With two straight losses to the cellar-dwelling Chicago Cubs to start the second half of the season, the Arizona Diamondbacks have done exactly the opposite of what their fans were hoping they would do. They had momentum going into the All-Star Break, having beaten the division-leading Los Angeles Dodgers three straight games, and they looked like they were ready to make a move after returning to play.
Then they put up two stinkers of games, losing to a team that has been really bad this year. With that being said, the team is still just five and a half games out of first place in a division full of teams that don't want to pull away from the rest of the pack.
But if you look at it, this is exactly what the D-backs seem to like to do. They like to have adversity and overcome it.
Last season, they won an improbable amount of one-run games and had an improbable number of com-from-behind wins. They won the division that way.
This season, they have stayed in the thick of things despite getting almost nothing from their two expected pitching aces in Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson. Hudson went down with an injury for the rest of the season and Kennedy just has been ineffective overall.
But even still, they are right there. The team has thrived on having to grind away at obstacles and overcome them.
They believe that they will be in the postseason.
The only issue is that it looks like they are putting themselves in positions of adversity, and you don't want to do that on your own.
But I wouldn't put it past the group of players that they would subconsciously do something like that. They have a steady hand in Kirk Gibson leading the way.
Right now they are three game under .500. They aren't getting ace pitching from their ace. They are five and a half games out of the division lead. They have a rock to climb.
But that's how the D-backs play. They need a chip on their shoulder to step up.
Looks like they did it again, much like Brittany Spears did over a decade ago.
Will they turn it around? Recent history says yes, so just sit back and relax while they all get ready to have it happen.