Arizona Diamondbacks: First postseason appearance since 2011

The Arizona Diamondbacks clinched home field in the National League Wild Card game.

Let the party begin.

Yet, this is only for a fleeting moment, because manager Torey Lovullo promises to keep his Arizona Diamondbacks intensely on task.

Phase one of a multi-level plateau of goals was achieved Sunday. Thanks to a ninth-inning walk-off single from J.D. Martinez, the Diamondbacks came from behind and defeated the Miami Marlins, 3-2 before 31,539 at Chase Field.

Coupled with losses from the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers, the Diamondbacks cliched one Wild Card spot in the National League. With the victory, the Diamondbacks will now host the NL Wild Card game in Chase Field on Wednesday Oct. 4.

The accomplishment for this team seems all the more amazing because Lovullo, as a first-year major league manager, took this team from the depths of despair under a previous regime of general manager Dave Stewart and field manager Chip Hale to a bright spot for this franchise, the first since the Diamondbacks captured the NL West Division title in 2011.

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Advancing to the playoffs, this is the first Wild Card triumph for Arizona in their history. Their previous trips to postseason play were as NL West Division champions.

Yet, the journey has barely begun.

While the Diamondbacks now enter postseason play for the first time in six years, the ultimate goal lays ahead. To reach the eventual prize, they must win 12 games, including beating teams with the best records in the game.

That can wait.

For now, the sense of accomplishment and success seem overwhelming. Sure, the quest for each team in early April is to hoist the Commissioner’s Trophy. For Arizona, that journey has commenced.

If there was a defining reason why this team won, general manager Mike Hazen, in the Diamondbacks clubhouse sprayed with champagne, explained to Call to the Pen the principal factor.

“The starting pitching was the difference,” he said. “We had five guys who gave us a chance to win every night. You really can’t ask for much more.”

Martinez’s game winner game came with the bases loaded and two out during their final time at-bat. The Diamondbacks loaded the bags with none out, and after two force outs at the plate, Martinez delivered with a shot to the base of the left field fence and the Diamondbacks then popped the corks.

Patrick Corbin, who allowed two runs and lasted into the seventh on Sunday, told Call to the Pen that the game winner came from one of the two obvious candidates.

“You knew it would come down to (Paul) Goldschmidt or Martinez,” he said. “What we did is amazing. It’s an honor just to part of something this special. We know this is only the first step and now, we need to keep it going.”

Thinking ahead…

Prior to Sunday’s game, manager Torey Lovullo told Call to the Pen he is unfamiliar with roster construction for a Wild Card game.

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In this regard, one option could activate shortstop Chris Owings solely to pinch run. While Owings continues to rehab from a fracture to his middle finger on the right hand, Luvullo is toying with the idea of using Owings strictly as a role player.

Acknowledging Owings “is one of our best base runners,” Lovullo said he will meet with general manager Mike Hazen and other club officials in the coming days, to finalize the postseason roster.

Owings, out since July 31, was hitting .268 (87-for-362) with 25 doubles, 12 homers and 51 RBI in 97 games.