For most of the season, Chip Hale, manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks, tells listeners getting the third out of any inning is the most difficult. Rallies could have teams on edge at any time, but the reality of getting the final out seems a consequence Diamondbacks’ pitchers cannot master this season.
For clear evidence, point no further than the Washington Nationals’ fifth inning Tuesday night. That’s when Robbie Ray, the starter for the Arizona Diamondbacks, was locked in 2-2 deadlock during that fateful frame. Here, the left-hander from Brentwood, Tenn. failed to get that third out, the Nationals scored four runs and that rally carried Washington to a 10-4 victory over the Diamondbacks before 19,919 in Chase Field.