D-backs Young Outfielders Impress in Split Squad Loss to A's

Corbin Carroll, Alek Thomas, and Jake McCarthy all had solid games at the plate despite facing left-handed pitching.

The Diamondbacks trio of young outfielders shined in a 12-7 loss to the Oakland Athletics. Corbin Carroll, Alek Thomas, and Jake McCarthy batted in the top three spots in the order against left-handed starter J.P. Sears and combined for four hits, one walk, and scored two runs in nine plate appearances. Three of those hits came against left-handed pitching.

Carroll made an immediate impact, singling to left-center on Sears' first pitch of the game. Three pitches later, he stole second on a perfect jump and scored on an Emmanuel Rivera sacrifice fly that chased J.J. Bleday to the warning track in straight away center. 

Carroll later clarified that he wasn't paying attention to the pitch clock itself, but rather got a good read on Sears and took off.

Follow-up: I asked Carroll about this play after the game. He didn't even see the clock! The perfect jump came from watching Sears intently, and he read Sears' move perfectly.

— Evan Thompson (@evan_m_thompson) February 25, 2023

Gabriel Moreno, who was acquired in the Daulton Varsho trade in November, showcased why he was one of the game's top prospects in the second. Despite falling behind 0-2, the young catcher roped a breaking ball into the left field berm to double the lead. He also made a key defensive stop in the game, fielding a dribbler off the bat of Ramon Laureano and having the presence of mind to step on home plate before throwing to first. 

Drey Jameson, who is competing for the final rotation spot this spring, threw two scoreless innings. The D-backs No. 5 prospect allowed one hit, one walk, and struck out one in 37 pitches despite battling sporadic command. His fastball was consistently around 96 MPH and reached up to 99. 

Jameson committed a pace of play violation before throwing his first pitch, as he was still warming up with the timer under 30 seconds and was charged a ball.

Did you know that the pitcher has to throw his last warmup pitch before the between-innings timer hits 30 seconds?

I was at the rules meeting, and I did not.

Drey Jameson didn't know that, either, and started the game with a 1–0 count.#Dbacks #Athletics #PitchClock

— Evan Thompson (@evan_m_thompson) February 25, 2023

Rivera followed up his first inning sacrifice fly with a two-out RBI single to right in the fifth. It was an example of the 26-year-old infielder doing a good job of battling back in the count and not trying to do too much in a big situation. While Rivera's on the outside looking in for a roster spot, the strong showing could give the D-backs confidence that he can perform when called upon. 

Jesse Biddle really struggled to throw strikes in the third inning, walking in two runs. Biddle walked three, two with the bases loaded, and hit a batter in two-thirds of an inning. Sam Clay allowed an unearned run in the fourth, but a throwing error by Lawlar on what would have been an inning-ending double play resulted in a run scoring.

Things got out of hand late, as the trio of Conor Grammes, Jeff Bain, and Chad Patrick allowed eight runs while recording only five outs. Grammes, who was the No. 28 prospect on the preseason list, failed to retire any of the five hitters he faced.