Arizona still holds the edge in the standings, sitting a game up on San Diego in the wild-card race, which is exactly why every game in this set carries weight. The Padres, fresh off adding both Mize and Robbie Ray at the deadline, are betting the new arms tip that race back in their favor down the stretch.
San Diego has won 4 of its last 5, including a 9-4 beatdown of this same Arizona club, and the lineup looks like it's clicking again after a lull. Arizona countered with a 12-8 slugfest of its own during that stretch, so neither offense is exactly shy — this hasn't been a series decided by pitcher's duels.
The Diamondbacks' path here is simple: get length and quiet innings out of Bratt while their bats, who've shown they can put up double digits, do the heavy lifting. San Diego's path is just as simple — let Mize eat innings efficiently like he did in his last start and let the deadline additions start paying off immediately. Whichever team gets more from its starter probably wins the series.