Diamondbacks Open Series Against Giants Behind Nabil Crismatt

The D-backs dropped their series finale against the Red Sox 7-4, failing to complete a sweep. The Giants also lost, while the Reds knocked off the Mets for the a second straight game.

While the D-backs must ultimately catch the Mets (or the Padres), they must first pass the Giants and Reds. They'll have a golden opportunity to do just that with six games remaining against their division rival, these three at Oracle Park and then three more back at Chase Field next week.

Arizona Diamondbacks vs San Francisco Giants Pitching Matchup

Nabil Crismatt has stepped in for the injured Anthony DeSclafani and delivered four straight excellent outings, pitching to a minuscule 2.14 ERA in 21 innings.

Crismatt is a throwback, in that he depends on his changeup more than any other pitch, and relies on mixing pitches, speeds, and shapes, all with pinpoint location to get outs.

His pitching role models coming up were Kyle Hendricks, Greg Maddux, and Johan Santana. Crismatt will never light up a radar gun, but he is effective at keeping hitters off-balance and inducing soft contact.

Logan Webb is having another outstanding season, and is the unquestioned ace of the Giants' staff. He leads the league in Innings pitched and games started, all while providing quality innings and a 3.17 ERA.

In 13 starts all time against the D-backs he's 7-4 with a 3.26 ERA. He lost his most recent outing against Arizona however, giving up three runs in 6.1 innings in a 4-2 Giants loss.

Diamondbacks vs Giants Lineup

(Check back later for lineup.)

Wilmer Flores is the only Giant with a sizable track record against Crismatt. He's 1-for-9 with a walk.

The D-backs have a number of hitters with extensive track record against, over 20 PA. But little of it is good except for Corbin Carroll

Diamondbacks and Giants Bullpens

The D-backs have received six straight quality starts from their starting pitchers, each lasting six innings. That's helped with reliever workload, but the D-backs' pen remains a work in progress, and is inconsistent.

On Sunday, Taylor Rashi gave up three runs in his second inning of work to take the loss against the Red Sox. They also had to use Ryan Thompson, Jake Woodford, and Kyle Backhus. Andrew Saalfrank warmed up in the bullpen and threw a lot of pitches, but did not get into the game.

Brandyn Garcia has not pitched in over a week, and DeSclafani should be available for bulk innings if needed.

The Giants traded their top two relievers at the trade deadline. Since then Ryan Walker has been getting most of the save chances. He has 14 for the year but just four since the trade deadline. He blew a save on Saturday, giving up three runs on four hits and a hit by pitch without recording an out.

The Giants had to use four relievers on Sunday, but just three on Saturday and two on Friday. Webb has failed to pitch into the sixth inning only two times in 29 starts, and he's completed seven or more innings 10 times. He's the right guy to give the bullpen a blow for the first game of the series.

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