Arizona Diamondbacks at San Francisco Giants 8/16/22 - MLB Picks & Predictions

The Arizona Diamondbacks will head on the road for a series against the San Fransisco Giants at Oracle Park. The Diamondbacks won two of three against the Rockies, losing the series opener but bouncing back to win 6-0 and 7-4 to secure the series win and move to 53-61 on the year. The Giants got back on the right track with a sweep of the Pirates, moving back to .500 on the year and back into the NL Wildcard conversation.

The Giants are a well-balanced team on offense and are eighth in the MLB in scoring offense averaging 4.57 runs per game. Wilmer Flores has been arguably the best hitter on the roster this season leading the team with 58 RBIs and second on the team with 16 home runs. Joc Pederson leads the team in home runs but has been ice cold over the last few months and his quiet bat has coincided with the Giants' struggles as a team.

The right-handed Jakob Junis will get the start for the Giants, he has had a solid season going 4-3 with a 3.78 ERA and 1.20 WHIP. Junis has not worked deep into games, especially in his last outing, when he allowed six runs on seven hits and struck out three in just 2.1 innings of work. San Fransisco was shelled 13-7 by the Padres. 

Arizona has hung around the middle of the league in scoring offense averaging 4.32 runs per game, ranking 17th in the league. First baseman Christian Walker has anchored this lineup and is coming off arguably his best game of the season, he was ⅘ with two doubles, a home run, and 4 RBIs in a 7-4 win over Colorado. On the year, he’s sixth in the MLB with 27 home runs and leads the Diamondbacks with 67 RBIs.

The right-handed Merrill Kelly will get the start for the Diamondbacks and hope to continue his solid season. Kelly is 10-5 with a 2.95 ERA and 1.14 WHIP and has been the best pitcher on this Diamondbacks staff. In his last outing, he allowed three runs on four hits but struck out six in five innings of work. Although he was on the hook for the loss, the Diamondbacks stormed back to beat the Pirates 9-3.