Zac Gallen Pitches the Diamondbacks to Victory vs Mets

Gallen took the mound for the Diamondbacks coming off a fantastic start against these very same Mets last week. By the time he strolled off he'd completed arguably his best start of the year, and helped notch the D-backs a series-tying win.

The setup for his outing came in the first and second innings, as the early innings have been Gallen's crutch all season long. Entering Tuesday night's matchup, his first-inning ERA stood at 6.43, and his second-inning numbers were even worse, with a 12.86 ERA and 1.175 OPS against him in that frame.

But Gallen set down the first seven hitters of the ballgame consecutively.

On the other side of the diamond, David Peterson also faced the D-backs for the second time this week. His command is usually a strong suit of his game, relying on soft contact to generate outs rather than prioritizing strikeouts.

As Josh Naylor stepped to the plate, however Peterson let a ball slip, riding up and in on the Arizona first baseman. The ball hit Naylor near the bottom of his hand, and while he remained in the game for the remainder of his outing, his reaction spoke to the incredible level of pain he was experiencing.

Following Gallen's seven consecutive retired batters, he allowed a single and induced what was originally ruled a double play. After a long replay review process, the call was overturned, instead being ruled a fielder's choice.

This seemed to mess with the right-hander's rhythm that had been so strong to this point in the game. With the top of the Mets' lineup at the dish, Gallen walked three consecutive hitters, allowing the go-ahead run to score before striking out Starling Marte.

"It was a tough play," manager torey Lovullo said postgame. "The ball didn't materialize, didn't show up at the same pace in which Marte thought, and by the time it registered, he maybe laid back on it a little bit which is a tough play."

"With Taylor running, he's pretty fast. So I don't know if the play could have been turned. And maybe it was a little bit of a distraction with that lull in the amount of time where they were replaying or going to replay. Maybe something happened there, but he locked it back in and did his job," Lovullo said.

Gallen told reporters postgame that he had been ready to stay out there and finish the inning.

"To my eyes, it looked like it was safe, so I was prepared to go out there and keep throwing. I don't know if, subconsciously, just that 30-to-45 second break just kind of threw me off my rhythm or what. But going forward, it's just something I've got to stay on top of, and it's not really allowed to happen again," Gallen said.

But the Diamondbacks answered back quickly with a rally, started by a Randal Grichuk double. An RBI fielder's choice and a double from Lourdes Gurriel Jr. followed by a groundout allowed two Arizona runs to score, giving them a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning.

Arizona continued to add on in the sixth against Peterson as a Naylor walk and Gurriel two-run home run pushed the game to a 4-1 D-backs lead. It was Gurriel's sixth blast of the year, and only the third long ball Peterson has given up during 2025. Gurriel finished 3-for-4, and appears to be entering a patented hot streak.

The Mets' left-hander escaped the inning, but it would eventually end his night as he was pushed to 104 pitches. While he was bitten by a few key hits, including the homer, Peterson managed to escape some additional jams, keeping the game from becoming a blowout.

Gallen on the other hand continued to dominate into the seventh inning, generating a big double play to escape and become the first Diamondbacks pitcher to complete seven frames in 2025.

"I felt like I was in a really good spot delivery-wise," Gallen said. "I was able to kind of repeat pretty well, just able to stay in the zone. [Jose Herrera] called a great game, so just following his lead and trying to make pitches.

"If you would have asked me, I would have said, 'no way, first one.' But hopefully it's just a sign of good things to come with this staff. I think we're kind of coming into our own. Guys are getting on a roll here...

Pitching Lines:

D. Peterson: 6 IP, 4 ER, 6 K, 4 BB, 104 P

Z. Gallen: 7 IP, 1 ER, 6 K, 3 BB, 101 P

The Diamondbacks continued to add on against Jose Butto who came in relief for New York. A Naylor sacrifice fly allowed Corbin Carroll to cross the plate, Naylor's second RBI of the evening, and 23rd on the year.

A scoreless inning by Kevin Ginkel, followed by a slightly stressful but similarly scoreless appearance from Shelby Miller closed out a strong 5-1 Diamondbacks win. This victory evened the series, setting up a rubber match in Wednesday's finale and giving the D-backs a chance to steal the season tiebreaker against the Mets.

The Diamondbacks will be back in action on Wednesday for the series finale, with first pitch scheduled for 12:40 p.m.