Diamondbacks' Evan Longoria reflects on blowout Game 2 win after falling short in first game

Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Evan Longoria has hailed the character of his team after their blowout 9-1 Game 2 win on Saturday against the Texas Rangers in the World Series.

The Dbacks proved their mettle with an emphatic performance following a tough 6-5 Game 1 loss. They showed why all champion teams throughout history have one thing in common - the ability to lift themselves up when the chips are down.

An extra innings comeback defeat in Game 1 seemed to have dampened their spirits. The Dbacks were written off quite often this postseason, but each time they showed the will to fight another day, and it was no different on Saturday.

As the Dbacks were a 84-win team and a Wild Card seed in the playoffs, critics have questioned whether they deserve to play in the Fall Classic. So, each time their players have stepped onto the field, they have had something to prove.

The veteran Longoria seems to have taken that role. The third baseman said that the world should take recognition of their efforts following their blowout win:

"That game shows the world what we've been. It shows the baseball world what we've been all year. To come out, do that, plug away, play our game after a tough loss last night, it's pretty impressive," Longoria said.

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Evan Longoria outthinks Rangers with bunt and hit

In 8,935 plate appearances and 15 years of his MLB career, Evan Longoria has had just one sacrifice bunt, which came way back in 2014.

However, something made him try it out one more time, that too in a World Series. He has been batting .163 all postseason and is not the most powerful of hitters in the Dbacks lineup, so trying a soft hit and run was a plausible decision.

Longoria's sacrifice bunt in the third innings on Saturday only resulted in advancing Evan Carter from first to second base, but it helped him script a better ending. When he came to bat later in the seventh innings, the Rangers remembered what Longoria had done.

So, they pushed their infielders inside the dirt to stop a similar outcome, but this time Evan Longoria swung and swung hard, earning an RBI single driving in Alek Thomas who had earned a leadoff walk.