PHOENIX — The 2024 season is over for the Arizona Diamondbacks, who will not be heading to the postseason after losing five of their final seven games.
The New York Mets and Atlanta Braves split their doubleheader on Monday, squeezing the Diamondbacks out as they needed a sweep one way or another to move forward.
All three teams finished 89-73, but the D-backs lost out on the tiebreakers and will enter the offseason earlier than planned after their World Series run a year ago.
The Mets will head to Milwaukee to face the NL Central-winning Brewers, while the Braves will match up with the top Wild Card San Diego Padres.
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The Diamondbacks had the inside track to a postseason spot for much of the second half.
On Aug. 25, the D-backs were in the top Wild Card spot, seven games ahead of New York on the outside looking in.
The Mets then won a three-game series at Chase Field to clinch the tiebreaker, and since then, New York has been one of the hottest teams in baseball en route to the postseason.
Since Aug. 25, the D-backs went a mediocre 14-17. The Mets stormed to a 21-10 record, the Braves went 19-13 and the Padres 19-11.
The Diamondbacks improved their win total by five games from 2023, but a struggle over the final seven games proved costly, particularly the 8-0 blown lead in Milwaukee.
This has been a difficult season for the Diamondbacks in many ways, namely injuries to a significant portion of their corps. Ketel Marte, Christian Walker, Geraldo Perdomo, Gabriel Moreno, Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Ryne Nelson, Eduardo Rodriguez, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Alek Thomas all missed time on the injured list.
The pitching staff took a step back from preseason expectations with a 4.63 team ERA (No. 27 in MLB), and the offense had to manage an inconsistent first half silent starts from Eugenio Suarez and Corbin Carroll.
Those two turned around their season, and paired with a superstar output from Marte and contributions from a deep lineup, the Diamondbacks scored more runs than any other team in baseball at 886.
They also committed the fewest errors, becoming the first club since 1900 to make 65 or fewer errors in back-to-back seasons. And the late-game comebacks that defined the 2023 Answerbacks returned in the second half, as this roster showed its resiliency. Those elements paired with a shortened rotation could have proven a difficult test for opponents in October.
Those key attributes fleeted some this past week with the pressure elevated, particularly the defense on Friday and the offense on Saturday, both losses to the Padres. The Diamondbacks lost their last four games and made the postseason in 2023, but the NL was simply too good for a poor finish this time.
The Diamondbacks enter the offseason with key free agents Christian Walker, Paul Sewald, Kevin Newman and Josh Bell, team options for Suarez and Kelly along with mutual options for Joc Pederson and Randal Grichuk. Montgomery has a player option.
The postseason begins Tuesday.