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THE BOUNCE

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NEW YORK – The Arizona Diamondbacks have reached an agreement with former University of Arizona left-handed reliever Daniel Schlereth, their top pick from last month’s draft.

He was en route to Phoenix on Monday night to undergo a physical Tuesday. The deal could be finalized Tuesday, and Schlereth could be pitching for the team’s rookie-level affiliate in Missoula, Mont., this weekend.

“I’ve been waiting for this my whole life,” Schlereth said Monday night while driving from Tucson to Phoenix. “I’m definitely excited and ready to get this whole career thing going.”

The day after the Diamondbacks selected him with the No. 26 overall pick, Schlereth did not pitch in the Wildcats’ NCAA super regional game because of a strained latissimus doris muscle injury.

“It took about a week and a half, two weeks, to heal,” he said. “I feel 100 percent.”

He said he has no concerns about Tuesday’s exams revealing anything significant.

The day he was drafted, Schlereth said he hoped to reach the majors this season. The club believes he has the potential to be a fast riser, but he said Monday that he wasn’t sure if getting there this season is realistic.

“I don’t know how soon it can be,” he said. “I’m going to do as much as I can to help.”

Terms of the deal were not known, but he figures to receive a signing bonus between $1.35 million and $1.29 million, the amounts for pick Nos. 25 and 27, respectively.

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DIAMONDBACKS NOTES

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WASHINGTON – The Arizona Diamondbacks appear to be exploring the idea of bringing first baseman and former Arizona Wildcat Tony Clark back to the team.

The Diamondbacks are believed to be one of several teams to have contacted the San Diego Padres regarding Clark, who is expected to be made available as the trade deadline approaches and San Diego continues to plummet in the National League West standings.

Trading within the division wouldn’t figure to be a concern for either side, as the teams made a trade a year ago this month when outfielder and Canyon del Oro High School grad Scott Hairston was sent to San Diego in exchange for Leo Rosales.

Clark does not have a no-trade clause with the Padres but would likely prefer to play again in Arizona. He and his family live in the Phoenix area.

He had a two-year offer from the Diamondbacks last season but opted to test the free-agent market and ended up signing a one-year deal with San Diego.

Clark and Diamondbacks general manager Josh Byrnes had a long conversation near the batting cage when the Padres visited Chase Field last week.

Clark was the Diamondbacks’ top pinch hitter the previous three seasons. After slugging 17 home runs for the Diamondbacks last season, he is hitting .244 with one home run in 86 at-bats this year.

Another former Diamondbacks first baseman also could be a possibility. The Mariners on Thursday released Richie Sexson, who was hitting .218 with 11 home runs in 252 at-bats.

Upton sidelined

Justin Upton (strained left oblique) was not placed on the 15-day disabled list, but manager Bob Melvin said the right fielder likely will sit out the remaining games leading up to the All-Star break.

“They obviously know better than I do,” Upton said. “I’m just doing what they tell me to do, and that will make me healthy. Whatever their plans are, I’ll have to follow them.”

The Diamondbacks still could make a roster move to get another outfielder. With only three games to go before the break, they could option a relief pitcher to the minors to open a spot for a position player.

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PHOENIX – It was one game, one victory, but for a reeling Arizona Diamondbacks team and a struggling Randy Johnson, it felt like a lot more Sunday afternoon at Chase Field.

With the 3-2 win over the San Diego Padres, the Diamondbacks thwarted a would-be sweep by one of baseball’s worst teams, and Johnson silenced, at least for the moment, questions about whether he had anything left in the tank.

The Diamondbacks, who at 44-45 maintained their half-game lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West, gained at least a shred of confidence before heading on the road, where they have not been treated kindly this season.

Arizona opens a three-game series at Washington on Tuesday, then heads to Philadelphia, where it faces the National League East-leading Phillies for the final three games before the all-star break.

Johnson rediscovered his command and slider, in turn rediscovering his dominant form, striking out 10 in 6 1/3 innings and allowing one run to earn the victory.

The fifth victory of the season and 289th of his career was a long time coming for Johnson, who had not won since May 18, covering eight starts.

