Corbin Carroll Lowered in New-Look D-backs Lineup vs Giants

The Diamondbacks shake up the order as they take on the Giants as they come to Chase Field for the first time in 2024

Arizona Diamondbacks’ Corbin Carroll (7) slides into third with a triple against the Miami Marlins during the eighth inning at Chase Field in Phoenix on Sunday, May 26, 2024. / Michael Chow/The Republic / USA TODAY

The Diamondbacks return home today on a 3 game stop in Phoenix. They take on the Giants for the first time since a mid-April matchup between the teams in San Fransisco. The D-backs will try to carry on some great offensive momentum they discovered in New York as they try to find their footing in a tight Wild Card race once again.

Ryne Nelson takes the mound once more at Chase Field, coming off a mediocre start in Texas. He allowed 4 runs in 6 innings in Arlington, lowering his ERA to 6.02 on the season. His FIP is substantially better at 4.26 meaning he has gotten very unlucky, and is due for some positive regression to his ERA.

While Nelson's underlying numbers look like there could be some positive development to a more stable place, his pitch mix has not shown those same optimistic developments. His cutter has continued to be a liability and his fastball is being relied on heavily as a putaway pitch leaving him vulnerable at times and unable to get out of at-bats quickly.

Nelson will have a tall task ahead as he faces the Giants for a second time this season. His previous outing went only 2 innings of 0 run ball when he was struck by a comebacker on his right arm. This subsequently sent him to the IL for a short period of time with an elbow contusion.

The Diamondbacks will face an opener in Erik Miller who will go for the Giants in a bullpen game. Miller, the lefty, has a 4.00 ERA in 27 innings pitched, but has been far better recently. In his last 7 games he has a 1.42 ERA in 6.1 innings thrown. Having Miller face the top of the Diamondbacks lineup makes sense, with Joc Pederson hitting in the 3 hole who has stark platoon splits.

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Corbin Carroll has been dropped down to 8th in the batting order. His slump has been a continuous storyline for the Diamondbacks this season and it seems that the team is responding to it once more by giving him some low-pressure at-bats at the bottom of the lineup to help give him some cushion.

Jake McCarthy is once again rising in the batting order, now up to hitting 6th in the lineup. He has seen a stark return to form to his 2022 self, something the team was dearly missing in 2023. He is hitting .272 with 2 home runs and boasts a strong 112 WRC+.

His strong on-base number of .348 have also led to some much-needed injections of chaos into D-Backs games, something that has been lacking early this year with Corbin Carroll's struggles and injuries to Alek Thomas and Geraldo Perdomo.

Blaze Alexander was a key figure in the Diamondbacks' previous series against the Giants, leading them to a series split in the bay. He launched a home run, and hit three doubles in just 3 games. He also tallied 6 RBI in the series. Unsurprisingly he will fill in today in the 9 hole, playing shortstop.

Some of Alexander's hot hitting has returned as of late, collecting 3 hits including a double in New York. His hot bat played a bigger role earlier in the year, with Kevin Newman taking over more recently as the primarily fill-in when it comes to the shortstop position. Alexander will get an opportunity tonight to show that he deserves to stay up in the majors, even when Perdomo returns from injury, against a division rival.

The Diamondbacks open tonight's ballgame against the Giants at 6:40 PM Arizona time. Stay tuned to Inside The Diamondbacks for news and post-game updates.