For most of the season, it’s been the starting pitching of the Arizona Diamondbacks which picked up the team. On a night when anointed ace Zack Greinke struggled, the home run ball picked up the titular head of the staff.
Falling behind and eventually struggling with a 102-pitch count in his five innings of work, Greinke was pulled and hopes for the team’s eighth straight home victory fell to the bullpen. When the call went to J. J. Hoover, Andrew Chafin, Archie Bradley, Jorge de La Rosa and Fernando Rodney, the pen responded and helped propel the Diamondbacks to a 7-4 triumph over the visiting San Diego Padres before 22,079 Wednesday night in Chase Field.