Arizona Diamondbacks at Washington Nationals

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ARI	0	0	2	0	0	0	1	0	0	3	6	1
WSH	0	0	4	0	1	0	0	0	—	5	9	0

First pitch is 4:05 PM ET on Saturday, and the pitching matchup couldn't be more lopsided on paper. Mitch Bratt, a rookie the Diamondbacks called up to patch a rotation gutted by injuries, gets the ball against Foster Griffin, who's quietly having a Cy Young-caliber season for Washington.

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Total

Diamondbacks(54-49)

WWWLW

3

+1.5-150+125o9.5+117

Nationals(52-51)

WLWWL

5

-1.5+150-127u9.5-115

Best BetDiamondbacks +114

Pregame

Arizona's the play here off pure form — they've won 4 of 5 and their lineup is scoring in bunches, which matters more against a rookie-and-patchwork Washington staff than a shaky Bratt start does against Griffin. Sewald locking down the ninth gives the D-backs a real closing advantage if this stays close late. The risk is obvious: Bratt got rocked in his last outing and Griffin's been the best pitcher on either roster all year.

Bratt's last start, July 12 against the Dodgers, didn't go well — 3 innings, 3 runs, 3 walks before he got pulled. That's the reality Arizona's living with right now: Zac Gallen is rehabbing an elbow, Corbin Burnes is still building back from Tommy John surgery, and Ryne Nelson isn't close either. Griffin, meanwhile, is 11-2 with a 2.68 ERA and made his first All-Star team by reworking his pitch mix around a cutter and sinker instead of leaning purely on the curveball that got him there.

Mitch Bratt

(1-1)·3.90 ERA

Jul 20 vs Athletics

ND

4.2IP

2ER

4K

1BB

84P

07/25 Lineup

Foster Griffin

(12-4)·3.31 ERA

Jul 19 @ Athletics

W

7.0IP

1ER

2K

1BB

97P

07/25 Lineup

Washington's rotation is arguably in worse shape depth-wise — Trevor Williams, Jake Irvin, Josiah Gray, DJ Herz, Ken Waldichuk and Mitchell Parker are all out, forcing call-ups like Cade Cavalli into rotation innings. That's part of why some rival executives view a Griffin trade before the deadline as close to inevitable if the Nationals stumble; for now, he's the one arm keeping this rotation upright.

Arizona Diamondbacks

(54-49)

Jul 23W@ Cardinals10-6

Jul 22Wvs Athletics15-5

Jul 22Wvs Athletics6-5

Jul 21Lvs Athletics2-5

Jul 19Wvs Cardinals8-7

Washington Nationals

(52-51)

Jul 22W@ Rockies8-0

Jul 22L@ Rockies7-8

Jul 21W@ Rockies7-3

Jul 19W@ Athletics5-2

Jul 19L@ Athletics1-15

Arizona's shown up here with real momentum. They've won 4 of their last 5, capped by a 15-5 blowout of the A's and a 10-6 win over the Cardinals, and Paul Sewald has been perfect in save chances while Justin Martinez and A.J. Puk rehab in the background. The one crack in the lineup is Ketel Marte, who was scratched Thursday with back stiffness after DH duty the two days prior — a real loss given his .258/18 HR/59 RBI season if he's not right.

Washington's counterpunch has been just as real. They're 3-2 in their last 5 with an 8-0 win over Colorado sandwiched around a lopsided 1-15 loss to the A's, and this is the deepest playoff push the franchise has made since 2019. With the trade deadline a week out and both front offices facing buy-or-sell decisions, every game like this one carries extra weight.

