Diamondbacks Struggle Amid Heatwave and Playoff Push

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00:00Our National Insider on Baseball is USA Today's great Bob Nightingale back on Coast to Coast.

00:07You know, you're out there in Phoenix and they've had like 105 or something straight days over a

00:16C note in the temperatures. It's just constantly a microwave oven out there. It's crazy.

00:22But the Diamondbacks have not been playing well. They're winning today. They look like

00:25they're going to win today and finally get a game at the Black Hole in Colorado at Coors.

00:34It's not over yet, but they're up 6-2 and they've been up. They were up six runs.

00:39Is this just a bad little stretch funk for them or is it something more serious? Because

00:46over the last two and a half months, they played great baseball and put themselves in position to

00:50be a dynamic team in the playoffs again. Yeah, they're just going through a little funk. That's

00:57it. And they're playing out of their minds for a while. They're about to cool off and the pitching

01:02has been a little shaky. But you're still great pitchers with the fresh arms because these guys

01:09have missed some time this year. And who knows, you know, it's not like they know they're going

01:13to make the playoffs. It's like, you think about it, they may be better off being the number six

01:18seed playing the Brewers first round like a year ago, rather than going to San Diego or even having

01:23the Padres come to Phoenix. I think the Brewers would be the long shot in the National League.

01:29And I think anybody would rather play some Brewers, nothing against the Brewers,

01:33but you better rather face the Brewers than San Diego Padres. Yeah, I mean, the Padres are no joke

01:39and they're playing a day game today. I think it starts at like, you know, 340 or something in the

01:46West. And I mean, that's a great game today out there at Petco. And they've been on the same kind

01:53of tear as Arizona has for the last couple of months. They've been amazing. They have a dangerous

02:00team, deepest, best bullpen in baseball, playing great. I mean, they slashed that payroll, you know,

02:08they dumped Soto. Guys, I'll leave it's a freezing like Snell and Hader and they're a better team.

02:13I mean, now they come back and they're dangerous. They're a much more complete team now than they've

02:19been in years. Obviously, they've never won a World Series before. They think this could be the year.

02:26So, Scooble goes tonight for Detroit at the K in Kansas City against Marsh and the Royals.

02:33He really has been phenomenal. 16 and 4 with a 2-5 ERA, a 0-9-4 whip, 214 Ks. He's only walked 33

02:45guys all year. He's going to win the Cy Young. But more importantly, they're a game and a half out.

02:51If Cleveland could win tonight at home over Minnesota and Scooble can win in Kansas City,

02:57they'd be staring at, I mean, they'd really be sniffing it now at a half game out. Tonight

03:01is huge for them with their ace on the mound. It is. You know, I heard you talking about Scooble

03:07before. The one place where he struggles pitching is Kansas City. He's got a career, I think,

03:13over six ERA at that place for whatever reason. I mean, he's a definite Cy Young award winner.

03:19He'll be unanimous, but it's amazing. That's the one place that drives him crazy. So, we'll see.

03:25Hey, KC better start turning around or they may miss the playoffs. But you're right. I mean,

03:30here's Detroit. They give up completely, get the trade-down line, dump their guys,

03:35dump Jack Flaherty, and now they're playing lights out. You wonder what would have happened

03:39if they kept Flaherty when they had made the playoffs. So, why do you think he struggles

03:46so badly in that ballpark? It's not like a hitter, which might have a sight line, you know,

03:53picking the ball up, coming off the hand, the release point of a backdrop in a ballpark.

03:59I can see that. I really don't, frankly, understand what is so hard about a guy throwing

04:07strikes and working his stuff on the dish. I don't get why guys are jinxed in certain ballparks,

04:14but I guess it just happens. Yeah, you see all the time. I mean, it's almost like a Debra,

04:19you know, Raphael Debra's Gary Cole thing. Why can't Cole get out Debra's? Why does he give up?

