Three things the Diamondbacks need to flip World Series with Rangers before its too late

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Zac Gallen
(Getty Images)

Even in the moment, it was rather incredible how quickly the tone of the World Series changed on Tuesday evening in Phoenix. It wasn’t long before the first pitch of Game 4 that the Rangers made the move their fan base was dreading, taking Adolis Garcia off the active roster because of an oblique injury.

It would not have mattered who replaced him, because the replacement wasn’t Garcia.

It felt like a death blow to Texas’ chances of winning the World Series. Sure, they were up, 2-1, after the win in Game 3, but if not for Garcia, they might have been down 3-0. He was the heart and soul of the Rangers’ rather improbable run through October, and without Garcia — who has eight homers and 22 RBIs in the postseason — the lineup seemed to have a massive hole. Oh, and Max Scherzer was done, too. 

The sky was falling. 

And then, Texas scored five runs in the second inning of Game 4 and five more in the third inning. Just like that, everything shifted. The Rangers built a 10-run lead en route to an 11-7 win. The Rangers weren’t in trouble, the Diamondbacks were. The Rangers weren’t desperately searching for answers on how to deal with the loss of Garcia, the Diamondbacks were desperately searching for answers on how to deal with another loss.

So … what might they come up with? Excellent question. Torey Lovullo’s club didn’t earn the nickname “Answer-backs” this postseason for nothing. They’ve overcome deficits in games, and bounced back in the NLCS after falling behind the Phillies in the series, 2-0. This is just the next — albeit more challenging — step on their journey. 

Let’s look at the path ahead, and three players who will be key if the Diamondbacks want to extend the series all the way to a seventh game. Building a little momentum with some late-game runs certainly doesn't hurt. 

MORE: Complete World Series schedule

Zac Gallen needs to be an ace

The Diamondbacks can’t win three games before they win the first one, and they need Gallen to be better in Game 5. He’s been fine, at best, in the postseason, but not exactly sharp. His ERA sits at 5.27, and he’s given up six home runs. The Diamondbacks have lost three of the five games he’s started. 

A big reason? Gallen has given up multiple runs in the first inning of four of his five starts this postseason, and that can’t happen in Game 5. It wasn’t a big problem in the regular season — he had a 3.18 ERA in the first inning, and 3.47 overall — but it’s absolutely been an issue lately. The Rangers won the first two games at Chase Field, and they scored early in both contests to take control of the game.

Gallen finished fifth in the 2022 NL Cy Young voting, and he’ll get votes again this year. There’s a reason he’s earned the reputation as one of the NL’s best starting pitchers, and the Diamondbacks have never needed him to pitch like that more than they do in Game 5. 

“I think the reason why we're seeing him in this point in time probably not throwing up nothing but zeros is command of his pitches, command of his secondary stuff,” manager Torey Lovullo said before Game 4. “I know he's aware of that. He'll tell you he doesn't feel 100 percent, but he goes out there, competes and battles. He can't just walk out there and get the job done because of his name. It's the time of year where everybody's really, really good and really and really prepped. Just gotta be more efficient with his pitches, where they land and sequence them in the right way. And he's working on that right now.”

Christian Walker (left) and Jonah Heim (right)
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Christian Walker needs to continue to heat up

Walker has been Arizona’s most consistent source of power for a couple years now, popping 69 homers over the past two regular seasons. The playoffs have been a rough go, though. Starting with the NLCS opener and going through Game 3 of the World Series, Walker had just 4 hits in 34 at-bats, a .114 average, to go with a .451 OPS. 

He’s been an often-important out right in the middle of Arizona’s lineup. But in Game 3, he hit the ball hard three times, even though he managed just one hit. 

“Overall, it's a funny thing — obviously the box score hasn't been great, but I've been making good decisions consistently. I've been taking my walks, getting on base,” Walker said before Game 4. “As the clean-up hitter, I expect more out of myself, for sure. But overall, yeah, I think it's trending up lately. The last game in Texas, I hit three balls over 100 (mph). Last night I hit two more balls over a hundred. I can't aim them. I'm up there hitting them as hard as I can doing my best. But I feel like if I keep making good decisions, trust what I got, I think it will keep trending in that direction.”

Then, in Game 4, he picked up another three hits.

Arizona needs Good Christian Walker. He’s absolutely capable of carrying an offense that’s largely been carried by Ketel Marte, Corbin Carroll and Tommy Pham. The time is getting late, but the moment has not passed. 

Paul Sewald needs to seize the moment

No Arizona player is more eager to get back on the field with a chance to do his job than Paul Sewald, the Diamondbacks’ closer. He is, of course, the one who gave up the game-tying two-run homer to Corey Seager in the ninth inning of Game 1. He’s as professional as they come, so he’s said all the right things, but he’s also as competitive as they come, so you know that fire is burning. 

And if Sewald gets back on the mound, that’s good for the Diamondbacks, because it means they’re in a close game late in the contest, probably ahead on the scoreboard. If he does his job next time he gets an opportunity the Diamondbacks can keep playing. If he doesn’t, it’s probably over. 

Author(s)
Ryan Fagan Photo

Ryan Fagan, the national MLB writer for The Sporting News, has been a Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2016. He also dabbles in college hoops and other sports. And, yeah, he has way too many junk wax baseball cards.