Arizona @ San Diego preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 20, 2016 ) Arizona 2, San Diego 1

The San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks may not be competing for anything meaningful this season, but the young talent on both sides has given the clubs a reason for hope in the near future. Coming off the heels of a dominant pitching performance from 24-year-old Robbie Ray, the Diamondbacks hope to salvage a split of a four-game set Sunday when they wrap up their stay in San Diego.

Travis Jankowski played a starring role for the Padres in Thursday's 9-8 series-opening victory with a four-hit effort before fellow rookie Ryan Schimpf blasted two home runs as part of a four-hit performance during a 7-4 extra-inning triumph Friday. It was Ray's turn one day later, however, as the young southpaw allowed one hit and struck out a career-high 13 over seven frames en route to a 2-1 win for Arizona, although San Diego's Patrick Kivlehan also made a name for himself by clubbing a long home run in his big-league debut. The Padres' youthful offense has been extremely inconsistent lately, scoring at least seven runs in each of their six wins this month while tallying no more than two runs in any of their last seven defeats. Conversely, Arizona's pitching has abysmal recently — even after Ray's gem — posting a MLB-worst 6.41 ERA in August.
TV: 4:40 p.m. ET, FSN Arizona, FSN San Diego

PITCHING MATCHUP: Diamondbacks RH Braden Shipley (2-2, 4.30 ERA) vs. Padres RH Luis Perdomo (5-7, 6.68)
Shipley endured the worst outing of his brief major league career in Tuesday's defeat versus the New York Mets, surrendering seven runs (six earned) on 10 hits — including a pair of homers — in five frames. It was a reversal of fortune for the 24-year-old Oregon native, who had went 2-0 with a 0.90 ERA over his previous three turns since getting pounded in his big-league debut July 25. Shipley has fared well in his three road starts, going 2-1 with a 2.95 ERA.
Perdomo again continued to struggle with his control in Monday's setback at Tampa Bay, giving up three runs on five hits and three walks across 5 2/3 frames to suffer his third loss in as many turns. The former Rule 5 Draft pick has issued 10 free passes over that stretch spanning 17 1/3 innings and walked 40 in only 99 2/3 frames for the season. Perdomo has encountered no such trouble in his two starts against the Diamondbacks this season, however, winning both starts and walking only two over 11 1/3 innings.

WALK-OFFS
1. The Padres are averaging 6.6 runs and have outscored the opposition 344-169 in their 52 wins. In their 71 losses, they are scoring only 2.7 runs and have been pummeled 432-191.
2. Arizona C Welington Castillo is 13-for-27 with a homer and seven RBIs during his seven-game hitting streak.
3. Kivlehan on Saturday became the first player in club history to homer and record two hits in his big-league debut.

PREDICTION: Diamondbacks 6, Padres 3