The Arizona Diamondbacks and St. Louis Cardinals enter their four-game series with identical 47-41 records. The D-backs are coming of a 2-1 series win over the Brewers, handing Milwaukee their first home series loss of the season. Just when you thought the D-backs were going to slump into the All-Star break, they get a huge comeback win followed by solid outings from the much-maligned Zach Duke and Josh Collmenter.
The Cardinals come in winners of three out of their last six games. They have the added bonus of Albert Pujols returning earlier than expected from a wrist injury. Pujols went 1-5 in his return but of course, had an RBI in the game.
This series will be the final battle for the D-backs before the All-Star Game. They have the benefit of throwing their top three pitchers and would love another series win before the break.
- Thursday (5:15 p.m.) : Joe Saunders (5-7, 4.04) vs. Kyle McClellan (6-5, 4.27)
- Friday (5:15 p.m.) : Ian Kennedy (8-3, 3.38) vs. Kyle Lohse (8-5, 2.97)
- Saturday (4:15 p.m.) : Daniel Hudson (9-5, 3.75) vs. Chris Carpenter (4-7, 3.74)
- Sunday (11:15 a.m.) : Zach Duke (2-3, 5.40) vs. Jaime Garcia (8-3, 3.23)
All games will be on Fox Sports Arizona with a hopping live game thread at AZ Snake Pit.
Series Preview #30: Arizona Diamondbacks vs. St. Louis Cardinals - AZ Snake Pit
Final Verdict: This has the potential to be a let-down series. It's the last series before the All-Star Break, the Diamondbacks have been on the road for about 67 of the past 70 games, and they just came off a big series against a team that plays very well at home in the Brewers. The Cardinals are a good baseball team, but the D-Backs look to have a slight pitching advantage. I'll say the Cardinals and D-Backs split the series, but I don't feel confident in it at all.