Diamondbacks updates: Jordan Montgomery set to take on Reds in Cincinnati
CINCINNATI — The Diamondbacks will turn to left-hander Jordan Montgomery as they look to secure a series victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday at Great American Ball Park.
First pitch is scheduled for 3:40 p.m., Arizona time.
After beating the Reds, 6-2, in Tuesday’s opener, Montgomery will get the ball in hopes of rebounding from a rough outing against the Dodgers last week in which he gave up six runs in three innings.
Prior to that, Montgomery had turned in a pair of sharp performances against the Giants and Cardinals.
He has faced the Reds four times in his career, including twice last season, when he posted a 3.60 ERA with four walks and 10 strikeouts in 10 innings.
The Reds will give the ball to right-hander Graham Ashcraft, a pitcher who has had some of the more explosive stuff in the majors the past few years but has struggled to turn it into results. His 3.63 ERA through six starts suggests he could be making progress, and he has been getting a little more swing and miss overall as well as better results out of his slider than he did last year.
Ashcraft fired six innings against the Padres in his most recent start, giving up two runs, both unearned, with two walks and four strikeouts.
He has faced the Diamondbacks twice in his career, pitching well both times. In a start last year, he gave up two runs in 6⅔ innings.
Thursday’s Diamondbacks-Reds pitching matchup
Diamondbacks at Reds, 10:10 a.m., Cox, Ch. 34
Diamondbacks RHP Slade Cecconi (1-2, 4.96) vs. Reds RHP Hunter Greene (1-2, 3.12).
At Great American Ball Park: Cecconi was hit hard by the Padres on Friday night at Chase Field, giving up six runs in 4-1/3 innings. He was behind in too many counts and made costly mistakes over the plate, including serving up a pair of homers. … Prior to that, Cecconi was impressive in back-to-back outings against the Giants and Mariners. … Cecconi has been leaning more on his change-up than he did last year. He has elicited whiffs at a 26.3 percent clip, the best of his four pitches. … Greene fired 5⅔ scoreless innings against the Orioles in his most recent start, allowing five hits and walking four with five strikeouts. That came on the heels of seven scoreless innings against the Rangers on April 27. Starting with his final two innings of his start on April 22, he has a streak of 14⅔ scoreless innings. …The Diamondbacks hit Greene hard when they saw him last year, scoring five times off him in 3⅔ innings. He dominated them in a start in 2022, giving up just one hit in seven scoreless innings, with no walks and eight strikeouts. … Greene averages 98 mph with his fastball and gets 37.7 percent whiffs on his slider. Though he also mixes in a splitter and curveball, he is primarily a two-pitch guy.
Coming up
Friday: At Baltimore, 4:05 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Brandon Pfaadt (1-2, 4.61) vs. Orioles LHP Cole Irvin (3-1, 2.86).
Saturday: At Baltimore, 1:05 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Ryne Nelson (2-2, 5.23) vs. Orioles LHP John Means (1-0, 0.00).
Sunday: At Baltimore, 10:35 a.m., Diamondbacks RHP Zac Gallen (4-2, 2.84) vs. Orioles RHP Dean Kremer (3-2, 3.57).
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Diamondbacks updates: Jordan Montgomery set to take on Cincinnati Reds
