Brandon

Pfaadt

It’s a win the Diamondbacks had to have to keep their season alive, and now they root for either Atlanta or New York to cannibalize the other to earn the final Wild Card spot. Pfaadt certainly did his part, and he ended the year with a 4.71 ERA and a (much more impressive) 185/43 K/BB in 181 2/3 innings. There’s been just enough good to suggest Pfaadt can live up to his lofty prospect status. He likely will make starts in the NLDS if Arizona can get that far.

Lovullo has worked his top relievers hard the last two days, so there will likely be need of Gallen on three days’ rest following his 11-strikeout gem against the Giants. The Diamondbacks pretty much have to win Sunday to have a chance of reaching the postseason. They technically could with a loss, but the Mets would have to lose three in a row in that case.

Pfaadt was terrific in striking out 12 Brewers last week, but that’s his only quality start of late. His ERA has jumped from 3.92 on Aug. 7 to 4.80 now, even though his FIP hasn’t changed much. While he was a key starter for the Diamondbacks during their postseason run last year, his status seems up in the air at this point.

Well, that was better. The last time we saw Pfaadt on the mound was also against the Brewers, and he didn’t make it out of the second inning while allowing eight runs. In this one, he only allowed a single to Brice Turang in the fourth before a late homer by Garrett Mitchell in the seventh, and he had the Milwaukee lineup in the palm of his hands. Pfaadt’s 12 punch outs are his new season high, and he’s now up to 172 strikeouts against 39 walks in 174 2/3 innings. He’s scheduled to make his last start Tuesday against the Giants.

This was ugly. Not only did Pfaadt give up seven hits, he also issued three walks and didn’t strike out a single batter while throwing 58 pitches before leaving. The biggest blow was a grand slam by Willy Adames, but there were lots of troubling signs for the 25-year-old. It bumps his ERA up nearly half a run from 4.42 to 4.81, and it’s an unfortunate reminder that there’s a pretty low floor with Pfaadt. Start at your own risk when he’s back on the bump against the Brew Crew again Thursday in Milwaukee.

Pfaadt had a 3.92 ERA four weeks ago, but he’s since given up 21 earned runs in 33 2/3 innings, putting him at 4.42, even though his peripherals are pretty much unchanged. He’s due to face Milwaukee in his lone start next week, and he’ll probably pitch in Coors afterwards, so he’s very droppable in mixed leagues at this point.

The 25-year-old right-hander scattered eight hits and a pair of walks on the afternoon. The Dodgers scratched out a single run against him in the fourth inning then added another pair while chasing him from the game in the sixth inning. Pfaadt generated 17 swings and misses on 98 swings on the day — nine of those on his fastball — while posting a strong CSW of 33 percent. Now 9-7 on the season, he’ll carry a 4.32 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and a 155/34 K/BB ratio (160 1/3 innings) into Friday’s start against the Astros in Houston.

Pfaadt gave up eight hits, walked one and struck out six. He was 5-0 with a 3.40 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 53 innings over his last nine starts entering play Tuesday. Pfaadt’s ERA on the season is up to 4.31 after the poor showing against the Mets. He still has a 3.69 xFIP on the year, which suggests better starts are in his future. Pfaadt has been unlucky with a 66 percent left on base percentage this year. The 25-year-old right-hander is set to face the Dodgers at home this weekend.

It wasn’t pretty as Pfaadt served up nine hits, including a third-inning solo shot to Nick Fortes, but it was good enough as Arizona’s offense ultimately supplied him with nine runs of support. He struck out four and only handed out a pair of free passes. The 25-year-old righty has been all over the map from a performance standpoint, but he’s done a decent job avoid any serious implosions. He’ll bring a respectable 4.08 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 139/31 K/BB ratio across 150 innings (25 starts) into a road tilt on Sunday against the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

The strikeout total matched his previous career high from a start against the Mariners back in April, and Pfaadt eked out a win after the D-backs scored twice in the bottom of the seventh to take a 5-4 lead. He’s 5-0 with a 3.33 ERA in nine outings since his last loss on June 19.