Diamondbacks clinch first National League pennant since 2001 with Game 7 win
By Noah Wright
The Arizona Diamondbacks will return to the promised land! With a Game 7 win in the National League Championship Series against the Philadelphia Phillies, the Dbacks won their first National League pennant and will go back to the World Series for the first time since 2001.
Both teams wasted no time getting the scoring started. The Diamondbacks struck first, as Corbin Carroll and Gabriel Moreno hit back-to-back one-out singles, the latter of which moved Carroll to third base in the top of the first. Christian Walker then drove in the first run with a ground ball out to third base, but it was enough for Carroll to score. The Phillies quickly responded in the bottom of the second inning, as Alec Bohm smacked a solo shot off of Brandon Pfaadt.
The game became very back-and-forth from that point forward. The Phillies took the lead in the bottom of the fourth inning after a Bohm walk and Bryson Stott double. But the D-Backs came right back up in the top of the fifth, as Carroll hit a two-out ground ball single up the middle to score Emmanuel Rivera, who led off the 5th with a walk. After Carroll stole second base, Gabriel Moreno drove him in to take a one-run lead once again.
The Diamondbacks added to their lead in the top of the seventh, Geraldo Perdomo came up with one out and smacked a single into left field. Then Marte hit a double over Nick Castellanos' head, and while Perdomo was unable to score on it, extending his postseason hit streak to 16 games, the most by to start any postseason career. Carroll came up with another big at-bat, hitting a deep flyball to Castellanos, deep enough for Perdomo to tag up and score, giving the Diamondbacks a 4-2 lead. That was all the runs they would need to win.
Both starters failed to make it out of the fifth inning. Pfaadt went four innings, allowing two earned runs and a home run, but struck out seven. The Phillies’ starter, Ranger Suarez went just 4-2/3 innings and struck out six, but allowed three to score. The difference maker was the bullpens. The D-Backs’ bullpen fired off six scoreless innings, striking out four. However, the Phils’ pen went 4-1/3 innings but allowed a run. That was the Carroll sac fly, which scored the final run of the game.
It has been a wild ride of a season so far, and the Diamondbacks have achieved what seemed like the impossible. They went from an 84-win team, just barely sneaking into the final National League Wild Card spot, and are now on baseball’s biggest stage for the first time since 2001.
Game One of the World Series will occur at 8 PM Eastern Time Friday evening in Texas. The Rangers have yet to announce who they will trot out to the hill for game one of the finale. The Diamondbacks will likely send Zac Gallen to the hill to face whoever the Rangers send out, looking for some redemption. The Diamondbacks have some fight left, and they have some business to finish off.