Diamondbacks' A.J. Puk: Hangs on for second save

Puk picked up a save against the Yankees on Wednesday, allowing one run on one hit while striking out one batter over one inning.

Arizona held a four-run lead heading into the bottom of the ninth inning, initially rendering Puk's services unnecessary. However, Ryan Thompson allowed the first two batters in the frame to reach base, at which point Puk was called upon to put out the fire. He instead stoked the flames by serving up a one-out, three-run homer to Anthony Volpe, but the lefty reliever then retired the final two batters he faced to close things out for Arizona. It's noteworthy that Puk got his second save chance in two days while Justin Martinez pitched the eighth inning Tuesday, though it also bears mentioning that in both instances Puk was brought in at a point when the Yankees were due to send up multiple left-handed batters. Manager Torey Lovullo hasn't yet announced a full-time closer, and he may opt to determine save chances based on matchups; that said, Puk appears to at least be the Diamondbacks' closer of choice when the situation calls for a lefty, though he's now allowed two homers over his first three outings of the campaign.