D-BACKS "DUNN IN" BY ANOMALIES

Arizona—This one had to hurt. Needing a victory against a sub-.500 team to stay alive in the playoff race, the D-Backs were instead eliminated in a wild doubleheader with Black Mesa that saw them gain a split, but in the process give up five home runs to Anomalies LF Adam Dunn, not to mention thirty runs, as complete a collapse of a pitching staff as can be imagined.
In the first game, Arizona was waxed 14-0 and Cole Hamels (8-9, 5.03) already trailed 6-0 before Neal Cotts and Oscar Villareal combined for a six-run fifth in ‘relief’ (ugh). Dunn drove in four with homers #26, #27 and #28, taking a curtain call after the last shot. Brandon Morrow nearly precipitated a brawl by buzzing one under Dunn’s chin in the seventh, but Dunn got a measure of satisfaction by beating out an infield hit to score an additional run, making an easy winner of Justin Verlander (13-8, 3.12), who ended up going the distance in his final start of 2007.

Arizona earned a split by coming up on top of an 18-16 slugfest in the second game, but Dunn banged two more round-trippers to deny Brandon Webb a ‘W’. Neal Cotts (1-2, 7.95) picked up the win eventually when Jose Reyes drove in his fifth and sixth runs of the game with a triple off Takashi Saito (6-4, 2.25), but it was definitely too late for D-Backs fans, who were observed trickling out as early as the second with the pennant lost.

So, for the third straight season, the free-wheeling D-Backs will have to come up with a new ‘plan’ for the off-season. They might want to include rebuilding their setup corps, one of the league’s worst, get some more starting pitching and a younger catcher. I’m just sayin’!

In other BARB action:

YUMA 6, SAN JOSE 1
WP: Roger Clemens (5-8, 3.61)
LP: John Lackey (13-14, 3.56)

Miguel Tejada homered, Roger Clemens worked into the seventh in a good ‘tuneup’ outing and the Firebirds added four in the ninth off Rockets relievers for good measure to guarantee that the REAL Rocket got the ‘W’, as the delirious Yumans celebrated their fourth consecutive divisional title in the West, a division they have owned since entering the league.

S-MART 7, DARWIN 0
WP: Kenny Rogers (5-5, 4.27)
LP: John Smoltz (7-8, 3.20)

Kenny Rogers and Mike Stanton scattered eight hits, inducing a season-high four double plays to snuff the Finches offense and deny Darwin an opportunity to take over first, while Boom Stick hitters Todd Helton and Alex Rodriguez each drove in three runs with a pair of hits off veteran John Smoltz, who will (incredibly) finish with a losing record in BARB after ‘choking’ in his final start of the year.

POTTSYLVANIA 5, FROSTBITE FALLS 2
WP: Brandon Donnelly (3-4, 4.86)
LP: Ben Sheets (10-8, 3.99)
SV: Wagner (14)

Pottsylvania cashed in a pair of first-inning errors, then added two more in the second on a Geoff Jenkins double, eventually hold on to hold off the Squirrels, who failed to take control of the East division on the day that the Finches also lost. The two clubs go into the final three games of play tied with 90-63 marks, and either could miss the playoffs entirely, because of this:

WORCESTER 6, OAKEYLAND 4
WP: Gil Meche (12-8, 4.72)
LP: Tim Hudson (11-16, 4.79)

Hanley Ramirez had a perfect day, drawing a walk and driving in four runs with three run-scoring singles, as the Elims held off the Ballers to pick up a half-game in the East with just three games left to play: 90-64, a half-game back. Jim Thome hit his team-leading 34th HR of the season in a losing cause, but his limitations on defense, propensity to injury and big salary may make him a liability in 2008. . .