ARIZONA DIAONDBACKS NOTES:
IN THE WEST: The D-backs are third in the NL West, 3.0 games behind the Giants, 13.0 games behind the Dodgers and 3.0 games ahead of the Padres.
ROSTER MOVES: The D-backs recalled RHP Justin Martinez from Triple-A Reno and, following yesterday’s game, optioned RHP Luis Frías to Reno.
VS. PADRES: The D-backs took 2 of 3 in their last series @ Chase Field from Aug. 11-13 and split their last series (1-1) in their last visit to Petco Park from April 3-4.
♦ 7 of the D-backs last 10 matchups @ Padres have been a difference of 2 or fewer runs…the D-backs are 2-5 in those games.
CHRISTIAN OVER-THE-WAL-KER: Christian Walker has homered 5 times in his last 5 games (since Aug. 12)… his 3 consecutive games with a homer ties his career high (also: May 16-17, 2022 [DH] and Aug. 14-16, 2022)…the last D-back to hit homers in 4 straight games was Eduardo Escobar (April 8-11, 2021)…only 6 D-backs’ players have previously met the feat.
♦ Yesterday @ Rockies, Walker collected his eighth career multi-homer performance (Top 1 and Top 8 – both go-ahead) and third this season (also: May 3 @ Rangers and July 18 @ Braves).
♦ Walker is the third D-back to collect a homer in 3 consecutive games this season (also: Lourdes Gurriel Jr. from May 3-7 and Ketel Marte from June 24-27).
♦ Walker’s 14 home runs on the road rank tied for eighth in the NL (also: Mookie Betts/LAD, Max Muncy/LAD, Ronald Acuña Jr./ATL, Nolan Arenado/STL, Austin Riley/ATL and Jack Suwinski/PIT).
ANOTHER SERIES W: With yesterday’s victory, the D-backs won their second consecutive series (also: Padres from Aug. 11-13) and 21st overall this season.
WE ARE THE ANSWER-BACKS: The D-backs’ 31 comeback wins this season are tied for third most in the NL (also: Giants and Marlins) [T-7th most in MLB], behind the Reds (37), Braves (32) and Phillies (32).
♦ Yesterday’s win marked the D-backs’ second consecutive victory after facing a 1+-run deficit in the eighth inning or later and sixth overall on the road this season… only the Reds and Giants have also met the same feat as many times in 2023.
SEND IN SEWALD: Paul Sewald has collected 4 consecutive saves (Aug. 12-13, 15-16), marking the second time he has collected 4+ consecutive saves in his career (first with D-backs) [also: 5 consecutive saves from June 23-July 3, 2022]… he has converted a career-high 25 saves in 29 opportunities, which are tied for 10th in the Majors.
♦ Has not allowed a run in 39 of his 51 appearances…is scoreless in 15 of his 20 games vs. NL opponents.
HOT AUGUST: In the month of August, Christian Walker is hitting .380 (19-for-50)/.780 SLG/1.206 OPS with 2 doubles, 6 homers and 14 RBI…he ranks among MLB leaders in SLG (3rd), homers (3rd), OPS (5th), RBI (8th) and average (9th) [min. 50 PA].
PAIR OF STREAKS: Christian Walker has hit safely in 6 straight games (.500; 11-for-22 with 2 doubles, 5 homers, 12 RBI and 2 walks).
♦ Tommy Pham is riding a 7-game hit streak, batting .333 (9-for-27) with 3 doubles, 1 homer, 7 RBI and 2 walks.
LATE PRESSURE: In their last 3 games, within innings 7-9, the D-backs are hitting .343 (12-for-35)/.900 OPS and have scored 9 runs (most in the Majors in the span).
NL WEST STRETCH: 12 of the D-backs’ last 15 games have been against NL West teams (@ Giants, Dodgers, Padres, @ Rockies)…this Padres series (Aug. 17-20) will round out 16 total in their last 19 games.
♦ Arizona is 22-18 vs. NL West opponents this season and 13-9 in their last 22 matchups.
