Diamondbacks name Greinke as Opening Day starter

The Arizona Diamondbacks have set their five starters, and Zack Greinke is scheduled to pitch on Opening Day, manager Torey Lovullo told Steve Gilbert of MLB.com.

With Greinke the highest-paid pitcher and the most experienced, he was always the likely candidate to go Opening Day. Over four starts this spring, Greinke has allowed three earned runs on 15 hits and one walk while striking out 11 over 14 1/3 innings. Despite posting favorable spring numbers, Greinke has been dealing with a drop in velocity.

Greinke will take the bump against the San Francisco Giants when the Diamondbacks kick off their season April 2 at Chase Field. The Giants have not officially named their Opening Day starter yet, but, if he's healthy, it will most certainly be Madison Bumgarner. Giants hitters have a .726 OPS against Greinke in 230 at-bats, though the right-hander still boasts a 9-2 record in 14 starts against the NL West rivals.

While the rest of the rotation's order hasn't been set, the Diamondbacks' starting five has been. Joining Greinke will be Taijuan Walker, Robbie Ray, Patrick Corbin, and Shelby Miller.

Greinke had a down year in 2016 after signing his six-year, $206.5-million megadeal. Over 158 2/3 innings, the Cy Young winner posted his worst ERA since his sophomore season in 2005.