Jake McCarthy, Stone Garrett provide offense, Diamondbacks sweep White Sox

CHICAGO — The Diamondbacks finished off a sweep on Sunday afternoon, continuing to forge an identity as an aggressive, scrappy and hard-nosed team by eking out a 3-2 win over the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field.

And now they’re about to add a player whom many consider the top prospect in baseball.

According to a source, the Diamondbacks are planning to promote outfielder Corbin Carroll from Triple-A Reno, a move that will mark the arrival of one of the most intriguing prospects in the franchise’s history.

Carroll is expected to join the Diamondbacks and make his major league debut in their series opener on Monday night against the Philadelphia Phillies.

He will be joining a team on the upswing. The Diamondbacks are getting good starts from their rotation. Their youthful lineup is working deep counts, using the whole field and delivering big hits. They are running the bases aggressively. Their defense is making key plays, like they did on Friday night, when center fielder Alek Thomas and right fielder Daulton Varsho each produced eye-popping catches.

“I think our young hitters are maturing,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “They’ve adopted an all-field approach the past couple of months and even though every game isn’t perfect, I still think they’re buying into that development and it’s playing out.”

The Diamondbacks picked up their fourth victory in a row on Sunday, winning a game started by right-hander Dylan Cease, one of baseball’s best pitchers this season. They managed just three hits — two solo home runs and an RBI double.

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Rookie Stone Garrett connected for a solo shot in the second inning, hitting his first major league homer in his first at-bat in a week. He homered off a Cease slider, a pitch that has been among the most dominant offerings of any pitcher in the majors this season.

Sergio Alcantara tied the game with a solo shot with one out in the eighth, contributing despite making just his second start in more than a week.

And Jake McCarthy, who turned in a four-hit game the night before, drove in the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth on an RBI double.

“I think it’s kind of that true baseball feel,” said right-hander Zach Davies, who gave up two runs in 5 2/3 innings. "You know, stringing together hits. There are a couple of guys in the lineup who can change the game with one swing of the bat. Pitchers going out there and doing their job.”

Carroll’s arrival will make for a more crowded outfield situation, though that should be somewhat alleviated by the designated hitter, assuming Ketel Marte’s hamstring allows him to return to second base in the coming days.

Through Carroll’s time in the organization, coaches have marveled at his ability to hit. They say he has a fluid, almost effortless swing that produces the sort of loud contact that belies his undersized frame. They have raved about his baseball acumen and instincts. And they say he can be a difference maker on defense, as well.

He will arrive with a spotlight on him. The Diamondbacks appear to have the makings of a solid group of position players. They lack the kind of impact player that many evaluators believe Carroll can become.

The promotion does not come as much of a surprise. Not only is Carroll destroying minor league pitching — he entered Sunday with a .307/.425/.611 line he accumulated mostly between Double-A and Triple-A — but General Manager Mike Hazen all but said earlier this month he planned to bring him up, making the point that once he brings Carroll up he hopes never to have to send him back down.

“I would like to get him acclimated a little bit,” Hazen said less than two weeks ago. “I’m hoping he’s going to have a chance to break with our team next year coming out of spring training. So getting some of those at-bats under his belt up here will be part of that. Going through the struggles, to whatever that might mean, I do think is important.”

Reach Piecoro at (602) 444-8680 or nick.piecoro@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on Twitter @nickpiecoro.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Jake McCarthy, Stone Garrett provide offense, Diamondbacks sweep White Sox