♦ From today, 12 of Arizona’s final 41 regular-season games are against NL West teams.
OPPO HOMERS: The D-backs 22 opposite field home runs this season rank tied for sixth in the Majors (also: Twins), behind the Yankees (36), Braves (36), Rangers (25), Astros (24) and Brewers (24).
♦ Corbin Carroll’s 8 opposite field home runs rank tied for the most in the Majors this season (also: Chrisitan Yelich/MIL) while Christian Walker’s 7 oppo homers rank tied for third.
♦ Walker’s 4 opposite field home runs on the road rank tied for fourth in the Majors.
DIAMOND DEFENDERS: The D-backs’ .991 fielding pct. is the best in the Majors, while their 40 errors are the fewest, ahead of the Cardinals (47) and Rangers (47).
♦ Arizona’s 40 errors are the fewest in franchise history through the first 121 games of a season…the previous low was 48 in 2018.
♦ The current franchise low for errors in a full season (excluding 2020) is 75 in 2013 and 2018.
SWIPIN’ BAGS: Since Aug. 4, the D-backs’ 16 stolen bases are second in the Majors, behind the Royals (18) and ahead of the Reds (15) and Dodgers (14).
♦ Arizona ranks third in the Majors this season with 124 stolen bases, behind the Reds (139) and Rays (130).
STARTING PTICHER – RHP ZAC GALLEN ♦ #23
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: 2023 NL All-Star…started the game.
- Making his 100th career start as a D-back.
- Gallen becomes the 12th D-backs pitcher to reach 100 starts…next up are Wade Miley (102), Curt Schilling (107) and Miguel Batista (109)…teammate Merrill Kelly is seventh at 118 starts but with his next start will tie Ian Kennedy (119) for sixth.
- Facing the Padres in consecutive starts.
- In 3 starts vs. Padres in 2023, is 2-0 with a 1.89 ERA (5 R-4 ER in 19.0 IP), 22 strikeouts, a 0.79 WHIP and .186 opponent average…currently owns a 14.0-inning scoreless streak.
- In his last 5 starts against NL West opponents (all in 2023), is 4-0 with a 1.38 ERA (5 ER in 32.2 IP), 38 strikeouts, 0.89 WHIP and .197 opponent average.
- His 4.3 fWAR (FanGraphs) is tied for second in the Majors with Kevin Gausman/TOR behind Zack Wheeler/PHI (4.5).
ALL-STAR STATUS: Tossed 1.0 scoreless inning (1 H, 0 BB, 1 K) in his first career All-Star start and selection for the NL in the the 2023 All-Star Game at T-Mobile Park.
- Is the youngest D-backs pitcher, third overall (fourth time) and first since Curt Schilling (2002) to start an All-Star Game.
- Is the youngest NL starting pitcher since Matt Harvey in 2013 (24).
NL RANKINGS: Ranks among qualifying NL leaders in WHIP (1st, 1.07), wins (T-2nd, 12), innings pitched (3rd, 155.2), strikeout-to-walk ratio (4th, 5.16) and ERA (4th, 3.24).
LAST START: Matched his career-high win total from 2022 (12) on Aug. 12. after tossing 6.0 shutout innings with 8 strikeouts against San Diego.
- Retired 18 of the 23 batters faced.
VS. PADRES: In 11 career starts against the Padres, is 3-3 with a 3.34 ERA (25 R-23 ER in 62.0 IP) and 65 strikeouts.
VS. NL WEST: In 46 career starts against NL West opponents, is 13-11 with a 3.12 ERA (96 R-92 ER in 265.1 IP) and 299 strikeouts.
- In 7 starts in 2023, is 4-1 with a 2.91 ERA (14 ER in 43.1 IP).
INNING INFO : Has pitched 6.0+ innings in his last 4 starts and struckout 8 batters in 3 of those 4 contests.
- Is 7-1 with a 1.91 ERA (15 ER in 70.2 IP), 76 strikeouts, 0.71 WHIP and .172 average when he pitches 7.0+ innings.
