The Diamondbacks begin a home-and-home series with the Texas Rangers for the second consecutive season. The first two games will be played at Globe Life Field May 28-29 before the series shifts to Phoenix September 10-11. It will be the first meeting between the two teams since the Rangers defeated the Diamondbacks in five games in the 2023 World Series. Both teams have experienced a World Series hangover, with the Rangers at 25-29 and the Diamondbacks 25-28 at the season’s one-third point.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!For the first game of the series, the Diamondbacks are sending right-hander Brandon Pfaadt. Pfaadt made his major league debut on the same field May 3 of last season, and started Game 3 of the World Series. Those two games serve as very interesting snapshots in the young right-hander’s career, showing how far he came along in the 2023 season. He’s taken his game up to another level in 2024, consistently giving the Diamondbacks five or more innings and is on a five-start quality start streak.
The Rangers rotation has taken a hit this season, as they’ve been without Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer all season. Cody Bradford and Jon Gray are currently on the injured list and Nathan Eovaldi is coming off start Tuesday. They’ve had to rely on Andrew Heaney, Michael Lorenzen, and Dane Dunning to fill out their rotation for most of the season.
In addition to the injuries to the rotation, the Rangers have also lost Josh Jung to a broken wrist and is out until June. Wyatt Langford missed time with a hamstring injury. Evan Carter was just placed on the injured list with a back issue.
Starting Lineups
Game Notes
Diamondbacks
- The last game these two teams played at Globe Life Field was October 28, 2023. Diamondbacks left-hander Jordan Montgomery was the starting pitcher for the Texas Rangers.
- Pavin Smith gets the start in the outfield over the slumping Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in the outfield. The left-handed hitting Smith is hitting .206 with a .508 OPS vs. right-handed pitchers.
- Gurriel is 7-for-18 with two home runs against Nathan Eovaldi, but will be out of the starting lineup in this game.
- The Diamondbacks will look to change their luck following off days and in the opening game of the series. They are 1-6 following off days and 3-14 in series openers in 2024.
Rangers
- Corey Seager has excellent numbers against the Diamondbacks, hitting .300 with 13 home runs, 44 RBI, and a .908 OPS in 82 games. He was the 2023 World Series MVP, going 6-for-21 with three home runs against Arizona.
- Josh Smith has done an excellent job filling in for Josh Jung at third base. In 52 games, Smith is hitting .280 with 13 doubles, two home runs, and a .786 OPS. His 126 OPS+ is tied with Seager for the team lead.
Bullpen Situation
Diamondbacks
Arizona’s bullpen is in excellent shape to start the series thanks to the off day and their pitchers not being overworked as a result of the circumstances of the game. Some of that is due to the great starting pitcher the team has received of late. While the team works through Kevin Ginkel’s struggles, the trio of Paul Sewald, Ryan Thompson, and Joe Mantiply have solidified the back of the Diamondbacks bullpen. Justin Martinez has also put together some decent outings of late and is starting to get more important innings.
Rangers
The bullpen has been a strength for the Rangers this season. Closer Kirby Yates has a 0.95 ERA and seven saves on the season. Jose Leclerc, who served as the closer during the Rangers’ playoff run, has struggled to a 5.40 ERA. Leclerc has also pitched in three of the last four days, so he’s unlikely to be available. The rest of the Rangers bullpen should be ready to go.
Diamondbacks’ trio of relievers have solidified the back of the bullpen
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Michael McDermott covers the Arizona Diamondbacks and Arizona Cardinals for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @MichaelMcDMLB
