D-backs ace Greinke exits against Phillies after 2 innings

The Phillies won their first series since taking two of three from Miami on May 16-18 by winning the first two games in Arizona, a near-360 from the Diamondbacks’ four-game sweep at Citizens Bank Park from June 17-20.

The D-backs can only hope the tight left oblique muscle that caused Greinke to leave after two innings in the Phillies’ 4-3 victory on Tuesday is nothing serious.

In their last home game against the Phillies, the D-backs gave up six runs in the seventh inning alone.

Andres Blanco had an RBI single and Ryan Howard drew a bases-loaded walk off closer Brad Ziegler (2-3), who blew his second save in his last three tries after converting 43 in a row. Maikel Franco homered for Philadelphia.

Greinke drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the second, and called the trainer after he went out on the field to start the third.

“We’ll look at it and re-evaluate it and see what the soreness is, but we’re not going to mess around with it”, Hale said. “You never know. But if you go out and really yank it bad, you are talking about a month or two”. The Phillies have won five of their last seven on this trip.

“Minus the first two batters of the game”, he said, “I was able to settle in and get through six and leave with us having the lead”. “We stayed in the game, scratched and clawed and eked out a win”.

“It’s gotten mental”, La Russa said. “It is not always loss, loss, loss, loss”.

Seven of Lamb’s last nine homers have either tied the game or put Arizona ahead. Even though we lost a couple on San Francisco we have been doing pretty good.

“I think more than anything else, we have given up clumps of runs at home in a way excessive number and we’ve been trying to attack that big inning problem that we have”, La Russa said. Jeanmar Gomez tossed a flawless ninth for his 21st save.

Jake Lamb hit a three-run homer and Segura had two RBIs for Arizona, which piled up 15 hits. Jimmy Paredes’ pinch-hit double started the ninth-inning Philadelphia uprising.

Philadelphia Phillies’ Odubel Herrera, second from right, slaps the helmet of Peter Bourjos (17) after Bourjos scored against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the 10th inning of a baseball game Wednesday, June 29, 2016, in Phoenix. Greinke figures he hurt himself with that swing. He re-emerged quickly and threw a couple of warm-up pitches.

He threw a few warmup pitches off the mound, didn’t feel any better and left the game.

There is no word on the severity of the injury yet, or whether or not Greinke will suit up for his next start. Philly will turn to Zach Eflin in this one who is 0-2 with a 6.28 ERA and he will match up against Archie Bradley who is 3-3 with a 4.50 ERA but is starting to find his groove and has shown signs of brilliance in his short career. We felt really good coming home from the road trip, the way we were playing.

Franco’s two-out solo shot off Randall Delgado in the fourth put Philadelphia up 2-1. Arizona tied it 2-2 when Tomas led off the sixth with his home run.

The Diamondbacks are looking for some way, any way, to win at home. LHP Robbie Ray, removed from Monday’s start with a blood blister on his left middle finger, is expected to make his next scheduled start Sunday.