04:25I'm sure it gets in your head and psychological. You know, Royals are a nice team. They do have a

04:31nice home-field advantage there. Bobby Wood is much better at home in the road. But yeah,

04:36just one of those mind-boggling things is why does he struggle? He's a young pitcher,

04:40but why does he struggle so much at Coffin Stadium? So, it'll be interesting to see

04:45what happens tonight. Hinch has done a great job in Detroit, and I think it's gone unnoticed. I

04:52don't even think people realize that's where he is after Houston, after suspensions, after

05:00trash cans, after everything else. He is really starting to win again like he used to in Houston.

05:08Yeah, it's been a while. People kind of say, what's happening here? You know,

05:11you're supposed to turn things around and as it worked. Hey, a lot of those guys,

05:15young guys now were by the previous regime, Al Avalon. They're kind of his guys,

05:20and now they've stepped up. You know, there wasn't any pressure, particularly after giving

05:24up at the trade-down line. These young guys have played well. So, no matter what happens,

05:29and there's still a long shot to make the playoffs. Remember now, they lose a tiebreaker

05:34against the twins. So, even though they're one-half out, they're really two-and-a-half out.

05:39Hey, people are going to be picking them to win that Central Division next year.

05:43So, Bob, I was in Vegas at the Canelo fight on Saturday. I was there, and I was talking to my

05:49buddy about they're tearing down the drop like in early October. It's coming in a few days. They're

05:54going to implode the building. They've already gutted it. It's sitting there all empty and

05:59everything like a shell. It looks like something you'd see in Ukraine after, you know, the Russian

06:04bombings. It's just this giant shell of a casino, right? And I said to my buddy, I said, they're

06:09going to tear it down. They're going to start building the new ballpark. I said, is baseball

06:13going to work in Las Vegas? You know what he said to me? He said, of course, it will. It's only

06:17going to have 30,000 seats. It's a city of entertainment. 30,000 is nothing. And tourists

06:24come there. They party. They want to do things. They want to go to shows. They want to go to

06:28hockey games. They want to go to Raider games. They want to go to baseball games. He thinks the

06:33small, intimate ballpark they're building will work. Do you buy that? I don't. I think it's

06:40going to be a failure there. And the reason I say that is I live in Phoenix. It's the fourth,

06:45fifth largest city in the country. It has trouble surviving here. Same temperature and everything

06:50else. You know, they got a retractable roof. So it's, you know, comfortable watching a game.

06:55But to your point, I don't see people flying to Vegas in the summertime and, you know, you're

07:00hanging by the pool, going to clubs and things like that. The last thing I want to do is go see

07:04a ballgame. You can go see it in your own city. I just don't see people flocking to the ballpark

07:10there. You know, it's different with hockey and smaller schedule, certainly different for the

07:14Raiders. If the NBA comes there, which I think they will, I think it worked there. I used to

07:19remember baseball in Las Vegas. So a lot of big shots on TV are rambling on about how they think

07:27the Yankees are going to win the pennant. Do you believe that, that they're that good, that they're

07:33just going to waltz through the playoffs? I don't believe for one minute that they're that much

07:37better than anybody else. I don't either. I'll take the field for sure. You know, the answer

07:44right now, who would be the favorite to win the pennant? I might go right back to the Astros again.

07:49They've been to seven straight ALCSs. They know how to win. Got a much better bullpen than the

07:55Yankees. Got a deeper rotation than the Yankees. Kyle Tucker's back. He's fresh. Alvarez is a

08:02monster. And of course, you still have Altuve and Bregman. So we'll see. Now, I think the Astros

08:10could get on fifths. That's a team that always seems to beat them come crunch time. So do you

08:16believe that the, and I have a minute, that the Braves are not going to make the playoffs?

08:23I think they will. I mean, I know they're two games back. It's we're talking right now.

08:28They know how to win this time of year. I know they're banged up and everything else.

08:31Remember next week, they got three games in Atlanta. So, you know, they got to win at least

08:36two of those three, if not sweep the series. But Atlanta wins this time of year. The Mets don't

08:41win this time of year. We'll see what happens. Big weekend with the Mets having to play the Phillies.

08:48So you almost think the Mets are going to be the ones that choke?

08:52Yeah, I mean, a nice second half for everything else. I hate to call it a choke, but I don't think

08:57they make it. No, they got two games lead. Also pick Atlanta. They know how to win this time of

09:02year. The Mets have never proven they can win this time of year.

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