Arizona Diamondbacks: 5 Reasons They Will Complete Big Series Comeback

After falling behind 2-0 in the NLDS to the Milwaukee Brewers, the Arizona Diamondbacks have forced a Game 5. 

This team has defied the odds all season and they'll continue to do so Friday in Milwaukee.

Pundits didn't give the D'Backs credit for winning the "poor" NL West this season. What was so "poor" about it?

San Francisco won the World Series in 2010 and almost everyone believed they would surpass the D'Backs in September. As for the rest of the NL West—the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers were supposed to be good this season and the San Diego Padres never recovered from their late collapse in 2010. While those teams didn't meet expectations, Arizona exceeded them.

After being constantly thrown by the wayside it's time for the Diamondbacks to finally earn respect—they will do so Friday.

Here are five reasons why the Diamondbacks will complete the comeback.

No. 5: Mentality

The Arizona Diamondbacks are flying high right now. They're playing with nothing to lose as the pressure is now on the Milwaukee Brewers. 

Although both teams have won their respective home games, the momentum now resides with the Diamondbacks.

Manager Kirk Gibson has instilled a quiet confidence into his team all season long. Expect his team to let it all hang out on Friday. 

No. 4: Chris Young

Coming into the playoffs, everyone knew that the Arizona Diamondbacks would need more than just Justin Upton at the plate. Along with others, Chris Young has provided the shot in the arm that the D'Backs needed.

Fans know how good Chris Young can be—they also know how bad he can be. Young is a prime example of a hot and cold hitter. After becoming an All-Star in 2010, he only hit .236 this year.

Young has finally gotten hot at the right time, which is right now. He's hitting .429 with a double and three homers in the series. He is the catalyst to the Diamondbacks success at the plate in Game 5. 

Young will carry his hot bat to Milwaukee and put Arizona over the top. 

No. 3: Rickie Weeks

Milwaukee Brewers fans were thrilled to have Rickie Weeks back in time for the playoffs. After an ankle injury sidelined him from late July until mid-September, Weeks returned just in time for a tune-up before October began.

It's evident that Weeks is still rusty. His 1-for-15 performance at the plate is proof.

Now Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke is faced with a tough decision heading into Game 5. Does he swap Rickie Weeks in the five hole with Corey Hart's lead-off position in the lineup?

Hart took over the lead-off spot when Weeks went down with the ankle injury and Hart's season took off. In contrast, Hart was batting.182 in the fifth spot in the order. Certainly, this doesn't sound fruitful for the Brewers, but they can't have Weeks' .067 batting average hitting behind Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder.

The struggles of Weeks and the potential swap with Hart has to have the Brewers faithful on edge heading into Game 5. 

No. 2: Arizona Diamondbacks Offense Has Awoken

After scoring just five runs in two games in Milwaukee, the Arizona Diamondbacks unleashed for 18 in two games at home. This includes a grand-slam in each game and five total homers. 

The Diamondbacks averaged 4.5 runs/game this season and have the potential to blast away at any moment. Now that they've gotten their groove back, the D'Backs look to take a bite out of Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Yovani Gallardo early. This is something they couldn't do in Game 1 when Gallardo threw eight innings of stellar baseball.

Expect the already aggressive D'Backs to come out swinging for the NLCS in Game 5. 

No. 1: Ian Kennedy

Ian Kennedy won 21 games in the regular season. Although he was defeated in Game 1 of this series, don't expect this to happen in Game 5. He didn't lose two games in a row all season long.

The Arizona Diamondbacks didn't give Kennedy much support in Game 1. The team only hit .133 in that game. Now poised at the plate, they won't let their ace down in Game 5.

Look for Kennedy to rebound from Game 1 with a determined performance in Game 5.