After dropping the first series of the West Coast trip, the New York Yankees are looking to avoid a series loss.
- New York Yankees: (16-21)
- Arizona Diamondbacks: (18-23)
- Interleague, 9:40 PM ET, YES Network
- Chase Field, Phoenix, AZ
Michael Pineda will take the hill against the Arizona Diamondbacks for the New York Yankees as they’ll attempt to avoid their first series loss since May 5th.
Last time out, Pineda was tattooed for six runs in a 7-3 loss to the Kansas City Royals and he’s still trying to figure things out. That night may be tonight as he is 6-2 with a 2.44 ERA in nine interleague starts.
The interesting thing about Pineda is, once the third inning comes around for Pineda, he turns into an animal. Opponents are batting a mere .202 after the second frame but are hitting .437 with six home runs in the first two innings.
Opposing him will be Zack Greinke (3-3, 5.26 ERA) who has been nothing close to the player Arizona inked to a $206-million deal but has shown the ability to channel the dominance we saw in 2015. In his previous outing against the San Francisco Giants, he permitted four runs on eight hits while walking three with four strikeouts in six innings of work.
Watch the @Yankees play the Diamondbacks on YES & https://t.co/tl00ruMDHZ tonight as coverage starts at 8:30pm! pic.twitter.com/LnTSdACijU
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) May 17, 2016
LINEUP:
The Yankees will get Brian McCann back in the lineup after sitting during Monday night’s loss. In the last two weeks, New York’s catcher owns a .289 batting average with two home runs and has driven in ten runs in his last ten games.
Tonight’s @yankees lineup vs. the Diamondbacks. Coverage begins at 8:30pm on @YESNetwork. First pitch at 9:40pm. pic.twitter.com/2isUNMaFuO
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) May 17, 2016
The Diamondbacks lineup exploded last night thanks to a huge game by Paul Goldschmidt and a five-run outburst in the fifth that featured a three-run home run from Jake Lamb.
Goldschmidt is now batting .353 with two home runs in four games against the Yankees. Both he and Lamb are in Arizona’s lineup tonight as they look to carry over last night’s outburst.
#Diamondbacks 5/17 Lineup
J Segura 2B
C Herrmann RF
P Goldschmidt 1B
J Lamb 3B
W Castillo C
Y Tomas LF
C Owings CF
N Ahmed SS
Z Greinke P— Daily MLB Lineups (@DailyMLBLineup) May 17, 2016
ROSTER MOVES:
Earlier today, the New York Yankees recalled Luis Cessa, James Pazos, and Rob Refsnyder from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Refsnyder has a .293/.336/.398 slash line with two home runs in 34 games with the Railriders and had a 16-game hitting streak that ended on May 13. However, he has been maintaining a .400 batting average in the month of May.
To make room for these guys on the big league roster, the designated Phil Coke for assignment and sent Chad Green and Conor Mullee back to Triple-A.
Today the @Yankees recalled Cessa, Pazos & Refsnyder from @swbrailriders. Optioned Green & Mullee to SWB. Designated Coke for assignment.
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) May 17, 2016
Bold Prediction:
Michael Pineda will absolutely dominate this Diamondbacks’ lineup and battle in a classic pitcher’s duel with Zack Greinke. Also, Refsnyder will record pinch-hitch hit single.
First pitch will commence at 9:40 on the YES Network.
