Both sides come into this matchup in dire straits – underperforming their potential, especially in the last 10 games. The Diamondbacks are 3-7 in their last ten, but the Reds are worse at 2-8. Arizona has only won series matchups against Colorado and Saint Louis this year… yikes. The Reds will face Arizona’s ace Zac Gallen on Tuesday, journeyman Jordan Montgomery on Wednesday, and recent AAA Reno Ace Slade Cecconi Thursday. Cincinnati will send out Frankie Montas followed by Graham Ashcraft and then Hunter Greene.
Reds Notes
Cincinnati faces what feels like a must win series. As has been well noted all over Twitter (X?), May is a tough month on the schedule. The Reds have two series against the Diamondbacks and a series against the struggling Giants as well. They need to capitalize on these opportunities to keep up in a tight NL Central and NL Wild Card battle.
Opening Day starter Frankie Montas returns from the IL after suffering a forearm contusion. All indications are that his spell on the IL was probably a bit longer than necessary and he is good to go. In a corresponding move, the Reds have optioned reliever Sam Moll to AAA. Somewhat unpopular with fans, this move comes as Moll is the only reliever not named Fernando Cruz or Alexis Diaz that has options left. He also just pitched which may factor in – it’s likely we see him back with the big league club very soon.
It has yet to be announced, but OF TJ Friedl should return to the club and retake his rightful place in CF and perhaps the top of the lineup. Cincinnati needs an infusion of fresh lumber, so let’s hope TJ can give Elly De La Cruz something to work with on this offense. SP Brandon Williamson begins his rehab assignment on May 9th as well.
Reds Highlighted Hitter
OF Spencer Steer is my guy to watch this series. With hits in 7 of the last 9 games (after a 5 game hitless streak), he seems to be finding his bat again after a blazing hot start to 2024. Steer is still top 20 in RBIs and above average in every hitting statistic despite his cold spell. He also seems to be hitting RHP really well this season. Look for him to heat up this week with multiple XBHs.
Honorable Mention: OF Jake Fraley. Owning a .297 batting average with most other indicators trending down, Jake should rake facing 2 RHPs.
Diamondbacks Notes
Arizona’s starting rotation has shuffled quite a bit this year. Their #2 guy Merrill Kelly is on the 60 Day IL with a shoulder strain. Slade Cecconi was moved up from AAA to fill the gap left by Kelly. Montgomery was only just promoted from AAA where he started 2024 on April 19th. Gallen is on extra rest after suffering an hamstring issue in his last start. Arizona also added former Reds reliever Matt Bowman over the weekend.
Arizona is just absolutely depleted by the injury bug in 2024. They lost starter Eduardo Rodriguez and closer Paul Sewald before the season got underway. Then they lost Kelly a few weeks back and also lost starting SS Geraldo Perdomo and OF Alek Thomas (who may come back this week against the Reds). Unfortunately for the Reds though, it seems the D-Backs just now found their bats at the end of tough stretch with a 11-4 win to avoid a sweep against San Diego.
Diamondbacks Highlighted Hitter
Switch hitting 2B Ketel Marte is the guy to watch out for. Traditionally better against LHP, Marte is mashing everything this season. He has 6 HR, owns a .307 average, and has a .887 OPS. He comes in on a 7 game hit streak with a HR last night against San Diego. If he played every game in GABP, he’d have 8 HRs this season. Currently, he ranks above average in every batting percentile except Chase %, most notably with an average exit velocity of 93 mph (good for the 93rd percentile) and a Hard Hit % of 50% (good for the 87th percentile).
Honorable Mention: OF Jake McCarthy. Dude is playing the best baseball of his life, except the fact he has yet to hit a HR. Hope that doesn’t change, but GABP is a great place to do it.
