Arizona Diamondbacks

Zac Gallen got the last laugh against Philadelphia Phillies fans as his Arizona Diamondbacks are moving on to the World Series.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Gallen trolled a Phillies fan that commented on one of his posts by telling that person to make sure they "get those tix for your next game," which will be 2024 spring training.

The Diamondbacks defeated the Phillies 4-2 in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series on Tuesday to punch their ticket to the World Series for the first time since 2001.

Gallen pitched Games 1 and 5 of the NLCS, both of which were losses for the D-Backs. He allowed five home runs and nine runs on 14 hits in 11 innings between those two games.

While the 28-year-old's performance was subpar, he's now looking ahead to a championship matchup against the Texas Rangers, where he will need to be much better if Arizona hopes to claim another title.

The Phillies meanwhile, are left with questions about how they can get back to the World Series next year behind a star-studded roster that includes Bryce Harper, Zack Wheeler and Trea Turner.

Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte has been named MVP of the National League Championship Series after leading the team past the Philadelphia Phillies in seven games.

Marte had the hottest bat in the playoffs, hitting .387 in the series. He went 1-for-5 in Tuesday's 4-2 win and now has a 16-game postseason hitting streak, which is the longest to start a playoff career.

Marte's lone hit in Tuesday's 4-2 win was an important one, as he hit a double in the seventh inning that moved Perdomo from first to third. Corbin Carroll brought him home with a sac fly to right field that gave Arizona a two-run cushion.

Marte's playoff hitting streak began the last time the Diamondbacks were in the playoffs in 2017. Arizona won its NL Wild Card Game against the Colorado Rockies before being swept in the NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The 30-year-old is now one game shy of the all-time record for consecutive playoff games with a hit. He would join Manny Ramirez, Derek Jeter and Hank Bauer as the only players ever to record a hit in 17 straight postseason games.

The Diamondbacks acquired Marte from the Seattle Mariners in 2017. He has been one of the faces of the franchise for some time, earning a trip to the All-Star Game in 2019 and signing a five-year, $76 million contract extension with Arizona prior to the 2022 season.

The Diamondbacks will face the Texas Rangers in their first trip to the World Series since 2001.

Corbin Carroll was already an All-Star and the likely National League Rookie of the Year, but now he's a Game 7 hero.

The 23-year-old led the Arizona Diamondbacks to a 4-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies in Tuesday's decisive contest in the National League Championship Series at Citizens Bank Park. He and his team will represent the National League in the World Series against the Texas Rangers as a result.

All Philadelphia had to do was win one of the final two games at home to clinch a spot in back-to-back Fall Classics, but the offense went quiet with three combined runs in those contests.

Carroll, on the other hand, was anything but quiet and went 3-of-4 with two runs scored, two RBI and two stolen bases in Game 7. He was directly involved in every Arizona run and drew plenty of praise from social media for his clutch showing:

It didn't take long for Carroll to make an impact, as he singled in the top of the first, reached third base on Gabriel Moreno's single and scored on Christian Walker's RBI groundout to put Arizona on the board first.

While the Phillies tied it with a solo homer by Alec Bohm and took the lead with an RBI double from Bryson Stott, the rookie was ready with an answer in the fifth. Arizona drew even with his RBI single and then took the lead when he stole his second base of the game and scored on an RBI single from Moreno.

Throw in Carroll's sacrifice fly to provide some important insurance in the seventh, and it seemed like it was him against the Phillies for stretches.

It wasn't, though, as starting pitcher Brandon Pfaadt struck out seven and allowed two runs in four innings. He outpitched counterpart Ranger Suárez, who allowed three earned runs while striking out six in 4.2 innings, and delivered in a massive moment by striking out Johan Rojas with the bases loaded to end the fourth.

Relief pitcher Kevin Ginkel also did his part by coming into the game with two runners on in the seventh and retiring Trea Turner and Bryce Harper. As if that wasn't enough, he struck out the side in the eighth before handing the ball to Paul Sewald for the save.

The collective effort from Carroll and the pitchers was enough to clinch a spot in the World Series, which starts Friday.

Ketel Marte put the Arizona Diamondbacks on his back when they needed it most, and, to hear him tell it, he was just doing what he does.

"That's the player I am," he said when discussing his walk-off hit in Thursday's 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series, per ESPN's Jesse Rogers. "I'm not surprised."

Marte went 3-for-5 for Arizona, and his three hits matched Philadelphia's entire total.

That is a credit to starting pitcher Brandon Pfaadt, who struck out nine and didn't allow a single run in 5.2 innings of work. He left when the game was tied at zero, and it looked like the Phillies were going to seize a commanding 3-0 advantage in the series when Bryce Harper scored on a wild pitch in the seventh inning for the contest's first run.

Lourdes Gurriel Jr. tied it up in the bottom of that frame with an RBI double, Arizona's bullpen shut down the visitors the rest of the way and Marte delivered with the game on the line.

Marte had two hits in a 10-0 loss in Game 2 and was a rare bright spot for the Diamondbacks, so he had some individual momentum coming into Arizona's first home game of the series.

The question now is whether the Diamondbacks can build on their own momentum after finally getting a win. They managed just five total runs in the first three games of the series, and the offense is going to need to be much better if they are going to come back against the Phillies' lineup.

Scoring fewer than two runs per game is a recipe for a loss against a group that includes Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner, Nick Castellanos and more, even if Arizona managed to escape with a win on Thursday.

At least it can take solace knowing Marte is ready to come through whenever he comes up in a clutch situation.