'I Want to Be Wanted': Torey Lovullo Watched Arizona's Season End on the Scoreboard

The Diamondbacks needed two things on Sunday: a win in San Diego and a Phillies loss. The first one was already slipping away when Torey Lovullo looked up at the Petco Park scoreboard and saw Philadelphia's game go final.

"It was agonizing to watch. One out, two outs, and then the board flashed 'Final,'" Lovullo said. "I probably felt sadness and a little emptiness that was something I'll never forget."

Arizona lost both weekend games to the Padres, finished 86-76 and missed the last NL wild card by one game. Winning both would have been enough. It's the eighth time in nine years the D-backs have missed the playoffs, with the 2023 pennant the one exception.

A decade in, and a one-year deal

Lovullo is the winningest manager in franchise history at 750-768 over 10 seasons. He also finished this one on a one-year contract, and earlier this month he said the team probably needed to make the playoffs for him and his staff to return.

Would he take another short deal? "I don't know. I just want to be wanted. I'll leave it at that," he said. Does he want to come back? "Of course I do. Arizona is my home."

He has support. Team president Derrick Hall recently said this was probably the best managing job of Lovullo's career, given the injuries and distractions, including another strange absence by star Ketel Marte. But Lovullo was hired within weeks of GM Mike Hazen, and a decade of close calls in a division with the Dodgers and Padres adds up.

"We come close, and we've got to find a way to turn that corner," Lovullo said. The front office will decide soon whether he's the one to do it.