Series Preview: Cubs at Phillies, 5/19-5/20

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.

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

This week's PhoulBallz Phillies segment on The Shore Sports Report has been pushed back to 5:05pm, due to Lakewood BlueClaws double header action today on WOBM AM 1160 and Fox Sports 1310 AM. You can listen to live online by clicking this link.

You can follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter HERE.

Share on Facebook

Sunday School: Phillies History Lesson 73

Danny Ozark was the Phillies' manager from 1973-1979. During his tenure as the team's general, Ozark led Philadelphia to three straight division titles. In his playing days, Ozark was a first baseman, who was a career minor leaguer in the Dodgers system. When Ozark took over the team in 1973, the Phillies were fresh off 5 consecutive losing seasons and 3 straight last place finishes. During his first season in charge, the Phillies would again finish in last place, 20 games under .500, but as his core of young talent, like Mike Schmidt and Larry Bowa, developed, the Phillies' win totals rose. Within 2 years, the Phillies were above .500 and in the playoff hunt until late in the season and the most successful era of Phillies history was about to begin. By 1976, the Phillies were headed to the post-season for the first time since 1950. The Phils would enjoy a 10-game lead over their nearest division rival at the midway point of the season. Despite a lul, which saw their lead d...

PhoulBallz Interview: First round pick Bryson Stott

Bryson Stott, image- Jay Floyd Shortstop Bryson Stott , the Phillies' first round draft selection this year, has enjoyed a successful initial pro campaign. En route to being recognized as an All-Star for the Class A short-season Williamsport Crosscutters the 21-year-old UNLV product has tallied a .295 average with six home runs and 25 RBI in 45 minor league contests. Last week I spoke with the lefty hitting Stott to discuss his transition to professional baseball, joining the Phillies organization and plenty more. Read ahead for that interview. -Obviously, your performance and the production on the field is going well, but how do you feel you have adapted to the pro life? It feels good. You hear about the everyday grind, but you don't really believe it till you feel it. I would say that's the difference between college and the pros, is you're not practicing, you're playing games every day. I would say that's the biggest difference. But I...

Velasquez shut down, Eflin on deck?

Eflin with Reading in 2015, image- Jay Floyd Following Vincent Velasquez leaving his start after just two pitches for the Phillies on Wednesday, righty prospect Zach Eflin was pulled from his start for Triple-A Lehigh Valley at Gwinnett. The 22-year-old sports a 5-1 record with a 3.14 ERA and a .210 batting average against in 10 starts for the IronPigs this season. He could take the place of Velasquez if he is required to miss any additional time. Initial word on Velasquez after he threw two fastballs that clocked in the 86-87 MPH range (considerably slower than the 94 MPH he averages) and was swiftly pulled from his outing, is that he has a biceps strain. He'll be further evaluated in the coming days. Prior to the regular season, Eflin got a taste of competing against big leaguers when he was charged with 12 runs (nine earned) on 11 hits while striking out two and walking one with a wild pitch in three innings of work in an intrasquad exhibition that pitted the Phils...

PhoulBallz.com

Search This Blog