Johnson had gone 0-6 with a 7.94 ERA in his past six starts, allowing seven earned runs or more three times during that stretch. In several of those games, his slider had looked flat, his location inconsistent.

“Location is a necessity,” Johnson said. “My location was a lot better. My slider was a lot better.”

The only instance in which poor location hurt him on Sunday was on the second pitch of the game, a high fastball that Canyon del Oro High grad Scott Hairston knocked out to left field for his third homer in two games.

Upset as he was – Johnson appeared to mutter to himself the rest of the inning – he recovered, retiring the next three batters to start a streak of 10 in a row retired. After a hit by pitch in the fourth, he retired seven straight.

A monstrous home run by Justin Upton (estimated distance: 484 feet), a blast that ranks as the second-longest home run in Chase Field history, tied the game at 1 in the fifth, and an RBI single by Stephen Drew later that inning and a solo homer by Mark Reynolds in the sixth gave Arizona a 3-1 lead.

UP NEXT: Arizona (Owings 6-7) at Washington (Perez 2-5), 4:10 p.m. Tuesday. TV: FSNA. Radio: 1490 AM

• Webb, Haren named to all-star team, 4C

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MINNEAPOLIS – Mark Reynolds was ready to field the ground ball on his backhand and then throw across the diamond, a play he has made countless times from third base, a play that he expected to be the first out of the third inning Friday night.

Many of the Arizona Diamondbacks’ young players were on the field early in the afternoon, trying to prepare themselves for the Metrodome’s infamous roof, a lightly colored awning that has turned many routine fly balls into an adventure.

Instead, it was a ball on the ground, not in the air, that helped the Minnesota Twins hand Randy Johnson and the Diamondbacks a 7-2 loss in the opening game of this series.

The Twins scored six times in the third and once more in the fourth off Johnson, who still managed to pitch all eight innings for the 99th complete game of his career.

He allowed 11 hits – the first time in his career he has allowed 10 or more hits in back-to-back games – and seven earned runs.

The Diamondbacks’ offense, meanwhile, couldn’t muster much off Twins starter Scott Baker, who allowed just one run – on a Reynolds homer – in six innings. Nor could they come up with a big hit, going 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position.

But the game might have had a different feel had a ground ball not taken a funny hop toward Reynolds to start the third inning.

The ball off Delmon Young’s bat shot to Reynolds’ right, carrying him into foul territory and forcing him to make an off-balance throw. Young beat it out for an infield single.

“I think it hit where the dirt and the (artificial) grass meet,” Reynolds said. “It kicked more toward foul territory. It was a weird play.”

Brendan Harris followed with a double off the right-field wall, and Matt Macri gave the Twins a 2-0 lead by chopping a single through the middle.

Two batters later, Alexi Casilla hit a dribbler in front of the plate. Catcher Miguel Montero called off Johnson and scooped it up only to throw wildly to first base, putting runners on the corners.

A sacrifice fly and an RBI single made it 4-0, and Craig Monroe unloaded on a high fastball for a two-run home run. Just like that, it was 6-0.

“Just when you think you’ve seen everything in this game . . .” Johnson said. “I don’t know what to say.

“It was obviously frustrating because I felt good and one bad inning was basically the whole game. That’s the life of a pitcher. It’s frustrating I didn’t get the results that I wanted.”

Of course, more of his results were left to chance because of a lack of strikeouts. He struck out just one batter – Joe Mauer in the first inning – the third consecutive start he has struck out three or fewer batters.

It was his fewest since Aug. 4, 2006, when he didn’t strike out anybody in six innings against Baltimore.

Baker struck out seven, walked one and scattered seven hits, mixing a cut fastball with a breaking ball.

“We weren’t able to square many balls up off him,” Reynolds said. “And when we did, we weren’t able to get a big hit.”

UP NEXT

Arizona (Owings 6-5) at Minnesota (Blackburn 5-4), 4:10 p.m. Saturday. TV: FSNA. Radio: 1490 AM

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PHOENIX – How’s this for an introduction: four runs on 11 pitches in the first inning, six solid innings from the newest ace on the block and more than a quarter-mile’s worth of home runs from a suddenly muscled-up offense.

