Game recaps
[AZ Central] Diamondbacks, helped by a Phillies blunder, rally late to take series – Journeyman Ildemaro Vargas was their leadoff hitter in their series finale against the Phillies. Rookie Jose Fernandez hit cleanup. Geraldo Perdomo and Ketel Marte are hitting under .200. And pitchers Corbin Burnes, A.J. Puk and Justin Martinez, and outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. are all still on the IL, where they have been all season. Inexplicable? On paper, maybe. It is a different story once the games start.
They find their way on base. They move runners. They make most of the routine plays on defense — and several of the highlight-reel variety. They have been getting excellent work from their bullpen. That is, they do many of the things the Phillies struggled to do the past few days.
[SI] Diamondbacks Pull Off Another Exciting Comeback vs Phillies – It looked like a looming blowout. And then, somehow, right-hander Jonathan Loaisiga escaped the jam. The D-backs were able to tag the lead runner on a fielder’s choice before inducing a popout and lineout. Taylor Clarke followed with a scoreless inning to set up the comeback. Once holding the lead, Kevin Ginkel ran into some trouble in the eighth, once again putting runners at the corners with no outs. Ginkel picked up a strikeout, then was lifted for Ryan Thompson, who escaped the inning with a near-miraculous play. As Marsh took off for second base, Adolis Garcia popped up to second base. Marsh was slow getting back, and Arizona doubled him off at first.
[Arizona Sports] Jose Fernandez, Adrian Del Castillo’s late RBIs give Diamondbacks series win vs. Phillies – Zac Gallen had sat down 10 straight batters going into the sixth inning, but the four straight extra-base hits he then surrendered brought on the first lead change. Gallen exited after giving up a single to the Phillies’ fifth batter of the inning, Marsh, with the Phillies leading 3-2. With no outs on the board and runners on the corner, reliver Jonathan Loaisiga got out of the jam unscathed, thanks in part to a rundown of Harper. Gallen’s pitch count was in good shape entering the sixth (66 pitches), suggesting the pitcher could’ve been eyeing his deepest outing yet (6.0 innings in 88 pitches on April 1).
Team news
[Dbacks.com] Kelly joins D-backs in Philly, will make first start in Baltimore – After making a start for Triple-A Reno on April 3 in which he threw 72 pitches, the Diamondbacks elected to have him throw in an extended spring game last Thursday on a backfield at Salt River Fields. The backfield game got him to 85 pitches, but Kelly did push back a bit on the idea of another rehab outing. In the end though, accepted the club’s decision. Of course, the elephant in the room is that someone will have to leave the rotation for Kelly to join, as the team has apparently ruled out going with a six-man rotation. “No decisions have been made,” Lovullo said. “We haven’t talked about who’s going where. We’ll worry about what happens with Merrill in the coming days.”
[Burn City Sports] With Merrill Kelly back, Diamondbacks fans debate next move in rotation – Some fans still believe Lovullo could temporarily use a six-man rotation, allowing pitchers to adjust and preserve arms. Others pushed the idea further with a seven-man rotation once Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes makes his return — but that proposal drew skepticism given bullpen concerns. The most debated name is Brandon Pfaadt, with some fans suggesting the right-hander could be optioned to Triple-A Reno to stay stretched out. So far this season, Pfaadt has posted the highest ERA among Diamondbacks starters (5.94) and a 1.38 WHIP.
[Arizona Sports] Diamondbacks’ Randy Johnson signing ranks among best free agent deals in MLB history – The Arizona Diamondbacks’ addition of Randy Johnson took the No. 5 spot in a ranking of the best free-agent signings in MLB history by ESPN’s Bradford Doolittle. The Diamondbacks handed Johnson a four-year, $52.4 million contract once he hit free agency in the fall of 1998. The Big Unit’s impact in Arizona was immediate in 1999 as he recorded 364 strikeouts in 271.2 innings for an ERA of 2.48. He not only became the third pitcher in MLB history to win the Cy Young Award in both leagues that first year, but helped the Diamondbacks improve from 65-97 to 100-62 in just their second season as a franchise.
And, elsewhere…
[ESPN] Three-time All-Star, former manager Phil Garner dies at age 76 – Phil Garner, a three-time All-Star infielder who went on to manage the Astros to their first World Series appearance, has died. He was 76. “Phil never lost his signature spark of life,” Garner’s son, Ty, said in a statement. “He was so well known for his love for baseball, which was with him until the end.” Nicknamed “Scrap Iron” for his blue-collar approach to the game, Phil Garner had a 16-year playing career with the Athletics, Pirates, Astros, Dodgers and Giants (1988). He held the Brewers record for managerial wins until Craig Counsell surpassed him in 2022.
[The New Yorker] How Jomboy Is Changing the Way Baseball Is Watched – It is always hard, of course, to hold onto something authentic while scaling up, particularly when the internet, the basis of the company’s community, is not very nice anymore. Jomboy employees have made a few mistakes themselves. But being basically decent is good business, O’Brien argues. “It’s very easy to get hate views and to get rage views,” he said, “but no one buys hate merch. No one goes to a show if they hate you. No one supports your next venture if they’re not on your side. So it’s empty views, and it’s easy views. There’s no challenge in it, and there’s really no long-term reward, so we don’t try to do that.”
[MLB] 798 straight games? Braves’ Olson is baseball’s newest iron man – To fully appreciate the significance of Matt Olson’s MLB-best consecutive games played streak, it’s best to know what last prevented the Braves’ first baseman from appearing in a game. “I was hitting in the batting cage and the L-screen in [St. Petersburg] didn’t have padding,” Olson said. “I hit one off the screen and it came back and popped me in the eye, and I couldn’t open it for a few days. I had to see eye doctors and have scans of my eyes and everything. It was probably a half-inch away from being a real big deal.”
The Toxic Avenger (2023)
- Rating: B-
- Dir: Macon Blair
- Star: Peter Dinklage, Jacob Tremblay, Taylour Paige, Kevin Bacon.
After the abomination which was the Street Trash remake, you’ll understand my concerns about another unnecessary update of an eighties splatter classic. Especially given the struggles this had on its way to the screen: over four years passed between shooting and the film finally getting a wide release. To my surprise, this is fine. It’s major crime is occasionally being too obvious, but subtlety was never exactly going to be a strong suit here. Blair clearly loves the original, and while the budget here is at least an order of magnitude higher than it was, it has a similar spirit. Though going by the dismal box-office returns, those who deemed it “unreleasable” weren’t exactly wrong.
