Game Recaps
Diamondbacks, Zac Gallen’s trade value takes a hit in loss to Astros by Nick Piecoro and José M. Romero [AZ Central]
As recently as a couple of weeks ago, Gallen appeared to be on the verge of turning his year around. He struck out 10 in seven strong innings against the Giants on July 1, then struck out nine in six innings against the Padres.
But he has fallen off again in the past two, allowing a combined 12 runs in 11 innings.
Zac Gallen’s Poor Start Halts Diamondbacks’ Momentum by Jack Sommers [SI]
Of the 20 balls put in play against the former Diamondbacks ace, 13 had exit velocities 95 MPH or higher, and seven were over 100.
The damage could have been even worse, as eight of the hard hit balls found gloves for outs.
Diamondbacks News
Diamondbacks’ Eugenio Suarez named NL Player of the Week by Tyler Drake [Arizona Sports]
It marks his fourth career NL Player of the Week nod, all coming this season. He now marks the third MLB player to earn four weekly awards in a season, joining former Diamondback J.D. Martinez (2017) and Shohei Ohtani (2024).
Diamondbacks Might Get Their Closer Back Very Soon by Jack Sommers [SI]
Miller will throw a live batting session on Tuesday. Lovullo could not say what the next steps would be after that if all goes well, simply saying, “I’m hoping that it will be as fast a turnaround as possible. If there’s another live or a game is yet to be determined.”
Christian Walker Breaks Silence on Diamondbacks Departure by Alex D’Agostino [SI]
“Not a lot of talk there at the end as far as was it an option, was it a possibility. I guess, officially no offer made,” Walker said.
“Early in the off-season it was pretty quiet, there wasn’t really action from anybody. But as we started honing in on some real offers, of course we circled back with the Diamondbacks. I feel like that was the right thing to do, the professional thing to do. But officially no moves were made.”
Christian Walker: The Ultimate D-backs Perseverance Story by Michael McDermott [D-backs Under Review]
Most fans are well aware of Walker’s story, the waiver wire pickup that successfullyreplaced a future Hall of Famer at first base. Not only on the field, but as a player who led by example. One of my only regrets covering the team the last three years was that I never had the chance to talk to him and pick his brain.
It’s that type of story that made Walker my favorite player on the team over the last six years, although I already knew how good he was from his time in college when South Carolina took on Arizona in the College World Series Finals in 2012. I was a freshman at U of A that year and watching the Wildcats complete a perfect run to the title at the time.
Jose Herrera Is Bunting Like It’s Going Out of Style (Which It Did, 100 Years Ago) by Davy Andrews [FanGraphs]
On Friday, Ben Clemens laid out five fun things to watch during the second half of the 2025 season. The one that caught my eye was the race to lead the league in bunts for base hits. The contestants all make plenty of sense. The group of Kyle Isbel, Jacob Young, TJ Friedl, Victor Scott II, and Xavier Edwardsincludes four light-hitting, fleet-footed center fielders and one light-hitting, fleet-footed shortstop. But there’s another bunting race going on, and in it, these four speedsters – along with everyone else in baseball – are getting dusted by Jose Herrera, the Diamondbacks backup catcher whom Statcast rates as the 491st fastest out of 510 qualified players this season. It’s the race to lead the league in sacrifice bunts, and no one in baseball is quite so eager to choose the greater good over their own personal gratification than Herrera.
Around the League
Phillies get walk-off win via catcher’s interference call [ESPN]
With nobody out in the bottom of the 10th, Edmundo Sosa’s made a check swing on a pitch from Jordan Hicks (1-6) that was called a ball and his bat hit the glove of catcher Carlos Narvaez. The Phillies’ asked for a review and the ball call was overturned, allowing Marsh to score the winning run without a Philadelphia hit in the inning.
Revitalized Alvarez returns, helps Mets rally to beat Angels by Anthony DiComo [MLB]
When the Mets optioned Alvarez to Triple-A Syracuse on June 22, president of baseball operations David Stearns expected him to take the 72 hours he was allowed to report. Had Alvarez requested it, Stearns would have given him extra time on top of that. Instead, Alvarez reported promptly. He hit his first home run in his fourth game at Syracuse, then another the day after that, and another the day after that.
From July 11-20, Alvarez hit seven homers in six games. Toward the end of that run, Mets officials began discussing whether to reverse the demotion. They considered it but wanted to be sure. When Alvarez hit four homers over the weekend, they became certain.
Mozeliak Planning To Meet With Arenado Before Deadline by Anthony Franco [MLB Trade Rumors]
With the trade deadline 10 days away, Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said he plans to meet with Nolan Arenado in the coming week (relayed by John Denton of MLB.com). That’ll be an exploratory discussion to see if the 10-time Gold Glove winner has changed his mind at all regarding a potential trade. Arenado has full no-trade rights and famously invoked that clause to kill an offseason deal that would have sent him to Houston.
Minor League Notes from Steak85
Pygmy Rattlers 4, Purple Pebbles 3
DSL Arizona Black 5, DSL Tigers 2 4
DSL Arizona Red 9, DSL Mets Blue 1
Jaitoine Kelly bounced back from a rough outing last week to turn in another quality start, but failed to get the win as Jeury Espinal allowed two runs, which tied the game at three in the seventh. But the Rattlers broke the tie in the eighth, thanks to an Ivan Luciano triple (one of three the Rattlers had on the evening) and a Jack Hurley groundout. They had a chance to add another run, but Bo Walker was picked off after his triple. Gian Zapata had the other triple.
The Black squad won in walk-off fashion, with Erick De La Cruz doubling and Victor Santana driving him home with a single. De La Cruz had two hits and Santana had three, while Belfi Rivera also had three, and the team as a whole knocked out 11 hits. All four runs were allowed in the three innings of work by starter Luis Cepeda.
Naimer Rosario celebrated turning 19 last week by pitching the game of his life, so far. In seven scoreless innings, he allowed one hit and walked no one, striking out six. Isael Torres allowed the one run without allowing a hit. Meanwhile, the offense picked up 12 hits, with five of them for extra bases. Jorge Lara was on base in five of six trips to the plate; he walked three times, singled, and tripled. Adriel Radney, Juan Alvarez, and Alfredo Benzan each had multiple hits.
Question of the Day