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Let the playoff countdown begin
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DENVER - The countdown has begun. A few minutes into the Diamondbacks’ playoff-clinching celebration, pitcher Livan Hernandez gathered his giddy, champagne-soaked teammates and said a few words.
D-Backs celebrate after clinching playoff spot
“We made it, baby,” Hernandez yelled.
“Now we have to win 12 more.”
The D-Backs clinched their first postseason berth since 2002 with a 4-2 victory over Colorado at Coors Field on Friday, and if it only takes 11 victories to win the World Series, Hernandez could be cut some slack.
A 12th victory for the D-Backs (90-70) would secure the NL West title and home field-advantage throughout the playoffs, since they already own the tiebreaker on San Diego.
“I’ve been to a few of these, 2001 (World Series) being the ultimate. But I don’t think I’ve been around a team effort like this one,” manager Bob Melvin said.
“You look up and down our roster and you kind of say how, why? But if you watch these guys play day-in and day-out, you know why. These guys bring the same attitude every day, and I don’t think I’ve been around a group like that.”
Brandon Webb beat Colorado for the first time in six starts this season and Conor Jackson continued to torment Jeff Francis as the D-Backs ended Colorado’s 11-game winning streak.
“If this is a playoff game, which it ended up being for us, I don’t care who the team is, we want Brandon Webb on the mound,” Melvin said.
“He stepped up in a spot where he has had a difficult time in the past. I’m going to go get him with a champagne bottle.”
Jackson, who has four career home runs off Francis, hit a two-run homer in the third for a 3-0 lead, after Augie Ojeda’s sacrifice fly in the second.
Stephen Drew, who has 10 hits in his last four games, drove in the D-Backs’ final run with a two-out single in the sixth.
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