Game #146 Preview: 9/16, Arizona Diamondbacks vs. San Diego Padres

The La Russa Heartbreakometer

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Andrew Cashner RHP, 5-15, 4.27

Robbie Ray LHP, 4-11, 3.54

Wil Myers - LF	A.J. Pollock - CF
Yangervis Solarte - 3B	Ender Inciarte - RF
Matt Kemp - RF	Paul Goldschmidt - 1B
Brett Wallace - 1B	David Peralta - LF
Jedd Gyorko - SS	Jarrod Saltalamacchia - C
Cory Spangenberg - 2B	Jake Lamb - 3B
Melvin Upton Jr. - CF	Brandon Drury - 2B
Austin Hedges - C	Chris Owings - SS
Andrew Cashner - RHP	Robbie Ray - LHP

Back in early July, I wondered if the Rockies' Kyle Kendrick could become the first 20-game loser in the majors since Phil Niekro. At that point, he, Matt Garza and Aaron Harang were the front-runners, but Cashner is making a run on the rails, though too late to reach the 20-game mark. Still, he is tied with Harang on 15 losses, most in the National League, with one win in his past nine outings - ironically, that came against the best team in the NL. the St. Louis Cardinals. One of his other wins did come against the D-backs, on June 27, but his other three starts against us have all resulted in L's. With this being his fifth start against us this year, we should at least be familiar with his stuff.

However, it's worth nothing he hasn't pitched badly against Arizona, despite the 1-3 record, having allowed seven earned runs in 24 innings of work, with a K:BB ratio of 26:3. The losses are largely because he received a total of seven runs in support across those three appearances. That's absolutely par for Cashner's course: in 12 of the 15 L's this season, San Diego has scored two runs or fewer. But at least he's no Shelby Miller: on current pace, the Braves' starter will become the first pitcher since Orel Hershiser in 1989 to finish with an ERA below three and still lose 15 games. Cashner's 4.27 ERA is positively bloated in comparison.

Good comeback win by the Diamondbacks last night, who didn't get much done against Tyson Ross, but made up for it against the Padres' bullpen. Ray's run support regressed severely (in a good way) last time, so we'll see if that was a one-off aberration, or if the bats are once again in full effect. Elsewhere, we'll be keeping an eye on the two minor-league franchises in playoff action tonight, with both games there kicking off around 6pm Arizona time.