The Arizona Diamondbacks do not technically have to sweep the Colorado Rockies to stay alive this week, but a series-opening victory is a step in the right direction.
Arizona came into Tuesdasy night’s series opener at Coors Field 82-74. With a win by the Philadelphia Phillies over the Milwaukee Brewers Tuesday night, the D-backs’ Wild Card Elimination number has decreased to two.
They are four games out of the third and final Wild Card berth with two more games left to play against the Rockies before wrapping up their season with three games in San Diego.
Time is running out. Mathematical elimination has yet to arrive, but Arizona needs as many wins as they can gather. On Tuesday, behind a brilliant start by right-hander Michael Soroka, Arizona held on for one more night.
Michael Soroka mows down Rockies at Coors Field
Soroka, who is just three starts removed from his second IL stint of the season, put forward one of his best efforts of 2026.
The right-hander tossed seven strong innings, allowing two runs (only one earned) on two hits and one walk. He struck out nine batters, which fell one shy of his single-start season high of 10, which he has done twice in 2026.
Soroka’s lone earned run was the product of a Mickey Moniak solo homer. The unearned run scored due to a fielding error by Tim Tawa in left field. Soroka’s ERA over 21 appearances (20 starts)
Soroka had both his trademark slurve and four-seam fastball working. Each offering picked up seven whiffs and landed in the zone for seven called strikes. When that happens, the 29-year-old is an extremely tough matchup.
After he exited, with a 7-2 lead, thanks to a strong offensive night, Arizona’s bullpen took over. As they have done all season, they shut down the contest without much stress. Juan Morillo threw a scoreless eighth and Kevin Ginkel tossed a six-pitch scoreless ninth.
Diamondbacks offense finds rhythm vs Rockies
Arizona faced a favorable matchup coming in to Tuesday. Rockies lefty Kyle Freeland, who may have just made his final start for Colorado, held a 6.28 career ERA against the D-backs. That went up.
Arizona hammered three runs off Freeland in the first inning, then tacked on a run in both the third and fourth innings. Freeland was not able to record an out in the fourth before he was removed.
The Diamondbacks got multi-hit games by three different players, and only rookie Jose Fernandez was held without a knock. Ketel Marte went 2-for-4, Geraldo Perdomo went 3-for-5 and Gabriel Moreno knocked in two runs with a double.
But it was Nolan Arenado, once again, who had the best night. He went 3-for-5 against his old club and fell just a triple shy of the cycle, crushing his 28th home run of the season. His resurgent 2026 continues; he’s raised his average to .250 and his OPS to .789.
Add us as a preferred source on Google
