Diamondbacks' Eduardo Rodriguez Faces Brutal Matchup vs Astros

The Arizona Diamondbacks need a win in a tough matchup.

Jul 10, 2025; San Diego, California, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez (57) delivers during the first inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images a | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

The Arizona Diamondbacks' hot momentum was dampened Monday as they began their series against the Houston Astros with a loss. Arizona will try to get back into the win column Tuesday at 6:40 p.m., but it won't be an easy matchup.

Arizona fell back below .500 at 50-51, while the Astros maintain their division lead at 58-42. Time has all but run out for the D-backs to dictate their Deadline plans.

Arizona Diamondbacks vs Houston Astros Pitching Matchup

LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (5.94 ERA) vs LHP Framber Valdez (2.75 ERA)

It'll be a battle of veteran left-handers on Tuesday, and the matchup does not favor the Diamondbacks.

While Eduardo Rodriguez has shown flashes of dominance in 2025, his overall results have not been those of a plus pitcher. After a sub-2.00 month of June, he's been blown up twice to open July.

No longer can Rodriguez's results be explained away by poor defense, small sample sizes or even the shoulder injury that held him out for nearly a month. He simply isn't landing his pitches where they need to go.

Rodriguez is throwing plenty of strikes, but they're being hammered, left over the heart of the zone.

He's given up an eye-popping 20 hits for 13 runs over his last 8.1 innings. Perhaps positive regression is in order, but it needs to happen much sooner, rather than later.

Valdez, however, has been every bit the ace that his reputation presents. He has a 2.75 ERA and has given up four earned runs in his last four starts. All four came in one start.

He's gone at least six innings in 15 of his 19 outings. He's pitched eight innings twice and a complete game on May 30.

Valdez throws his trademark sinker 44% of the time, with a heavy curve right behind it. He throws an occasional changeup, slider and four-seam, but the sinker and curve have been the money pitches.

Valdez is racking up ground balls at a 61.6% clip, a 98th percentile figure. But he's still managed to provide an above-average strikeout rate of 25.5%.

He can be occasionally blown up if his stuff isn't moving properly, but he's a well-rounded, extremely tough arm to hit.

He will likely be very difficult for the D-backs, who desperately need to avoid a series loss Tuesday.

Diamondbacks vs Astros Lineups

Tuesday's lineup.https://t.co/k9Xjx1ui6d pic.twitter.com/B8PIww9lyo

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) July 22, 2025

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Diamondbacks vs Astros Bullpens

Arizona used Kendall Graveman, Andrew Saalfrank and newcomer Trevor Richards to get through three innings. Each threw 15 or more pitches, though with the lengthy break (and multiple blowout wins), they may or may not be available Tuesday.

The Astros used three relievers, including closer Josh Hader, who threw 18 pitches for the save. They did not use setup men Bryan Abreu or Bryan King, however.