Corbin Carroll was undoubtedly hoping a homecoming would help him break out of his sophomore slump.
So far, it hasn’t happened.
The Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder, who was a unanimous selection as the National League’s Rookie of the Year last season, was hitless in a 3-1 loss at streaking Seattle on Saturday night as his batting average fell below .200.
The Mariners will try for a sweep of the three-game interleague series Sunday afternoon.
Manager Torey Lovullo dropped Carroll, who normally bats second in the Diamondbacks’ order, into the No. 8 spot Saturday for the first time since his initial September 2022 call-up to the major leagues.
“He just needs to maybe take a deep breath and find his way. And he will,” Lovullo said. “Once he gets there, we’ll migrate him back up to where he belongs at the top of the lineup.”
Carroll had more than 80 friends and family members in the stands for his first regular-season appearance in his hometown Friday.
“The guys keep like asking me like, ‘Oh, like how far did you grow up from here?'” Carroll said. “And it’s pretty cool telling them that I could walk to this ballpark. And to be back here playing real major league games, it’s just such an honor.”
As a sophomore at nearby Lakeside High School, his team fell in the state semifinals, missing out on a chance to play for the championship at T-Mobile Park.
He got that opportunity last summer as a starter for the National League in the All-Star Game.
Carroll said one of his fondest memories from that event was being introduced before the midsummer classic.
“We were waiting out there in the outfield and just hearing them (announce), ‘Welcome home, Corbin,’ and to hear the crowd’s reaction … I just felt that Seattle pride,” Carroll said. “I don’t think it gets the respect as a sports city that it deserves, so to kind of feel a little bit of that and feel like I did something to help make Seattle proud like that. That meant a lot.”
The Mariners have won three games in a row and nine of their past 11 to move atop the American League West. George Kirby pitched seven scoreless innings with a career-high 12 strikeouts and Ty France hit a two-run homer Saturday.
“Our pitching staff is elite, one of the best in the game,” France said. “Honestly all it takes some nights is just one run.”
The Diamondbacks, who have lost four of five, have two runs on six hits in the first two games of the series.
“It’s pretty frustrating,” Lovullo said. “We knew full well it was going to be hard when we came in here. This is a quality pitching staff and we’ve just got to be better. We’ve got to find a way to get it done. It’s not going to fix itself.”
Things won’t get easier for the Diamondbacks on Sunday with Seattle right-hander Logan Gilbert (2-0, 1.87 ERA) set to take the mound. Gilbert is 1-0 with a 2.84 ERA in one previous start against Arizona.
The Diamondbacks counter with righty Brandon Pfaadt (1-1, 4.97), who is 0-0 with a 4.76 ERA in one previous start against the Mariners.
–Field Level Media
