The Diamondbacks’ series win streak was snapped by the Tampa Bay Rays and they are now in danger of being swept. Arizona has not been swept in any three-game series this year, but the troubling part was the way they played the first two games against Tampa Bay. However, they have a chance to avoid a long losing streak by salvaging the series finale.
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Starting lineups for the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Rays on August 18, 2024.
- Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo told MLB reporter Brian Murphy that the plan for today was to give Ketel Marte the day off for a day game after a night game. He is expected to be in the lineup Monday against the Miami Marlins.
- DH Joc Pederson is held out of the lineup, as they expect left-hander Tyler Alexander to follow Rasmussen.
Diamondbacks Starting Pitcher: RHP Merrill Kelly (3-0, 2.43 ERA)
This game marks Merrill Kelly’s second start since missing nearly four months with a teres major strain. He looked solid in his first start against the Phillies, holding them to two runs in five innings in a Diamondbacks 12-5 win to secure a four-game series win. They’ll need him to deliver another strong start, in order to give his team the best chance to win this game.
Kelly utilizes six different pitches almost equally: four-seamer, sinker, cutter, curveball, slider, and a changeup. The fastball was sitting 89-93 MPH in his start, but he kept the Phillies guessing by mixing in all six of his pitches. Five of them were between 12 and 20 pitches.
His ability to move the ball around the strike zone, change speeds, and hit spots is a throwback to pitchers of the 1990s-2000s. At full strength, he’s capable of delivering six-inning starts on the regular, and his starts will go deeper when he’s going well. He’s also pitched well in day games, with a career 3.55 ERA in day games compared to 3.83 ERA in night games.
Pregame Notes
- The only three-game series in which they’ve been swept this year was against the Atlanta Braves April 5-7.
- The Diamondbacks have not faced Drew Rasmussen at any point in his career.
- Lourdes Gurriel Jr. has the most success against Rasmussen, going 4-for-10 with a home run.
- Kelly has one career start against the Rays, the team that drafted him out of Arizona State in 2010, allowing seven runs in four innings in a Diamondbacks 12-1 loss on May 6, 2019.
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Michael McDermott covers the Arizona Diamondbacks, Arizona Cardinals, and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @MichaelMcDMLB
