Diamondbacks' Ryan Thompson: Needs help in ninth inning

Thompson allowed two runs on two hits while striking out one over a third of an inning in Wednesday's 4-3 win over the Yankees.

Thompson entered to start the ninth inning and close out a 4-0 lead, but he ran into early trouble and was removed after giving up a couple of singles. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo brought in one of his closers, the left-handed A.J. Puk, to face the mostly left-handed batters due up. The one righty in that string of batters, Anthony Volpe, took Puk deep for a three-run home run. Thompson was a reliable arm in a setup role for the Diamondbacks in 2024, primarily serving as a seventh- and eighth-inning bridge.