The Arizona Diamondbacks were defeated in Game 4 of the World Series and are now one defeat away from elimination. Despite the Texas Rangers' 3-1 series lead, Arizona is not giving up hope. The D'Backs must be open to making some changes in strategy if they want to come back and win the 2023 World Series.
Today, we will be taking a look at three changes Arizona must immediately make to avoid getting eliminated by the Rangers in the Fall Classic.
Utilize Evan Longoria
The Rangers are sending Nathan Eovaldi to the mound in Game 5. Evan Longoria is 5-15 in his career against the right-hander, per StatMuse.
Longoria has also played in 50 postseason games. His experience is extremely valuable for this young Diamondbacks team. Longoria won't back down in the big moments.
It should be noted that the veteran third baseman is slashing just .156/.220/.200 in the 2023 postseason. Still, relying on those numbers should not be the Diamondbacks' plan. All it takes is one swing for a player to completely change the narrative surrounding them in the World Series.
So how exactly should the Diamondbacks utilize Longoria?
Longoria did not play in Game 4. The Diamondbacks were able to score seven runs, but their offense did not break through until late in the contest when the game was already out of hand.
Arizona probably should start Longoria in Game 5. They don't necessarily have to though. At the very least, he should be used as a pinch-hitter late in the game. Give Longoria the crucial at-bat, he has what it takes to come through.
Let Zac Gallen pitch deep in the game!
Zac Gallen hasn't pitched especially well in the playoffs but he is the ace of the team. And it's possible that fatigue is an issue since Gallen hasn't ever had to pitch this deep into a season.
With all of that being said, now is the time to leave it all on the line. Gallen hasn't pitched more than six innings in any game during the 2023 playoffs. If he's performing well though, Torey Lovullo should be open to the idea of letting Gallen pitch into the seventh inning.
Far too often in recent years we have seen managers pull their starting pitchers too early in the playoffs. This places additional pressure on the bullpen and offenses tend to come through.
As good of a manager as Kevin Cash is, he's become known as the coach who took Blake Snell out against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2020 World Series. The Tampa Bay Rays ultimately lost that Fall Classic and it's placed a stain on Cash's managing reputation. Lovullo can avoid that by letting Gallen pitch deep into the game, if he's performing well of course.
Diamondbacks, don't let Corey Seager beat you
Finally, and arguably the most important change for the Diamondbacks, is to let anyone but Corey Seager beat them.
Seager is slashing .306/.442/.694 with a 1.135 OPS in the 2023 playoffs. He's simply locked in right now. There is no reason for Seager taking five at-bats with no walks, like he did in Game 4.
Sure, the Rangers' offense played well overall. But it was Seager's early home run that led to their offensive outburst. If he doesn't hit that homer, perhaps Texas' offense doesn't find its grove.
It should be noted that this strategy would be different if Adolis Garcia was still in the lineup. However, he was removed from the roster due to suffering an injury. So now, Arizona can place their focus on containing Seager.
Should the Diamondbacks give him the Barry Bonds treatment and not throw a single strike to him? Not necessarily, although it isn't a terrible idea.
Arizona must consistently work around Seager. This means Gallen and the bullpen need to paint the corners. If they miss, it must be out of the zone and not in the middle of the zone. It especially means throwing no 2-0 fastballs to Seager.
If someone else in the Rangers lineup comes through in the clutch then the Diamondbacks can live with that. However, they cannot let Texas' hottest hitter continue to crush the baseball against them.
Walking Seager is a much better result than watching the ball fly into the Diamondbacks' pool at Chase Field off his bat.
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