Cincinnati @ Arizona preview
Chase Field
Last Meeting ( Jun 22, 2013 ) Cincinnati 3, Arizona 4
The Arizona Diamondbacks are proving to be pesky - they aren't fading from the National League West race, and they don't go quietly in the late innings. The Cincinnati Reds learned the latter lesson when Arizona rallied in the ninth inning Saturday, and now the Diamondbacks will try to finish a three-game sweep of the visiting Reds on Sunday. The Diamondbacks have won four straight, while the Reds have lost four of five.
Arizona squandered a ninth-inning lead Saturday before rallying against Aroldis Chapman for its 21st comeback win. The Diamondbacks lead the NL West by three games over San Francisco and are 3 1/2 ahead of San Diego. The Reds are in third place in the National League Central, a half-game behind Pittsburgh and 3 1/2 back of St. Louis.
TV: 4:10 p.m. ET, Fox Sports Ohio (Cincinnati), Fox Sports Arizona
PITCHING MATCHUP: Reds RH Mat Latos (6-1, 3.20 ERA) vs. Diamondbacks RH Randall Delgado (0-0, 4.00)
Latos lost to Pittsburgh his last time out, his first defeat since Aug. 24, but he turned in another decent outing. He allowed three runs over five innings and struck out nine. Latos is 2-1 with a 3.25 ERA in six starts against Arizona, and he split two starts against the Diamondbacks last year.
Delgado was called up for a spot start Tuesday against Miami, and his performance earned him another turn in the rotation. The 23-year-old struck out six and limited the Marlins to two runs over seven innings but didn't factor in the decision. Delgado made two starts against the Reds while he was with Atlanta last year, going 0-1 with a 3.00 ERA.
WALK-OFFS
1. Arizona is 17-10 in one-run games and 29-6 when allowing three or fewer runs.
2. Reds OF Jay Bruce has homered in four consecutive games, one shy of the franchise record, and has hit eight home runs in his last nine games. Bruce's last seven hits have been home runs.
3. Diamondbacks OF Gerardo Parra has hit safely in 15 of his last 16 games and has homered in consecutive games for the first time in his career.
PREDICTION: Reds 5, Diamondbacks 3