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Dbacks @ Angels: Arizona holds on for win

By Charles Rahrig V |

8. Final. 3. 102. 7

The Diamondbacks bullpen almost squandered a strong showing by Robbie Ray.

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Fortunately, a deep fly by Albert Pujols fell just short of tying the game, and Arizona won their fourth in a row. With the Diamondbacks up 5-0 in the bottom of the 8th, it looked like the game was all but won. However, David Hernandez, Oliver Perez and Addison Reed struggled as the Angels scratched off three runs while falling a few feet short of a tie game off the bat of Pujols.

Robbie Ray had yet another stellar outing, and this time he lasted a little longer as he went 7 innings while giving up only 2 hits. In fact, he didn’t allow a hit for the first 5 2/3 innings.

He even had a little help from an unlikely left-fielder. Cliff Pennington had never played left field in his career before, but with Ender Inciarte leaving the game because of a strained hamstring, Pennington was the emergency left-fielder. On his birthday, Pennington delivered.

All smiles, he switched between gloves to get a feel for the field, and even made a great play throwing out a runner at second. In the long-term, the Diamondbacks will need Inciarte out there, but having a guy able to step in is a big boost to morale.

Offensively, it was another great night for Arizona as Paul Goldschmidt blasted a three-run homer right into the ivy out in center field. Then in the 6th, Yasmany Tomás did this.

As a result, it is taco time in the desert tomorrow!

In the top of the 9th, the Diamondbacks scratched off a few more runs to give Addison Reed some much needed insurance runs.

The Good: Paul Goldschmidt is on fire. He is hitting .650 over his last five games and now is batting .366 on the season. He is having a career year.

The Bad: He pitched fine in the 9th with no pressure, but in the 8th he came very close to blowing the game. He’s walking a very fine line.

Happy Birthday: Cliff Pennington on his 31st birthday, got to play a new position and had a couple hits of his own. Happy birthday indeed.

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