SAN FRANCISCO -- Searching for answers after the D-backs were shut out by the Giants in consecutive games, manager Torey Lovullo tweaked the lineup Wednesday night, penciling Steven Souza Jr. in at leadoff for the first time this season.
Souza responded with a pair of extra-base hits, including his fourth home run of the season, as the D-backs salvaged the final game of the series at AT&T Park, 3-1.
The D-backs carried a 25-inning scoreless drought into the third inning before Souza lifted a leadoff home run to left field. One inning later, Souza followed Nick Ahmed's RBI single by lining a run-scoring double over the head of left fielder Austin Slater.
"It's something that [Souza] came in and talked to me about several weeks ago and I've been thinking about it," Lovullo said about hitting Souza leadoff. "He was a catalyst for us today, on both sides of the ball. He made two great plays defensively, I don't want to overlook that. He slams a home run on a quality pitch and doubles over the left fielder's head. It was a big day for Steven. I know he looks for those days, he wants to contribute in a very special way and today he did that."
The leadoff spot is a role that Souza said he has held for most of his life despite primarily hitting in the middle of the lineup for the D-backs this season.
"I love [hitting leadoff]," Souza. "I think the best part about it was looking at my name and then the five, six guys following. That's a lot of fun. I just got to get on the pillows and a lot of good things are going to happen."
They did Wednesday night, and three runs were more than enough for starter Zack Godley, who twirled a season-high 7 2/3 innings of two-hit baseball. The right-hander generated 15 strikes on his knuckle-curve, and all six of his strikeouts were of the swinging variety.
"The command of all of [Godley's] pitches was outstanding," Lovullo said, "and I noticed the breaking ball had some extra bite to it. He did a great job. He did an incredible job."
The win, paired with the Rockies' day off Wednesday, helped the D-backs regain sole possession of first place in the National League West by half a game. More importantly, it gives the D-backs momentum as they head into a crucial four-game series with the Dodgers.
"You close out a series the way we did after losing the first two," Lovullo said, "you get on that flight, you turn the page and start to get that good feeling about where we're going and what we have to do. L.A. is going to present a big challenge for us, but the Diamondbacks are heading down there to play our best baseball."
Lovullo hinted at the possibility of keeping Souza at the top of the lineup.
"Prior to him asking or talking about it, I hadn't ever thought about it," Lovullo said. "Obviously it worked well; maybe we'll stay with it tomorrow."
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
After the Giants mounted a two-out rally against Godley in the eighth inning, Lovullo brought in Archie Bradley to face the top of the lineup with runners on first and single. Andrew McCutchen belted an RBI single to erase the shutout, but Bradley was able to retire Joe Panik before giving way to Andrew Chafin and Brad Boxberger in the ninth.
SOUND SMART
The D-backs' 25-inning scoreless streak was the second longest in franchise history. The longest was a 31-inning drought in June 2010.
YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
Souza paired his big day at the plate with a tremendous play in the field in the sixth. He chased down pinch-hitter Gregor Blanco's bid for a hit in right-center field, covering 109 feet in 5.8 seconds. The ball had a catch probability of just 32 percent, per Statcast™, making it a four-star catch.
"For me, granted, I'm looking at it from the mound and from a TV," Godley said, "but it's one of the best catches I've ever seen. That's huge, because that definitely saves a run for sure because there's no outs in the inning. If he doesn't catch it, with [Blanco's] speed, he's at third at least. That's huge."
"I think the ball hung up a little bit there," Souza said. "It doesn't carry too well so I got a good jump off the bat. Godley was pitching so well today, I wanted to do anything I could to stop them from getting momentum."
HE SAID IT
"I think I said something like, 'I'll handle this, I'll take care of it.' He never brought it up again. That was it. It was a one-time thing; maybe I scared him. He was ready today. I knew what was happening last night, I asked to not have him know until today when he walked in, and I know he was excited when he walked in today and saw he was leading off. He didn't let us down. I wanted him to have a good night of rest. I think he would have been so excited knowing he was going to lead off that he would have been very restless." -- Lovullo, on Souza leading off
UP NEXT
The D-backs will turn to Robbie Ray (3-2, 4.73 ERA) in Thursday's opener of a huge four-game series at Dodger Stadium. The left-hander has posted a 3.66 ERA across four starts in August, each of which ended in a no-decision. Ray will be looking to go at least six innings for the first time since July 25 (six starts ago). Walks have prevented him from going deep in games; Ray has issued 15 free passes in 19 2/3 innings this month. The Dodgers will counter with fellow lefty Rich Hill (6-4, 3.50 ERA), with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m. MST.