Chris Sale will be on the mound when the Boston Red Sox look to snap their four-game losing streak in the first of three against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night.
In his last outing, Sale pitched seven innings in Boston's 4-2 win over the San Diego Padres, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out eight. Appearing to turn back the clock, the left-hander has been returning to the ace he once was, giving Red Sox manager Alex Cora a more comfortable feeling with Sale on the mound.
During the four-game losing streak, Boston's bats have been silenced while being outscored 20-4 against the Padres and Los Angeles Angels. Rafael Devers will sit in the opener while Justin Turner gets the start at third base for the Red Sox as Boston concludes its nine-game road trip in Arizona.
The Diamondbacks return home to Chase Field after going 6-3 on their road trip against the Oakland Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates and Philadelphia Phillies. Arizona is 29-21 heading into the three-game set with Boston.
Fans on the East Coast may want to grab a coffee or two, or even a double shot of espresso, with the first pitch from Chase Field scheduled for 9:40 p.m. ET. NESN will have all the action, including an hour of pregame coverage, beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET.
Here are the complete lineups for Red Sox vs. Diamondbacks:
BOSTON RED SOX (26-24)
Raimel Tapia, CF
Alex Verdugo, RF
Justin Turner, 3B
Masataka Yoshida, DH
Rob Refsnyder, LF
Triston Casas, 1B
Kiké Hernández, SS
Enmanuel Valdez, 2B
Connor Wong, C
Chris Sale, LHP (4-2 5.01 ERA)
ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS (29-21)
Ketel Marte, 2B
Emmanuel Rivera, 3B
Lourdes Gurriel Jr, LF
Christian Walker, 1B
Evan Longoria, DH
Corbin Carroll, CF
Nick Ahmed, SS
Jake McCarthy, RF
Jose Herrera, C
Brandon Pfaadt (0-1 7.65 ERA)
