Blue Jays vs. Diamondbacks: Fast facts preview for the two-game series

The Toronto Blue Jays are in Arizona for a quick two-game series against the Diamondbacks beginning at 9:40 p.m. ET Tuesday night

Toronto and Arizona meet up for a quick pair beginning tonight at Chase Field, and much like the Blue Jays’ series with the Oakland Athletics, it’s a story of two teams headed in different directions.

The Blue Jays remain comfortably in playoff contention despite dropping two of three to the struggling A’s while the Diamondbacks currently sit at 40-53, a full 17 games behind the San Francisco Giants and last in the National League West division. They’ve been curiously poor at home, too, posting a 17-33 record.

Big offseason addition Zack Greinke, who the Blue Jays will avoid this series, has looked a little closer to ‘normal’ as he’s posted a 3.62 ERA. Shelby Miller, acquired from the Braves in December for Dansby Swanson, Aaron Blair and Ender Inciarte, recently earned a ticket to triple-A due to an ERA north of 7.00.

The Big Picture

• Arizona ranks in the middle of the pack offensively, with their 416 runs putting them 16th in Major League Baseball.
• It’s the same story when it comes to home runs: Arizona’s 107 rank them 17th.
• The Diamondbacks have done well to hit for average, though. Their cumulative average of .266 ties them for sixth.
• Pitching has been the real letdown, which one might expect given the below-average season from Greinke and the rough year for Miller. Arizona’s team ERA sits at 4.79, the fourth-highest in baseball.
• Opponents are hitting .269 off Diamondbacks pitchers, the fifth-worst team total.

Diamondbacks Players to Watch

• Paul Goldschmidt remans an underrated star in Arizona. He’s hitting .297 with 16 home runs, 61 RBI and 13 stolen bases. He also has an elite on-base percentage, currently sitting at .415.
• Goldschmidt isn’t alone, though. Jake Lamb is knee-deep in a breakout season with an average of .302 and an OPS of 1.015. He’s hit 21 home runs and has 65 RBI.
• Jean Segura is hitting .304 with 54 runs scored and 15 stolen bases.
• Former (?) Blue Jay Michael Bourn is playing every day for the Diamondbacks and is currently hitting .271.
• Welington Castillo has been valuable at catcher for Arizona, hitting 10 home runs with 30 RBI and a 1.2 WAR.

Next: Jays prospect Richard Urena generating a serious buzz

Scheduled Starters

Game 1  –  Tuesday, July 19th  –  9:40 p.m. ET
Aaron Sanchez (9-1, 2.97 ERA)   vs.   Zack Godley (2-0, 5.28 ERA)

Game 2  –  Wednesday, July 20th  –  3:40 ET
Marcus Stroman (7-4, 5.15 ERA)   vs.   Patrick Corbin (4-8, 5.25)