San Francisco @ Arizona preview
Chase Field
Last Meeting ( Jul 23, 2010 ) San Francisco 7, Arizona 4
The San Francisco Giants starting rotation is about to get a little more crowded.
Right-hander Todd Wellemeyer is on a rehab assignment in Triple-A Fresno after being shelved with a quadriceps problem. He began the year in the rotation and should be ready early next week. He wasn’t all that effective, going 3-5 with a 5.52 ERA in 12 games - 11 starts - before the injury.
The Giants rotation of Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Barry Zito, Jonathan Sanchez and Madison Bumgarner has been one of the best over the last month or so.
Wellemeyer’s place appears to be in the bullpen, but the one wild card is Bumgarner, who has been awfully good in his five starts.
The 20-year-old left-hander is 3-2 with a 2.41 ERA with 24 strikeouts and seven walks in 33 2/3 innings with the Giants. This season, however, Bumgarner has already logged 116 1/3 total innings and on pace to shatter his career high of 141 1/3 innings.
The Giants might decided to limit his innings, but Bumgarner has been so good that it is hard to believe they’d mess with him for a journeyman as second-place San Francisco tries to catch the San Diego Padres in the NL West.
Bumgarner’s next start comes Saturday against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field as the Giants look to keep their hot streak going. San Francisco has won the first two contests of the series in the four-game set and nine of its last 11 contests overall.
In addition to the rotation’s consistency and one of the National League’s best bullpens, the offense has been surging lately. Rookie catcher Buster Posey has been leading the way as his 16-game hitting streak that has pushed his average to .353, while Aubrey Huff is coming off a two home run game.
The Diamondbacks have a hot hitter of their own as second baseman Kelly Johnson is coming off the franchise’s fourth cycle and Major League Baseball's third of the season.
In the month of July, Johnson is hitting .379 with three home runs, 12 runs and 14 RBIs with two stolen bases. His 16th home run of the season Friday tied his career high that was set in 2007 in 150 games.
Diamondbacks right-hander starter Ian Kennedy (5-7, 4.02) hopes Johnson keeps the offensive surge going as he looks to win his third straight start.
Arizona, much like Bumgarner and the Giants, is limiting Kennedy’s inning count and was pulled after five innings in a blowout win. Kennedy has thrown 116 1/3 innings and hasn’t made it out of the sixth inning over his last four starts.