Arizona Diamondbacks score 3 in 10th, find clutch relief to turn back Padres

SAN DIEGO — The Diamondbacks blew a lead but still escaped with a win Saturday night. Their starting pitcher was struck by a line drive but appeared to avoid a serious injury. They navigated the late innings without two of their frontline relievers and lived to tell about it.

But their 7-5 win in 10 innings over the San Diego Padres was also notable because of what the Diamondbacks did on offense — and the fact that they have been doing it every night thus far on what could have been a treacherous road trip.

Through five games against the Dodgers and Padres, the Diamondbacks are 3-2. In those games, they have hit .307 with a .573 slugging. They have hit 13 homers and scored 41 runs. It has been perhaps their best five-game stretch of the year.

For the first time this season, they have had their primary cast of position players together at once, and they seem to be finally playing a style of baseball closer to what they envisioned when spring training ended.

“Stringing together games like that and putting up a lot of runs, especially late in games against good bullpens, that’s something you can take and build momentum off of,” Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker said. “Hitting is contagious. Confidence is contagious. Good at-bats, long at-bats, grinding, battling, all that – all the cliches – that’s the stuff we want to identify with as an offense.”

Right-hander Brandon Pfaadt was struck by a line drive on the left ankle and left the game in the fifth inning. X-rays were negative, and Pfaadt is optimistic he will not miss a start.

The Diamondbacks blew a 4-1 lead, watching as their bullpen, which was without closer Paul Sewald and setup man Justin Martinez, both of whom were unavailable due to their recent workloads, gave up runs in the seventh and eighth innings.

But the Diamondbacks found enough contributors, from Kevin Ginkel in the middle innings to Humberto Castellanos at the end, to hang on for a victory.

Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit a home run, but the Diamondbacks were not locked in at the plate. They still managed to get the job done. They had nine hits, several of them well-placed. They worked four walks. They put down bunts. They advanced runners. They did what was needed.

“We had some moments that didn’t go our way,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. “The Padres are a hot team right now. But we had guys step up and get the job done and we won a baseball game.”

Shortstop Geraldo Perdomo missed two months with a knee injury before returning in June. Earlier this road trip, the Diamondbacks welcomed back center fielder Alek Thomas, who missed three months with a hamstring strain. Catcher Gabriel Moreno, who missed time with a thumb injury, also returned at the start of the trip.

Whether they are the primary reason is unclear, but the offense suddenly looks better than it had for most of the year. It has begun rallying from deficits like it did last year. It has been applying pressure from multiple spots in the lineup. And it has been doing it against the Dodgers and Padres, teams that are above them in the National League West standings and could have wrecked the Diamondbacks’ hopes to be buyers at the trade deadline.

Instead, the Diamondbacks will enter Sunday afternoon at Petco Park with a chance to secure their second series win in as many stops on this trip. And they just might have momentum on their side before returning home for another difficult series, a four-game set beginning Monday against the always dangerous Atlanta Braves.

Brandon Pfaadt hopeful he won’t miss time

SAN DIEGO — Right-hander Brandon Pfaadt admitted he was concerned in the moment, unsure if the 98 mph liner that struck him on the left ankle in the fifth inning on Saturday night might have left him seriously injured.

As it turned out, it looks like it did not, a development that qualifies as a major relief for both Pfaadt and the Diamondbacks.

“It feels good,” Pfaadt said. “X-rays came back negative. I think we’ve just got to deal with swelling from here on out. I think there shouldn’t be any missed time as long as the swelling goes down a little bit. They (team trainers) weren’t worried about it.”

Pfaadt was hobbling around the infield after Arraez’s liner caught him flush on the ankle. He said he wanted to remain in the game but manager Torey Lovullo wouldn’t allow it, preventing him from even throwing a warm-up pitch to test his ankle.

“It’s probably the right call in that situation,” Pfaadt said. “It got me pretty good and it was hurting in the moment.”

Pfaadt finished with one run allowed in 4 1/3 innings. He walked none and struck out six.

Ketel Marte out of lineup vs. Padres, could be off bench

SAN DIEGO — Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte was out of the lineup Saturday night, getting a night off after exiting Friday’s game with tightness in his lower back.

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo was hopeful Marte would be available off the bench to pinch-hit late in the game.

Marte has been bothered off and on by back tightness for the past month. He left a game in San Diego for the same reason during the Diamondbacks’ previous trip here last month and was seen wincing after a swing in Los Angeles earlier on this road trip.

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Lovullo was asked whether he might need to adjust Marte’s schedule to ensure his health.

“I know for a fact that he’s doing all that he can every single day to stay in the lineup,” Lovullo said. “At times I’ve asked him to go an extra day or two in some key series, and he does and he responds.

"Maybe I’ve got to be a little better at taking him off of his feet. He wants to play, and that’s up to me to manage it a little bit better. I think he’ll be fine. He lets me know when things are backing up on him and we’ll get ahead of this.”

Marte has played in 85 of the Diamondbacks' 88 games this season. He has been in the starting lineup 82 times.

In other injury news, left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez’s most recent follow-up MRI “came back in a positive way,” Lovullo said, moving him another step closer to getting back on a mound.

Lovullo said he was not fully briefed on Rodriguez’s day, noting that he might have thrown a flat-ground session Saturday. If Rodriguez hadn’t thrown one, Lovullo expected him to do so soon, adding that a bullpen session shouldn’t be far off, either.

Sunday’s Diamondbacks-Padres pitching matchup

Diamondbacks at Padres, 1:10 p.m., Roku

Diamondbacks RHP Ryne Nelson (5-6, 5.42) vs. Padres RHP Dylan Cease (7-7, 4.24).

At Petco Park: Nelson pitched well against the Dodgers earlier on this road trip, giving up one run in five innings. He entered three batters into the first inning, following opener LHP Joe Mantiply. … Nelson has been more effective since the start of June, with a 4.68 ERA, but still has had trouble avoiding clunkers. … Speaking of, he had a rough go against the Padres when he faced them June 8, giving up six runs (five earned) in 3 1/3 innings. … The Padres acquired Cease in a blockbuster deal with the White Sox in mid-March. … He has been an important source of innings but has not been as consistently dominant as the Padres likely hoped he would be. … He pitched well against the Diamondbacks when he faced them in May, giving up one run in 6 2/3 innings in a start at Chase Field. … Cease gets strong results with his slider, holding opponents to a .194 average on that pitch and eliciting a 43.8 percent whiff rate.

Coming up

Monday: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Yilber Diaz (1-3, 3.27)* vs. Braves TBA.

Tuesday: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Zac Gallen (6-4, 3.06) vs. Braves LHP Chris Sale (11-3, 2.71).

Wednesday: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Slade Cecconi (2-6, 6.10) vs. Braves RHP Charlie Morton (5-5, 3.96).

* -- Stats from Triple-A Reno