Goldschmidt’s hot streak fuels Diamondbacks’ roll
A weekend trip to hitterfriendly Coors Field has sparked Arizona’s offense.
Paul Goldschmidt doubled and tripled and had two RBIs to finish off a dominating series for the Diamondbacks against Colorado.
Goldschmidt homered twice in each of the first two games against the Rockies. He was 8 of 13 with four home runs and nine RBIs in the three-game sweep.
“This is definitely a good weekend,” Goldschmidt said. “We had a stretch of where our offense was really struggling, maybe longer than that. This weekend was definitely a step in the right direction.”
Ketel Marte had three hits and three RBIs Sunday for Arizona Sunday. The Diamondbacks scored 29 runs in Colorado after having just 10 in a three-game series in San Francisco.
“You win three games here the way we did against this type of team, this atmosphere, you’re doing a lot right,” Arizona manager Torey Luvollo said.
Astros
Houston scored the winning run Sunday against the Texas Rangers when manager A.J. Hinch successfully argued that the Rangers closer Keone Kela had balked with a runner on third, even though the call originally hadn’t been made on the field. With runners on second and third and the count 1-2 on the Astros’ Evan Gattis, Kela made a quick pitch to Gattis that was called a ball. After he made the pitch, Hinch came out of the dugout to point out that the pitch was illegal and should have resulted in a balk. The umpires convened and agreed, calling a balk that allowed George Springer to score from third base. Rangers manager Jeff Banister then came out to argue and was ejected.
Dodgers
Max Muncy might never see Oklahoma City again, but he has two more months of rent to pay on an apartment there. He and two teammates rented a place there in April. He played nine games in Oklahoma City, and the rest is history. The rent is not. He still pays his share, lest Matt Beaty and Jake Peter have to further exhaust their minor league wages. “I’m still helping those guys out,” Muncy said. “I told them I would make sure I cover my part. I don’t want to leave them hanging.” Meanwhile, even the most dedicated Los Angeles fan had scarcely heard of him when he arrived, and now no Dodgers player has more home runs.
Brewers
Milwaukee acquired infielder Brad Miller and cash from the Tampa Bay Rays for first baseman/outfielder Ji-Man Choi. The NL Central-leading Brewers made the deal Sunday and assigned Miller to Class AAA Colorado Springs. He was cut Thursday by Tampa Bay. Miller, 28, was hitting .256 with five home runs and 21 RBIs in 48 games for the Rays.
Nationals
Washington placed righthanded pitchers Stephen Strasburg and Brandon Kintzler on the 10-day disabled list. Second baseman Daniel Murphy (right knee surgery) could be close to returning to the lineup. He rejoined the team Sunday, taking batting practice and fielding grounders.