Arizona Diamondbacks: Moving closer to a Wild Card spot
By Mark Brown
“Math” offers tangible reasons for the success of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Numbers explain the kind of season the Arizona Diamondbacks have experienced.
From hitting, to pitching and wins, to trends and to results, numbers dominate the Diamondbacks’ landscape, and show why this team will likely end up hosting the National League Wild Card game on Oct. 4.
After Zack Greinke shut down the San Francisco Giants 2-0 on Saturday at AT&T Park, the Diamondbacks trimmed one game from their “magic number” of moving into postseason play. Despite the Colorado Rockies lopsided 16-0 win over San Diego Saturday, the Diamondbacks magic number dropped to six. Any combination of Arizona wins and Rockies’ losses which total six gives the Diamondbacks a spot in the postseason.
Coming into play Sunday against the Giants, the Diamondbacks have 13 games remaining. That includes four with San Francisco, three with San Diego, three with Miami and three with Kansas City.
Consider some of these numbers.
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With the victory Saturday, the Diamondbacks have won 20 of their last 25, and only the Cleveland Indians have a better record (24-3). The Diamondbacks are now 25 games over .500, and that’s a season best. Their 89 wins through 149 games are the third-most in club history. That is only behind the 2002 team (91 wins) and the 1999 team, which had 89 wins.
The win Saturday extended he Diamondbacks’ road winning streak to nine games, and tied a franchise record set during the 2002 season.
The catalyst for these thriving numbers starts with the starting rotation.
With eight shutout innings against the Giants, Greinke improved to 17-6 and his ERA dropped to 2.87. That’s nearly half of a run off of his career ERA. Coming into this season, Greinke had posted a 3.42 career ERA, and this included his remarkable 1.66 with the Dodgers in 2015 and his Cy Young Award-winning season of 2.16 with the Royals in 2009.
If there is one mantra from manager Torey Lovullo this season, it is his desire for players to link events. Whether this links at-bats together or starters handing off the ball to the bullpen, Lovullo stresses the need to combine individual efforts into team results.
That will be on display Sunday when Taijuan Walker helps the Diamondbacks go for this weekend sweep over the Giants. Taking the ball from Lovullo, Walker stops on the mound with a 9-7 mark and 3.32 ERA.
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Yet, consider recent numbers.
In his last four starts, Walker is 3-0 with a 1.54 ERA. Over his last three road starts, Walker is 2-0 and a 0.55 ERA. That’s one earned run in his last 16 1/3 innings. Overall, Walker has not allowed more than three earned runs over his last 15 road starts, and that dates back to last season. This is the longest active streak in the majors. Walker should be a good bet to help lower that magic number yet again.