Diamondbacks continue push as baseball’s hottest team with 6-1 homestand

PHOENIX — The Arizona Diamondbacks returned home last week on a high note after sweeping the Cleveland Guardians, and they kept that same energy with a 6-1 homestand that wrapped up on Wednesday.

Arizona blew out the Colorado Rockies 11-4 to complete a three-game sweep after taking three of four games against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Starter Jordan Montgomery was solid through five one-run innings and grinded through a difficult sixth for a quality start (6 IP, 3 ER). He struck out a season-high eight batters.

Joc Pederson drove in two and scored on a little league home run in the first inning (ruled a double), the first of many ugly moments for Colorado. Eugenio Suarez ended any hope of a Rockies comeback with a grand slam in the sixth off Rockies pitcher Riley Pint — who hit two D-backs with pitches to load the bases.

Suarez went 3-for-3 with five RBIs, and the D-backs scored at least 10 runs for a third time in five games. They lead MLB with 250 runs since July 1, up to 6.58 per game.

“It’s very fun to come here and compete,” Suarez said. “Every time you come into the clubhouse you feel that good energy, that good vibe like I always say. You want to be part of that. For me especially, after my first two months of the season when I was struggling, now my hard work is paying off, and I feel great.”

The Diamondbacks have won six straight games, but Wednesday’s win also improved the club to 69-53, 16 games above .500, which was the best mark Arizona hit last year.

The D-backs went 5-20 out of the All-Star break to squander their division lead in 2023. This time, they are 20-5 since the break and continue to nip at the heels of the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers.

Arizona won games in several ways during this homestand, including the three offensive surges, two of which came against NL East-leading Philadelphia. The D-backs mounted comeback victories on Monday and Tuesday, walking off the Rockies on a Jake McCarthy two-run single while down to his last strike on Tuesday. D-backs catcher Adrian Del Castillo — in his second MLB game — hit a walk-off homer against the Phillies on Friday.

“It’s fun to be a part of, a lot of hard work goes into it,” Pederson said. “Everyone comes to the field everyday prepared to do their thing to help the team win. It’s a powerful thing when you’ve got all the guys pulling on the same string.”

Manager Torey Lovullo pointed to a comeback victory in Kansas City as a key moment to when the team really started to turn it up another level.

The D-backs scored five runs in the ninth inning for an 8-6 win, which clinched a series at a tough AL opponent. Since then, they are 16-3, and the Answerbacks identity has been prevalent once again.

Despite this successful stretch, races for top wild card spot and NL West remain fierce. The San Diego Padres won a third straight game on Wednesday and are 19-4 since the All-Star break, even with Arizona at 69-53.

The Dodgers entered a Wednesday night game in Milwaukee on a five-game winning streak and just got Mookie Betts and Walker Buehler off the injured list.

Lovullo said he does not want to get ahead of himself, noting the clubhouse has done well at staying present despite the excitement that comes with this time of year for contenders.

“I can’t necessarily speak about what’s going on in other dugouts. I respect the Dodgers and Padres. It doesn’t surprise me that they’re pacing out a little bit,” Lovullo said.

“As far as our team, our team is a good baseball team. We do a lot of things right on a daily basis. Starts with good starting pitching. We’re in every game. We’re slugging the baseball. We’re getting on by controlling the zone and not swinging at bad pitches. So for us to put up five or six runs is very well deserved. A lot of hard work is going into that. So I love where this team’s at.”

Now comes the longest road trip remaining for the D-backs.

They start with three games at the Tampa Bay Rays, three more at the Miami Marlins and a final three-game series at the Boston Red Sox. The New York Mets and Dodgers will come to Chase Field to round out August.

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