If a home opener is an introduction for fans to a team, the sellout crowd that packed Chase Field on Monday night was pleased to make the Diamondbacks’ acquaintance.

The Diamondbacks hope their 9-3 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers in front of 49,057 was an archetype of many more to come, as the only thing that looked better than the home team was the new $14 million video board that made its flashy, full-fledged debut.

Mark Reynolds slugged two home runs, Chris Young celebrated his new, $28 million contract with a solo shot and the prized off-season acquisition, right-hander Dan Haren, earned his first victory for his new team.

All in all, not a bad night.

“We’ve got to keep it going,” manager Bob Melvin said, “but the results here early on are pretty good.”

After Orlando Hudson’s home run in the seventh inning, the Diamondbacks had four long balls on the night and 16 on the season. It took them 24 games last year to reach the 16-homer mark.

Yes, it’s early, but that’s 40 runs in seven games for a team that last year was last in the league in average and on-base percentage and third to last in runs scored.

“The more experience you get,” Reynolds said, “the better guys mature, and we’re showing that right now.”

Haren started things off by striking out two of the first three batters of the game, giving the home fans a glimpse of why general manager Josh Byrnes was willing to trade six players to Oakland for him.

“I had the chills running out there, I really did,” Haren said.”I was happy I was able to give a good performance, but tonight I really tip my hat to the hitters.”

After Haren’s perfect top of the first, the hitters went to work against Dodgers right-hander Esteban Loaiza.

This was a hurry-up offense that would have made Colts quarterback Peyton Manning proud.

Young drew a walk before Eric Byrnes lined a run-scoring triple to center field on the first pitch of the at-bat. Hudson lined the first pitch he saw to right field for an RBI single and, two batters later, Reynolds drilled a first-pitch change-up an estimated 445 feet to left-center field.

That’s 11 pitches and a four-run deficit for Loaiza, who also struggled against the Diamondbacks in two games last season.

That was enough for Haren, who retired 11 of the first 12 batters he faced before Jeff Kent touched him for a solo home run in the fourth. Haren allowed two unearned runs in the sixth.

• Box score and notes, 2C

up next

Los Angeles Dodgers (Billingsley 0-0) at Arizona (Davis 0-1), 6:40 p.m. Tuesday. TV: FSNA. Radio: 1490 AM

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DIAMONDBACKS NOTES

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DENVER – It’s the best of both worlds. Not only is Dan Haren excited about starting Monday’s home opener, Arizona Diamondbacks fans have been excited to see him pitch at Chase Field since he was acquired in a trade in December.

“I’m sure the atmosphere is going to be great,” Haren said. “I’m looking forward to it.”

Said manager Bob Melvin: “On an opener, you always want one of your top couple of guys to do it. Everybody’s going to be watching that day to see what kind of pitcher Danny Haren is.”

Haren got a no decision in his first start, though he was in position to win after going six innings and allowing three runs in a game Cincinnati rallied to win in the ninth off closer Brandon Lyon.

He also showed he could be a factor offensively. A former designated hitter at Pepperdine, Haren ripped a double to left field to start a two-run rally against the Reds and later delivered a sacrifice fly.

The right-hander never has pitched in Chase Field’s hitter-friendly environment but says he won’t change his approach because of the ballpark.

“I always try to focus on keeping the ball down and working the bottom of the strike zone,” he said. “Regardless of where I’m pitching, if I’m pitching in San Francisco at night or in Arizona, I’m going to pitch the same way. It’s a matter of executing pitches and minimizing mistakes.”

Keep your head up

Third baseman Mark Reynolds tried not to dwell on the two errors he committed in the second inning of Saturday night’s game.

Melvin helped him along to that line of thinking.

After Reynolds returned to the dugout, Melvin gave Reynolds a morale boost.

“Some guys need a kick, he needs a little bit of positive reinforcement,” Melvin said. “I said, ‘Hey, it happens. You’ve saved us more than we’ve picked you up.’ ”

Reynolds recovered and made a flashy play on a sharply hit ball by Ryan Spilborghs with the bases loaded in the eighth inning. The play saved at least one run, maybe two, and kept the Rockies from building momentum.

