Diamondbacks at Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers do not have many weaknesses as their National League-best 78-41 record attests, and the wild success enjoyed at Chavez Ravine is among their strongest traits. Los Angeles owns the top home record in the majors at 47-16 as it completes a 10-game homestand by hosting the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday for the rubber match of their three-game series.
The Dodgers have won seven of their last nine at home and are in a virtual tie with Houston (77-40) for the best record in baseball while owning an 18-game lead over the Diamondbacks in the NL West. There were no issues Saturday after Arizona's 11-inning victory in the series opener ended with a brief benches-clearing confrontation. The Diamondbacks, who have won five of eight, sit 2 1/2 games out of a wild-card spot but have four teams between them and the postseason berth. Hyun-Jin Ryu (neck), the favorite to win the NL Cy Young Award, returns from the injured list to start for Los Angeles on Sunday and will oppose Mike Leake, who makes his second start in a Diamondbacks uniform.
TV: 4:10 p.m. ET, MLB Network, FS Arizona, SportsNet LA (Los Angeles)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Diamondbacks RH Mike Leake (9-8, 4.24 ERA) vs. Dodgers LH Hyun-Jin Ryu (11-2, 1.53)
Leake did not factor in the decision after allowing three runs - two earned - and 11 hits in 5 1/3 innings of Arizona's 8-4 victory over Philadelphia on Tuesday. The 31-year-old Californian, who replaced Zack Greinke in the rotation, has yielded three earned runs or fewer in four straight outings. Russell Martin is 11-for-35 with two home runs and eight RBIs versus Leake, who is 5-6 with a 4.02 ERA in 12 career games (11 starts) against the Dodgers but hasn't faced them since 2017.
Ryu settled for a no-decision despite scattering three hits over six scoreless innings in Los Angeles' 5-1 victory at Colorado on July 31 before going on the IL. The 32-year-old South Korean has gone 2-0 while allowing two runs over 32 2/3 frames in his last five starts to significantly lower his major league-leading ERA. Adam Jones is 1-for-7 with a solo home run against Ryu, who is 5-3 with a 3.30 ERA in 15 career starts against the Diamondbacks - including a 2-0 record with one run yielded over 13 innings in two turns this season.
WALK-OFFS
1. Dodgers OF Kristopher Negron, who delivered an RBI single on Saturday, is 10-for-29 with seven RBIs in nine games since being acquired from Seattle.
2. Arizona CF Ketel Marte, who leads the NL with 144 hits, went 2-for-4 on Saturday and has gone 12-for-30 during his seven-game hitting streak to raise his batting average to .319.
3. Los Angeles possesses a major league-best plus-186 run differential, with Houston at 185 after its 23-2 victory over Baltimore on Saturday.