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D-backs line-up:
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Gerardo Parra, CF
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Martin Prado, LF
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Paul Goldschmidt, 1B
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Miguel Montero, C
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Cody Ross, RF
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Eric Chavez, 3B
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Didi Gregorius, SS
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Cliff Pennington, 2B
- Wade Miley, P
Remember the notion that Goldzilla couldn't hit right-handed pitching, and was doomed to be nothing more than a platoon first-baseman? Signs point to no, shall we say. He has now had 50 at-bats against them this season, and has a line of .360/.421/.540. Admittedly, a chunk of that is undoubtedly BABIP-fuelled, but it doesn't seem like there has been a great deal of luck involved. The only Diamondbacks right-hander currently with a better OPS against them is Aaron Hill, at 1.133. From the other side of the plate, Parra has also been going well - 19-for-52, with nine extra-base hits - and then there's Didi, who is such a "no-hit" shortstop, of course...
So, if we're going to start scoring runs again, and we've not managed tacos in regulation since April 10, I'd like to think tonight will be a good time. The Diamondbacks did very well against Vogelsong the last couple of times we say him in 2012: he lasted only 3.1 innings and allowed six earned runs each time, being tagged for 14 hits and six walks in 6.2 frames. However, those who did the damage don't seem to be still around, and indeed, only six position players on the current roster have ever faced Vogelsong at all, which gives you an indication of how much overhaul the roster has experienced since last season.
Posey (4-for-7) and Torres (4-for-6) would be the batters on the San Francisco side who have had most success against Miley in the past, but he has taken the loss in both of his starts against the Giants. He didn't pitch badly in his debut, giving us a quality start, with seven innings of three-run ball, but the next time wasn't as good: Wade went four innings and allowed six hits and three walks. I'm hoping he gives us something closer to the former than the latter, though given he is 3-for-3 in quality starts, with an sub-three ERA, I'm optimistic he'll have learned from previous experiences.
Think 'charmer is at the game tonight, so we'll be hearing from her in the recap comments, I imagine. I'll be bringing you that post-game. Let's see if I can squeeze in the finale of Broadchurch and maybe some Hemlock Grove before first pitch.