As for the early errors, Reynolds said he tends to make poor throws when he has too much time to think.

“That’s my main problem,” he said. “I think about (things) too much.”

He said he is working on taking his time and making accurate throws.

Short hops

• Last year’s first round pick, right-hander Jarrod Parker, is scheduled to make his professional debut Thursday for Class A South Bend (Ind.).

Before joining his teammates, he pitched in an additional simulated game last week in Tucson, where the team figured the weather would be better than in South Bend.

• Alex Romero’s infield single to second base in the 10th inning Sunday was the first hit of his major-league career.

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CINCINNATI – The calendar might have flipped, but the Diamondbacks went about their business on Opening Day in Cincinnati as if nothing had changed, following the same dance routine that won them 90 games last season and carried them to within four wins of the World Series.

“We had a typical D’backs win,” center fielder Chris Young said after the Diamondbacks beat the Reds 4-2 at Great American Ball Park, getting solid starting pitching, hits when they counted and lockdown relief work.

“It’s still the same strategy.”

Of course, it’s a lot easier to watch game plans turn to reality when you have Brandon Webb on your side. The pitcher has finished first and second in Cy Young voting the past two seasons, but looked downright shaky in spring training.

That’s why they call it spring training. Webb’s signature sinkerball was darting and his change-up diving as he held the Reds to just two runs on three hits and four walks in six innings.

“You look at spring training numbers and you can throw them out,” Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin said, referring to Webb’s 8.50 ERA in the Cactus League. “It looked like from the minute he went out there, he had his good stuff.”

Reds starter Aaron Harang wasn’t too far off, but the Diamondbacks took advantage of early opportunities. After an error in the first by third baseman Edwin Encarnacion, Conor Jackson grounded a single through the middle to give Arizona a 1-0 lead.

In the third, Young got ahead in the count 2-1 and crushed a high fastball from Harang, sending it into the top deck in left field. Two batters later, Eric Byrnes got the first-pitch fastball he was looking for and didn’t miss it, lining a solo shot to make it 3-0.

That turned out to be enough for Webb, who had a guest list of 28 friends and family members for his fifth career start in Cincinnati, a three-hour drive from his hometown of Ashland, Ky.

The only runs Cincinnati scored came in the fourth inning. With a runner on, the Reds’ Brandon Phillips lined a ball to Young’s left that skipped past him on the wet outfield grass, rolling to the wall.

“When the grass is cut short like it is and it’s wet, you can’t read that,” Young said.

It went for a triple, and Phillips scored one batter later on a ground out.

Pinch-hitter Jeff Salazar got one of the runs back with a solo home run with two out in the seventh, his third career pinch-hit homer.

The rest of the script played itself out in familiar fashion, only with a new face and a rearranged order of appearance. Newly acquired Chad Qualls pitched a scoreless seventh and handed off to eighth-inning man Tony Peña, who gave way to new closer Brandon Lyon.

Lyon, who also endured a rough spring training, looked as dominant as his predecessor, Jose Valverde. He threw a high fastball past Adam Dunn and got Encarnacion fishing on a curve in the dirt for the first two outs before Scott Hatteberg popped out to end it.

“Those guys set the tone,” Lyon said. “Chad coming in and setting the tone, then Tony, I just tried to follow it up and be aggressive.”

UP NEXT: Arizona (Haren) at Cincinnati (Arroyo), 4:10 p.m. Wednesday. TV: FSNA. Radio: 1490 AM

• UA notes and box score, 6C

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DIAMONDBACKS NOTES

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CINCINNATI – We can safely assume we haven’t seen the last incarnation of the Arizona Diamondbacks’ batting order, but manager Bob Melvin did give some indication on opening day of what might change and what could stay the same.

Melvin had first baseman Conor Jackson in the cleanup spot, a place he likely will remain if he continues to do what he did in spring training and in the first inning against the Reds on Monday – drive in runs.

“Conor had a great spring with runners on base, so I’m comfortable leaving it the way it is,” Melvin said, referring to having Eric Byrnes hit third followed by Jackson, who had an RBI single in the first inning.

