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PHILADELPHIA -- With the Los Angeles Dodgers pitching staff in tatters, there is an opportunity for Dodgers rookie right-hander Ross Stripling to establish himself.His next chance comes Thursday, when Stripling (3-4, 4.07) starts against the Philadelphia Phillies Jerad Eickhoff (8-12, 3.82) in the finale of a three-game series in Citizens Bank Park.The Dodgers, who have outscored the Phillies 22-7 while winning the first two games of the series, have had 26 players on the disabled list this season, the most ever by a National League team and the second-most by any team in the last 30 years. Only the 2012 Boston Red Sox (27) have had more.Eleven of the disabled Dodgers are pitchers, and six of those are starters. The most notable is three-time Cy Young Award-winner Clayton Kershaw, who has been out since June 27 with a herniated disk in his back. The earliest he can be activated is Aug. 27.Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts has nonetheless been able to cobble together an effective rotation -- so effective, in fact, that the Dodgers lead the NL West over the fading Giants.Stripling opened the season in the rotation. In his major league debut, in fact, he pitched 7 1/3 no-hit innings in a no-decision against the Giants. He was nonetheless banished to the minor leagues on May 23. All the injuries hastened his return to Chavez Ravine, and in time he made his way back into the rotation as well. In all he has made 10 starts among his 14 appearances, the last of those on Aug. 12 against Pittsburgh.In that one he lasted seven innings, his longest outing since his debut, but allowed five runs, matching his season high. He surrendered six hits, including solo home runs by Andrew McCutchen and Jordy Mercer, while striking out four. He did not walk a batter.You never know how the season is going to play out, but Ross has had a great opportunity and really seized the moment, Roberts said, according to Major League Baseballs official web site. Now and going forward, its been a great learning process for Ross and I think his growth has been exponential.Rich Hill (blisters) and Bud Norris (mild mid-back strain) are reportedly close to returning from the disabled list, and Brett Anderson (back surgery) made his first start of the season Sunday against Pittsburgh. He has also pronounced himself fit after injuring his left wrist in that game, which he departed after an inning.Stripling has never faced the Phillies. Nor has Eickhoff ever faced the Dodgers.Eickhoff did win his second straight start his last time out, allowing three runs on 10 hits over 5 2/3 innings in a 6-3 victory over Colorado. Eickhoff, who beat San Diego in his previous outing, was winless over his five previous starts.His sixth-inning woes continued against the Rockies, however. He carried a 4-0 lead into that inning but surrendered a two-run homer to Daniel Descalso and a solo shot to Tony Wolters. Eickhoffs ERA is 12.71 in the sixth this season.It just comes down to getting that curveball over, he said. If Im not throwing that with consistency, (hitters) can just put that in the back of their mind, or eliminate, really. Steve McNair Jersey . -- The boos poured down on Tom Brady and the New England Patriots at the end of a horrible first half. Earl Campbell Jersey . Thousands of fans at Mosaic Stadium will be cozying up to each other in an effort to stay warm in chilly temperatures and block the Prairie wind that locals say can knock your socks off. http://www.cheaptitansjerseyselite.com/ . DAmigo scored twice in regulation and added the shootout winner as the Toronto Marlies edged the San Antonio Rampage 5-4 in American Hockey League action. David Long Jersey .Y. -- Canadas Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse have another World Cup gold medal after winning the two-women bobsled race on Saturday in Lake Placid, N. Damon Webb Jersey . Nathan MacKinnon, Jamie McGinn and Jan Hejda also scored for the Avalanche, who won despite being outshot 38-23. MacKinnons goal, also on the power play, came with just over a minute remaining. With a 37-48 record and 16-game National League West deficit as testament to their poor play, the Arizona Diamondbacks rank among the most disappointing stories in baseball. Contrast the spring training euphoria surrounding the team with the ugly results in April, May and June, and its hard to fathom how quickly and profoundly things went south.I would like to put it on injuries, general manager Dave Stewart said in a recent interview, but injuries arent why were in the position we are now. Were in this position because we havent executed and done what were capable of. Weve underachieved.Baseball observers with a more historical slant might have had a clue this was coming. Arizona is the latest example of why the winner of the winter doesnt always look so formidable once the regular season begins.The Diamondbacks are reminiscent of last years San Diego Padres, who made such a dizzying flurry of moves during the 2014-2015 offseason that outfielder Matt Kemp christened new general manager A.J. Preller a rock star. A year later, the roadies are packing up the equipment and clearing the stage. James Shields, Craig Kimbrel, Justin Upton, Ian Kennedy, Yonder Alonso and Fernando Rodney have come and gone, and the Padres are stockpiling prospects in an attempt to build something more enduring.The Diamondbacks have been a buzzkill along the lines of the 2012 Miami Marlins, who made an enormous splash when they spent $191 million on free agents Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle and Heath Bell and hired new manager Ozzie Guillen to great fanfare in Miami. After a sub-.500 start, the selloff began, and Marlins fans and national columnists ripped owner Jeffrey Loria for using taxpayer money to build a new ballpark only to change course after three months.The D-backs also bring to mind the Toronto Blue Jays, who flopped after the addition of R.A. Dickey, Buehrle, Reyes and Josh Johnson in 2013 and didnt