Struggling Diamondbacks seek to pull out of nosedive
The optimism that the Arizona Diamondbacks began the season with and the high points they've had are a distant memory as they struggle through a nasty slump.
The big picture: The D-Backs have been up and down for much of the season.
At one point early on, the snakes were five games over .500 and went four games up on May 19 with a win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Since then, the team's fortunes have plummeted, losing nine of their last 11 games.
Zoom in: On Saturday, they had their worst start in franchise history, giving up 10 runs in the first inning against the Washington Nationals, with the first nine runs coming before Arizona recorded an out.
That game was just days after a blowout 10-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
A day earlier, Arizona led Pittsburgh 6-0 after five innings, but lost after giving up nine unanswered runs.
State of play: What's really hurt the D-Backs during the current skid is an inability to win close games — of the last nine losses, four were by a single run and two others were by two runs.
Between the lines: As has often been the case over the past few seasons, many of the D-Backs' woes emanate from their struggling bullpen.
Arizona has one of the worst bullpen ERAs in baseball, and their 11 blown saves are among the highest in the majors.
The team designated reliever Joe Mantiply for assignment and sent Kevin Ginkel to Triple-A Reno, bringing up Jeff Brigham as it tries to steady the bullpen.
Threat level: The D-Backs beat the Nationals on Sunday, ending a four-game slide. But it came with a price because pitcher Corbin Burnes, Arizona's big-time offseason acquisition, left with discomfort in his right elbow.
He was scheduled for an MRI on Monday.
The intrigue: The D-Backs' tailspin has left some observers wondering how much longer manager Torey Lovullo will keep his job.
But general manager Mike Hazen doesn't believe Lovullo is the problem, and owner Ken Kendrick hasn't taken issue with his job performance, the Arizona Republic reported.
The team stuck with Lovullo after the team lost 110 games in 2021, and it gave him a contract extension through 2026 after the D-Backs' Cinderella run to the World Series two years ago.
Zoom out: It doesn't help that the D-Backs are in the competitive NL West.
They are in fourth place in the division with a 28-31 record, but even when they were four games over .500, they were still trailing the Dodgers, San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants.
What we're watching: Things looked grim for the D-Backs last year after a rough start, but the team caught fire later in the season, though they still narrowly missed the playoffs.
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