It was a big win for the Arizona Diamondbacks. It was a important to win the series (2-1) over the division rival Colorado Rockies. It was big for the team to get back into an offensive grove after losing some rhythm during the All-Star break. It was big time to get nine scoreless innings from Micah Owings (5 IP, 2 hits) and Zach Duke (4 IP, 3 hits). It was certainly big to put up 19 runs in the last two games.
What was not so "big" was the loss of Geoff Blum to a broken finger for a team that was already pretty banged up.
Blum broke the big bone in his pinkie finger on his right hand while fielding a ground ball from Ryan Spillborghs in the second inning. Blum completed the play and went to bat in the bottom of the inning but wasn't able to grip the bat and reported a sharp pain when he tried to throw the ball before the next inning.
Sean Burroughs replaced Blum in the game and will likely get even more playing time now. Blum said after the game that he doesn't think surgery will be necessary but will see the team doctor for more evaluation on Monday. It's too soon for any kind of official timeline but he tossed out "two or three weeks" off the top of his head.
The game itself was scoreless for the first two innings until the D-backs got on the board in the third with a Justin Upton two-out double that plated Willie Bloomquist and Xavier Nady who both singled ahead of him as part of the two-out rally.
Upton finished the game with a walk, a stolen base, three RBI, two doubles, a single and a triple in his 4-4 outing raised his average to .301 on the season.
"I don't know what's going on. I got some bloop shots, I'm squaring some up. The ball's just been falling for me," Upton said about his current streak that includes 14 hits in the last six games.
The triple Upton his was off the top of the wall to opposite field off a broken bat. He said he can't ever remember hitting a ball that far on a broken bat play.
The Diamondbacks now head off for a nine game road trip through the division against the Padres, Dodgers and then the Giants. Last time the D-backs took this trip through California it didn't go so well (3-6) with all six losses coming by one run.
The Diamondbacks will reactive closer J.J. Putz off the DL and had planned on sending Ryan Cook back to Reno to work on a few things. No word yet on a roster move to correspond with Blum's likely placement on the DL.
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