The Arizona Diamondbacks are in the midst of a rough patch, and their latest series against the Pittsburgh Pirates was a tough pill to swallow. After a dominant 9-0 victory in game one—their largest margin of win this season—the bats went cold, and the team dropped the next two games. It was a classic tale of two series: one where the offense looked airtight, and another where the approach unraveled.
In the opener, the D-backs showed patience and discipline against Pirates righty Bubba Chandler. Walks were drawn, productive outs were made, and every at-bat seemed to have a purpose. But in game two, facing Cy Young winner Paul Skenes, that discipline vanished. The hitters came out swinging early, expecting hittable strikes, but when Skenes locked in, no adjustments were made. The result was a series of quick outs and eight innings of dominance from the Pirates ace.
On the mound, Zac Gallen had a mixed outing. He generated a season-high 15 whiffs—nine with his slider and six with his curveball—but his fastball didn't miss a single bat. Gallen's arsenal has shifted this year: his curveball isn't dropping like it used to, so he's leaned more on the slider, which has been his most effective pitch for missing bats. Coming into Thursday, his overall whiff rate was just 16.5%, well below his career average and the league average of 25%. The slider is clearly his new go-to weapon.
Meanwhile, Diamondbacks CEO Derrick Hall weighed in on the team's starting rotation struggles. Speaking on Bickley & Marotta Mornings, Hall endorsed manager Torey Lovullo's message to the starters: "It's the idea of getting everybody together and saying, 'Hey, we're relying on you. Our bullpen is doing its job. If you guys don't get later and deeper into games, we're going to hurt our bullpen. And our offense is keeping us in games. You guys are not. Get back to what you were doing at the beginning of the season.'"
For a team that started strong, the message is clear: the rotation needs to step up, the offense needs to stay disciplined, and the D-backs need to find their rhythm again before this tough stretch becomes a trend. As any baseball fan knows, it's a long season—but the time to adjust is now.