Nabil Crismatt will want to forget about the Diamondbacks chapter of his career.
The fourth-year reliever balked in the game-winning run in an 8-7 loss to the Reds on Saturday in his first and what proved to be his only appearance with the team.
Arizona, in the midst of a playoff push, designated the right-hander for assignment Sunday.
Ouch.
Crismatt stood just one out away from escaping the 11th without allowing a run when he allowed a soft single to Spencer Steer, which moved the go-ahead run to third base.
The 28-year-old then got ahead, 0-2, against T.J. Hopkins before being called for a balk that gave the Reds an 8-7 lead they did not relinquish.
Crismatt held his hands out in a stunned gesture, but the righty clearly began his delivery by moving his pitching hand toward his glove before stopping.
He then lowered his hand ever so slightly before lifting it up again, which constituted a balk.
Crismatt suffered the loss despite him allowing just the one unearned and balk-fueled run in two innings. He even escaped a second-and-third, no-outs situation in the 10th inning.
Arizona then announced Sunday it had designated Crismatt for assignment and promoted another righty reliever to the roster in ex-Ray Ryan Thompson.
Diamondbacks reliever Nabil Crismatt balked in the game-winning run Saturday against the Reds. AP
TJ Friedl of the Cincinnati Reds scores the game-winning run after Nabil Crismatt was called for a balk. Getty ImagesThe balk-and-gone transaction is yet another tough blow for Crisbatt, who posted a respectable 3.38 ERA over 157 innings in his first three seasons with the Cardinals and Padres.
This year has not gone as smoothly with Crismatt sporting a 9.82 ERA over 11 innings with the Padres before being designated for assignment in June.
He signed a minor league deal with the Diamondbacks on June 30 and finally received his call back up to the big leagues when Arizona activated him to the active roster on Aug. 19.
Following Sunday’s move, Crismatt could be headed to his third team within the calendar year.
Saturday marked the only game the Diamondbacks have lost in their past eight contests, with the team winning three of four against the Reds this past weekend.
Arizona leads San Francisco and Cincinnati by 1 ½ games for the final wild-card spot.
