Arizona Diamondbacks making Valley fall in love with baseball again

A bubbly feeling flowed through Chase Field on Saturday. It came from the nectar of champions, the eight cases of Korbel champagne stored in a walk-in cooler.

It was liquid proof that the Diamondbacks are once again the toast of the Valley.

Their impending postseason appearance feels different and exhilarating. They are not like the 2007 playoff team that felt like an interloper, allowing more runs than they scored during the regular season.

They are not like the 2011 Diamondbacks, a group defined by their grit and underdog spirit. That team commanded respect and captured our hearts. But we all knew they had little chance of lasting long in October.

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The current team has a different vibe. They are as potent as the champagne that awaited their approval. A World Series appearance doesn’t seem far-fetched or out of reach.

“Last year at this time, we were trying not to lose 100 games,” reliever Archie Bradley said. “Now we’re a top-five team in baseball. We can play with anybody. There’s no doubt about that.”

As an organization, the Diamondbacks have suffered through some lean years. They have been mocked and ridiculed, often defined by their worst mistakes. But this team is awakening the very best of the franchise, rekindling the love affair we all shared in 2001, when a city and its baseball team climbed a mountain together.

Jerry Colangelo remembers. The other night, he told the story of how the Diamondbacks designed their championship jewelry following an epic World Series victory over the Yankees. They decided to use the logos of both teams on one side of the ring, which didn’t sit well with George Steinbrenner.

The former Yankees owner was not happy with how the famous, interlocking “NY” symbol was being used to celebrate another team’s triumph. He responded with threats of a lawsuit, demanding that the Diamondbacks heed his warning.

That’s when an angry Colangelo picked up the phone and called Steinbrenner out, offering a few emphatic words of his own.

“I responded to him,” Colangelo said. “And we never heard another word after that.”

Those following the 2001 team will never forget how one of Colangelo’s favorite songs – “New York, New York” by Frank Sinatra – was played to the point of nausea following each of the three gut-wrenching losses in the Bronx. Or how the Diamondbacks responded by playing the song at Chase Field, only to interrupt the recording with a loud, scratching sound.

It was trolling at its best, before trolling was even a thing.

“I love the song, I love the singer, I love the city of New York,” Colangelo said. “But we were playing for a championship. And everything was fair game.”

As Colangelo told the tale, Tony La Russa sat nearby, scrolling his phone for updates from Chase Field, hanging on every update. The former Chief Baseball Officer endured a humbling season in 2016, to say the least. But he is part of this triumph.

So is Josh Byrnes, a former general manager who was fired unceremoniously in 2010. But not before he drafted Paul Goldschmidt in the eighth round, with the 246th overall pick.

The 2017 Diamondbacks are resuscitating all of our favorite ghosts. If they can survive a one-game playoff, they will likely meet the rival Dodgers in the NLDS, a showdown that will dominate water-cooler conversations and set this town abuzz.

Once, this team seemed short on personalities. They were too young and too professional. Their two best players, Paul Goldschmidt and Zack Greinke, are not exactly bursting with personality. But that dynamic has changed.

The 2017 Diamondbacks have grown from the inside, with traditions born from brotherhood. An individual player is chosen to wear a Randy Moss jersey after victories. The team gathers around a fake fire pit in the catchers’ corner of the clubhouse, talking baseball around a pseudo campfire, consisting of a fan that blows paper flames.

J.D. Martinez has become the Valley’s most unexpected superstar. Greinke showed plenty of edge while rebuffing the memorabilia requests of reliever/stalker Pat Neshek. So did the team’s Twitter account, which pimped Greinke’s recent start by tweeting out pictures of their quirky ace signing autographs for fans at Chase Field. Take that, Neshek.

And, of course, there’s Bradley. He is the team’s emotional touchstone, responsible for much of the internal transformation. He even lovingly referred to Goldschmidt as “a nerd” in a recent USA TODAY story.

“Look, he’s a five-time All-Star,” Bradley said. “There are times when I’m like, ‘Wow, I’m getting to play with Paul Goldschmidt.’ And at the end of his career, it will be an honor to say I played with him.

“But in baseball terms, he is a nerd. We go about things differently. He’s not going to stand up and yell across the clubhouse. And I will.”

Bradley astutely points out that winning has spawned the team’s change in behavior, how all of the “songs, sayings, celebrations” wouldn’t be happening without a team heading to the playoffs.

Either way, the real fun is just beginning. October baseball changes everything. And if the Diamondbacks make a prolonged run through the postseason, they might even narrow the gap on the Cardinals, our beloved NFL team struggling to keep their own championship window from closing.

Things can change fast around here. Kurt Warner and the Cardinals turned the Valley into a football town with their Super Bowl appearance in 2009. Soon, the Diamondbacks will have their own opportunity. And with any luck, even more champagne on ice.

BICKLEY: D-Backs’ Torey Lovullo will face his toughest test in playoffs

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Reach Bickley at [email protected] or 602-444-8253. Follow him on twitter.com/dan.bickley. Listen to “Bickley and Marotta” weekdays from 12-2 p.m. on 98.7 Arizona’s Sports Station.

Sunday’s game

Marlins at Diamondbacks

When: 1:10 p.m.

Where: Chase Field (Roof hotline: 602-462-6262).

Pitchers: Diamondbacks LHP Patrick Corbin (14-13, 4.14) vs. Marlins RHP Dan Straily (10-9, 4.17).

TV/Radio: FSAZ/KMVP-FM (98.7), KHOV-FM (105.1).

Corbin needs one win to set a career high with 15 victories. … He’s 6-2 with a 2.61 ERA in his past eight starts but he’s struggled in two of his past three outings. … He gave up eight earned runs against San Diego on September 8, and in his most recent start allowed four runs in five innings against the Padres. … Control has been an issue; he’s allowed 11 walks in his past 21 1/3 innings. … Straily has given up 28 homers and his ERA has climbed nearly a run since mid-July.

Coming up

Monday: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Zack Godley (8-8, 3.20) vs. Giants RHP Johnny Cueto (7-8, 4.49).

Tuesday: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks LHP Robbie Ray (14-5, 2.95) vs. Giants LHP Matt Moore (6-14, 5.20).

Wednesday: At Chase Field, 12:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Zack Greinke (17-6, 3.18) vs. Giants RHP Jeff Samardzija (9-15, 4.51).