- Has pitched 7.0 innings in 6 of his last 11 starts (2.57 ERA; 27 H, 4 BB, 41 K).
CURVE BREAKDOWN : Is limiting opponents to a .083 average (2-for-24) with 10 strikeouts on his changeup in his last 4 starts.
AHEAD IN THE COUNT: His .133 opponent average (29-for-218; 86 K) when ahead in the count is third among MLB starters (min. 15 GS), behind Blake Snell/SD (.118) and Edward Cabrera/MIA (.131) and ahead of Yusei Kikuchi/TOR (.136).
RISP-Y BUSINESS : In his last 3 starts, holding runners in scoring position to a .182 average (2-for-11) with 4 strikeouts.
IT’S UNDER CONTROL: Has walked 2 or fewer batters in 22 of his 25 starts.
VS. RIGHT AND LEFT: Is limiting righties to a .224 average (70-for-313) with 87 strikeouts, while lefties are batting .237 (64-for-270) with 78 strikeouts.
SAN DIEGO PADRES NOTES:
Padres plate 5 behind Blake Snell’s quality start, take series over Baltimore with rubber game win
- Starter Blake Snell went 6.0 innings of 2-run ball with 3 hits allowed…he fanned 5 with 2 walks for his club-leading 13th quality start.
- Fernando Tatis Jr. had his 2nd straight 3-hit game, including a steal of home in the 7th inning…it’s the 1st time in his career he’s had 3+ hits in back-to-back games, and it was his 1stcareer straight steal of home.
Tatis’ straight steal of home
- Last night in the 7th, Fernando Tatis Jr. had his 1st-career straight steal of home (was his 2nd as a professional, with his 1st being in Single-A), and per Elias, it was the the Padres 9th in club history (1st for SD since Travis Jankowski on August 10, 2016 @ PIT).
Pads take series vs. Orioles, will play their next 7 games against NL Wild Card competition
- San Diego snapped a 3-series losing streak last night with their rubber match W over Baltimore, and it was their 1st series win since taking 2 of 3 from the Rockies from July 31-August 2.
- The Padres are 4.5 games back in the NL Wild Card race, behind the D-Backs (-1.5 games back) and behind the Marlins, Reds, Cubs, Giants, and Phillies…their next 7 games are against Arizona (4 G) and Miami (3 G).
Padres playing 13 games in 13 days & 19 games in 20 days
- Today is the 13th game of the Padres playing 19 games in 20 days, and their sole off day in the span from August 4-23 was on August 10…they’re also in a stretch of playing 32 games in 34 days (from August 4-September 6).
- Since Aug. 11, the Padres also began playing 13 games in 13 days, with 7 of those 13 games vs. Arizona. Padres are 20-8 vs. Arizona since 2020
- San Diego’s .714 winning percentage over Arizona since 2020 (20-8) is the 7th highest of any National League team against a single opponent (min. 25 games).
- The Padres lost their last 2 games vs. AZ back in Phoenix in the series before their last, and they’ve gone 5-4 vs. them overall in 2023…it’s just their 2nd time playing Arizona @ Petco this year, having hosted them for a brief 2-game set from April 3-4 (split the series).
Pads have 14 multi-homer games since the ASG
- The Friars have logged 14 multi-homer games since the All-Star break, T-4th most of any National League team in that time.
Kimmie in the leadoff spot
- Ha-Seong Kim has a .412 OBP when hitting leadoff this season, the 3rd highest OBP of any leadoff batter in 2023 behind MIA’s Luis Arraez (.415) and ATL’s Ronald Acuna Jr. (.422)…Kim has also seen 4.36 pitches per plate appearance, the second most among all qualiying hittingers in baseball behind COL’s Ryan McMahon (4.40).
- Per Baseball Reference WAR for position players, Kim’s 5.8 WAR ranks 3rd in all of baseball, behind just Mookie Betts’ 6.0 and Ronald Acuna Jr.’s 6.1.
