Zac Gallen thinks he is among the best pitchers in the National League and deserves to be considered for the Cy Young Award.

He validated his case by dominating one of the greatest American League squads on Tuesday.

On Tuesday night, the Arizona Diamondbacks beаt the struggling Texas Rangers 6-3 thanks to six strong innings from starter Kevin Gallen and a fantastic diving catch by catcher Alek Thomas on the warning track for the first out of the ninth inning.’

“All I have to do is keep us moving,” Gallen explained. To quote Coach, “We have some really important games coming up in the next five to six weeks, so anything to keep us in the right direction.”

The D-backs swept the two-game series and have won five straight games, which has helped their chances in the tight National League wild-card race thanks in large part to Tommy Pham’s 13-game hitting streak. They lead the Giants and the Reds by 0.5 games for the last wild card slot.

After dropping six in a row, the Rangers now find themselves only a half-game ahead of the Astros in the AL West.

Arizona had a 6-1 lead after six innings, but a two-run single by Texas’ Corey Seager in the seventh trimmed the lead to 6-3. In the ninth inning, the Rangers loaded the bases with one out, but closer Paul Sewald got out of the jam by striking out Mitch Garver and getting Travis Jankowski to ground out for his 27th save of the season.

The most discussion followed the ninth inning’s first out, with Sewald marveling at Thomas’ catch for several minutes after the final out was recorded. The center fielder leaped to catch a hard-Һit ball by Marcus Semien, running all the way into the right-center gap.

When Thomas jumped up with the ball, Sewald’s jaw dropped.

“Until everyone cheered, I didn’t really think he had it,” Sewald joked. The pitcher said, “I always expect the worst.”

Gallen (14-5) controlled a strong Rangers lineup for the whole of the game, making even their best batters take erratic swings. One home run allowed to Garver in the sixth inning was the sole blemish. He walked one and allowed seven hits.

In 12 of his last 13 outings, the right-hander has gone the distance.

The D-backs quietly acquired Pham at the trade deadline, and he ended up being the game-winning hero in an extra-innings thriller on Monday night. The veteran outfielder has helped a struggling lineup tremendously by becoming a consistent run contributor in the middle of the lineup. His hitting streak continued in the fifth when he produced an RBI single that pushed the score to four runs.

After loaded the bases with no outs in the second inning, the D-backs scored three runs and took the lead. After Jace Peterson grounded into a double play, Gabriel Moreno Һit an RBI single to bring in the game’s first run. Texas pitcher Jon Gray’s poor throw allowed speedy youngster Corbin Carroll to reach on an infield single and bring in the game-winning run, which scored Moreno.

It seemed like Gray (8-7) was never the same after that 39-pitch second inning. The right-hander allowed five runs (four earned) over four and a third innings. He walked four and allowed seven hits.

Both the fifth and seventh inning home runs by Texas were inches away from going over the fence. Both Semien and Leody Taveras had to settle for doubles after hitting balls off the top of the wall. The Rangers beаt the Diamondbacks 13-9 on the strength of the bats of Semien, Seager, Garver, Nathaniel Lowe, and Ezequiel Duran, all of whom had two hits.

“We were figҺting back, we Һit some balls hard,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said. Unfortunately, “we did have some bad luck.”

ROOM FOR TRAINERS

Torey Lovullo, manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks, notified the media that right-handed pitcher Zach Davies (back) will be activated from the disabled list and make his season debut Saturday against the Cincinnati Reds.

NEXT UP

Starting on Thursday, the Rangers will embark on a four-game road trip to face the Minnesota Twins. In the first game, Texas will start left-handed pitcher Andrew Heaney (9-6, 4.27 ERA), while Minnesota will go with right-handed pitcher Pablo Lopez (9-6, 3.51).

The Diamondbacks will play host to the Cincinnati Reds for four games beginning on Thursday. Merrill Kelly (R, 10-5, 3.13) will take the mound for Arizona on Thursday.