Arizona right-hander Zac Gallen received welcome news hours before the July 31 trade deadline, when general manager Mike Hazen phoned to tell Gallen he was going nowhere.
“I’m glad to be here,” Gallen said. “This organization, this city, the community means a lot to me. The next 50-plus games, there are a lot of guys in here that have things to prove, whether that’s individually or as a team.”
Gallen, in the midst of the least effective season of his career, is among them as he makes his second post-deadline start in the first game of a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies on Friday in Phoenix.
Gallen (8-12, 5.48 ERA) is to face Colorado left-hander Austin Gomber (0-5, 6.18 ERA).
Colorado enters after one of the worst three-game series in major league history as the Rockies were outscored 45-6 while being swept by Toronto in Coors Field. The Blue Jays broke the MLB record for hits in a three-game series with 63 while setting a franchise record for runs.
“It’s one game,” Rockies interim manager Warren Schaeffer said after his team’s 20-1 loss Wednesday. “It’s one series. We played a really good series against the Pirates. Don’t forget about that. It just doesn’t flip negatively like that. Sometimes you go through a three-game set where it’s no good, and that’s what we did.”
The Rockies took two out of three from Pittsburgh to open the homestand, but they continue to stalk MLB history with their 30-86 record. Colorado is on pace for 42 victories, one more than the 2024 Chicago White Sox managed.
The D-Backs were rewarded for standing with Gallen when he led Arizona to a 7-2 win over the Athletics in his last start on Saturday. While Gallen gave up nine hits, he got out of trouble for the most part as he stranded six runners in six innings.
“We all know that he’s grinding, but he did his job, and it was a fantastic effort,” said Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo. “One of his greatest qualities is when there’s men on base, he gets super stubborn and super tough. That’s when he really starts to get after it and compete.”
It was Gallen’s third quality start in his last six outings as he looks to position himself in the winter free agent market. The year has not been up to the standard he set by finishing in the top 10 in NL Cy Young voting three of the last five seasons.
Gallen’s ERA was a season-low 3.38 after a 4-3 victory over the New York Yankees on April 2, which featured 13 strikeouts in 6 2/3 scoreless innings. But it has not been under 5.00 since May 17 — the first of his two rocky outings against the Rockies this season.
Gallen gave up six runs in five innings of a no-decision in the Rockies’ comeback 14-12 victory on May 17 at Chase Field. He then gave up seven runs in five innings, but got the win in a 14-8 decision on June 20 at Coors Field.
Despite his tough outings this season, Gallen is 8-1 with a 3.53 ERA in 17 career starts against the Rockies. Colorado’s Ezequiel Tovar is 6-for-10 with a homer against him.
Gomber was the losing pitcher in the D-Backs’ 14-8 victory on June 20, giving up 12 hits and nine runs in 4 2/3 innings. He is 3-2 with a 6.53 ERA against the Diamondbacks in 15 appearances. Arizona’s Ketel Marte is 10-for-26 with three homers against him.
–Field Level Media
