It's Sam Aldegheri (2-1, 2.12) against Eduardo Rodriguez (5-2, 2.55) for the finale, and on paper this is the best pitching matchup of the series by a wide margin. Aldegheri walked 3 in his last outing against Tampa but still wiggled through 5 innings of 1-run ball. E-Rod, on the other hand, was a mess in Cincinnati on the 12th — 5 walks and only 2.2 innings before getting yanked at 85 pitches.
The Angels just bullied Arizona 7-0 on Tuesday after losing the opener 4-3, so this series swings on the matinee. Arizona is still 37-36 and clinging to the periphery of the NL West race, while LA's 30-44 record is exactly what you'd expect from a roster that currently has 14 names on the injured list. Yes, 14.
- 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.
- 10-Day-ILVaughn Grissom 2B — Grissom (oblique) had his rehab assignment moved to Triple-A Salt Lake on Tuesday, Taylor Blake Ward of TheSportingTribune.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-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.
- 15-Day-ILGrayson 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.
- 60-Day-ILTravis d'Arnaud C — D'Arnaud (foot) is no longer wearing a walking boot, and he played catch on the field Wednesday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
- 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-ILJames McCann C — McCann (quadriceps) is expected to begin playing in complex league games next week, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.
- developmental listJuan Centeno C — The Diamondbacks re-assigned Centeno to minor-league camp Friday.
- 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' IL is its own bullet-pointed horror movie — Jorge Soler, Anthony Rendon, Yusei Kikuchi, Ben Joyce, Jack Kochanowicz (Tommy John), Robert Stephenson (out for the year), and Travis d'Arnaud are all unavailable. Vaughn Grissom is at least progressing, with his rehab assignment bumped up to Triple-A Salt Lake. Arizona is in better shape, but losing Corbin Burnes (teres major strain, shut down) and A.J. Puk (now a shoulder issue on top of the elbow) has stripped most of the depth that made them a problem last year.
The bigger story for Arizona is the bullpen. Justin Martinez, Andrew Saalfrank, and Cristian Mena are all on the 60-day, leaving Torey Lovullo running a patchwork late-inning group. If E-Rod gets pulled early again like he did against the Reds, the Diamondbacks are exposed in the middle innings — which is exactly the spot LA tagged them for 7 runs in last night.
First pitch is 12:40 PM MT at Chase Field. Arizona is the home favorite at -163, which feels about right given the matchup but a little steep given E-Rod's last start. The Angels haven't been good, but they've split their last 4 and just hung a 7-spot on the team they're facing today. Rubber games tend to be coin flips. This one really does feel like one.