Rookie outfielder Ryan Waldschmidt has etched his name into Arizona Diamondbacks history.
D-Backs manager Torey Lovullo threw Waldschmidt into a massive spot Tuesday, trailing the Chicago Cubs 4-3 in the bottom of the 9th inning. Waldschmidt, whom Lovullo had pinch-hit for Jorge Barrosa, had a runner on base with two outs in front of a Cubs-heavy home crowd at Chase Field in Phoenix, Ariz.
Waldschmidt worked a 2-1 count against Cubs reliever Jacob Webb. That set the Diamondbacks rookie up to crush an 84-mph slider deep into the left-field seats.
WALK-OFF HOME RUN
— MLB (@MLB) August 26, 2026
Down to the @Dbacks last out, Ryan Waldschmidt flips the script! pic.twitter.com/5tq5ojZiN8
Waldschmidt became the first rookie ever to record a pinch-hit walk-off home run in Diamondbacks franchise history. He accomplished that feat to help bring the Diamondbacks within a game of the San Diego Padres in the race for the final NL Wild Card spot.
Arizona got some help from Lady Luck to pull off the 5-4 win. With the Diamondbacks trailing 4-0 in the bottom of the 8th, Gabriel Moreno hit a check-swing double that led to a three-run inning.
Cubs did something to piss off the baseball gods
— 𝕮𝖔𝖓𝖓𝖔𝖗 𝕻𝖎𝖑𝖘 (@TheConnorPils) August 26, 2026
They lost the game on this play. 99 times out of 100 that ball stays foul. Not even sure how that’s possible.
2 losses all year when leading after 8 and they came in the last 4 days. pic.twitter.com/nIi1QEPBH9
Waldschmidt’s walk-off dinger against the Cubs was just the third of his MLB career. Two out of the three were walk-off home runs against top-four NL teams. Waldschmidt also stunned the Los Angeles Dodgers earlier this month in a nearly identical game situation to that of his Cubs winner.
RYAN WALDSCHMIDT WALK-OFF HOMER! pic.twitter.com/awJyS4RYda
— MLB (@MLB) August 8, 2026
The man arguably deserves two Wins Above Replacement for those walk-off home runs alone. At the very least, disgruntled pitch-tipper Merrill Kelly should buy him dinner.
