Diamondbacks Face Brutal Matchup in Crucial Finale

The Arizona Diamondbacks face a crucial game three rubber match on Sunday afternoon against the Philadelphia Phillies, with first pitch scheduled for 1:10 p.m.

Arizona is now 78-77, 2.0 games out of a Wild Card berth. They trail the New York Mets and the surging Cincinnati Reds, who own the tiebreaker over Arizona.

Arizona Diamondbacks vs Philadelphia Phillies Pitching Matchup

LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (5.12 ERA) vs LHP Ranger Suárez (2.84)

Rodriguez struggled through his most recent start after putting together three straight excellent performances. He gave up five runs in five innings after a brutal four-run first inning his last time out.

Rodriguez did, to his credit, settle down enough to keep the D-backs in the game after an offensive response, and Arizona went on to win on a walk-off base hit by Jordan Lawlar. Arizona has won four straight games in which Rodriguez has started, and they desperately need a fifth straight.

Meanwhile, left-hander Ranger Suárez remains one of the toughest matchups in baseball. Suárez missed his first month of action with a lower back injury, but has been excellent ever since. In his last five starts, he's given up only four earned runs.

Ironically enough, Suárez's first start of the season was against the D-backs, who lit him up for seven runs in 3.2 innings. He has not given up more than three runs in a start in nearly six weeks, however.

Suárez throws a balanced arsenal, with a low-90s sinker leading the charge. He has a slow changeup and curve, with a cutter, four-seam and occasional slider, as well.

Suárez's sinnker, usually one of his money pitches, has been hit to a .297 average this season. But it's still been slugged at a below-.400 clip. He isn't being hit very hard, even if teams are getting on base.

Diamondbacks vs Phillies Lineup

(Check back later for lineup.)

Diamondbacks vs Phillies Bullpens

The D-backs' bullpen is fatigued and banged up. They used Brandyn Garcia, Ryan Thompson and John Curtiss to lock down Saturday's win. Andrew Saalfrank has been dealing with shoulder fatigue, and while he doesn't appear to be headed for the IL, he may still be unavailable to manager Torey Lovullo.

Related Content: D-backs' Torey Lovullo Gives Andrew Saalfrank Injury Update

The Phillies used Tanner Banks, Lou Trivino and Matt Strahm on Saturday. Closer Jhoan Duran has not gotten into a game since Tuesday.

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