Melvin said Jackson looks stronger and seemed to drive the ball better in spring training.

Following Jackson was catcher Chris Snyder, who swung the bat well in spring training after a strong second half in 2007. Snyder will likely hit in the middle of the order more this season, though not necessarily fifth.

Rookie Justin Upton hit eighth, though Melvin said it wasn’t an easy call.

“I don’t have anybody I want to hit eighth,” he said.

Ramped up

Infielder Chad Tracy had hoped to be on the opening day roster but started the season on the disabled list.

He traveled with the club to Cincinnati and spent part of the pregame running in the outfield grass, which Melvin interpreted as another good sign in his recovery from microfracture knee surgery.

“He’s picked up the pace the past five or six days,” Melvin said.

Tracy has been running every other day, and his right knee has been responding well, Melvin said.

Because Tracy has been taking batting practice since January, he needs to show the organization he can play defensively and hold up for nine innings before he is ready to return.

“I still hope it’s somewhere in April,” Melvin said of a possible return date.

“Whether it’s May 1 or a little less, that’s what I have in my mind as far as timetables.”

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SPRING TRAINING

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Alex Romero was a second-tier outfielder when spring training began, a guy whose playing time came mostly at the end of Cactus League games when the starters were on the golf course.

Well, the Diamondbacks broke camp on Thursday with Romero making the team. In an upset, he won the final bench job over veteran Trot Nixon.

“I feel really excited,” he said. “It was a good surprise to make the team.”

Romero said he was going to buy phone cards so he could share the good news with everyone back home in Venezuela. He can honestly tell them he earned his way onto the team, hitting .333 (19 for 57) compared to Nixon’s .218 (12 for 55).

Manager Bob Melvin said Romero wasn’t on his radar as being a legitimate candidate to make the team until the first week of games, after Romero delivered a game-winning double in an exhibition game in Hermosillo. The hits didn’t stop.

“He just kept knocking on the door,” Melvin said.

Nixon, who was in camp on a minor-league deal, was weighing his options, Melvin said. It is unclear if he is leaning toward accepting an assignment to Triple-A Tucson.

Burke to see time at first

One reason Nixon seemed to have an edge on Romero was that he learned to play first base.

But Melvin said the club will use the versatile Chris Burke as one of the backups at the position. Melvin also said that, in a pinch, the D’backs could put third baseman Mark Reynolds at first base.

Burke, who hit .361 with seven doubles and four homers in the spring, will be getting into the lineup on a semi-regular basis.

“I have to find ways to get Burke into games and first base is going to be one of those places,” Melvin said. “I’m going to try to move him around as much as I can. He’s basically an everyday player that doesn’t have an everyday job.”

4 vie for 2 spots in pen

Melvin said right-handers Jailen Peguero and Yusmeiro Petit are in the mix for two bullpen jobs. Right-handers Dustin Nippert and Brandon Medders (both out of minor-league options) are also candidates.

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SPRING TRAINING

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Eric Byrnes has a new contract and a somewhat new role in the Diamondbacks clubhouse. He is now a veteran, a leader.

Sounds weird, huh? The colorful, say-anything outfielder who six or seven years ago was struggling for playing time, who . . .

“Forget six or seven years ago,” Byrnes interrupts. “Let’s look back three years ago.”

He’s right, and it only shows how fast things can change in baseball. After the 2005 season, he was temporarily unemployed. Now he has as much job security as anyone in the clubhouse after signing a three-year, $30 million extension last season.

The topic is leadership and the floor is turned over to Byrnes. He is at his best this way. An interview with him is like a boxcar building speed down a hill.

He is about to explain his approach to the game, where baseball fits in his life and, in a roundabout way, what it all means to his leadership potential.

“There’s different ways guys lead,” he said.

He said it all goes back to the phone call he received in 2005 from the Baltimore Orioles, who told him they wouldn’t offer him a contract after he had the worst season of his career.

With no job and an uncertain future, he adopted a new approach: Baseball, he told himself, wasn’t life, and he was going to make it fun again.

