Today’s Lineups
| CARDINALS | DIAMONDBACKS |
|---|---|
| JJ Wetherholt – 2B | Ketel Marte – 2B |
| Ivan Herrera – DH | Geraldo Perdomo – SS |
| Alec Burleson – 1B | Corbin Carroll – RF |
| Jordan Walker – RF | Gabriel Moreno – C |
| Lars Nootbaar – LF | Max Kepler – LF |
| Masyn Winn – SS | Lourdes Gurriel – DH |
| Nathan Church – CF | Nolan Arenado – 3B |
| Jose Fermin – 3B | Ildemaro Vargas – 1B |
| Jimmy Crooks – C | Tim Tawa – CF |
| Michael McGreevy – RHP | Merrill Kelly – RHP |
Roster moves
The Arizona Diamondbacks made the following roster moves. The D-backs’ 40-man roster is at 39.
- Recalled from Triple-A Reno: 1B Tyler Locklear
- Placed on the 10-day injured list: OF Tommy Troy (sprained right AC joint; retro to July 12)
I trust you all enjoyed your break from the grinding drudgery of the Diamondbacks’ 2026 season. But it’s over now, and I’m coming round with my clipboard to make sure everyone is ready to get their noses back onto the grindstone for the coming 66 games. This is where fan stamina really comes into play, especially as the winter sports begin to ramp up, and offer tempting and fleeting distractions from the rigors of a 162-game baseball season. But we shall turn away from the siren calls of football, basketball and hockey, focusing our dedication on the D-backs for the next two and a half months, and their battle for a post-season slot.
We begin with the arrival of the Cardinals, who currently sit one and a half games ahead of the D-backs. So if we can sweep here, we’ll overtake them: winning two of three would narrow the gap to half a game, and also (as noted earlier) clinch the season series. We did take two of three in St. Louis, trading one-run contests before Arizona scored a 9-4 win in what would turn out to be the series finale. Thursday’s game was postponed, much to Paul Sewald’s chagrin. Part of me wishes the D-backs fabricate some reason to postpone Sunday’s game – bees would do nicely – and make the Cardinals fly back here to play the make-up.
Interesting the D-backs do not appear to have used the break to shuffle their rotation. So Merrill Kelly will start the first game. He has been improved of late, picking up back-to-back wins over Milwaukee and San Diego, after going 0-5 in June. Small sample size, but particularly hopeful were his K-rate and K:BB ratios. In June, Kelly pitched 28.1 innings and struck out only 14 batters, with 11 walks. In July so far, it’s 12 IP and 12 K’s, to 5 walks. The resulting FIP of 4.52 this month still isn’t great. But it’s a damn sight better than the 7.05 figure Kelly posted last month. With Michael Soroka’s return still some way off, we need Kelly and Brandon Pfaadt to be what we know they can be.
