Ryne Nelson Pitches a Gem and Leads Diamondbacks Back to .500

The Arizona Diamondbacks had a standout game Sunday afternoon as they beat their rivals, the San Diego Padres, 9-1. They tied the season series 5-5 against them, a crucial win for tiebreaker reasons. Plus, they won their third series in a row and now are 5-2 in their last seven games.

The game started off great with Corbin Carroll hitting a lead-off home run for his third homer of the season and his first since exactly two months ago on May 7th.

Ryne Nelson took over from there and pitched a beautiful game. He allowed a run off a Jurickson Profar home run in the first, but that would be the only blemish on his outing and the only time he was ever in trouble.

Nelson shut down the Padres offense, winning counts early, and getting quick outs along with plenty of whiffs. He struck out five over 6.2 innings with a walk and three hits. His ERA falls to 5.08. He out-pitched Padres ace Dylan Cease in what was a pitcher's duel until the top of the 7th inning.

Eugenio Suarez shared "That's the Nelson we want to see. He did a real good job today. We just want him to keep going and pitching like that."

Joe Mantiply, Justin Martinez, and Bryce Jarvis combined to pitch 2.1 innings of scoreless baseball with just a single hit given up. Martinez was electric, retiring the side in order on seven pitches while dropping his ERA to 1.50.

Cease had shut down the D-backs offense for the first six innings with Carroll's hit being the only major blow. He had struck out eight batters over six, but Padres Manager Mike Shildt sent him out for the 7th. He got two quick fly-outs.

However, he walked Geraldo Perdomo and then Eugenio Suarez unleashed a massive two-run homer off a middle-in four seam fastball. It was a huge blow and a momentum booster for the D-backs.

Suarez wasn't done either. With the bases loaded in the 9th inning, Suarez smoked a double to the wall that cleared the bases. When all was said and done, he had five RBI to go with his three hits and two runs scored. His five RBI matched a career-high, the last time he did it was August 19th, 2022.

It's very encouraging to see Suarez have such a big day. After slumping for most of the season, he's suddenly gotten hot. Over his last 11 games, he's batting 12-for-35, .343, with three doubles, a triple, and a homer. Suarez has been much more patient too, drawing seven walks. That's led to him getting pitches he can handle.

Suarez spoke after the game about the team and their recent wins. "We came here to win the game. I feel like we play like a family. We never give up...We came here to win. We came here to do our best... My focus [was different], I was ready for his [Cease's] fastball...I tried to not do much and stay focused."

There were other key offensive contributors. Gabriel Moreno continued to stay hot with two hits, a double, and an RBI. Jake McCarthy had a double and two hits and a walk. Alek Thomas had an RBI and ground-rule double, showing that he's feeling quite good at the plate. Box Score

The D-backs are now back at .500, 45-45. The Padres are 49-45. However, Arizona is just 2.0 games back of the Padres for the third Wild Card spot in the NL and are just 2.5 games back of the Cardinals for the second Wild Card spot.

The Arizona Diamondbacks return to Chase Field to take on the Atlanta Braves at 6:40 PM Monday night. Yilber Diaz will be on the mound to make his major league debut. It's another must-win series as the D-backs continue to battle for a Wild Card spot and to encourage GM Mike Hazen to buy at the trade deadline.