“Oftentimes, I forgot to enjoy the game,” he said. “When I came here in ’06, I said no matter what happens, I’m going to have fun playing baseball.

“I don’t care what my results are. I’m going to have fun playing baseball because the reality of the situation was, I don’t know how much longer I’m going to get a chance to play.”

Byrnes said he doesn’t think his attitude or approach is typical of a leader. He doesn’t look at himself as a leader.

“It’s just something that comes,” he said.

It helps that he hit 20-plus home runs each of the past two seasons and had 50 stolen bases last season. It also helps that he never seems to relax, that he never takes a day off.

“The thing that I was most proud of last year,” Byrnes said, “was the way the young guys responded to the way I played the game, the way Orlando (Hudson) played the game, which is running balls out, going all out on the field, and having fun on the field and in the clubhouse.”

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SPORTS PEOPLE

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PHOENIX – Representatives from more than 20 teams watched former major league reliever Keith Foulke throw off a mound last week in Tempe.

The Diamondbacks were among them, and they seem to have been adequately impressed to pursue the former All-Star closer.

The Diamondbacks have spoken with Foulke’s agent in recent days and appear poised to make an offer to the right-hander – if they haven’t done so already.

Foulke, attempting a return to the majors after not pitching last season, was one of baseball’s best relievers from 1999 to 2004 before injuries sidetracked his career.

Over the past several years, he has had knee, back and elbow problems. He walked away from a $5 million contract with Cleveland in 2007, retiring before reporting to spring training, saying his body wasn’t responding as it had in previous years.

But Foulke, 35, has been on the comeback trail since undergoing surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow in September.

Indians re-sign Betancourt

CLEVELAND – Rafael Betancourt, one of the AL’s top relievers last season, signed a two-year contract Wednesday with the Cleveland Indians, who avoided going to salary arbitration with the right-hander.

The 32-year-old Betancourt went 5-1 with a 1.47 ERA in 68 appearances, mostly in the eighth inning before handing the ball to closer Joe Borowski.

Shields gets raise

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Tampa Bay Rays are counting on James Shields to blossom into one of the top pitchers in the American League.

The 26-year-old right-hander, who has less than two full seasons of experience in the majors, agreed Wednesday to a $11.25 million, four-year contract.

Tulowitzki gets new deal

DENVER – Troy Tulowitzki went into spring training last season hoping to secure a spot on the Colorado Rockies’ roster.

That won’t be a concern this season. Tulowitzki and the NL champions finalized a $31 million, six-year contract on Wednesday that includes a club option for the 2014 season.

Pelini to earn $1.1 million

OMAHA, Neb. – New Nebraska football coach Bo Pelini’s contract is for five years and pays a base salary of $1.1 million annually.

Pelini was hired December 2, and worked out general terms of the contract with athletic director Tom Osborne several weeks ago. It wasn’t signed by all parties until this week.

The contract was made public Wednesday.

Osborne said the contract includes built-in incentives for performance.

The Associated Press

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BASEBALL PLAYOFFS

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DENVER – The Arizona Diamondbacks have climbed out of holes all season, but they might have finally dug themselves a ditch from which even they cannot escape.

If the National League Championship Series was lacking a definitive victory by the Colorado Rockies, as the Diamondbacks seemed to believe, that was no longer the case after their 4-1 win in Game 3 on Sunday night moved them within one game of the World Series and left Arizona teetering on the edge of elimination.

Trailing 3-0 in this best-of-seven series, the Diamondbacks have no choice but to rest their hopes on the exception to the postseason rule.

Twenty-eight times in baseball history a team has fallen behind 3-0 in a best-of-seven series. Only one of those teams, the Red Sox in the 2004 ALCS, has come back to win the series.

“We’re going to keep our heads up,” outfielder Justin Upton said, “and we’re going to go out and try to defy history.”

Yorvit Torrealba’s three-run home run off Diamondbacks right-hander Livan Hernandez in the sixth inning cut through the steady rain that fell throughout the game at Coors Field and left a gaping hole in the D’backs’ hopes.

It also ruined what had been a terrific outing from Hernandez.

