Diamondbacks travel to Big Apple to take on Mets

The Arizona Diamondbacks will travel to New York to take on the Mets in a three-game series before the All-Star Break. The D-Backs have won seven of their last 10 games, while the Mets haven’t been as consistent, only winning five of their last 10 games.

The D-Backs were able to get over their own personal hump in their series against the Texas Rangers, as they finally got their record back to .500 at 42-42. They also currently sit tied for second place in the NL West with the San Francisco Giants. The Mets are also sitting in second place in the NL East; three games behind the Washington Nationals.

Here are the pitching matchups for this series:

Chase Anderson vs. Noah Syndergaard

Jul 3, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Chase Anderson (57) throws during the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

Anderson is coming off a solid start against the Colorado Rockies as he gave up three runs on three hits, while striking our five in six innings pitched. Anderson’s last start against the Mets on June 6 was also solid. Anderson pitched 5 1/3 innings, only gave up one run on eight hits while striking out six. The D-Backs were able to get the victory in that game 2-1.

Jul 3, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard (34) pitches during the sixth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Since coming up from the minors, Syndergaard has been very good for the Mets. In 10 starts for New York, Syndergaard has a record of 3-4 with a 3.38 ERA. Syndergaard has also struck out 59 hitters in 58 2/3 innings this year. However, Syndergaard has given up a lot of hits this season. He has given up 56 hits in those 58 2/3 innings pitched.

Patrick Corbin vs. Matt Harvey

Sept. 17, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA: Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Patrick Corbin throws in the first inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Patrick Corbin will be making his second start of the season this Saturday. Corbin made his debut on the 4^th of July against the Rockies after coming back from Tommy John Surgery. Corbin pitched well in his first major league appearance in over a year. Corbin pitched five innings, giving up two runs on eight hits while striking out three and was able to earn the win. Corbin will look to continue to build on his last outing against a Mets team who has problems hitting as of late.

Jun 4, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Matt Harvey (33) throws in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

Matt Harvey, or the Dark Knight as many like to call him, has been outstanding for the Mets so far this season. In 16 starts, Harvey has a record of 7-6 with an ERA of 3.11. In 104 1/3 innings, Harvey has 100 strikeouts. While earlier in the season, Harvey was striking out a ton of hitters, around at least seven every game. Lately, Harvey’s strikeout numbers have been down. Harvey has also been vocal about his distaste for the Mets using a six-man pitching rotation. Maybe his displeasure of this new rotation is weighing on him and causing him not to pitch as well lately. Who knows?

Rubby De La Rosa vs. TBA

Jun 25, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Rubby De La Rosa (12) delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

De La Rosa is coming off an awful outing against the Rockies. In that game, De La Rosa gave up six runs on eight hits, while only striking out three in five innings. De La Rosa has been incredibly inconsistent this season. It seems that every good start is followed by a bad one. On the year, De La Rosa has a record of 6-4 with an ERA of 4.89. The D-Backs have lost in De La Rosa’s last three starts.

The Mets have not announced who their starter will be in this game. This would normally be Steven Matz’s spot in the rotation, but Matz has been put on the shelf with a partial tear of the lat muscle in his left side. Matz is expected to miss three weeks. The Mets have a few options to fill this spot. They could push up Jon Niese to start this game, since being in a six-man rotation gives every guy an extra day of rest than normal. They could also go with a minor leaguer for a spot start. We’ll see what manager Terry Collins decides to do.

The D-Backs will look to build upon their surprisingly good start in the first half of the season, where nobody expected them to be in the position they are in now.

First pitch for all three games vary. Tonight’s game gets underway at 4:10pm, first pitch for Saturday’s game is set for 1:10pm, and Sunday’s contest is slated for 10:10am local time.