D-Backs come back after trying to new good-luck ritual

The Diamondbacks' improbable comeback against Philadelphia on Monday was jump-started by David Peralta’s home run in the bottom of the ninth inning. Or was it?

Ketel Marte said that he and Jon Jay started locking and shaking their pinkie fingers together to create some good luck for the team as the Diamondbacks entered the ninth inning.

A Paul Goldschmidt groundout later, Peralta stepped up and knocked one over the railing in right-center field. Marte jumped out of the dugout to celebrate the Diamondbacks’ first run of the game.

Marte and Jay kept shaking their fingers together as Eduardo Escobar doubled to left field and Steven Souza Jr. knocked in an RBI single.

Naturally, Marte said, they continued their superstitious finger-wagging through all the extra innings, and it finally paid off in the 14th when Peralta took the first pitch he saw into left-center field, capping the Arizona comeback with an unlikely win.

“The way we did it last night, it’s going to make you feel (great),” Peralta said. “That sort of thing is not easy to do, especially with the way Arrieta was pitching. … That shows what type of team we are.”

Peralta, affectionately nicknamed “The Freight Train,” wasn’t sure how much the Marte-Jay finger shaking had to do with the result, but he hopes they continue.

“I guess that was a lucky thing (they were doing),” Peralta said. “They kept doing it and we kept scoring and (kept) the rally going. That was crazy.”

Marte believes the good vibes are “going around” from the interlocked pinkies, and the clubhouse seems to enjoy it.

Peralta doesn’t have any issues with the plan.

“If it helps us win, it sounds good to me,” he said.

Marrero designated for assignment

Deven Marrero, who was acquired in a trade from Boston in March, was designated for assignment on Monday night. He played in 49 games for Arizona this season.

Lovullo spoke highly of Marrero, mentioning that both he and General Manager Mike Hazen have a relationship with Marrero that goes back to their time with the Red Sox.

“When you sit him down to tell him this news, its tough to walk through,” Lovullo said. “He’ll have another opportunity to play again and get back in the big leagues. … Hopefully, it's with our organization, but we’ll see where that lands him.”

The decision was made based on the fact that the Diamondbacks would like toinsulate their bullpen and keep eight relievers on their active 25-man roster.

“We wanted a little coverage in the bullpen,” Lovullo said. “We felt we had enough coverage on the field.

“Its just (a situation) where you run into a numbers crunch and you have sufficient depth inside of the system already. We felt like it was a move that could be made, although it was a hard decision.”

Marrero is currently on the waiver wire.

Columnist takes shots at D-Backs

The Diamondbacks don’t face the Dodgers until the end of the month, but Los Angeles Times columnist Dylan Hernandez seems to want to pick a fight with Arizona fans this week.

In his Sunday column, Hernandez took plenty of shots at the Diamondbacks organization, calling it, “The insecure little team in the desert that guards its stadium pool to prevent the Dodgers from celebrating their inevitable triumphs with a swim.”

He, of course, is referring to the war of words exchanged between the two teams after the Dodgers clinched the National League West title in 2013 at Chase Field. Los Angeles players celebrated in the pool in right field after the win, spurring outrage from the Diamondbacks' front office.

“I could call it disrespectful and classless,” Diamondbacks President and CEO Derrick Hall said in an email at the time, according to MLB.com. “But they don’t have a beautiful pool at their old ballpark and probably wanted to see what one was like.”

Hernandez, however, was not done belittling Arizona. He added: “They’re suddenly relevant again, not because they’re great, but because the Dodgers aren’t.”

Entering Tuesday, the Diamondbacks sat a half-game ahead of Los Angeles in the NL West standings, despite having spent $55 million less on this year’s payroll, per Spotrac.com.

A three-game series between the two in three weeks might end up being a deciding factor in the division race. Manager Torey Lovullo mentioned during this homestand that he believes headto-head matchups with teams such as the Dodgers, Rockies and even the Giants will end up deciding who sits on top.