break through as a postseason team until two years later.A sub-.500 record and afterthought status werent part of the plan when Arizona signed free agent Zack Greinke to a $206.5 million contract and acquired Shelby Miller in a December trade with the Atlanta Braves. Of 31 ESPN experts surveyed late in spring training, 11 picked the Diamondbacks to make the playoffs as a division winner or wild-card team.Since then, just about everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. Miller has a 6.85 ERA in 13 starts, Greinke just landed on the disabled list with an oblique strain, and Arizonas aggregate starting pitcher ERA has spiked from 4.37 to 4.86. The Diamondbacks also have posted a stunningly bad 14-31 record at home.Arizonas sad story line isnt uncommon, given recent precedent. Why have so many teams spent big in hopes of making a quantum leap and found that the approach backfired? Texas GM Jon Daniels is familiar with the scenario from the 2014 season, when the Rangers garnered huge publicity with the acquisitions of Prince Fielder and Shin-Soo Choo and responded with a 67-95 season, the franchises worst since 1985.Some of it is injuries, which you cant predict, Daniels said. But the challenge is that baseball isnt like basketball, where you can add one or two pieces and really change the dynamic of the organization. In baseball you need so much depth and balance and some luck, too. Its hard to do all that with a handful of moves in an offseason. It takes years to build that foundation, and then you try to make one or two moves and layer them on top of what youve built.The 2008 American League champion Tampa Bay Rays, Pittsburgh Pirates, Houston Astros and 2015 World Series champion Kansas City Royals are prime examples of teams that got progressively better through the maturation of young rosters before making strategic acquisitions to get over the top. The Chicago Cubs suffered through five straight losing seasons before Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer thought the teams young core had progressed sufficiently to warrant a $155 million plunge on free-agent starter Jon Lester in December 2014.Arizona was building the requisitee strong nucleus last season with All-Stars Paul Goldschmidt and A.dddddddddddd. Pollock anchoring the lineup and David Peralta, Jake Lamb, Nick Ahmed, Yasmany Tomas and Brandon Drury all gaining valuable experience. The Diamondbacks made another shrewd move in January when they acquired middle infielder Jean Segura from Milwaukee. Hes batting .308 this season and merits strong consideration for an All-Star berth at second base.But bad luck blew a hole in the Diamondbacks plans late in spring training, when Pollock suffered a fractured bone in his right elbow. The Diamondbacks outfield depth had already taken a hit when they sent Ender Inciarte to Atlanta with shortstop prospect Dansby Swanson in the December trade for Miller, and things got worse when Peralta made two trips to the disabled list.Bad outfield defense has been a killer for Arizona. Last year, Diamondbacks outfielders recorded a combined defensive runs saved of plus-37. This year its minus-30, according to Baseball Info Solutions. Thats a natural outcome when the team has given so much playing time to veteran discards (Michael Bourn and Rickie Weeks Jr.), a converted catcher (Pete OBrien), a converted infielder (Chris Owings), a player whose best position is probably designated hitter (Tomas) and a prospect (Socrates Brito) who had to be rushed to the majors.Its only natural to review the roster from the top down, which is fine, but you also have to view it from the bottom up, said an NL executive. If youre weak in certain positions or innings or spots in your lineup, you cannot hide it over 162 games. It kills you. The top-heavy roster doesnt succeed.The Diamondbacks also opted for an offense-first catcher when they acquired Welington Castillo in a trade with Seattle last summer. While Castillos .278/.323/.461 slash line has been more than adequate, several talent evaluators wondered if hes an optimal fit for an Arizona team that planned to stress pitching this season.You hate to use the term misfits toys, said an NL talent evaluator. They have good players that other teams would like and want in most scenarios. But as a group, it wasnt a great roster construction, from my perspective.As Stewart points out, this isnt a one-shot deal for Arizona. The Diamondbacks have an average roster age of 27.83 -- fourth youngest among the 30 MLB teams behind the Philadelphia Phillies, Rays and Braves. Greinke, Goldschmidt, Pollock and the teams nucleus will be around to take another crack at it for the next several years.The most pressing short-term question for Arizonas front office is whether to trade relievers Daniel Hudson and Brad Ziegler at the Aug. 1 deadline before theyre eligible for free agency.Were not trying to tear this ballclub apart, Stewart said. We have to seriously evaluate internally if we have those guys back or move them. If we move them, it would be for prospects. That depletes our existing club, and we would have to replace them in the upcoming year.In the interim, manager Chip Hale will do his best to maintain a semblance of continuity. Weeks came off the bereavement list this week and Hudson went on it. Greinke is on the DL, and Zack Godley?will arrive from Triple-A Reno to take his place in the rotation. The quest to contend has given way to finding out how the pieces fit in 2017 and beyond.Every case is different, and in our situation, were still one of the youngest teams in baseball, Hale said. With less experienced players, its harder to deal with expectations. Just putting pieces on the field isnt a team. You have to see how the team comes together. And thats been the tough thing for us -- we havent had a chance to put the whole group together.If it comes as any solace, the Diamondbacks will report to spring training next February with significantly lower expectations. Like some of their fellow winners of the winter, mayerseys[/url] ' ' '