Arizona Diamondbacks

(14)

• Day-To-DayKetel Marte (2B) — Marte was scratched from Thursday's lineup in St. Louis due to back stiffness, Steve Zinsmeister of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM reports.07/23
• 10-Day-ILLourdes Gurriel Jr. (LF) — Gurriel isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against St. Louis.07/18
• 10-Day-ILJordan Lawlar (LF) — Manager Torey Lovullo said Saturday that Lawlar (hamstring) has been cleared for all baseball activities other than full-speed running, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.07/18
• 10-Day-ILTommy Troy (LF) — Manager Torey Lovullo said Friday that Troy (shoulder) is expected to remain out for roughly 3-to-4 weeks, Jack Sommers of SI.com reports.07/17
• 15-Day-ILDrey Jameson (RP) — The Diamondbacks recalled Jameson from Triple-A Reno on Saturday.07/22
• 15-Day-ILZac Gallen (SP) — Gallen (elbow) met with Dr. Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles for a recommended course of action and was scheduled to be back in Arizona on Tuesday to resume his rehab, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM reports.07/21
• 15-Day-ILMichael Soroka (SP) — Manager Torey Lovullo said Friday that Soroka (glute) is in line to return from the injured list sometime around early August, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.07/17
• 60-Day-ILJustin Martinez (RP) — Martinez (elbow) threw pitches to rehabbing outfielder Jordan Lawlar (hamstring) in a live batting practice session Saturday, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.07/20
• 60-Day-ILA.J. Puk (RP) — Manager Torey Lovullo said Saturday that MRI results on Puk's left shoulder revealed that his shoulder capsule hasn't fully healed, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.07/18
• 60-Day-ILRyne Nelson (SP) — Nelson (elbow) will begin a throwing program Saturday or Sunday, Alex D'Agostino of SI.com reports.07/18
• 60-Day-ILAndrew Saalfrank (RP) — Saalfrank (shoulder) has begun a throwing program, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports.07/18
• 60-Day-ILCorbin Burnes (SP) — Burnes (elbow) began a throwing program July 10 and felt good following the session, MLB.com reports.07/13
• 60-Day-ILCristian Mena (RP) — Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo told reporters Monday that Mena underwent surgery on his right shoulder and will be sidelined for the rest of the season, Jack Sommers of SI.com reports.06/01
• 60-Day-ILBlake Walston (SP) — Walston (elbow) paused his rehab program earlier in the season, but he was expected to start building back up around the middle of May, MLB.com reports.06/01

Washington Nationals

(10)

• 10-Day-ILDrew Millas (C) — Milias went 1-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored in Wednesday's win over the Red Sox.07/15
• 15-Day-ILPJ Poulin (RP) — Poulin will serve as the opening pitcher in Saturday's game against the Yankees, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.07/19
• 15-Day-ILBrad Lord (RP) — The Nationals placed Lord on the 15-day injured list Thursday with left side tightness.07/09
• 60-Day-ILTrevor Williams (SP) — Williams (elbow) struck out three and allowed three earned runs on six hits and two walks across 3.1 innings in a rehab start Sunday with High-A Wilmington.07/20
• 60-Day-ILJake Irvin (SP) — Irvin (shoulder) struck out five and allowed one hit and no walks over 4.2 scoreless innings Sunday in a rehab start with Double-A Harrisburg.07/20
• 60-Day-ILRichard Lovelady (RP) — Lovelady (triceps) began a throwing program shortly after landing on the injured list June 29 and had thrown off flat ground out to 60 feet as recently as July 3, MLB.com reports.07/19
• 60-Day-ILMitchell Parker (RP) — The Nationals transferred Parker (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Wednesday.07/02
• 60-Day-ILDJ Herz (SP) — Herz (elbow) was diagnosed Monday with a left flexor strain, Kyle Williams of TheBanner.com reports.06/22
• 60-Day-ILKen Waldichuk (RP) — Waldichuk (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery and an internal brace procedure April 21 and is hopeful to return to game action at some point early in the 2027 season, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.06/11
• 60-Day-ILJosiah Gray (SP) — Gray (elbow) has resumed a throwing program, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.05/08

Neither team is whole, but Arizona's rotation crisis is the bigger long-term problem while Washington's is more about who's left standing behind Griffin. For one Saturday afternoon, though, it comes down to a hot Diamondbacks lineup against a Nationals ace trying to keep the wild-card race from slipping away.