Good, Bad and Ugly From D-backs' Impressive Series Win vs Dodgers

The Arizona Diamondbacks performed at a high level at Dodger Stadium, taking a series win from the Los Angeles Dodgers.

While Arizona is not exactly close to truly contending for a playoff spot, they've also won four of their last five against the two toughest teams in baseball in back-to-back road series.

With that in mind, below is the good, bad and ugly from a successful series at Dodger Stadium.

Diamondbacks vs Dodgers: The Good

Excellent Pitching

The Diamondbacks' pitching staff performed at an extremely high level in games one and two. It began with the starters.

Zac Gallen threw one of his best games of the year. He went six innings, allowing only two hits while striking out eight. He allowed only one baserunner to reach scoring position throughout the entirety of his dominant outing.

Eduardo Rodriguez followed that up with six scoreless innings of his own — bucking an ugly trend of blowup outings against the Dodgers.

Arizona's bullpen also did its job well in games one and two.

With two six-inning starts, they only needed to cover six innings of relief, but Arizona's relievers surrendered only one run in that span, keeping a hold on both of the D-backs' wins.

Arizona held Shohei Ohtani to just two base hits — both being singles — and kept a potent offense down for much of the series.

Diamondbacks' Excellent Defense

The Diamondbacks played tight defense all series. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. threw out a runner at home to maintain a scoreless inning in game two, and Blaze Alexander followed that up with a diving catch.

Related Content: How D-backs' Defense Fueled Improbable Series Win over Dodgers

Arizona's defense was a big factor in their pitching staff's success, especially in game two. They're finally beginning to return to a familiar identity of sharp defensive prowess, and it paid off against a team that is difficult to suppress offensively.

Winning games is a team effort.

Diamondbacks vs Dodgers: The Bad

Diamondbacks' Early-Game Offense

The D-backs hit well in the later innings of games, but all three contests were on no-hitter watch at some point well beyond the first two innings.

Granted, Arizona faced three elite arms in Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but the approaches and results at the plate through the first half of games left much to be desired.

It's hard to complain too much when the D-backs got the job done eventually, but the team has simply struggled early in games, and that's a trend that cannot continue forever.

For a club that has often been known as early strikers, it's a strange departure to witness.