Atlanta @ Arizona preview
Chase Field
Last Meeting ( Jul 9, 2024 ) Atlanta 6, Arizona 2
Adam Duvall hit another long homer against the Arizona Diamondbacks and instantly recalled it was nowhere near as impressive as his 2021 blast in Phoenix.
Duvall and the Atlanta Braves will look to power their way past the Diamondbacks on Wednesday night for the third straight time in a four-game series that concludes Thursday.
The Braves are 5-0 against the Diamondbacks this season after Wednesday's 6-2 victory that included Duvall's three-run homer with one out in the sixth inning.
The blast off Arizona ace Zac Gallen traveled 441 feet and landed well back in the left-field bleachers.
A majestic shot for sure but not Duvall's best effort in Phoenix. That came on Sept. 20, 2021, when he crushed a 483-foot homer that cleared the seating in left center and landed on the concourse.
"I just happen to hit the ball well here," Duvall said after Tuesday's victory. "(Gallen) didn't make a terrible pitch. He threw me a lot of curveballs tonight, so I had seen quite a few and ended up getting the barrel on one."
The homer was officially Duvall's fourth in 22 career games in Phoenix. The count would be one higher if not for a bizarre sequence two nights after his epic 2021 homer.
On that occasion, Duvall ripped a ball to deep left center that caromed off the glove of Arizona's Jake McCarthy and into the seats. But it wasn't clear at first whether McCarthy caught the ball or not so Austin Riley scurried back toward first while Duvall stopped between first and second looking for a ruling from an umpire.
Eventually, Duvall was ruled out for passing Riley and was credited with a two-run single instead of a homer.
Tuesday's homer was the eighth of this season for Duvall, who went 2-for-3 to raise his average seven points to .191.
Duvall's game-breaking homer came on Gallen's 105th and final pitch of the night. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo considered pulling the plug on Gallen prior to Duvall's at-bat.
"Yeah, I thought about it," Lovullo said. "But I felt like we were going batter to batter and somewhere between 105 and 107 pitches would be the limit. I felt like he could get that second out somehow, someway."
The Arizona bats were quiet for the second night in a row as the club is 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position in the series.
The Diamondbacks have 10 hits in the two games -- six on Tuesday after four on Monday. Arizona had just one hit in 3 2/3 innings against the Atlanta bullpen on Tuesday.
Braves right-hander Charlie Morton (5-5, 3.96 ERA) will look to continue that trend and reverse another when he takes the mound on Wednesday. The 40-year-old has dropped five of his past seven decisions.
Morton lost to the San Francisco Giants in Thursday when he gave up four runs (three earned) and five hits over 5 1/3 innings of the 4-2 game. In his five victories, Morton has allowed a total of four runs.
Morton is 2-2 with a 4.30 ERA in eight career starts against Arizona. Randal Grichuk (7-for-21), Christian Walker (4-for-9) and Ketel Marte (2-for-13) all have one homer against Morton.
After Tuesday's game, Lovullo said that right-hander Slade Cecconi (2-6, 6.10) will start for Arizona.
Cecconi gave up five runs and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings in a no-decision against the San Diego Padres on Friday.
The 25-year-old Cecconi has never faced the Braves. The only current Atlanta player he has faced is Eddie Rosario (0-for-2).
--Field Level Media