ARLINGTON, Texas — The Arizona Diamondbacks have every reason not to believe they can win this World Series.
They know they’re not the most talented bunch in the postseason. Tommy Pham, one of their key veterans, said as much earlier this week. Their lack of postseason experience and star power is not a secret. Actually, the Diamondbacks are well aware of all the comments everyone from Chris “Mad Dog” Russo to their own family and friends have been saying about them leading up to this Fall Classic.
Everyone — including the Diamondbacks — are stunned they got to the place they dreamt about as kids. To this point, none of those remarks or expectations have deterred this scrappy team. So, why would it start impacting them now?
Veteran right-hander Merrill Kelly, fresh off his 35th birthday, pitched like an ace Saturday. Four years after he logged the most losses in baseball, Kelly earned the third victory of his first career postseason by executing in a must-win game. In the process, he made the Texas Rangers‘ overpowering offense look silly at the plate.
Kelly carried a perfect game into the fourth inning, retiring his first 11 batters in order. It wasn’t until Evan Carter ripped a fourth-inning single and Mitch Garver led off the fifth with a home run that Kelly seemed like he might be faltering. But no, Kelly sent down nine of his next 10 batters and allowed just three batters overall to reach safely across seven standout innings, guiding Arizona to a 9-1 win over Texas in Game 2.
The Snakes, more alive than ever, have tied the World Series at one win apiece and now head back to Phoenix for three games, beginning with Monday’s Game 3 at Chase Field.
The controlled start from Kelly was a microcosm of who exactly these Diamondbacks are, and how the outside noise doesn’t even enter their periphery. When Kelly began to waver in the fourth and fifth innings, the sellout crowd at Globe Life Field tried to mess up his rhythm with its howling.
Too bad Kelly was too locked in.
He continued to trust his preparation. And in the face of adversity, the D-backs just keep going. They stick to their game plan, rely on what they know, keep showing up, and continue winning their way. That mentality, put forth by manager Torey Lovullo, set them apart this postseason. On Saturday, that attitude earned them a World Series triumph.
Kelly struck out nine batters, including Adolis García, Corey Seager and Marcus Semien (twice). All night, Kelly got the Rangers to swing out of their heels. On the other side, Jordan Montgomery failed to register a single strikeout for the first time all postseason.
Saturday night was more of a grind for Montgomery, a clear departure from the dominant outings the left-hander has posted this postseason. He missed some of catcher Jonah Heim’s locations. His velocity was down two ticks. It’s possible Montgomery’s workload is catching up to him after his previous appearance — 2.1 scoreless innings out of the bullpen — this past Monday in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series against the Astros.
Still, Bruce Bochy continued to stick with him. Though Montgomery had coughed up a solo shot to Gabriel Moreno in the fourth inning, Bochy left him in against the D-backs catcher for a third at-bat in the sixth. Montgomery managed to escape further damage in that frame, thanks to a pickoff against Tommy Pham at second base, but the Rangers pushed their luck.
Bochy let Montgomery go back out for the seventh, and it didn’t end well. The southpaw allowed back-to-back base hits before being chased, leaving his final line at four earned runs on nine hits across six innings. Arizona tallied 16 hits on the evening, only three of which went for extra bases. Ketel Marte broke the MLB record with a hit in his 18th consecutive playoff game.
There’s power in relentlessness, too.
Deesha Thosar is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.
Flippin’ Bats:
Get more from Major League Baseball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