“In the playoffs,” Hernandez said, “you make one mistake, one pitch, and that can lose you the game.”

Torrealba’s shot was yet another key play for the Rockies, who have made all of them in this series, standing in stark contrast to the Diamondbacks, whose inability to break through against Rockies right-hander Josh Fogg typified their series.

Against Fogg, they hit the ball hard from the beginning. In the first inning they put runners on first and second for Eric Byrnes, who suggested a day earlier that the Diamondbacks had outplayed Colorado in the series’ first two games.

After bemoaning his team’s hard luck, he immediately hit into some more, smoking a ball right back at Fogg, who somehow caught the liner and turned it into a double play.

“That’s just the way it’s been,” Byrnes said.

The D’backs proceeded to hit into double plays in each of the next two innings. Meanwhile, Hernandez pitched into and out of trouble until the sixth, when a walk to Todd Helton and a single by Brad Hawpe set the stage for Torrealba.

After the blast, the Diamondbacks went down quietly. The Coors fans, however, were anything but silent.

Having booed the outspoken Byrnes throughout the game, they seemed to delight in his pop out that ended the eighth.

As he made his way out to his position, the fans in the left field bleachers surely reminded him of his defiant comments. They might also have reminded him of the hole his team has dug itself, the one in which it might wind up buried.

Colorado has won 20 of its past 21 games going back to the regular season.

“(Monday) we’re going to come here just like we have been doing,” Torrealba said. “We’re going to relax, watch TV, and when it’s time to play, we’re going to try to get one more win.”

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D’BACKS NOTES

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DENVER – No need to give first baseman Tony Clark a history lesson.

He remembers well Boston’s epic comeback against the New York Yankees in 2004, when the Red Sox rallied from a 3-0 deficit to win the American League championship.

Clark, a former University of Arizona basketball player, was a member of the losing club, his only year wearing Yankees pinstripes.

“That’s why my head is not hung,” he said after the Diamondbacks’ loss Sunday night gave the Colorado Rockies a 3-0 series lead in the NLCS.

“Yeah, well, (the percentages are) astronomical, but I was on the field the last time it happened, so I’ve seen it. Being two outs away (from elimination) in the ninth inning, they (the Red Sox) continued to just play. Then they came out the next day and then got that game.

“So they committed themselves to simply playing one game at a time and not getting caught up in what the percentages are or what history would say and hoped that would be enough to get them over the hump. We’re no different.”

Outfielder Chris Young said the focus turns on trying to get back home for Games 6 and 7.

“If you find a way to get back home, you have a legit shot,” he said.

On second thought

In hopes of jump-starting his offense, manager Bob Melvin said he would insert Jeff Cirillo at second base in Monday’s Game 4 in place of Augie Ojeda.

Cirillo, who this postseason ended the longest active streak of regular-season games without a playoff appearance (1,617 games), is 2 for 2 as a pinch hitter in the series.

He had a bunt single in Game 1 and a single to right in the eighth inning of Game 3.

Ojeda is 2 for 12 (.167) with nine runners left on base in the series.

Cirillo played two games at second base this season and has played 48 games there in his 14-year career.

“I feel comfortable out there,” he said. “Obviously my range isn’t as good as Augie’s or Orlando’s (Hudson), but if I get my glove on it, I’ll make the play.”

Checking out the new lefty

The Diamondbacks will have their first look Monday at Colorado left-hander Franklin Morales, who spent most of the season in the minor leagues.

“We’ll prepare as we always do,” Clark said. “We’ll look at the video and we’ll maybe call in some favors from some guys that have faced him before to try to get an idea.”

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The Arizona Republic

CHICAGO – The Arizona Diamondbacks will be stepping out of one raucous environment and into another today at Wrigley Field, and Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin is pleased to be handing the ball to veteran Livan Hernandez in such a situation.

“He’s been through it,” Melvin said of Hernandez, who has pitched in three postseasons, going 6-2 with a 3.99 ERA in 56 1/3 innings. “He’s got that calm presence about him that nothing really bothers him.”

Hernandez has not pitched well lately, posting a 6.67 ERA in his past five starts, but the Game 3 matchup against the Cubs could work in his favor. He has struggled this season against patient hitters who don’t expand their strike zones.

