Rangers Lose Both Games In Doubleheader
{fshare id=3884}
PHOENIX — The Arizona Diamondbacks wanted to build a team that played well in close games, but even they might not have expected to play this many tight contests or have this much success in them.
Cliff Pennington’s single with one out in the ninth inning Monday night gave Arizona its fourth walk-off victory of the season, 5-4 over the Texas Rangers, to complete a doubleheader sweep and negate a 14-strikeout performance by Yu Darvish.
“It’s huge,” said Pennington, who is hitting .203. “Obviously, you always want to do it, but when you are not swinging the bat as well as you want to swing it, it feels even better. If you are just going to get a few (hits), might as well make them count.”
Miguel Montero doubled to open the ninth off Jason Frasor (0-1) before Robbie Ross entered to face pinch hitter Martin Prado. After an intentional walk, Pennington grounded a ball inside the bag at first for his second walk-off hit of the year. He beat the St. Louis Cardinals with a 16th-inning single April 3.
The D-backs (30-22) have won 13 of their 21 one-run games this season, both major league highs. They have 11 victories in their last at-bat.
The Rangers (32-20) lost their third straight game and were swept in a
doubleheader for the first time since May 2007.
In the first game, Arizona rookie left-hander Tyler Skaggs (1-0) struck out a career-high nine in six scoreless innings of a 5-3 victory. Prado tied a franchise record with a first-inning single that gave him seven hits in as many at-bats. The streak ended when he lined out in the third inning.
Skaggs was recalled from Triple-A Reno for the start, and as the designated “26th player” for the doubleheader, he was to be returned to the minors Tuesday.
“This team has great character,” D-backs manager Kirk Gibson. “We had great energy, we really did. You can’t look at this as a tough day. You have to look at it as a good day. You get to play two games.”
Rangers right-hander Darvish gave up seven hits and four runs in 7 2/3 innings in the nightcap, tying his a career high with 14 strikeouts. He leads the majors with 105 strikeouts but left after throwing 116 pitches, 83 strikes.
Arizona shortstop Didi Gregorius had two hits, including a two-run home run with one out in the eighth inning to tie the game at 4 after Wil Nieves opened with a pinch single. Darvish had retired 18 of the previous 20 with 11 strikeouts before Nieves batted. Gregorius was the only Arizona starter who did not strike out against Darvish.
“He had been throwing a lot of cutters almost the whole game, so I was like, ‘I’m going to wait for a cutter right here.’ He threw the first two cutters in the dirt and then threw me a third cutter. It was a little bit higher, in the place where all lefties like it,” Gregorius said of his fourth home run of the season.
Texas manager Ron Washington said, “Darvish was fine (in the eighth inning). You’ve got to give Gregorius credit. They’re professional players over there. They’re pretty good, and they got him. They got us.”
A.J. Pierzynski had two hits and two RBIs for Texas in the second game, and his run-scoring single in a two-run sixth off Arizona starter Trevor Cahill gave the Rangers a 4-2 lead.
Adrian Belte had two hits and scored twice in the second game, and Lance Berkman singled, walked twice and scored twice.
Brad Ziegler (2-1) got the last out in the top of the ninth to help the D-backs to their fourth victory in five games.
Darvish is the first pitcher since Arizona’s Randy Johnson in 2004 to have three games of at least 14 strikeouts in a season.
“This game is not about strikeouts, it is about winning,” Darvish said through a translator. “It’s not really a barometer of how well I am pitching.”
