D-backs' first road trip a good sign
PHOENIX -- One.
That's how many winning road trips the Arizona Diamondbacks had in the 10 that were longer than three games last year.
They are batting 1 for 1 this time around.
In light of last season's ugly beginning, the D-backs emphasized starting strong. Their successful first visit to the West Coast was just what they needed.
The D-backs won four of the seven games on the trip after taking three of four in San Francisco, with Jeremy Hellickson polishing off the Giants, 5-1, on Sunday for his first victory with Arizona. Paul Goldschmidt jump-started the D-backs with a two-run home run in the first inning, his fifth homer of the season.
So the D-backs will bring a 7-6 record into Chase Field for the start of a two-game series against Texas on Tuesday, plenty of distance from their various horrible records -- 2-8, 4-14 and 8-22 -- of a year ago.
"I think last year was a good blueprint of what not to do," D-backs right fielder Mark Trumbo said two days before the start of the season. "It's going to be extremely important (to start well), and I think everyone knows that. I think we are as ready as we can be."
The D-backs lost both of their season-opening games to the Dodgers in Australia last year, and things did not get much better back in the States. The D-backs were 30-51 on the road in 2014, better than only Colorado and San Diego in the National League.
Even though they lost two of three games in San Diego early last week, the D-backs sandwiched series victories over Los Angeles at home and the Giants around the Padres set.
That is most significant, inasmuch as those were the teams that gave the D-backs the most trouble a year ago. The D-backs won only one series against the Dodgers and Giants last year, going 4-15 against the Dodgers and 6-13 against the Giants. Two weeks into the season, they are have a series victory against each, and victories in games started by Clayton Kershaw and Madison Bumgarner.
Their only winning road trip of more than three games last season came when they were 6-3 on a trip to San Diego, Milwaukee and the Chicago White Sox from May 2-11.
"We've been playing good since the start of the season," Goldschmidt told FOX Sports Arizona. "We just need to keep it going ... just show up and keep playing some good baseball and hopefully get a lot of wins."
Some numbers from the trip:
Goldschmidt -- .296 batting average, three homers, eight RBI, six runs, five walks and a hit in all seven games.
Ender Inciarte -- .310, three doubles, one triple, two stolen bases, four RBI, seven runs.
A.J. Pollock -- .455, two doubles, one homer, two RBI, seven runs.
Trumbo -- .292, one double, one homer, two RBI.
Jake Lamb -- .444, two doubles, two RBI.
* Jeremy Hellickson went 6 2/3 innings in his first D-backs' victory, his longest outing since his last trip to the Bay Area, when he gave up two hits in seven innings in Tampa Bay's 7-3 victory at Oakland on Aug. 6, 2014. That was also his last victory; Chip Hale saw that one, too, as the A's bench coach. On Sunday, Hellickson gave up a run on eight hits while striking out two and walking one. He got a double play grounder to get out of the first inning, when the Giants scored their only run, and got two more double plays in the second and the fifth. That should not be a surprise. When he is on, he keeps the ball on the ground. He got 16 double plays in 2012, and 15 in 2013 -- his last two seasons with at least 30 starts.
* Hellickson seemed no worse for the wear after being struck above the left knee by an Angel Pagan line drive to end the third inning, as the ball caromed to second baseman Chris Owings who threw out Pagan. Hellickson joked with catcher Jordan Pacheco in the dugout between innings before leading off the fourth inning.
* Paul Goldschmidt leads the NL with 15 RBI and is tied for the NL lead with five homers. Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez has five homers and 14 RBI.
* Yasmany Tomas showed the ability to take the ball to the right side all spring, and he used that to get his first major league hit in the ninth inning. With Nick Ahmed breaking for second base on a hit-and-run play, pinch-hitter Tomas hit an 0-1 changeup through the spot vacated by second baseman Joe Panik for a single. He was used as a pinch-hitter four times on the trip after being recalled Wednesday, and he also spent an inning in left field and an inning at first base.
Paul Goldschmidt sported a beard by the end of the trip, and teammates had some fun with his new look after his homer in the first inning. As Goldschmidt entered the dugout, David Peralta put both hands to his own cheeks and rubbed them up and down in support of the look. Will Goldschmidt keep it? "We'll find out," he told FOX Sports Arizona.