The Cubs, though, are known for aggressiveness – their 500 walks during the regular season was the second-lowest total in the National League.

Hernandez will throw on nine days’ rest after last pitching Sept. 26 in Pittsburgh. But he didn’t sound overly concerned, saying that he threw twice on the side, including Monday when he faced hitters in a simulated game.

Most of the Diamondbacks’ young players were with the club in July when they took two of three from Chicago.

“It’s going to be a little different in a playoff atmosphere,” Melvin said. “But hopefully it serves us well that we were here one time and had a little success here, albeit we didn’t see their complete roster.”

Cubs slugger Derrek Lee was serving a suspension during that series.

NOTABLE: Micah Owings is expected to start for Arizona on Sunday if there is a Game 4. He would oppose Carlos Zambrano.

Brandon Webb would start Tuesday’s Game 5 in Phoenix if the series goes that far.

D’BACKS AT CUBS

Game 3: Arizona (Hernandez, 11-11) at Chicago (Hill, 11-8), 3:07 p.m. Saturday. TV: TBS. Radio: 1490 AM

Game 4: Arizona (Owings 8-8) at Chicago (Zambrano 18-13), 10:07 a.m. Sunday, if necessary. TV: TNT. Radio: 1490 AM

MORE BASEBALL, 4C

• Hill will try to slow D’backs on Saturday.

• Kenny Lofton does it again. The former UA hoops star scores game-winning run as Indians top Yankees.

• Manny Ramirez gives Red Sox 2-0 series lead with a walk-off homer.

The Arizona Republic
D’BACKS NOTES

NICK PIECORO

The Arizona Republic

PHOENIX – Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella removed his Game 1 starting pitcher, Carlos Zambrano, after just 85 pitches with plans to bring him back for Sunday’s Game 4.

Diamondbacks starter Brandon Webb threw only four more pitches than Zambrano. Is there a chance Webb starts Sunday on three days’ rest as well?

“Anything’s possible,” Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin said.

Melvin has been reticent to ask too much of Webb in the past two months, particularly after a 42-inning scoreless streak that included three consecutive shutouts.

But if the Diamondbacks should lose Saturday in Game 3, Melvin didn’t rule out the possibility of approaching Webb about starting on short rest.

Certainly, if they are leading the series 2-1, there would be less urgency. But starting Webb could allow them to avoid Game 5.

If they brought Webb back for Game 4 and advanced, he still would be able to start Games 2 and 5 of the NL Championship Series on normal rest and be in line to start a Game 7 on three days’ rest. The NLCS is scheduled to begin Thursday.

Right-hander Micah Owings is the scheduled Game 4 starter for Sunday.

Packing ‘em in

Postseason attendance figures at Chase Field haven’t always been strong, but seats for the first two games of this series haven’t been easy to get.

Games 1 and 2 against the Cubs drew huge crowds, although Thursday night’s crowd fell short of a sellout.

Certainly, the appeal of the Cubs helps explain the big crowds, but on both nights the atmosphere was decidedly pro-Diamondbacks.

During the 2001 postseason, the Diamondbacks did not eclipse 43,000 in four of the first five postseason games.

Many expected a divided crowd at Chase Field this week. Many with the Diamondbacks were pleasantly surprised to see the Cubs’ fans so outnumbered.

“I thought it was great,” Melvin said of Wednesday night’s crowd. “I was really surprised. You didn’t really even hear the Cubs fans.

“It was predominantly red out there. Every time it sounded like the Cubs tried to get something going, our people jumped in there. That was exciting to see.”

Tickets for sale

Tickets for a potential Game 5 against the Cubs and for potential Games 1, 2, 6 and 7 of the NLCS will go on sale Saturday morning.

The Diamondbacks will distribute numbered wristbands beginning at 7 a.m. near Gate A, and the order of the ticket line will be determined by a lottery drawing scheduled tentatively for 8:40 a.m.

Tickets will also go on sale at 9 a.m. at diamondbacks.com and losdbacks.com or by calling 602- 514-8400.