There is a fine line between a win and a loss, but sometimes that line is just a heel on a base. The Texas Rangers proved this point in brutal fashion on a night when the Diamondbacks crumbled from a lead they should have held. A defensive miscue that started with a split-second play turned a 1-0 game into a 6-2 rout right at Chase Field. This was not bad luck. This was a failure to execute when the pressure was on.
The Inch That Changed Everything
The game began with the Diamondbacks holding a slim 1-0 lead heading into the fifth inning. They had the momentum and the home field advantage. But the inning fell apart because of one specific play that umpire Bill Miller got wrong. A grounder by Corey Seager reached first base with runners on first and second and one out. Tim Tawa fielded it and threw to Geraldo Perdomo at second for the first out. Perdomo then fired back to first where pitcher Brandon Pfaadt was covering the bag.
Pfaadt secured the ball in time for the out, yet the decision hinged on whether his right heel touched the bag or remained just off it. Bill Miller, the first base umpire, deemed it off and signaled the runner safe. Replay review upheld the play since insufficient evidence existed to reverse the call. According to MLB.com, that single safe call allowed the inning to stay alive. It turned a routine double play into a disaster that let the Rangers score four more runs in that frame.
A Collapse That Was Total
Once that play stood, the defense never recovered. Josh Jung singled in a run to extend the lead. Brandon Nimmo doubled home one more to take the lead away. Ezequiel Duran finished the sequence with a two-run single that blew the game wide open. The Diamondbacks were down 6-1 after the inning unraveled completely. According to Arizona Sports, the team struggled to find a way back after that defensive breakdown. The Diamondbacks added one more run later to make it 6-2.
San Diego now leads the Diamondbacks by 1 1/2 games for the final National League Wild Card spot following this loss. The margin for error is gone. Every single out matters now. When you are fighting for a playoff spot, you cannot give away runs on a technicality. The Rangers took advantage of every mistake they saw. They did not wait for a big hit. They just waited for the defense to fail.
The Price of Carelessness
The manager for the Diamondbacks, Torey Lovullo, said the key to winning is “winning the inch.” He was right about that. The team lost the inch, and it cost them the game. They had the lead, but they did not have the focus. The Rangers are a tough team that knows how to grind. They know that if you give them an opening, they will walk right through it.
The final score of 6-2 tells the whole story. The Diamondbacks led 1-0, but they ended up losing by four runs.
