A.J. Hinch first week as manager of the Diamondbacks brought tons of criticism down on him, but here’s something positive from the nightcap win on Wednesday:

A.J. Hinch may have justified his hiring with this one move: In the bottom of the 11th with the score tied, Tony Peña (in his second inning of work) put runners on 1st and 3rd with no outs. Hinch called on closer Chad Qualls, who had been warm since the inning before, which immediately brought guffaws from the booth (Mark Grace even went so far as to say, “Even if they get out of this … then what?” as if there were anything more important than getting out of that inning). Qualls proceeded to get two groundballs for a groundout and a double play, which was enough to get the erstwhile critical Gracie to proclaim Hinch a “genius.”

He was willing to put in his best pitcher when the game was on the line. Good for A.J.