Arizona Diamondbacks: Robbie Ray keeps team in the game

Left-hander Robbie Ray kept his team in the game and the Arizona Diamondbacks came-from-behind to gain a victory.

The mantra for most pitchers is their desire to keep their team in the game. For left-hander Robbie Ray of the Arizona Diamondbacks, that’s a common refrain each time he takes to the mound.

So often than not, Ray fails to live up to this desire. That’s because his pitch count tends to be elevated and he is usually out innings before the game is decided. In his initial start of the season Thursday against the San Francisco Giants at home, Ray keep his pitch count under control and his ability to limit any damage was noted.

In one of his better efforts in controlling the game and finding the strike zone, Ray did indeed keep his team in this game. The end result was a 9-3, come-from-behind victory over the San Francisco Giants before 15,308 in Chase Field, but Ray was encouraged by his effort.

Explaining to Venom Strikes that he understands an opponent’s scouting report, Ray now is ready to firmly attack hitters.

"I guess I know the scouring report so I need to attack the zone. Obviously the more strikes you throw, the better."

Recognizing that hitters will wait longer and reach extended pitch counts, Ray fully concentrates on first-pitch strikes. That was not the case Thursday night and he hit the strike zone only eight times among the 22 hitters he faced. Still, Ray reached 99 pitches for his 5.1 innings of work and manager Torey Lovullo told Venom Strikes that if this game was played in June or July, Ray would have passed the century mark in pitches.

"The 100 pitches for starters seems to be the magic number. However, 100 pitches will not dictate when to take a pitcher out but, at the same time, I will not migrate from around the 100-pitch count."

If Ray held the Giants at bay, the Diamondbacks responded with a powder keg. Back-to back home runs from David Peralta and Paul Goldschmidt in the fourth and a three-run bomb off the bat of Jake Lamb in the sixth ignited the victory.

Winning this series

By taking three-of-four from the Giants, the Diamondbacks captured their first series of the season. This was accomplished in Chase Field and more than one month before that achievement from last season.