Fragen und Antworten » The old guard of the National League West will me

LOS ANGELES — et the potential successor as September will be ushered in this weekend with a four-game showdown at Dodger Stadium.The Dodgers have won five consecutive NL West titles Marcell Ozuna Jersey , but the Diamondbacks are poised to make a change at the top, and a weekend series in Los Angeles, starting Thursday, figures to set the tone for the drama ahead.The Diamondbacks have held the top spot in the National League West in all but two days in August. And since Aug. 8, Arizona has held at least a share of the division lead every day.Article continues below ...The Dodgers have gone through an inconsistent second half and were 4 1/2 games out of first place as recently as Friday, after they were swept in a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals last week.But they are on a tear now, entering the opener of the series on a five-game winning streak to match a season-best run.“The fact that we’re going into the next series against Arizona on a five-game winning streak and on a high, that’s huge,” said Los Angeles catcher Yasmani Grandal, who hit one of the three Dodgers home runs Wednesday. “(The Diamondbacks) are playing some pretty good baseball but it’s the end of the year. … If they sleep on us we’ll be able to go ahead and take first place.”Don’t expect the Diamondbacks to take anything for granted this weekend, not after they had lost four of five before winning handily Wednesday night at San Francisco behind the pitching of Zack Godley, who will not face the Dodgers.When the teams meet for the opener of the series on Thursday, the Diamondbacks will be on top in the NL West, with the Colorado Rockies a half-game back and the Dodgers one game back of Arizona in a tightly bunched group.“This is really what it’s all about,” Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said, according to mlb.com. “… We’ve talked about these moments, we’re prepared for these moments Miles Mikolas Jersey , and I think these guys are ready for this next set of challenges.”The Dodgers will have left-hander Rich Hill on the mound while the Diamondbacks will counter with a lefty of their own in Robbie Ray.Hill (6-4, 3.50 ERA) pitched a scoreless six innings against the San Diego Padres in a victory on Fiday and has given up two earned runs or fewer in six of his last seven starts. He appears to have shaken off blister issues that have plagued him in each of the past two seasons.Looming large, though, is Hill’s 0-5 record in seven starts against Arizona as a member of the Dodgers. The veteran has a 1.29 WHIP in those seven outings. Hill is 0-1 with a 12.00 ERA in two starts against the Diamondbacks this yearut both those starts were early in the season.Ray (3-2, 4.73) has kept his opponents in relative check over his last six starts with a 3.66 ERA, but all of those ended in no-decisions. In fact, the Diamondbacks are just 1-7 in Ray’s last eight starts and he hasn’t picked up a victory since June 27.Ray also spent time on the disabled list this year with an oblique issue that cost him two months in the first half. The Diamondbacks were 4-2 over Ray’s first six starts of the season.Ray is 6-3 lifetime against the Dodgers in 13 starts with a 2.69 ERA, and those six victories are his most against any one team.An expected Zack Greinke-Clayton Kershaw matchup Friday was nixed when the Dodgers moved Kershaw’s next start to Saturday’s third game in the series. SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — This is the new normal in baseball — pitching not just effectively after Tommy John surgery but even gaining velocity.Returning to form following labrum surgery is less likely. Just ask Mike Minor.“I started throwing, it hurt. I shut it down. I start throwing again, it hurt again,” the 6-foot-4 Rangers left-hander said of his two-year rehabilitation.All the rehab has been well worth it. He will open the season at home for Texas on March 28 against the Chicago Cubs.“It’s a cool thing, especially when I talk to my family and friends, talk about where I was a couple years ago,” he said. “From not pitching two years in a row and coming back, and having to go in the bullpen and last year trying to re-establish myself as a starter. And having a lot of people belief that I couldn’t do it, a lot of doubters.”A former Team USA and Vanderbilt star http://www.stlouiscardinalsteamshop.com/authentic-marcell-ozuna-jersey , Minor was selected in the first round (seventh overall) of the 2009 draft by the Atlanta Braves. He made his MLB debut in 2010 and became a reliable starter in 2012 and 2013.The torn labrum limited him in 2014 and the operation cost him the 2015 and 2016 seasons. Kansas City used him solely out of the bullpen in 2017. The Rangers acquired him as a free agent in 2018 and used him cautiously. He pitched 157 innings in 28 starts with a 4.18 ERA.“His expectations coming into this year were to kind of set the tone for the rest of the staff,” Rangers manager Chris Woodward said. “And when I told him he was the opening day guy, he was obviously excited. To be given the opportunity to be the ace, he’s not taking that lightly. He’s taken on that responsibility of being the No. 1 guy.”A quick learner who majored in sociology at Vanderbilt, Minor studies opposing hitters, looking to attack their weaknesses with his four-seam fastball, curveball, slider, circle changeup.“He’s done it from Day One of spring training,” Woodward said. “That’s why I made him the opening day starter because I see that commitment to bringing that attitude and that idea to the rest of the staff.”Minor, 31, works closely with catcher Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who turns 24 on Saturday.“Being a young catcher, he makes my job easier,” Kiner-Falefa said. “I am just trying to get him to pitch his game. He’ll let me know how to get on the same page with him.”On a team that finished last in the AL West at 67-95, Minor is asserting himself as a leader.“He brings everything you want in an opening day starter,” Kiner-Falefa said. “He brings fire Jason Motte Jersey , he attacks hitters. He’s not afraid. We feel his presence on the mound.”That comfort level extends to catcher Jeff Mathis, the former Diamondback who signed a two-year free-agent contract during the offseason.“I have been very impressed with Mike,” Mathis said. “He’s got really good stuff. I mean the slider is devastating. He’s able to locate his fastball.”They worked together for the first time on Monday, a Cactus League game against the Dodgers. Minor needed 35 pitches to get out of the first inning.“I had to make pitches in tough spots,” Minor said. “My fastball was off. It was cutting a little bit, and then no curveball. So, I was pretty much pitching with a slider and a changeup.”On the plus side, he held the Dodgers scoreless in 3 1/3, striking out three, allowing three hits and walking three.“He’s got great poise on the mound,” said Hunter Pence, the former Giants outfielder whose locker is right next to Minor’s.“He seems to be the same guy every day,” Pence added. “He goes about his business. Not a lot of talking really, I even asked him about it and he said, ‘Yeah, I like to listen and kind of observe'”____