First pitch is 6:40 PM MT at Chase Field, and the pitching matchup is the entire story before anybody throws one. Walbert Ureña (4-4, 2.44) has quietly turned into one of the more interesting young arms in the AL West, and he draws a Ryne Nelson (2-5, 5.19) who is coming off a 4-inning, 7-earned-run nightmare in Miami.
The Halos are 29-43 and still buried, but they've been playing their best baseball of the year — winners of 4 straight before yesterday's loss, including a 10-1 and an 8-0 beatdown in that stretch. Arizona, meanwhile, sits at 36-35 and just split-survived a road trip to Miami and Cincinnati. Same .500 vibes they've been giving off for two months.
The injury sheets are where this gets ugly for the home side. Corbin Burnes is shut down with a teres major strain, A.J. Puk's rehab got paused for shoulder discomfort, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is still on the hamstring shelf, and Carlos Santana is on a rehab assignment. That's a top-of-rotation arm, a high-leverage lefty, a middle-of-the-order bat, and a first baseman all unavailable. It explains why Nelson is even getting the ball in a spot like this.
- Day-To-DayWade Meckler LF — Meckler went 1-for-2 with a double, three walks, three runs and two RBI in a 10-1 win over the Astros on Tuesday.
- Day-To-DayJose Soriano SP — Soriano (8-4) allowed three hits and two walks while striking out five over five shutout innings to earn the win over the Rays on Saturday.
- Day-To-DayGrayson Rodriguez SP — Rodriguez exited Sunday's contest against Tampa Bay in the third frame due to lower-back tightness, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILJorge Soler DH — Soler (oblique) ran on the field and did some light baseball activities Friday, per MLB.com.
- 10-Day-ILAdam Frazier 2B — Frazier (elbow) took part in light baseball activities Friday, per MLB.com.
- 10-Day-ILVaughn Grissom 2B — Grissom (oblique) has been taking light swings and participating in light baseball activities, per MLB.com.
- 10-Day-ILSebastian Rivero C — Rivero was removed from Tuesday's game against the Astros with an apparent left hand injury, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILGustavo Campero C — The Angels selected Campero's contract from Double-A Rocket City and placed him on the 10-day injured list Saturday due to a fractured hand.
- Day-To-DayA.J. Vukovich CF — no
- Day-To-DayDerek Law RP — no
- Day-To-DayKyle Amendt RP — Amendt was invited to major-league spring training by the Diamondbacks, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports.
- 10-Day-ILLourdes Gurriel Jr. LF — Gurriel (hamstring) is expected to be reassessed after playing games in the Arizona Complex Leage on Friday and Saturday, MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILJames McCann C — McCann (quad) has started taking machine batting practice and doing catching drills, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports.
- 60-Day-ILA.J. Puk RP — The Diamondbacks paused Puk's (elbow) rehab Friday due to left shoulder discomfort, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.
- 60-Day-ILCarlos Santana 1B — Santana (thigh) began a rehab assignment in the Arizona Complex League on Friday, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports.
- 60-Day-ILCorbin Burnes SP — Manager Torey Lovullo said Wednesday that Burnes (elbow) has been shut down from throwing after suffering a teres major strain, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.
The Angels aren't exactly whole either — Jorge Soler (oblique) and Adam Frazier (elbow) are working back, and Travis d'Arnaud is on the 60-day — but Ureña gives them a real chance any night he pitches. His last time out he went 5 shutout innings against Houston with 7 strikeouts on 107 pitches, and he's posted a sub-2.50 ERA despite a peripheral profile (4.10 FIP) that suggests the league hasn't fully caught up yet.
Nelson's stuff plays — 95.7 mph fastball, 80th percentile velo — but he's a flyball arm in a park that punishes mistakes, and after that Miami outing the leash is going to be short. If Arizona's offense doesn't jump on Ureña early, this thing can get away from them by the 5th.