ARLINGTON — What started as a storybook comeback for the Arizona Diamondbacks quickly turned into a nightmare at Globe Life Field on Wednesday night. Fans were riding high after a dramatic three-run rally in the top of the ninth inning gave the team a 5-3 lead over the Texas Rangers. But the game—and the series—slipped away in devastating fashion.

Closer Paul Sewald, who had been perfect in save opportunities this season, took the mound to seal the win. Instead, he blew his first save of the year. After allowing the Rangers to tie the game, Sewald was pulled. But the damage was done. Reliever Juan Morillo entered and surrendered the winning run on his very first pitch, handing the D-backs a heartbreaking 6-5 walk-off loss.

The loss stung especially hard because Sewald had been so reliable up to this point. Yet, there had been whispers of concern about his command and pitch location. The veteran closer relies on just two pitches: a fastball averaging 91.5 mph and a sweeping slider around 85 mph. While his fastball’s high spin rate makes it tricky for hitters to track, and his sweeper has sharp movement, both pitches have been in the strike zone more than 50% of the time this season, according to Baseball Savant. That leaves little margin for error—and on Wednesday, the margin disappeared.

For many fans, the collapse felt hauntingly familiar. It echoed the D-backs’ Game 1 loss in the 2023 World Series, also against the Rangers at Globe Life Field. In that game, Sewald surrendered a late 5-3 lead, and Texas walked it off in extra innings after Corey Seager’s game-tying homer. The same stadium, the same inning, the same painful script.

While Wednesday’s loss doesn’t define the season, it’s a stark reminder that in baseball, a comeback is only as good as the final out. For Diamondbacks fans, the hope of a signature victory turned into a lesson in heartbreak—and a call for the bullpen to tighten up before the next chapter unfolds.