Diamondbacks fail to reach .500 for 11th straight time

The Arizona Diamondbacks failed to reach .500 for the 11th straight time this season. A win over the Rockies on Thursday would have given them an even 36-36 record. They have not been at .500 since being 8-8 on April 24.

Chief baseball officer Tony La Russa had previously said that the team shouldn’t be focused on reaching the .500 mark. He told Arizona Sports 98.7:

"It's a negative distraction in the sense that let's say we win two in a row here in Denver and you get to .500, and you start celebrating, 'hey, we're finally at .500’…”What's the big deal? We want to be over .500.”

He even indicated that it might counterproductive to focus on getting to the mark. He said:

"All of a sudden you get distracted by that number and it becomes more difficult…instead of just playing the game as best you can and letting the numbers take care of themself, you're actually trying to force something.”

While La Russa clearly has big aspirations for the club, the fact that the D-backs have actually been so close to .500 might be considered an accomplishment by some. The team was well under .500 last season and was not expected to be competitive this season. The D-backs entered Thursday only 4.5 games back of a Wild Card spot.

(h/t Arizona Sports)

Photo credit: Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports