Gallen's struggles costly in Wild Card, Cy Young races

NEW YORK -- Coming off the first nine-inning complete game of his career in his previous start against the Cubs, the excitement around Zac Gallen couldn’t have been higher in the D-backs' clubhouse. Prior to Wednesday night’s contest vs. the Mets, pitching coach Brent Strom raved about Gallen -- a top candidate for the National League Cy Young Award -- and how he and Merrill Kelly have provided stability in an unsettled rotation.

“We have our version of our top two, and they’re going to step up these last few games,” Strom said. “Obviously, these next two games are vital for us against the Mets before we go home.”

• Games remaining: at NYM (1), vs. CHC (3), vs. SF (2), at NYY (3), at CWS (3), vs. HOU (3)
• Standings update: The D-backs (76-71) have the same record as the Reds (76-71), who hold the third NL Wild Card. The Reds have won the season series, so in the event of a tie, Cincinnati would take the playoff spot. The D-backs are a half-game ahead of the Giants (75-71) and the Marlins (75-71). The D-backs trail the Cubs by two games for the No. 2 spot.

But Wednesday night proved to be the opposite of what Arizona needed. Gallen ran into trouble in the D-backs' 7-1 loss at Citi Field, giving up seven runs (six earned) on eight hits in five-plus innings while striking out four and walking two. Meanwhile, Arizona’s offense was unable to muster much of anything against Mets starter Joey Lucchesi, remaining scoreless until the eighth inning and going 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

“The fact that we’re in this race, that’s what makes it more disappointing than anything,” said Gallen, whose ERA rose to 3.50. “I just didn’t give us a chance to win tonight. That’s usually my job, my mantra -- it’s what I try to stay on.”

Gallen’s troubles started early, as aggressive at-bats by Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso resulted in a 1-0 deficit for Arizona just three batters into the bottom of the first. Alonso reached well below the zone on a 2-2 cutter, muscling the potential putaway pitch into shallow left field for an RBI single.

“It’s a good lineup,” Gallen said. “Especially those guys at the top of the order. Just being behind in the count makes it hard. … With Alonso, I feel like I made a pretty good pitch, he just put a better swing on it.”

The damage likely would have been greater if not for two stellar plays from Jake McCarthy to start and end the first frame. McCarthy, who was recalled from Triple-A Reno on Tuesday, broke in hard to make a diving grab on leadoff hitter Brandon Nimmo’s line drive. Then, on a slicing liner off the bat of Jeff McNeil, McCarthy covered 55 feet in 3.6 seconds, robbing McNeil of extra bases and cutting the Mets’ rally short.

“It was the first batter out there," McCarthy said. "It felt like I was right in the thick of it then -- kind of breaks the ice a little bit.”

Gallen settled in and skated through the next two frames, retiring the side in order in each of them. But the middle innings weren't as smooth. The deciding blows -- Rafael Ortega’s RBI double, Alonso’s two-run double and Mark Vientos’ two-run homer -- came on either four-seam fastballs or cutters too close to the middle of the plate.

"I think he made mistakes, and we took advantage,” Vientos said. “That right there is just the name of the game. You've got good pitchers like that that rarely make mistakes, but when they do and we're taking advantage and putting good swings on it, that's our mindset going into every game."

“I just didn’t feel like I was particularly sharp,” Gallen said. “I just wasn’t putting them in spots where I needed to, wasn’t putting guys away in certain spots. … Just didn’t make pitches, didn’t execute.”

The D-backs were behind from the jump, but the avenues to mount a comeback continued to present themselves. After a Tommy Pham walk in the top of the fourth, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. laced a ball into left-center field. Pham advanced to third, but Gurriel was thrown out trying to stretch the hit into a double.

Then, after Ketel Marte and Jordan Lawlar reached with back-to-back singles in the sixth, Pham grounded into a double play to end another Arizona threat. In total, the D-backs left eight men on base. The only hit with a runner in scoring position came on McCarthy’s infield single in the ninth. Arizona's only run came in the eighth, when second baseman Jeff McNeil's throw sailed wide as he attempted to complete a double play, allowing Seby Zavala to come home.

“I just think we’re trying to do too much,” D-backs' manager Torey Lovullo said. “It’s been a bit of a theme for us. When we do it right, we make it look easy. When we don’t, we create early-contact outs. … When you’re overanxious, or a little bit too aggressive, you’re going to run into some outs.”