A day after the Cleveland Indians won their 10th game of the row, the Arizona Diamondbacks matched that feat with a 5-1 victory over their NL West rival Colorado Rockies. In the space of a week, the D'Backs have swept both the Rockies and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The D'Backs might be 14 games back of the Dodgers, but they sure aren't playing like it. Yes, there's Paul Goldschmidt and Zack Greinke, but the D'Backs are largely a cast of unknowns - David Peralta, Brandon Drury and Ketel Marte.
The big difference, of course, is manager Torey Lovullo. In 2016, the D'Backs were 69-93 and finished 22 games back of the Dodgers. No one expected much of the D'Backs when Lovullo was named manager in the off-season. But Lovullo got a lot out of the Boston Red Sox when he managed them when John Farrell fell ill late in the 2015 season. Indeed, many in Red Sox Nation wish Lovullo were managing the club now notwithstanding their current first place lead in the AL East.
In the eighth inning, Lovullo brought in Jimmie Sherfy with runners on first and second with nobody out. It was only his third big league appearance. He promptly struck out the side including NL MVP candidate Nolan Arenado. Sherfy came back in the ninth and had a 1-2-3 inning for his first big league save. I like that Lovullo isn't afraid to bring in untested players into a critical situation.
As for the Rockies, they now only have a half game lead over the Milwaukee Brewers for the second NL Wild Card spot.
It will be interesting to see if the D'Backs can continue their hot play in Chavez Ravine against the Dodgers. At the moment they are firmly ensconced in the top spot in the NL Wild Card spot. For this, Torey Lovullo should be named NL Manager of the Year.
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