A half hour before game time, a pack of players shuffled in through the right-field gate wearing black Diamondbacks jerseys. A.J. Pollock wore a red one, as if he didn’t stand out enough already from his rookie-league teammates.
Pollock began his trek back to majors on Friday night in an Arizona League game at Tempe Diablo Stadium. The weather was hot and humid. The stands were nearly empty. There was no stadium announcer, no music between innings. But it was still a game, which for Pollock meant dealing with nerves, only these were the good kind.
“I always get butterflies when I play the game,” he said.