Aggressive D-backs hustle to series-ending win in LA

LOS ANGELES -- With a 1-1 count on Jake McCarthy and two outs in the ninth inning Sunday, Corbin Carroll stole second without a throw. It moved him into scoring position along with Lourdes Gurriel Jr. at third, but it had another effect that would prove to be even more important.

Because Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman no longer had to hold a runner at the bag and with the left-handed-hitting McCarthy at the plate, Freeman dropped deep behind the base.

McCarthy stepped out of the box and took in what was happening.

“I just saw that the right side of the infield opened up a little bit and figured out [Dodgers reliever Brusdar] Graterol was going to come with something firm at the top of the zone,” McCarthy said.

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McCarthy, one of the team’s fastest players, decided it was the perfect time to try something he’d been working on all spring, and so when Graterol came with a fastball up, McCarthy dragged a bunt down between the mound and first base.

“I don't think I would have done that first and third, but second and third really opens it up a little bit,” McCarthy said.

Graterol reacted quickly off the mound, but maybe because he knew how well McCarthy runs, he seemed to rush in picking up the baseball and dropped it. That allowed McCarthy to reach first and Gurriel to score from third with what proved to be the game-winner in Arizona’s 2-1 series-ending win over the Dodgers.

“I thought it was obviously a very risky play,” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. “But our players work on those little parts of the game and we pride ourselves on that, and it was the difference between a win and a loss. Clearly he saw something. Everybody was wondering if I made the call on that. I did not. Those are instinctual plays and I open the door for these kids to open the door to execute on that level when they see something. They’ve practiced it a lot and they’re ready to take advantage of it.”

Carroll and McCarthy are part of the young core of D-backs players who are athletic, fast and aggressive on the basepaths.

“I loved it,” Carroll said of McCarthy’s decision to bunt. “I don't think any of us are really feeling our best at the plate right now, except maybe [Christian Walker] is probably feeling pretty good, but just to find a way to grit that one out … that's just who [McCarthy] is as a player, and it's awesome to see.”

With the D-backs' offense struggling to get on track through the season’s first three games as well as Sunday, their speed became a saving grace.

Arizona’s first run came in the fifth when Carroll led off with a single to center. Two flyouts later, Carroll stole second and third and then scored on Geraldo Perdomo’s bloop to right.

“I don't think we swung the bat as good as we possibly can [this series],” Lovullo said. “Whether there was some anxiety or just overall excitement, I don't know. But you saw little glimpses from time to time, some things that these guys are capable of doing with manufacturing runs.

"So Corbin gets a base hit and steals a couple of bases. We have a playbook. You guys know what it is, you guys know what we've been talking about all Spring Training long, and we're starting to execute it. We’re going to keep forcing plays and making plays happen, and that’s what Corbin did.”