bones were revealed.

“He gave it everything he could this morning,” Lovullo said prior to the June 19 game. “It was a little too much pain, couldn’t grip the bat and at that point we’ve just got to be smart. So we all pulled back and said, ‘Take the day, get some treatment, see how we are through the course of the day, possibly be available for the game,’ and we’ll just take it piece by piece.”

Lovullo said Carroll was OK with the decision, though he did say he wanted to play, which Lovullo appreciated. Carroll was walking in and out of the visiting team clubhouse gripping a bat with the injured hand, perhaps a good sign.

“He just needs a day off, and the grip strength wasn’t there, and that’s a big part of his game,” Lovullo said. “He’s very strong with his hands and his wrists, he just couldn’t quite get there.”

Randal Grichuk got the start in right field for Carroll on June 19. Lovullo said he checked on Carroll periodically during the game and saw Carroll trying to get in some weightlifting without using his left hand.

Moreno to injured list, new catcher called up

The Diamondbacks placed catcher Gabriel Moreno (right hand contusion) on the 10-day injured list on June 19, as he continues to deal with the effects of a ball hitting him on a bounced wild pitch in Cincinnati on June 6.

Moreno had played through it since, but has missed games.

The move is retroactive to June 16.

“Very unfortunate for Gabby. He was doing his best to manage it,” Lovullo said. “There were some very bright moments that led us to think he was on the other side of it, but sometimes that doesn’t happen.

“Things can be very finicky inside of the body, and … reacting to such, and told us that he needed some time down.”

The team recalled catcher Aramis Garcia, 32, from Triple-A Reno. Garcia was slashing .250/.399/.524 with 10 home runs through 38 games this season.

Garcia was designated for assignment on June 8, a day after playing one inning for the Diamondbacks at catcher in Cincinnati. He’d been called up earlier on June 7.

Garcia went back to Reno after being designated for assignment, spent time with family who came to visit, and was back on the field playing again for the Aces within a few days.

“I feel like I’m swinging the bat pretty well,” Garcia said. “Defense is always priority No. 1. I feel like I’m doing a pretty good job defensively as well. But it’s definitely a nice turnaround offensively for me from last year.

“Just wasn’t seeing the ball really well. (Now) making good swing decisions and hitting it hard when I do.”

Lovullo said Garcia’s understanding of game planning and running a pitching staff were in the reports he got from Reno.

“Glad he’s back,” Lovullo said. “He’s going to play now. That’s what I explained to him. (José Herrera) can’t play every day, be prepared. One of two (Rockies) pitchers over the next couple of days, he’s going to have to examine.

“He’s going to play one of the games in Colorado, and he’s going to have to figure out how to get that done.”

(This story has been updated to add new information.)

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic:
Diamondbacks jump out to big lead, survive some late drama to avoid sweep in Toronto