Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Zac Gallen appreciates when his team scores a lot of runs. But during the third inning of Thursday night’s game, he was eager to return to the mound.
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. had five RBIs and three hits, including a two-run homer, as the Diamondbacks scored a record-breaking 14 runs in the third inning to defeat the Colorado Rockies 16-1 on Thursday night. This 14-run inning was the most ever on opening day for any team since 1900.
“I joked at one point, ‘Hey, I want to play,'” Gallen said. “It makes our job as pitchers a lot easier when they give you that much support. Next time, I’d rather them just do it in 10 minutes. Those guys came ready to play.”
Despite leading 2-1 going into the third inning, the Diamondbacks sent 18 batters to the plate and had 13 hits, two walks, and a sacrifice fly.
Surprisingly, Arizona didn’t hit any home runs during the inning. Ketel Marte, Gurriel, Christian Walker, Gabriel Moreno, and Geraldo Perdomo all had two hits, while Corbin Carroll walked twice. Blaze Alexander also got his first big-league hit with a single up the middle that scored the 14th run.
“It was the situational hitting, taking walks when you’re supposed to, it was an all-field approach,” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. “We were a good hitting team today.”
This outburst set franchise records for most hits, runs, and batters in a single inning. It took 34 minutes for the Rockies to get three outs. By the end of the third inning, the D-backs led 16-1.
Gallen (1-0) allowed one run on three hits over five innings. He received assistance from third baseman Eugenio Suarez and center fielder Alek Thomas, who made stellar defensive plays. Colorado’s Kyle Freeland (0-1) bore the brunt of the damage in the third inning, giving up 10 earned runs on 10 hits and a walk over 2 1/3 innings.
“It was Freeland’s third opening day start for the Rockies, which is tied with Germán Márquez for the most in franchise history. Ryan McMahon had two hits, including an RBI double in the second.”
Arizona’s Ketel Marte led off the first inning with a single up the middle, scoring when Gurriel hit a two-run homer into the left field stands for a 2-0 lead. Gurriel hit 24 homers last season with the D-backs, and the team signed him to a $42 million, three-year deal with a club option for 2027.
