Arizona Diamondbacks (69-77)
@ San Francisco Giants (77-69)
In 210 BC, terracotta sculptures were buried with the Chinese emperor, Qin Shi Huang. The sculptures included warriors, acrobats, and musicians. They were colored with bright pigments – red, green, blue, lilac, black, and white - and preserved with a lacquer.
Did the bright pigments include Sedona Red? Which Diamondbacks would I preserve for next season? First, let’s look at Diamondback WAR by position.
| position | WAR | Player |
|---|---|---|
| First Base | 5.5 | Goldschmidt |
| Center Field | 4.5 | Pollock |
| Left Field | 1.8 | Peralta |
| Shortstop | 0.6 | Ahmed |
| Catcher | 0.5 | Castillo & Saltalamacchia |
| Right Field | 0.2 | Tomas & Inciarte |
| Third Base | - 1.1 | Lamb |
| Relief Pitcher | - 1.2 | Ziegler,Chafin,… |
| Second Base | - 1.8 | Owings |
| Starting Pitcher | - 3.1 | De La Rosa, Anderson, Hellickson, Ray, Corbin… |
The positions with positive WAR are filled with warriors worth preserving for next season: Goldschmidt, Pollock, Peralta, Ahmed, Castillo, Saltalamacchia, Tomas, and Inciarte. These players shine brightly!
The negative WAR positions were second base, third base, relief pitching, and starting pitching. Developing players are showing they can shine in these positions!
Offense
In the last 8 days, the two best hitters for the Giants were Buster Posey (8 RBIs, .300 BA) and Marlon Byrd (7 RBIs, .423 BA).
In the last 8 days, the two best hitters for the Diamondbacks were: Jarrod Saltalacchia (6 RBIs, .333 BA), and Nick Ahmed (5 RBIs, .353 BA).
Pitching
Let's look at the current five starting pitchers’ DRAs, ERAs, and Shoewizard’s AVG-WAR.
| pitcher | DRA | ERA | AVG WAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robbie Ray | 3.98 | 3.72 | 1.8 |
| Chase Anderson | 4.41 | 4.52 | 1.3 |
| Patrick Corbin | 4.43 | 3.29 | 1.4 |
| Rubby De La Rosa | 4.79 | 4.75 | 0.7 |
| Jeremy Hellickson | 4.97 | 4.78 | 0.6 |
Let’s look at the pitching matchups for the series.
Friday. Rubby De La Rosa(4.79 DRA, 4.75 ERA) vs Madison Bumgarner(3.36 DRA, 2.91 ERA).
This season, Diamondback hitters have faced Madison Bumgarner in four games. In three games, he gave up one earned run, and in one game he gave up 4 earned runs. He is a great pitcher, but even he has an off day.
Maybe, other teams have figured out Rubby De La Rosa. He has given up 17 earned runs in the last 18 innings pitched. He has faced the Giants three times this season, so they know what to expect. I hope he, with help from the pitching staff, has a plan to surprise the Giants.
Advantage to Giants.
Saturday. Patrick Corbin(4.43 DRA, 3.29 ERA) vs Mike Leake(3.57 DRA, 4.34 ERA).
Patrick Corbin is a Giant killer! This season he has faced the Giants twice, allowing zero earned runs in 11 innings pitched.
This season, Mike Leake allowed 6 earned runs in 5.2 innings against the Diamondbacks. Will Mike Leake be a Diamondback next year? Let’s make him more affordable by hitting well and hitting often!
Advantage to Diamondbacks.
Sunday. Jeremy Hellickson(4.97 DRA, 4.78 ERA) vs To Be Announced.
Surprises happen when I least expect them. Jeremy Hellickson is overdue for a well pitched gem of a game. Slight advantage to Diamondbacks.
Recent Impact Players
The Diamondbacks won a close game against the Giants. Zack Godley pitched 5 innings with 1 earned run. Ziegler earned the save by pitching 1.2 innings with zero earned runs. Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit a 2-run homerun.
The Diamondbacks won a close game against the Padres. Pollock had 3 RBIs. Ziegler earned the save by pitching 1.1 innings with zero earned runs.
How are Diamondbacks doing in close games? Diamondbacks have won 40% of 1-run games and 42% of 2-run games. Diamondbacks need better numbers next season to make the post-season. Next season, winning close games against the Cardinals would be most excellent because Diamondbacks play the Cardinals seven times in April and May.
Pythagorean Projection
Based on wins so far, and projecting future games based on runs scored and allowed the Diamondbacks are on pace for 77.1 wins this season, a slight slide from two weeks ago (79.5 wins).
This is my last season projection. How close will the final result be to my pre-season prediction of 78 wins? Very close! The upcoming series against the Giants will be well worth watching, and I predict our Diamondbacks will win this series.
Food of the Series
Cheering for the Diamondbacks is often intensely hot. Despite my optimist view, sometimes a game ends sour. After a game, what could be better than Chinese hot and sour soup? It is a healthy soup choice because it has less sodium. Three types of ingredients are added to the chicken broth base – sour, hot, and flavor enhancers. I added baseball names to the help me remember what goes in the soup. Starting with a high ERA bowl, I throw in bullpen rice vinegar to make the soup sour. I thump in heat with Goldy chili peppers and Pollock white pepper. Depth is added to the broth by Castillo beef and a pinch of Saltalamacchia. I enhance the soup with Peralta scallions, Tomas tofu, Ahmed bamboo shoots, and Inciarte ginger. And that, my fellow Snakepitters, is the soup of the series.