Diamondbacks vs. Giants Thursday MLB probable pitchers, odds: Arizona turns to ace Zac Gallen to avoid league-record 23rd consecutive road loss

Major League Baseball history is on the line Thursday afternoon from San Francisco (3:45 p.m. ET first pitch) as the Arizona Diamondbacks enter on a 22-game road losing streak. No team in the modern history of the sport has dropped 23 in a row away from home. The Snakes, who also have dropped 13 straight games overall, are +183 underdogs against the Giants, who are tied for the best record in the majors, on the William Hill Sportsbook MLB odds.

In Game 2 of this series on Tuesday, the Diamondbacks blew leads of 7-0 and 8-3 in losing 9-8. On Wednesday night, the Snakes jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, only to allow four in the bottom of the frame, and the Giants would not look back in a 13-7 victory. Arizona joined the 1943 Philadelphia Athletics and 1963 New York Mets as the lone franchises to lose 22 consecutive road games.

"This is obviously nothing that we ever expected, nothing that we're proud of," said manager Torey Lovullo – who for some reason is still employed. "We can't reverse anything that's happened over the past 40-plus days.

Arizona is just the second team in the past 80 years — 1963 Mets being the other — to have separate 13-game losing streaks in the same season. The Diamondbacks have two in a 30-day span and have dropped 27 of 29 overall. They were 15-3 on May 2, and now they're 20-49 with worst record in the majors.

The good news is that the Snakes are starting ace Zac Gallen (1-1, 3.04) on Thursday. The bad is that Gallen will be on a strict pitch count because he's being activated off the injured list. He has been sidelined since early May with a right UCL strain after previously missing time with a stress fracture in his arm. Gallen hasn't seen the Giants this year and was 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA in three starts against them in 2020.

San Francisco counters with Cy Young candidate Kevin Gausman (7-1, 1.43 ERA). He has allowed two earned runs or fewer in all but one start this season and pitched five shutout innings at Arizona in a win May 25. He is 3-1 with a 2.43 ERA in six career games (five starts) against the Diamondbacks. Gausman does come off that first loss in allowing two runs over four innings last Saturday vs. Washington. 

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