Arizona @ Houston preview
Minute Maid Park
Last Meeting ( May 3, 2010 ) Arizona 9, Houston 1
When the Arizona Diamondbacks pulled off a blockbuster three-team trade in the offseason to garner two starting pitchers, Ian Kennedy was the wild card.
For his part, Edwin Jackson was the one with the track record that said he’d eat innings and be a solid No. 2 or good No. 3.
One month into the season, some of those ideals have changed.
Jackson, who came over from the Detroit Tigers while Tigers received right-hander Max Scherzer, has given up 18 earned runs in this last two starts. Kennedy, however, has give up a total of six in his last three outings.
While Jackson’s trend – he is 7-8 with a 5.92 ERA in 21 starts since 2009 All-Star break – has been on-going, Kennedy development is a nice surprise for the Diamondbacks. After all, there wasn't any indication of this performance before acquiring him from the New York Yankees, who picked up center fielder Curtis Granderson in the deal.
After struggling with his pitch count in his first three starts – making it through just 14 1/3 innings – Kennedy has gone eight innings in each of his last two outings to show the growth needed and expected of a former No. 1 pick.
He hopes to keep the upward trend continuing Tuesday when he takes the mound against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park against one of the game’s more underrated pitchers in Roy Oswalt.
The Astros lineup, which was been without perennial All-Star first baseman Lance Berkman most of the season until his recent return from the disabled list, has been beaten down by the National League all season. The team ranks 26th in baseball (14th in the NL) in batting average (.236) and tied for last in home runs with nine – the same amount as the Diamondbacks’ Kelly Johnson, the NL Player of the Month.
Kennedy’s bigger problem might very well be trying to outpitch Oswalt, who began the year ranked 16th in Major League Baseball history in career winning percentage at .662 (137-70).
The right-hander is a bit like Pedro Martinez once was in that he has a slight frame and yet still throws in the mid- to high-90s and has Buggs Bunny breaking stuff that can have batter’s screwing themselves into the ground.
The Diamondbacks offense has been pounding the baseball when it has faced the back half of the opposition’s rotation, but have been tied by up St. Louis Cardinals ace Chris Carpenter, San Diego Padres stud Chris Young and Los Angeles Dodgers hurler Clayton Kershaw among other front of the rotation-type guys.
Oswalt definitely fits that mold, especially when he is facing Arizona - considering he is 9-1 with a 1.96 ERA.