PHOENIX (AP) — Corbin Carroll swiped his 50th base of the season, followed with his 25th homer and then made a nice, running defensive play to track down a line drive in left field that wrapped up Arizona's 7-1 win over the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday.
Just another day in one of the most prolific seasons for a rookie in baseball history.
Carroll had four hits, including a solo homer, Merrill Kelly threw 6 2/3 strong innings and the Diamondbacks won their fifth straight game. Arizona is one game in front of the Chicago Cubs for the second of three National League wild-card berths.
“I'm proud of it, but at the same time, we've talked about this as a team,” Carroll said. “This is the time of the year where we're not worried about personal accomplishments. That's out the window at this point. All that matters is getting the win.”
The Diamondbacks have been winning a lot lately. Much of the reason is Carroll, who is the first rookie to enter the 25-50 club.
The Giants have lost five of their past six, fell to 76-76 for the season, and are 3 1/2 games back for the final playoff spot with 10 games remaining.
“These were must-win games and, going back several games, those were also must-win games,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said. “Now, the math is not on our side. Every game is one we have to win.”
Kelly (12-7) gave up one run on three hits, walking two and striking out five. The veteran right-hander bounced back from a tough outing in New York last weekend, when he gave up seven runs in five innings against the Mets.
Arizona's four-run seventh put the game out of reach. Carroll and Ketel Marte led off with back-to-back homers off reliever Ryan Walker, extending Arizona's lead to 5-1. Gabriel Moreno and Emmanuel Rivera added RBI singles to push the margin to 7-1.
“Today was great,” Carroll said. “It's fun to add those runs late, take the pressure off the bullpen. Those are probably the games that are the most fun.”
Moreno and Christian Walker both had three hits. Alek Thomas added an RBI double. Marte's homer was his 24th of the season.
“It's a lot of players putting the bat down, handing off to the brother behind them,” Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said. “Conceptually, we're talking about connecting everything, staying connected at all times through nine innings, and it shows up like this.”
San Francisco right-hander Logan Webb (10-13) gave up three runs on nine hits and two walks over six innings, striking out four. The 26-year-old workhorse has thrown 207 innings this season, which leads baseball.
LaMonte Wade Jr. started the game with a homer, giving the Giants a 1-0 lead. The D-backs responded in the bottom of the first when Walker's infield single brought home Carroll.
The D-backs had 14 hits while the Giants had just three.
SPEEDY AND STRONG
Carroll — one of the leading candidates for NL Rookie of the Year — stole his 49th and 50th bases on Wednesday. The second stolen base coaxed an errant throw by Giants catcher Patrick Bailey, allowing Carroll to advance to third.
Carroll is the third D-backs player to steal 50 bases, joining Tony Womack and Eric Byrnes. Womack stole 72 bases in 1999 while Byrnes had 50 in 2007.
He's also the second player in MLB history with more than 25 homers and 50 stolen bases in a season in an age-22 season or younger, joining César Cedeño, who had 25 homers and 56 stolen bases in 1973.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Giants SS Brandon Crawford (right hamstring tightness) left the game in the third inning and was replaced by Paul DeJong. ... RHPs Alex Cobb and Keaton Winn were placed on the 15-day injured list. Cobb left Tuesday's game in the third inning with a hip injury. To fill their spots, LHP Kyle Harrison and RHP Sean Hjelle were recalled from Triple-A Sacramento
UP NEXT
The Giants travel to face the Los Angeles Dodgers in a four-game series starting Thursday.
The Diamondbacks have a day off Thursday before traveling to face the New York Yankees in a three-game series starting Friday.
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