Giants at Diamondbacks
Paul Goldschmidt has answered an ice-cold May with a sizzling June, batting .368 in the current month with nine homers and 22 RBIs in his last 22 games overall. Goldschmidt looks to fuel the Arizona Diamondbacks (47-34) to their eighth win in nine outings on Friday in the opener of a three-game series against the visiting San Francisco Giants (42-40).
Goldschmidt had three hits and an RBI in Thursday's 4-0 victory over Miami to surge into the series opener versus San Francisco, against which he is 16-for-33 with nine extra-base hits (seven doubles, two homers) and seven RBIs this season. Jake Lamb has 10 hits and eight runs scored in his last seven contests for Arizona, which tied a season high by moving 13 games above .500. While the Diamondbacks completed an 8-2 road trip, San Francisco had won seven of eight before dropping a wild 9-8 decision to Colorado on Thursday. Brandon Belt, who launched a two-run homer against the Rockies, has gone deep twice despite going 4-for-19 with seven strikeouts against Arizona this season.
TV: 9:40 p.m. ET, NBC Bay Area (San Francisco), FS Arizona
PITCHING MATCHUP: Giants LH Andrew Suarez (2-4, 4.43 ERA) vs. Diamondbacks LH Patrick Corbin (6-3, 3.24)
Suarez has yielded nine runs and 27 hits in his last five outings, but only has a win on June 2 and four straight no-decisions to show for it. The 25-year-old permitted just a solo homer for his lone run allowed in 5 2/3 frames against San Diego on Saturday in his last outing. Suarez made his major-league debut against Arizona on April 11, surrendering homers to Goldschmidt and John Ryan Murphy and four runs total in a 7-3 loss.
Corbin has posted a 2-0 mark with a 2.32 ERA in three starts versus San Francisco this season. The 28-year-old took a no-hitter into the eighth inning in a 1-0 win on April 17 and surrendered one run in 6 1/3 frames of a 3-2 triumph on June 5. Corbin enters Friday's contest with some momentum after matching a career high with 12 strikeouts, albeit in a no-decision against Pittsburgh last Friday.
WALK-OFFS
1. San Francisco C Buster Posey is 11-for-31 against Arizona this season.
2. Diamondbacks SS Nick Ahmed is just 4-for-33 with eight strikeouts versus the Giants in 2018.
3. San Francisco Brandon Crawford had eight hits -- including four for extra bases -- over a four-game stretch before going 0-for-5 on Thursday.