The first place Phillies (24-14) will host the Cubs (18-22) for a brief two-game series, starting Wednesday night. The Cubs sit in third place in the NL Central, 5 1/2 games behind the first place Reds. Last season, the Phillies won 5 of 6 meetings between the two clubs, and 2 of 3 in Philadelphia.
Jamie Moyer, who began his Major League career as a Cub, will take the mound for the Phillies in game one, looking for his 264th career win. Moyer is just 4 homeruns allowed away from tying Phillies Hall of Famer Robin Roberts, who passed away recently, for the all-time lead with 505.
The Cubs arrive in Philadelphia riding a 3 game win streak and will counter with left-hander Tom Gorzelanny in game 1.
Check out all the details on the pitching match ups and other key notes from this series below.
Wednesday, 7:05pm. Tom Gorzelanny (1-4, 3.60 ERA) vs. Jamie Moyer (5-2, 4.57 ERA). In one appearance against the Phillies, Gorzelanny has allowed 5 earned runs in 5 innings pitched. In 3 road starts this season, Gorzelanny is 0-2 with a 2.50 ERA. Moyer has won 4 of his last 5 starts...in those games his ERA is 3.51. In 7 career games against the Cubs, Moyer is 3-1 with a 4.58 ERA. Alfonso Soriano is 12-for-53 (.226 avg) with 4 homers and 9 RBI in his career against Moyer. Derrek Lee is 5-for-11 (.455 avg) with 3 doubles against Moyer.
Thursday, 1:05pm. Ryan Dempster (2-4, 3.49 ERA) vs. Joe Blanton (1-2, 5.49 ERA). Dempster has lost 4 straight starts and has a 4.34 ERA in those games. In 21 career games against the Phillies, Dempster is 4-4 with a 4.99 ERA and 1 complete game. Placido Polanco is 7-for-17 (.412 avg) against Dempster in his career. In 2 career starts against the Cubs, has no decisions and a 2.13 ERA. Blanton is 0-2 at home this year...Blanton was 7-4 at home last season. Ryan Theriot, Aramis Ramirez, Kosuke Fukudome, Derrek Lee, Marlon Byrd and Mike Fontenot are a combined 4-for-27 (.148 avg) against Blanton. In 8 day starts last year, Blanton posted a 4-1 record with a 5.47 ERA.
Alfonso Soriano is a .257 career hitter in 42 games against the Phillies with 9 homers, 16 RBI and 12 steals. In 17 games on the road, Soriano is hitting .274 with a .313 on base percentage. Conversely, at home Soriano is hitting .365 and has a .429 on base percentage.
Derrek Lee is batting .200 (14-for-70) in 19 road games this season. Lee is batting .229 on the season.
In 14 career games against the Phillies, Mike Fontenot is 3-for-24 (.125 avg) with a double, a homer, and 4 RBI.
Jimmy Rollins is a career .232 hitter in 58 games against the Cubs, with 6 homeruns.
In 23 career games against the Cubs, Jayson Werth is 23-for-77 (.299 avg) with a 1.032 OPS. In 18 home games this year, Werth is hitting .383 with a 1.280 OPS.
Ryan Howard is 13-for-28 (.464 avg) with 2 homers and 8 RBI over the past week.
Chase Utley, who has missed the past 2 Phils games with flu-like symptoms, may be a game time decision for game 1 of this series.
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