It has been a great year to be an Arizona Diamondbacks fan especially when they are playing the National League Western Division. I have watched nearly every game that the Diamondbacks have played this season (ok that may be an understatement, I have even watched some of them multiple times analyzing footage) and I have no idea how to explain the National League West or why the Diamondbacks seem to be dominating the teams in their division. Through tonight's game the Diamondbacks are a ridiculous 34-16 against the West which is part of the reason why they have a 2 game lead against the Los Angeles Dodgers despite not playing well since May.
It is not like this domination carries over to the other divisions. Against the National League East the Diamondbacks are 14-19 which includes losing 5 of 6 to the Florida Marlins who come to Chase Field to visit tomorrow. The Diamondbacks don't fare much better against the National League Central where they have a 13-16 record. But against the National League West the Diamondbacks seem nearly unstoppable.
After having played outside the division for the past few weeks the Diamondbacks have started another swing through the National League West and once again see their fortunes looking up. When San Diego came into town I was hoping the team would be able to take 2 of the 3 games. Now tonight they went for a sweep with Brandon Webb on the mound.
You had to somehow feel sorry for the Padres. They came into town having lost 4 of 6 in a home stand that included the Milwaukee Brewers and the Philadelphia Phillies. Then they come to Phoenix where they face Doug Davis who nearly threw a perfect game against them the last time they saw him. They follow that up by facing two All-Star pitchers in Dan Haren and Brandon Webb. I guess when it rains in San Diego it really pours.
Greg Maddux was to start for the Padres tonight but with his recent trade to the Los Angeles Dodgers the Padres were forced to start Chad Reineke. It was Reineke's second major league start and came with his team desperately trying to avoid a sweep. The Diamondbacks have historically had a difficult time against rookie pitchers and tonight was no exception. Reineke threw 6 strong innings and left after the sixth inning having allowed 5 hits resulting in 3 runs. On most nights that would be enough to win the game but tonight he was facing Brandon Webb who showed why he is the favorite to win the 2008 National League Cy Young award.
Webb threw 7 strong innings allowing 3 hits and striking out 8 batters not allowing a single run. If it weren't for Brandon Lyon once again giving up another run this game would have been a 3-hit shut-out. The Diamondbacks did just enough to win this game. They played great defense and got on base to make the most of any opportunities they were given. This was definitely a boost and hopefully it follows through into the weekend series with the Florida Marlins.
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