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After a long, disappointing road trip these past two weeks, the Arizona Diamondbacks will return to the comforts of Chase Field to get back on track. Arizona will welcome in the St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants into their home park this week, with a much-needed off-day scheduled for Thursday.
The 2011 champion Cardinals will be in Phoenix from Monday to Wednesday. They may no longer have Albert Pujols, but they've gotten off to a fine start in 2012 with a record of 17-11. Guys like David Freese, Rafael Furcal and Carlos Beltran have stepped up in a big way with the absence of Pujols from the lineup, with Matt Holliday and Lance Berkman continuing to punish baseballs.
St. Louis will send Lance Lynn (5-0, 1.60 ERA), Jake Westbrook (3-2, 2.12 ERA) and likely Kyle Lohse (4-1, 2.11 ERA) to the mound as their starters.
The Giants will then make their way to Chase Field for a three-game weekend series. San Francisco enters with a record of 13-14 and has had to deal with some tough injuries thus far in the year. Pablo Sandoval is out with a broken hand, although Aubrey Huff may return from the DL this week with an anxiety disorder.
Other than these two, Buster Posey is the hitter to worry about in the Giants lineup. Melky Cabrera and Brandon Belt have done a nice job this season, as well. San Francisco relies heavily on their pitching staff to win games, which is among the best in baseball.
For more on the D-backs, be sure to check out AZ Snake Pit.