Diamondbacks Fail to Execute in Biggest Moments Against Cardinals

Despite out-hitting the St. Louis Cardinals in all three games, and 30-20 in the series, the Arizona Diamondbacks lost all three games by one run. It marked the first time the 2025 Diamondbacks were swept in any series, and the first time in a three-game series since April 5-7, 2024.

The Diamondbacks have lost five consecutive games, all decided by two runs or less, and are finding themselves in a tough position in the Wild Card race. Even though they are playing well in these games, their lack of execution in each game's biggest moments have come back to haunt them. The Cardinals series showed the difference between how a contender and non-contender will play such a hard-fought series.

Here are the three main takeaways from the series:

1. Diamondbacks Fail to Execute Defensively in Critical Moments

The Diamondbacks competed well against the Cardinals, but the team failed to execute when the game called for a big hit or a big defensive play. Since these were one-run games, those are the type of losses that will haunt a team. One better at-bat or defensive play made had the potential to change the outcome.

The first play came in the series opener. With the bases loaded in a 1-1 game, Nolan Arenado lifted a fly ball to the left-center gap. Alek Thomas attempted to close on it and failed to make the basket catch. The play ultimately resulted in a bases-clearing triple for Arenado and putting St. Louis up 4-1.

There isn't any catch probability data on Statcast regarding Thomas, but it was a 15% catch probability (110 feet in 5.6 seconds) from where left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. started and was rated as a 5-star chance. Based on where the fielders were when the camera cut to the outfield, it's an easy assumption that Thomas had to cover more ground in those 5.6 seconds.

Regardless of the difficulty, that's a play Thomas had to make for his team. Coming off two underwhelming losses to the Dodgers at the time, they needed a momentum-changing play and he didn't deliver.

In the series finale, it was another play not made on a tough chance. With a runner at second, Victor Scott II ripped a 102 MPH ground ball right at Ketel Marte. Marte was eaten up by that ball, allowing it to get into center field to plate the go-ahead and ultimately winning run for the Cardinals.

2. Big Innings Bite Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly

Gallen and Kelly were each working on a Quality Start but scuffled in their final inning. In both innings, the pitchers gave up four runs and were pulled mid-inning for the bullpen. After the starters were removed from the game, the Diamondbacks found themselves trailing.

For Gallen, he was working on five scoreless innings but then lost the strike zone in the sixth. He walked three hitters, including one with the bases loaded to tie the game. Those walks came around to score on Arenado's triple, resulting in his sixth loss of the season.

The struggles continue for Gallen, who has not had the contract year he hoped for. He's 3-6 with a 5.25 ERA. All three of his wins come against the Mets and Yankees, but he's 0-6 with a 7.29 ERA (34 earned runs in 42 innings) against everyone else. The Diamondbacks are 1-7 in those games, with the lone win coming against Milwaukee on April 12.

Kelly, in typical fashion, was clean and crisp through six innings. He faced three hitters in the seventh and failed to retire them. He gave up two base hits with an exit velocity north of 100 MPH and walked a batter. Jalen Beeks finished the inning, allowing the inherited runner to score. That run ended up being the difference in a 6-5 loss.

That inning snapped a streak of eight starts in which Kelly allowed three runs or fewer. Even though his blowup inning serves as a setback, the right-hander has shown the ability to bounce back and go on a run this season.

Brandon Pfaadt wasn't blown up for multiple runs in his final inning, but he surrendered a one-run lead. After not issuing a walk for five innings, he walked the leadoff batter and gave up a single to put himself in a tough spot. While he kept it a tie game, with help from a big strikeout from Kevin Ginkel, it still served the same purpose as the other two starts.

3. Poor Situational Hitting Thwarts Late Rallies

The lack of execution in this series isn't just limited to the inability to make plays defensively, they couldn't execute in big situations on offense. In the series, Arizona was 6-for-26 (.231 BA) with runners in scoring position.

Twice in the ninth inning, they had a chance to score the tying run. They had two runners on base in both the second and third games of the series, but collectively went 0-for-5 at the plate. Both games featured a great play by Arenado, making a diving stop on Saturday and a leaping catch against the screen and a seat on Sunday. Following Arenado's great plays, the final batter struck out in each game.

There were some successful moments in the series in which the team was able to build innings and score. The two most notable examples are in the eighth inning on Saturday and the first inning on Sunday.

In the eighth inning, the Diamondbacks pounded out five hits, including three for extra bases, against Kyle Leahy and Steven Matz. It accounted for half of the team's hit total with runners in scoring position for the series. It saw the top of the order get on and the middle of the order drive them in.

In the first inning of the series finale, Arizona got two runners in scoring position on a Marte single and a Josh Naylor double. Eugenio Suárez cashed in with a bloop shot down the right field line to score both runners. Their only other hit with a runner in scoring position was an RBI single by Pavin Smith take gave the Diamondbacks a 3-2 lead that was squandered by Pfaadt and the bullpen.

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