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Diamondbacks reclaim playoff spot with the most September win imaginable
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- Diamondbacks reclaim playoff spot with the most September win imaginable
Diamondbacks reclaim playoff spot with the most September win imaginable originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Arizona Diamondbacks did not need a long rally, a crooked inning or a collection of home runs Wednesday.
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They needed one swing and 27 outs.
James McCann homered in the eighth inning to provide the only run in Arizona's 1-0 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies . The win ended the Diamondbacks' three-game losing streak and moved them back into a National League playoff position.
It was tense, imperfect and absolutely necessary. In other words, it was a classic September victory.
Arizona found a way when its offense had nothing
The Diamondbacks entered the game in danger of allowing a brief losing streak to change the shape of their season.
Philadelphia had won six consecutive games. Bryce Harper was riding a career-best on-base streak, and Phillies starter Andrew Painter delivered the kind of performance normally capable of extending a winning run.
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Arizona's pitching staff answered every challenge. The Diamondbacks bullpen completed a three-hit shutout and refused to give Philadelphia a late opening. That effort created enough time for McCann to change the game with his eighth home run of the season.
McCann is not the first player opponents would identify in Arizona's scouting report.
That is precisely what made the moment valuable.
MORE: Jackson Chourio turns Cubs' 17-run eruption into one-night illusion
Playoff races are rarely decided only by stars performing like stars. They often turn on a backup catcher, middle reliever or bench player supplying one result-changing contribution when the lineup's bigger names are quiet.
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Arizona's margin remains thin. One victory does not create meaningful separation from the other teams pursuing the National League's final postseason positions.
It does change the atmosphere. Instead of carrying a four-game losing streak into Thursday, the Diamondbacks leave with proof that they can win a game in which almost nothing works offensively.
That matters because postseason baseball often looks exactly like Wednesday's contest. Pitching controls the afternoon. Opportunities disappear. One mistake or one perfectly timed swing determines everything. Arizona cannot rely on scoring one run every night.
It can trust that its season will not automatically collapse when one run is all it has.
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