Diamondbacks set new standard for road futility
NATIONAL LEAGUE GIANTS 10, DIAMONDBACKS 3
SAN FRANCISCO — Occasionally, the Arizona players glanced up at the Oracle Park scoreboard in center field. It told a most familiar, gloomy story.
The Diamondbacks made dubious history, setting a major-league record with their 23rd consecutive road loss in getting trounced by the San Francisco Giants 10-3 on Thursday.
“It’s nothing we’re proud of,” Manager Torey Lovullo said. “It’s been an extended period of time. It weighs on you. It’s heavy.”
The dejected D-backs trudged off the field and quietly made their way back to the visiting clubhouse after the final out, breaking a tie with the 1963 Mets and 1943 Philadelphia Athletics for road futility.
Arizona’s lone hit through six innings was a single by pitcher Zac Gallen as the Diamondbacks fell behind 6-0.
“Obviously, the mood is unhappy,” Gallen said. “Guys are definitely not satisfied with the way they’re playing. I don’t know anybody in their right mind who would be.”
The MLB mark felt almost inevitable after Tuesday’s collapse, which saw Arizona blow a 7-0 lead in a 9-8 loss to the Giants.
Lovullo’s team has lost 14 in a row overall and 28 of its last 30, falling to 20-50 for the worst record in the majors.
“I lay in bed at night thinking about different things,” Lovullo said. “Sometimes I’m up until 3, 4 o’clock in the morning trying to put the pieces of this puzzle together in my own head. It’s tough. It’s very challenging.”
The Diamondbacks’ only consolation coming off this four-game sweep: They don’t play again on the road until June 25 at San Diego, exactly two months to the day since their last road victory. Then again, Arizona isn’t scheduled for a road game against a sub-.500 team until July 27 at Texas.
The Diamondbacks aren’t the only team struggling away from home. Baltimore lost its 19th consecutive road game Thursday, also falling by the same 10-3 score at Cleveland.
CUBS 2, METS 0 Kyle Hendricks flummoxed the Mets for six innings to win his career-best seventh consecutive start, Javier Baez hit a tworun home run in the first off Marcus Stroman and Chicago beat New York to avoid a four-game series sweep. Hendricks struck out seven and walked two, retiring his last eight batters after consecutive walks in the fourth. He improved to 4-0 against the Mets.
BRAVES 4, CARDINALS 0 Charlie Morton didn’t allow a hit until the seventh inning and took a shutout into the eighth, lifting Atlanta over St. Louis. Morton gave up his first hit when Paul Goldschmidt lined a single to left-center with one out, but the right-hander followed by getting Nolan Arenado to pop up and struck out Tyler O’Neill. He allowed singles to Matt Carpenter and pinch-hitter Jose Rondon in the eighth and was pulled with two outs.
PADRES 6, REDS 4 Victor Caratini hit a tworun, game-ending home run two batters after Eric Hosmer hit a tying, two-run home run for San Diego, which beat Cincinnati in a thriller before the first sellout crowd at Petco Park since 2019.
ROCKIES 7, BREWERS 3 German Marquez allowed one hit over six scoreless innings, C.J. Cron ignited a five-run first with a grand slam and Colorado beat Milwaukee for its fourth consecutive victory.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
INDIANS 10, ORIOLES 3 Jose Ramirez and Bobby Bradley homered during a three-run first inning and Cleveland beat the Orioles, extending Baltimore’s road losing streak to 19 games. The win gave Cleveland a four-game sweep and sent Baltimore to its eighth consecutive loss overall.
YANKEES 8, BLUE JAYS 4 Gio Urshela and Giancarlo Stanton each hit two-run home runs as New York defeated Toronto. The Blue Jays held a 4-2 lead entering the seventh before Stanton capped the inning with his 13th home run of the season.
ASTROS 10, WHITE SOX 2 Jose Altuve homered for the fourth time in three games, Michael Brantley and Abraham Toro also connected, and Houston beat Chicago. Jose Urquidy pitched seven strong innings to stifle Chicago’s powerful lineup, backing a three-run shot by Brantley and a career-best four RBI by Toro. Houston won its fourth in a row.