Game Preview: Phillies @ Nationals, 4/8/10

Thursday, 4:35pm. Kyle Kendrick (2009 stats- 3-1 record, 3.42 ERA) vs. Craig Stammen (2009 stats- 4-7 record, 5.11 ERA). The Phillies offense has been strong in the early going, posting 19 runs over the first two games of the season. It'll be up to Stammen to try and shut down the potent Phillies line up. Stammen, a righty, did not face the Phillies in his rookie season last year. Stammen, after the all star break, was 2-3 with a 6.00 ERA in 9 starts. Kyle Kendrick takes the ball in place of the injured Joe Blanton. Kendrick has faced the Nats 6 times and in those games has a 1-2 record with a 5.06 ERA and a .289 batting average against.

Nats third baseman Ryan Zimmerman is 6-for-11 (.545 avg) against Kendrick in his career, with 3 doubles and a homer. Zimmerman is a career .270 hitter with 10 homeruns in 77 games against the Phils.

Ryan Howard has hit a homerun in each of the first two games this season. In 92 career games vs. the Nationals, Howard has a .275 avg. with 32 homers and 89 RBI. In 20 games at Nationals Park, Howard has hit 9 HR's, which is the most by any visiting player.

Relief pitcher Nelson Figueroa is expected to join the Major League club today, after a flight early this morning.

The Phillies won their first two games of the season for the first time in 7 years and have won 14 of their last 15 match ups with the Nationals. The Phils have not swept a season opening series since 2001 against the Marlins.

--------------------------------------------

You can follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter HERE.

Share on Facebook

Comments

Stats to Ponder: Jimmy Rollins Edition

J-Roll has batted under .200 for a calendar month twice in his career. In April 2004, Rollins went 13-for-71, for a .183 average. The following month, Rollins went 30-for-107, which is a .280 average. And in August 2005, Rollins went 22-for-117, for a .188 average. The month that followed saw Rollins go 49-for-122 for a .402 average. Rollins is batting .171 so far in May 2009. Improvement is not far away for Jimmy. The Phillies are 10-2 in games this year which Rollins scores at least 1 run. The Phillies are 4-12 in games which Rollins does not score. Jimmy Rollins in 6 games against the Braves this year is batting .071 (2-for-28). In 2008 Rollins batted .284 against the Braves in 18 games. In 2007 Rollins batted .347 against the Braves in 18 games. In 2006 Rollins batted .367 against the Braves in 18 games. Jimmy Milestone Watch: 6 more RBI and Rollins will tie Scott Rolen for 25th all time in Phillies RBI leaders. 7 more triples and Rollins will tie Richie Ashburn for 4th all time i...

Crawford's Chronicles: JP Crawford talks Spring Training

JP Crawford, image- Jay Floyd Entering this year as the widely regarded top prospect in the Phillies organization, J.P. Crawford will be taking time each week to provide insight directly from inside spring training in Clearwater, FL, right here on PhilliesNation.com. Crawford, 20, was named the top positional prospect in two leagues (Class A South Atlantic League and Class A Advanced Florida State League) last year, when he combined, in 123 games, to post a .285 average, 11 homers, 48 RBI and 24 stolen bases. He also represented the Phils organization in the MLB All-Star Futures Game last season. As the 2015 campaign approaches, the six-foot-two 180-pound lefty batter is expected to reach the Double-A level and continue to prove why the Phillies selected him in the first round of the 2013 draft. In this initial installment of our weekly check-in with J.P., he shares thoughts on a variety of topics, including his exclusion from big league camp, which member of the big leagu...

Phreestyle Battle & Notes

Unrelated to baseball, really...but it's fun and our Phils are off today. This new kid on the hip hop scene, Charles Hamilton , whose single Brooklyn Girl is ripping up radio and video count downs, was at PSU for a performance recently. A freestyle battle ensued, and as you'll see, the Penn State student held his own. Stay tuned for the ending. It's the best part. Here are some random Phillies-in-idle baseball thoughts and notes- Colbert Hamels is slated to make his Grapefruit League debut tomorrow vs. Team Canada. Shane Victorino is going to wear #50 on his jersey for Team USA, a nod to Hawaii Five-O. Brad Lidge is likely to not see game action till next week, after he throws some more bullpen sessions and works out the tightness in his forearm. Albert Pujols is declaring "respect for his country" as reasoning for sitting out of the Cardinals' exhibition this week against Team Dominican Republic. He told reporters, "I don’t want to play against them...

PhoulBallz.com

Search This Blog