Diamondbacks Face Tough Series Against MLB-Best Dodgers

The Arizona Diamondbacks (19-18) take on the Los Angeles Dodgers (25-12) for a four-game set at Chase Field. One of the highlights will be the debut of the new City Connect uniforms, which they'll wear on Friday and Saturday.

The series will serve as a chance for the Diamondbacks to measure up against a team many consider to be the favorite to represent the National League in the World Series. The Dodgers have a star-studded lineup highlighted by a Top 3 of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman. So to say the least, Arizona has a tough road in all four games in this series.

Health Updates

Right-hander Justin Martinez is expected to begin a throwing program Thursday. Martinez was placed on the 15-day injured list on May 1, so he'd be first eligible to return on May 16. Manager Torey Lovullo was non-committal when asked if it was going to be a minimal IL stint for his co-closer.

Fellow right-hander Kendall Graveman is nearing a return, appearing in a rehab outing with Triple-A Reno on Wednesday. Graveman sat 93.5-95.8 MPH between his two fastballs and threw a slider and changeup along with it. Assuming a similar return to protocol as Kevin Ginkel, he may undergo one rehab appearance before getting activated. The Giants series in San Francisco seems like a potential target return.

A.J. Puk is still in the treatment phase and has yet to be asymptomatic as of the latest update. Puk has a flexor tendon strain and is currently on the 60-day IL. He is not eligible to be activated by June 18.

Tommy Edman (Ankel) and Teoscar Hernandez (Groin) are both on the injured list for the Dodgers. Starters Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow are also on the 15-Day IL with no time table for return.

Pitching Matchups

Thursday, May 8th, 6:40 p.m. MST

Yoshinobu Yamamoto currently looks like the frontrunner for the National League Cy Young Award. The right-hander is 4-2 with 0.90 ERA, with 49 strikeouts and 13 walks over 40 innings. His ability to hit 96-97 MPH with precision along with a devastating curveball and splitter mix makes him a tough pitcher to hit. In two starts against Arizona, he's 2-0 with a 1.46 ERA.

Brandon Pfaadt will look to shake off his worst start of the year. The right-hander gave up seven runs in 4.2 innings in a blowout loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. He had won his previous five starts and not allowed more than four runs in any of them. Pfaadt has mixed results in his career against the Dodgers, with a 2-2 record in four starts, but also a 6.20 ERA.

Friday, May 9th, 6:40 p.m. MST

Roki Sasaki was one of the Dodgers' many prized free agent acquisitions in the offseason, but his career has been a mixed bag to start. The 23-year-old has been inconsistent, with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 24/20 over 30.1 innings. Sasaki doesn't necessarily go deep in games, only twice getting more than 15 outs in a start out of seven, as the Dodgers carefully manage him. He's gone over 90 pitches in each of his last two starts, however.

Eduardo Rodríguez has pitched better than the numbers, but has been a victim of poor support. His 5.92 ERA is bloated by poor defense behind him plus relievers allowing four of his six bequeathed runs to score. He's striking out hitters at a 26.5% rate while being above-average in limiting walks, hard-hit, and barrel contact.

Saturday, May 10th, 5:10 p.m. MST

Dustin May may be one of the most electric pitchers on the planet when healthy. He features a deadly combination of a mid-90s sinker and mid-80s sweeper that can baffle hitters when he has good command of them. He's one of the best pitchers at stretching a hitter's zone horizontally, using those two pitches 78% of the time. However, he has a pretty concerning quality of contact profile and isn't missing many bats this season.

Corbin Burnes is set to make his next turn through the rotation after missing his previously scheduled start on Monday. It's been a somewhat disappointing season for Burnes, who signed a $210 million contract in the offseason, as his signature cutter has been off this season. His 3.58 ERA is overshadowed by troubling strikeout and walk rates to begin the season. The Diamondbacks are hoping some extra rest will help the right-hander return to form.

Sunday, May 11th, 1:10 p.m. MST

The Dodgers have not announced a pitcher to start this game. Doing the math, the pitcher who is scheduled for this slot is right-hander Tony Gonsolin, who last pitched on May 6. Gonsolin has made two starts since coming back from 2023 Tommy John surgery, pitching to a 4.09 ERA in 11 innings.

Zac Gallen will look to continue his run of success. The right-hander has won his last two starts, allowing just a total of two runs over his last 13 innings, striking out 14. It's been an up-and-down year for Gallen, but the hope is he's found something that works over his past two starts.

Who's Hot, Who's Not?

Corbin Carroll is heating up over his last four games. He's collected seven hits, two home runs, and walked four times in that span. Carroll had undergone a rough nine-game stretch between April 24 and May 3, in which he hit .154 with 15 strikeouts and a .483 OPS. He reached base a total of nine times in the Mets series.

Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is heating up at the plate. Since April 30, he's batting .354 with four doubles and two home runs over eight games. His early-season slump had been an issue with the lack of production in the bottom half of the order, and their struggles hitting left-handed pitchers, to begin the season.

Following a blazing-hot start, Pavin Smith has been in the deep freezer in his past 12 games. He's 2 for his last 31 at the plate and has struck out 14 times. The caveat is he's also walked 10 times in that stretch, so he's still getting on base at a respectable rate despite the slump.

The Dodgers' big three have been on fire the past week, all sporting an OPS over 1.100. Freeman in particular has been very hot, hitting .480 with three home runs and a 1.439 OPS. He owns a career .340/.404/.626 slash with 26 home runs against the Diamondbacks in his career. He's really dominated at Chase Field, where he's batting .370 with 16 home runs in Arizona's home park.

Bullpen Situation

The Diamondbacks' bullpen has seen some wear in recent games due to the number of close games and the lack of viable options in the front end of the bullpen to give their best relievers some rest. Ryan Thompson, Shelby Miller, and Jalen Beeks have all pitched in 15 or more games this season. It will be interesting to see if the team makes a move concerning Cristian Mena and José Castillo ahead of the series.

Miller has more or less become the defacto closer for the Diamondbacks while they wait for Martinez and Puk to return. Kevin Ginkel has become the primary setup man when they have the lead, a role he's held the last two seasons. Arizona's bullpen ranks 25th in ERA (4.47) and 24th in win probability added (-1.02).

The Dodgers' bullpen has seen its share of injuries. They already have five relievers on the 60-day IL and just lost Evan Phillips to a right forearm strain. Despite that, they continue to turn out quality arms to get the job done. Left-hander Tanner Scott has become the Dodgers' top closing option with Blake Treinen on the IL. Kirby Yates and Alex Vesia have served as the primary setup men.

Comparing the two bullpens, it's pretty clear the Dodgers have a huge advantage, especially in the middle relief. That area has been a soft underbelly for the Diamondbacks this season while the Dodgers have gotten quality outings from Anthony Banda, Ben Casparius, and Jack Dreyer. Los Angeles' pen ranks 11th in ERA (3.52) and sixth in WPA (1.96).