Indians at Diamondbacks
Cleveland right-hander Justin Masterson will attempt to cure his road woes when the Indians visit the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday in the opener of a two-game set. Masterson is 1-4 with an unsightly 6.20 ERA in eight road starts this season and hasn’t lasted six innings in any of his last five away outings. The Indians enter with a three-game losing streak while Arizona has lost two straight and owns the worst record in the National League.
Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt is in the midst of a hot June and is batting .324 and slugging .632 in 68 at-bats. Goldschmidt has five homers and 14 RBIs and has also drawn 19 walks for a splendid .471 on-base percentage during the month. Cleveland third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall has solid June numbers – .329 with five homers and 18 RBIs – but is just 5-for-32 with one homer and one RBI over the last nine games.
TV: 9:40 p.m. ET, STO (Cleveland), FSN Arizona
PITCHING MATCHUP: Indians RH Justin Masterson (4-5, 4.75 ERA) vs. Diamondbacks LH Wade Miley (3-6, 4.62)
Masterson received a no-decision in his last outing despite limiting the Los Angeles Angels to one run and four hits in seven innings. He had an abysmal experience in his most-recent road start, giving up five runs, three hits and four walks in two-plus innings while losing to his former team in Boston on June 13. Masterson gave up four runs and seven hits in six innings in a no-decision against Arizona in 2008 as rookie for the Red Sox.
Miley has struggled in home outings as he is just 1-5 with a 5.40 ERA in nine such starts. Winning anywhere has been a chore recently as he is 0-3 in his past seven turns with his last victory occurring in a road game against the Chicago White Sox on May 10. Miley received a no-decision in his last start when he gave up three runs and five hits in 7 2/3 innings against Milwaukee.
WALK-OFFS
1. Cleveland has won seven of the 12 previous meetings.
2. Arizona SS Didi Gregorius is 1-for-19 with seven strikeouts over his last five games.
3. Indians 1B Carlos Santana is 19-for-57 with five homers and 12 RBIs over the last 16 games.