Phillies a slight favorite over Diamondbacks in Thursday’s series finale

The Phillies have a chance with Aaron Nola on the mound to get above .500 for the first time since May 14.

Aaron Nola has been up and down of late. He gets the ball Thursday in Arizona.Read moreElizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer

Published June 15, 2023, 10:53 a.m. ET

The Phillies on Thursday have a chance to get back above .500 for the first time since the morning of May 14.

They’ve taken two of three from the NL West-leading Arizona Diamondbacks, and a win in Thursday’s getaway game would run the Phillies up to 10 wins in their last 12.

It’s probably a reach to put too much stock in a Thursday afternoon game in Arizona, but Thursday is a big one for Aaron Nola, who has not pitched well in 2023. He carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning last Monday vs. Detroit, but allowed nine runs in 12 innings in two starts prior to that game and then gave up six runs in 6 1/3 innings in a 9-0 loss to the Dodgers Saturday.

While Nola has struggled, the Phillies’ bats have woken up a bit, and for that reason, the Phillies enter Thursday’s game as slight favorites.

Here’s a look at Phillies-Diamondbacks odds for Thursday’s series finale.

Odds are courtesy of Caesars, current at the time of publishing and subject to change.

Phillies vs. Diamondbacks odds

Money line: Phillies -130; Diamondbacks +110

Run line: Phillies -1.5 (+122); Diamondbacks +1.5 (-145)

Total: 9 runs

Nola will be opposed by Arizona’s Ryne Nelson, a 25-year-old righty who held the Tigers (sensing a theme here?) scoreless in 5 2/3 innings while Nola was getting blasted by the Dodgers Saturday. Nelson has a 4.95 ERA in 67 1/3 innings so far in 2023, but he’s been solid since mid-May, a run of nine earned runs over 26 2/3 innings (3.04 ERA) that included a good performance in a Diamondbacks win in Philadelphia on May 23.

Nelson brings a mid-90s fastball — a pitch he throws more than 54% of the time, the 12th-most in baseball — to go with a cutter, slider and changeup.

The Phillies have really struggled away from Citizens Bank Park. Wednesday night’s extra-innings win in Arizona upped their road record to 15-23.

As betting favorites, the Phillies are 22-17.