It’s been an incredible couple of months for the previously unheralded second-year pitcher. Corbin came into spring training having to compete for the fifth starter’s spot in the rotation, but he entered his start on Monday night at Coors Field as one of the bigger revelations in baseball in the first month and a half of the season.

And he didn’t disappoint, beating the Colorado Rockies by throwing the first complete-game of his career, giving up just three hits in a 5-1 victory, the Diamondbacks’ fifth win in their past six games. [...]

After posting a 4.54 ERA in 107 innings last season, Corbin on Monday night lowered his ERA to 1.44 through nine starts. He’s throwing harder — his average fastball velocity is up about 1 mph from last year, and he occasionally touches 95 mph — and his slider has been much sharper. [...]

“When you’re in the 90-95 mph range from the left side, it’s a very, very small category in the big leagues,” Diamondbacks right-hander Brandon McCarthy said.

• Asked if the Diamondbacks preferred grinding, gritty players

Towers replied, “That’s accurate. That’s the way [manager Kirk Gibson] played the game. That’s how we won in 2011, and Justin was part of that club.” Towers lauded Martin Prado as having that kind of mentality, grinding out at-bats and not striking out. He added, “Justin played hard every single day,” and “he cared, he’s a competitor.” But because he had a bit of a “swagger,” and because of his general body language, people might have perceived him differently.