Outfielders Ender Inciarte and David Peralta had strong seasons in the Venezuelan winter league, and they have not slowed down yet.
Inciarte and Peralta each had two hits in the Diamondbacks' 9-5 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Thursday night at Salt River Fields, when Inciarte hit second against right-hander Edwin Jackson and Peralta hit fourth.
Inciarte and Peralta lead the D-backs in hits this spring. Inciarte has 14 in 33 at-bats and Peralta has 13 in 29. They have done it before. Inciarte hit .333 with 13 stolen bases for Zulia this winter, while Peralta hit .319 with 32 RBI for Margarita.
Both had hits in the D-backs' three-run fourth inning, when Inciarte led off with a single to left field and Peralta had a one-out double.
Peralta scored twice, hustling home a run in the sixth inning. With runners on first and third and one out, Gerald Laird hit a hard grounder to first baseman Mike Baxter, who stepped on first for the second out. Jake Lamb, who had singled, was tagged out at second to complete the double play, but Peralta crossed the plate before the tag, so the run counted.
Laird doubled down the left field line to drive in a run in the third.
Non-roster right-hander A.J. Schugel made his fourth straight scoreless appearance of the spring, this time escaping a leadoff triple by Starlin Castro in the seventh inning. Schugel struck out Junior Lake and Kyle Schwarber, issued a walk, then struck out Javier Baez to end the inning.
With health an issue in the bullpen, Schugel is emerging as a candidate to make the Opening Day roster. Schugel has given up two hits and two walks in six scoreless innings while striking out six.
"The changeup and the breaking ball are strikeout pitches," Hale said. "Guys like that always has a chance. He's shown some toughness. "He's definitely in the mix. He definitely has a shot."
Rubby De La Rosa
De La Rosa gave two runs, two hits and four walks in four innings, his fourth spring start. He cruised through the first two innings with only a walk before losing command in the third inning, even as his velocity remained in the high-90 mph.
The Cubs went walk, double, double, walk to open the third inning, the first double coming on a changeup to former D-backs pitcher Edwin Jackson. De La Rosa hit 99 mph on a pitch to Welington Castillo before walking him to lead off the inning. De La Rosa threw 72 pitches, 42 strikes. He used about a dozen curve balls, he said.
"I felt good today. I felt everything was working good," De La Rosa said. "Some of the walks were on the purpose. It wasn't like I lost my location like the last time. I'm trying to attack."
Chase Anderson
Anderson started and gave up four runs, three earned, in five innings against Los Angeles Angels minor leaguers in an afternoon game played at the back fields at Tempe Diablo stadium.
Anderson cruised through three innings before giving up three runs in the fourth inning, turning to his off-speed stuff almost exclusively in the final two innings. He threw 68 pitches, 45 strikes, giving up six hits. He walked two and struck out three.
He is the only D-backs pitcher to go five innings this spring.
Socrates Brito and Chris Owings singled in the tying and go-ahead runs in a five-run eighth inning when the D-backs posted their National League-leading 11th victory of the spring. Kansas City leads the American League with 11 wins. ... Owings also stole second base in the eighth, his third steal of the spring, tying Inciarte and A.J. Pollock for the team lead. ... Peter O'Brien spent the final four innings at first base in place of Paul Goldschmidt. ... Yasmany Tomas struck out as a pinch-hitter. He is scheduled to play third base against the Brewers in Maryvale on Friday afternoon. ... Jake Lamb had a single, a sacrifice fly and was hit by a pitch.
Brad Ziegler, who pitched one inning in a minor league game Wednesday, is scheduled to make his first appearance in a spring training game Sunday against Colorado at Salt River Fields. ... Daniel Hudson reported no unusual after-effects following his two-inning stint in a minor league game Wednesday, Hale said.
Diamondbacks at Milwaukee Brewers
Maryvale Baseball Park, 1:05 pm
Probable pitchers: Diamondbacks -- RHP Trevor Cahill, LHP Vidal Nuno, LHP Andrew Chafin, RHP Jake Barrett. Brewers -- RHP Jimmy Nelson, RHP Jeremy Jeffress.
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