Arizona Diamondbacks’ Dominic Fletcher watches his three-run triple against the San Francisco Giants in the sixth inning at Chase Field in Phoenix on Sat May 13, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum
Saturday, May 13, 2023

PHOENIX, Ariz. – The hits just keep on coming for Arizona rookie Dominic Fletcher. Literally.

The 25-year-old rightfielder continued the torrid pace he’s set since he was called up from Triple-A Reno on April 30. Fletcher drove in five of Arizona’s seven runs Saturday with a triple and a home run in the Diamondbacks’ 7-2 win over the San Francisco Giants.

Fletcher is hitting .486 in his first 12 major league games. He was 2-for-4 on Saturday.

“I’m going to be aggressive on pitches in the zone and try to do damage,” Fletcher said. “If there’s a pitch through the zone that I can drive, I’m going to swing.

“There’s a comfort level here with my teammates and the coaching staff, and everyone here has done a great job of welcoming me. I just go out there, play hard and play to win.”

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said, “And, don’t forget that defensive play he made in the first inning to keep (the Giants) to just one run, At the plate, he’s making the most of this opportunity with every at-bat. That’s what we love about him.

“He’s an engaged player, and does it on both sides of the ball.”

Diamondbacks starter Zac Gallen (6-1) worked 7 2/3 innings – his longest start of the season – logging six strikeouts while giving up two earned runs on five hits and two walks. Andrew Chafin retired one batter to snuff out a potential rally in the eighth, Anthony Misiewicz gave up a two-out double to Michael Conforto and a single to Casey Schmitt in the ninth before Kyle Nelson struck out Blake Sabol to end the game.

“It was a grind,’ Gallen said of his performance. “I didn’t have the greatest feel for my curveball. I was just trying to make pitches and keep us in the game. Our defense made a lot of great plays that kept it close and bailed me out of some spots.”

Anthony DeSclafani (3-3) was cruising along until he ran into trouble in the sixth, when he was pulled after Arizona loaded the bases with nobody out. The D-Backs’ three go-ahead runs were charged to DeSclafani, who struck out two, walked one and gave up five hits.

“Several weeks ago, he dropped a piano bench on his toe, his toenail took the brunt of it,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said. “He felt good enough to keep going, but he’s been in quite a bit of pain. So we’ve monitored it and decided it was good enough to play.

“Tony’s pretty tough. He battled pretty hard out there tonight and I know he’s battling though some pain. He was cruising for a couple of innings, but when he covered first base, and you could see how he came off the mound, that was enough.”

Kapler commended DeSclafini’s fastball and slider, saying, “He was able to get some weak swings. I thought he performed well.”

The Diamondbacks broke up DeSclafani’s bid for a shutout and took a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning. Jose Herrera started the rally with a single and moved to second on a single by Josh Rojas. After Ketel Marte reached on an infield single to load the bases, Scott Alexander replaced DeSclafani.

During Corbin Carroll’s at-bat, Alexander threw a wild pitch that allowed Herrera to score the tying run. After Christian Walker was intentionally walked, Alexander struck out pinch-hitter Evan Longoria before Fletcher drilled a three-RBI triple to the right-center field gap.

“Their whole lineup is pretty dangerous from top to bottom,” Kapler said of the Diamondbacks. “You have one batter swinging the bat really well (Fletcher) and another one right behind him. It’s a challenge to get through their lineup right now.”

San Francisco got a run back in the top of the eighth when Wilmer Flores doubled with two out, driving in Brett Wisely, who reached on a fielder’s choice.

The Diamondbacks added three runs in the bottom of the eighth off San Francisco reliever Tristan Beck, two of them on Fletcher’s second home run of the year. Fletcher’s drive to right was originally ruled a triple, but was changed to a home run following a video review.

“Initially, I thought (centerfielder Wisely) dropped it or it popped out of his glove,’ Fletcher said. “Then, I did all that hard work and I could have been jogging the whole time!”

San Francisco took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Thairo Estrada struck out and reached on a wild pitch, then scored on a J.D. Davis sacrifice fly that started a double play (retiring baserunner LaMonte Wade Jr.) to end the inning.

Schmitt and Conforto each went 2-for-4 for the Giants. Schmitt has a .550 average (11-for-20) in his first four major league games.

The series wraps up on Sunday, with a matchup of righthanders – Logan Webb (3-5, 3.46) for San Francisco against the Diamondbacks’ Brandon Pfaadt (0-1, 12.10). First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m.

GIANTS JOTTINGS: The largest crowd of the weekend series at Chase Field was an announced attendance of 25,147. … The roof was closed after being open on Thursday and Friday.