In a heart-stopping clash that came down to the wire, the Arizona Diamondbacks edged out the Cleveland Guardians 7-6 in a dramatic bottom-of-the-10th inning battle. The game, which featured relentless back-and-forth action, was ultimately decided by a sharp two-strike splitter from Justin Martinez, who struck out David Fry to seal the victory.
Martinez’s performance was nothing short of spectacular. His dominant pitching in the 10th inning, including two crucial strikeouts, may well have positioned him as a serious contender for the closer’s role—a position he failed to secure in a previous ninth-inning attempt this season. This was his first save of the year, and it could mark the beginning of a promising new chapter in his career.
However, the victory came with a significant downside. Gold Glove catcher Gabriel Moreno suffered a left groin strain, which is likely to sideline him for an extended period. Manager Torey Lovullo confirmed that Moreno would return to Phoenix for further evaluation by team doctors, acknowledging that “he’s going to be down for a little while.”
The game’s narrative was punctuated by clutch performances on both sides. Joc Pederson’s pivotal two-run homer off Scott Barlow in the eighth inning had given the D-backs a 6-5 lead, only for Ryan Thompson to surrender a run in the ninth, forcing extra innings.
In the top of the 10th, the D-backs capitalized on the “Ghost Runner” rule, with Corbin Carroll scoring after advancing to third on a bunt by Jake McCarthy and crossing the plate on a sacrifice fly from Eugenio Suarez.
The contest began with a bang as Ketel Marte homered on the very first pitch from Guardians starter Logan T. Allen. Marte’s 28th homer of the season, and his fifth leadoff shot, was quickly followed by a solo blast from Gabriel Moreno, giving Zac Gallen a 2-0 lead to work with.
Despite the early advantage, Gallen struggled to maintain the lead. He allowed the Guardians to tie the game in the bottom of the first with an RBI double from Jose Ramirez and fell behind 3-2 in the second after additional scoring. Gallen, who struggled with consistency, was unable to keep the lead intact, giving up two more runs on a two-run single from Andres Gimenez as the Guardians went ahead 5-4.
The D-backs managed to reclaim the lead with an offensive surge in the sixth inning, highlighted by an RBI double from Eugenio Suarez and an RBI groundout from Geraldo Perdomo. Although Gallen had a shaky performance, his seven innings of work featured 8 hits, 5 earned runs, 3 walks, and 4 strikeouts, leaving him with a no-decision and an ERA of 3.75.
With the win, the Diamondbacks improve to 61-52 and continue to compete fiercely in the NL Wild Card race, currently tied with the Atlanta Braves and San Diego Padres, with the New York Mets trailing by 1.5 games.
The series continues Tuesday afternoon at 3:40 p.m. Arizona time, with Eduardo Rodriguez set to make his long-awaited Diamondbacks debut against Guardians right-hander Ben Lively.
