Blaze Alexander pinch-hit single sends D-backs past Athletics

PHOENIX — The result will show up in the box score and you’ll be able to watch video of Blaze Alexander‘s clutch base hit that drove home a pair of runs and led the D-backs to a 5-1 win over the A’s on Sunday afternoon at Chase Field as many times as you want.

What led up to it — the decision to send up Alexander as a pinch-hitter and the crucial advice and confidence boost he received from a teammate just before he walked to the plate — are less obvious.

Let’s take a look at them here:

With runners on second and third and one out in the bottom of the seventh and the score tied, Ketel Marte walked to the plate for the D-backs.

With left-hander T.J. McFarland on the mound, A’s manager Mark Kotsay wanted no part of Arizona’s best hitter, so he called for an intentional walk to load the bases.

That brought the left-handed-hitting Joc Pederson to the plate and it left D-backs manager Torey Lovullo with a decision. Did he want Pederson to face the left-hander, or did he want to pinch-hit the right-handed-swinging Alexander?

Lovullo knew that sending Alexander to the plate would cause Kotsay to bring in right-hander Austin Adams, who pitched for the D-backs in 2023. So, the question for Lovullo was: Pederson vs. the lefty, or Alexander vs. the righty?

Arizona’s manager has a lot of numbers to look at when it comes to matchups. They are printed on a card that he keeps tucked behind his lineup cards next to him in the dugout. This decision, though, wasn’t strictly about the statistics.

“You know, I can get into the chemistry lab and get the Bunsen burner and start thinking and thinking and thinking through it,” Lovullo said, referring to all the numbers he has at his disposal. “I just tried to simplify it. I felt like I knew Austin Adams well enough. I thought he was going to be around the plate, or out over it, and with the potential of maybe not throwing three strikes before he threw four balls.”

On the other hand, Lovullo, who also managed McFarland at one point, knew the lefty had a good sinker and could get Pederson to hit the ball on the ground where he would be a perfect double play candidate.

“I just liked the idea of Austin Adams being in the game over T.J. McFarland and then I was just going to let the hitter do [his] thing,” Lovullo said.

Blaze prepares for the at-bat

Alexander had prepared to face McFarland, so when Adams took the mound to warm up Alexander walked back into the dugout to see what the scouting report had to say about the right-hander.

Before he could dive into that, though, veteran first baseman Christian Walker called the rookie over. Walker had been a teammate of Adams and he’d faced him, so he wanted to share what he knew.

The main thing Walker told Alexander was not to be afraid to take a strike. Look at a pitch, get a feel for the shape of Adams’ pitches. He reminded him that Adams throws almost all sliders.

But it wasn’t the scouting report that stuck with Alexander as much as what else Walker shared.

“He just gave me confidence,” Alexander said. “He was just telling me, ‘Step up right here and be the man.’ I mean, he’s our guy, he’s our leader. So when he tells me that I’m walking up there excited and calm. I knew that he had my back and I’m just happy to get it done.”

Alexander was able to hit a grounder past a drawn-in infield to score a pair of runs and give the D-backs a 3-1 lead, after which Walker followed with another grounder to almost the same spot to plate an insurance run.

Alexander is popular in the clubhouse for his positive attitude and the energy he brings to the park each day, so it brought his teammates great joy to see him have a moment like that.

“I love the mentality, I love his willingness to just go play and trust the guys around him,” Walker said. “He’s got a fun energy, he’s a hard worker, just one of those guys that’s just super easy to root for.”