Milwaukee @ Arizona preview

Last Meeting ( Jul 6, 2011 ) Arizona 1, Milwaukee 3

THE STORY: All-Star game hero Prince Fielder can expect more boos on Monday when he returns to Chase Field looking to lead the Milwaukee Brewers to a third straight road win in the opener of a four-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Fielder, the National League captain in the new Home Run Derby format, was vilified for leaving Justin Upton off the team and booed unmercifully by the Diamondbacks' faithful. One night later the NL's RBI leader won the All-Star game with a three-run homer. Fielder and company will try to earn a measure of revenge after Arizona took two of three from the Brewers in Milwaukee prior to the All-Star break. Having Randy Wolf on the hill might help.

TV: 9:40 pm. ET, Fox Sports Wisconsin, Fox Sports Arizona

PITCHING MATCHUP: Diamondbacks RH Josh Collmenter (4-5, 2.92 ERA) vs. Brewers LH Randy Wolf (6-6, 3.65).

Collmenter is facing the Brewers for the second time in 12 days, and despite Milwaukee’s offensive prowess, that may not be a bad thing. The struggling rookie put forth an encouraging start, allowing just three hits in six innings against the Brewers on July 6. Prior to that, Collmenter had been 0-4 with a 7.54 ERA over his last four outings.

Wolf is winless in his last three starts, but he may be able to get back on track at Chase Field. The lefthander is 7-1 with a 3.57 ERA in eight starts there. He is 10-4 with a 4.77 ERA in 19 starts against Arizona. He was 4-0 in his previous six starts against the Diamondbacks before they roughed him up for seven runs and 10 hits in six innings on July 6 in Milwaukee. All-Star Justin Upton is 2-for-3 with a homer against Wolf this season. Overall, he’s hitting .294 (5-for-17) with two homers and five RBIs against him.

ABOUT THE DIAMONDBACKS (51-44): Arizona got an unbelievable performance from Daniel Hudson on Sunday in the rubber match of a three-game series with Los Angeles. The righthander homered, threw his second-career complete game and finished with three RBIs. His .359 average is tops among pitchers. Arizona's starting pitching has been solid, but what has gone somewhat unnoticed is that Arizona is staying in the thick of the NL West race despite the fact that closer J.J. Putz (elbow tendinitis) has been out since June 29. David Hernandez is a perfect 6-for-6 while serving as Putz’s replacement. Willie Bloomquist extended his hitting streak to a modest seven games on Sunday. He’s hitting .333 during the streak.

ABOUT THE BREWERS (51-45): The Brewers, who are just 18-31 away from home, have won consecutive road games for the first time since a four-game sweep of Florida from June 3-6. All-Star Ryan Braun, whose been hobbled by a calf strain over the past two weeks, may be back on Monday. Braun missed the final eight games of the first half. He hasn’t played since leaving Saturday’s game against Colorado in the sixth inning with tightness in his left hamstring and calf. His 23-game hitting streak ended one night earlier. Braun’s newest teammate, setup man Francisco Rodriguez has already picked up a win and a hold in two appearances.

FINAL PITCH: Collmenter has four starts in which he's thrown six scoreless innings while allowing four baserunners or less. The only other Diamondbacks' pitcher to accomplish that feat is Curt Schilling (2003).