Arizona comes out swinging to open its home marathon
The Diamondbacks made the perfect start to a 10-game homestand, rolling past the Padres 5-1 on Saturday night in Phoenix. It matters too, because these are two direct National League wild-card rivals trying to stay in the hunt.
The turning point had a name: Tim Tawa. His three-run blast in the fourth, launched over the bullpen, gave Arizona a lead it never gave back. Tawa’s fifth homer of the season accounted for three of his team’s nine hits.
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Pfaadt keeps control, even as a nice run ends
On the mound, Brandon Pfaadt (6-1) kept the Padres at arm’s length for six and one-third innings, allowing five hits. His run of 18 straight scoreless innings ended in the seventh on a Nolan Arenado throwing error. An unearned run, and almost a footnote given how well he pitched.
Arizona then pulled away. James McCann delivered an RBI double, then Jorge Barrosa added a sacrifice fly against Wandy Peralta in the eighth. Nothing flashy, but it did the job: the win moves the Diamondbacks two games clear of San Diego in the race.
What it means in the West
Late August is coming fast, and every division meeting between these teams is starting to look like October in disguise. Arizona has grabbed both a mental edge and a healthy one in the standings. San Diego, meanwhile, knows it needs a quick response, starting with the rest of this series.
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