STARTING PITCHER – RICH HILL 4
Hill set for his 17th career start vs. ARI, 2nd in a row
43-year-old Rich Hill takes the mound for his 3rd start for SD and his 2nd in a row vs. ARI, in search of his 1st winning decision vs. ARI since August 1, 2006 (with CHC)…he’s made 16 career starts vs. ARI, and among all pitchers who have made 15+ starts vs. ARI (reg + Postseason), he has the highest all-time ERA (6.28), along with a 1.49 WHIP and .281 opp. AVG…faced the D-Backs earlier this season and was tagged with the loss on July 7 w/ PIT, allowing 5 ER acorss 4.0 IP with 4 BB and 3 SO…tagged with the loss last Sat at Chase Field, allowing 3 runs on 7 hits across 3.1 IP… Hill’s 10 career losing decisions (including Postseason) are his most against any team, and half as many as the next closest teams he has 5 losing decisions against (MIL, SD, WSH).
SD Debut — at 43 years old
The former Dodger (2016-19) made just his 3rd career start vs. LAD and allowed 6 ER across a season-low 3.0 IP, his fewest since also throwing 3.0 IP on Aug 3, 2022 @ HOU w/ BOS… at 43 years and 148 days old, and he was the 2nd oldest Padre to make a start, behind just David Wells back in 2007 (his last start was when he was 44 and 78 days old)…tonight will be his 25th start of the season, which makes him 1 of only 6 southpaws in ML history to have made 25 starts at age 43-or-older, joining Jamie Moyer (153), Tommy John (85), Randy Johnson (57), Warren Spahn (55), Wells (42) and Kenny Rogers.
Welcome to the Pads, career squad #13
Acquired by SD with 1B/DH Ji Man Choi from PIT as 1 of the club’s 3 trade deadline deals this past Tuesday…he’s in the midst of his 19th MLB season and SD is the 13th club he’s played for…if he plays for a different team in 2024, he’ll tie Edwin Jackson as the only 2 players to play for 14 different teams…has played for the Cubs (2005-08), Orioles (2009), Red Sox (2010-2012, 2015, 2022), Indians (2013), Angels (2014), Yankees (2014), A’s (2016), Dodgers (2016-2019), Twins (2020), Rays (2021), Mets (2021), Pirates (2023), and Padres (2023).
43-years-young
The 43-year-old southpaw is the oldest player to appear in the Majors this season, and he currently he ranks T-10th among all NL pitchers in games started (24), 22nd in strikeouts (112), 24th in innings pitched (125.1) and 30th in ground ball percentage (38.2).
Among all active pitchers…
Among all active pitchers, Hill ranks T23rd in total wins (89) and 25th in games started (244)…among all active pitchers who have made at least 240 career starts, he ranks 9th in opponents’ batting average (.233), 11th in SO/9 IP (9.14), 15th in opponent OPS (.701), 16th in WHIP (1.25), 18th in ERA (3.97), T18th in pitchers per batter faced (3.93), 24th in ground ball percentage (38.7%) and 25th in total pitches thrown (22,974).
A few 2023 milestones
Recorded his 1300th career strikeout in his Pirates debut on April 1 @ CIN…struck out 9 batters on May 23 vs. TEX, becoming the 12th different pitcher (57th time) in the Modern Era (since 1901) to record a 9+ strikeout game at age 43 years old-or-older, and the first since 45-year-old Randy Johnson recorded 9 punchouts on May 11, 2009…threw 119 pitches (2 ER, 7.0 IP) while winning his 6th game on June 9 vs. NYM; the 2nd-most pitches for an MLB pitcher to date in 2023, 1 behind LAA’s Griffin Canning’s 120 on July 17 vs. NYY…it was also the most pitches thrown by a pitcher 43 or older since Tim Wakefield (as a member of the Red Sox) did so at Tampa Bay on June 14, 2011.
Taming the lefties in 2023
Has faced just 102 left-handed hitters this season, limiting them to a .247/.373/.353 slash line with 1 HR allowed…17 of his 18 HR allowed have come vs. the 463 right-handed hitters he’s faced, who against him have a .284/.343/.501 slash line.
