Gain total control — Phillies at Diamondbacks NLCS Game 3 Preview

With a win in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, the Phillies will take complete control of the series and will be one win away from the World Series.

Here is the Phillies’ starting lineup for Game 3:

The Diamondbacks hand the ball to rookie Brandon Pfaadt as he looks to try and make this series interesting, as they return home.

“I think the ballpark and fans play a big factor. When you look at Philadelphia, it’s pretty extreme,” Pfaadt said. “In the (NL)DS, it was extreme when we played here, so I think bringing the momentum on our side and bringing our fans is gonna be big.”

Pfaadt, who has never faced the Phillies, surrendered 22 home runs in 96 innings during the regular season. Meanwhile, the Phils have clobbered 15 homers in the past four postseason games, the most hit by a team in a four-game span in major league postseason history. They have also hit three home runs in the first two games against the DBacks this series.

The 25-year-old, kept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the park in his last outing, however, allowing just two hits over 4 1/3 scoreless innings of a no-decision in Game 3 of the NLDS.

“You know, our mindset is one game, one win. One well-played game could lead to one win, and we’re right back in the series,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. “It’s a long journey. We’re taking that mindset, and we have to just play our best game (Thursday) and see where that takes us.”

Here is the Diamondbacks’ starting lineup for Game 3:

Up to this point, Lovullo went with the same nine starters for the first seven postseason games. But here in Game 3, he switched it up, giving Tommy Pham his first start in the outfield in the postseason, shifting Corbin Carroll to center, putting Emmanuel Rivera at third, and starting Evan Longoria at designated hitter. Alek Thomas, who had started every game this postseason, is not in the starting lineup after going 0-for-5 with one RBI in the first two games of the NLCS. He also put all his batters in different spots of the order, minus Walker, Gurriel Jr., and Longoria.

Ranger Suarez gets the start for the Phils, who allowed one run on four hits in 8 2/3 innings across two starts in the NLDS against the Atlanta Braves. He scattered four hits and struck out seven over seven scoreless innings in a no-decision versus the DBacks on June 14. He is 1-3 with a 5.09 ERA in nine career appearances, six of those starts, against Arizona.