D-Backs lose second straight to Nationals
Tim Locastro popped up from his slide and examined his left hand. His pinky finger appeared to be pointing the wrong way. Earlier in the day, the Diamondbacks had made a trade to address their center field depth. But one slide in the third inning of their 6-2 loss to the Washington Nationals on Saturday put them right back where they were.
Locastro suffered a dislocated PIP joint on the little finger of his left hand, Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said, adding that his speedy outfielder will be placed on the injured list, where Locastro will join the club’s starting center fielder, Ketel Marte.
On Saturday morning, the Diamondbacks made a relatively minor trade with the Kansas City Royals to acquire center fielder Nick Heath. A left-handed hitter with good speed, Heath has posted only modest career numbers in the minors and has played only briefly in the majors, appearing in 15 games for the Royals last season.
But with Marte’s return not appearing imminent, Heath figured to give the Diamondbacks coverage in center beyond Locastro. And with Locastro now out, the Diamondbacks again find themselves short at the position.
The club has a handful of internal options, including well-regarded prospect Daulton Varsho, who already is on the 40-man roster, and Trayce Thompson, who is not. Both players had opportunities to win a job during spring training. Neither performed well.
Heath was designated for assignment by the Royals earlier in the week, a procedural move that took him off the Royals’ 40-man and jettisoned him from that organization’s testing protocols. As such,
he must again clear intake procedures in order to be eligible to play. It is possible Heath could do so in time to be available for Sunday’s series-finale, Lovullo said.
On the same play he suffered his injury, Locastro was thrown out trying to steal second, the first time he has been cut down on a stolen-base attempt in his major league career. That snapped a streak of 29 consecutive attempts without being caught, the longest such streak to start a career in major league history.
“It was a good run,” Locastro said. “Hopefully I’ll go for 30 the next run I have here. That’s the goal.”
Locastro said his left hand jammed into either the bag or the knee of the Nationals’ Starlin Castro. He said he had worn a protective mitt over his hand in the past, but he stopped wearing it after he slid over a base.
“I definitely know I have to use it now more often,” he said.
Locastro said he is expected to undergo further tests on a visit with a hand specialist on Monday, at which point he hopes to get a better sense for the severity of the injury.
The Diamondbacks on Saturday looked like a team playing without two of its better position players, as Marte and first baseman Christian Walker remain out with injury. They also look like a team that is not getting enough production from its remaining veterans.
Right fielder David Peralta is hitting .176. Shortstop Nick Ahmed is just 3 for 24, catcher Stephen Vogt 4 for 26. And the team’s “understudies,” in the vernacular of Lovullo, are not doing all that much, either, with Josh VanMeter, Josh Rojas, Pavin Smith and Wyatt Mathisen unable to pick up the slack.
In 25 innings since Nationals lefty Patrick Corbin departed Thursday’s game, the Diamondbacks have scored just three runs, all coming on solo homers, and collected a total of 11 hits.
“There’s a flow to our lineup, there’s a flow to the feeling that we have, and it’s just about barreling baseballs that we’re looking for and doing what you can do without doing too much,” Lovullo said. “That’s going to be my message. … I want them to know they’re counted on -- but not counted on to be anything more than they’re supposed to be.”
Nationals right-hander Erick Fedde shut them down over five innings, striking out nine, buying enough time for his offense to get to work against Diamondbacks starter Luke Weaver, who allowed four runs in four innings.
“All in all, just a weird game,” Weaver said of his performance. “I couldn’t seem to get into a rhythm. I was pitching, I guess, in yellow-light mode. I wasn’t really on the attack like last outing.”
Short hops
Right-hander Joakim Soria threw a 20-pitch bullpen session on Friday, Lovullo said, adding that Soria could be back in relatively short order. “I don’t think he’s going to be a long period of time,” Lovullo said. “Once he gets the clearance to face some live hitters, it’s going to happen pretty quick.” Soria has been out since suffering a calf injury on April 4.
*Marte apparently has continued to progress from his right hamstring strain, though Lovullo did not provide many details on his anticipated next steps. “He’s feeling good, which is very encouraging, and wants to do more, which we want to hear,” Lovullo said.