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Series Preview: Phillies at Dodgers, 8/30-9/1


The Phillies (73-57) seem back in control after recovering from a poor 4-game effort against the Astros by sweeping the team with the best record in the league in San Diego over the weekend. Philadelphia will visit Los Angeles for a 3-game series against the Dodgers (67-64) beginning Monday night.

Roy Halladay looks to take over the lead in all three pitching triple crown categories (Halladay already leads the National League in strike outs and ERA), as he needs a win to tie Ubaldo Jimenez and Adam Wainwright for the league's top spot with 17 W's.

LA will counter with Japanese born hurler Hiroki Kuroda, who was an excellent history against the Phillies, posting a 1-0 record and a 0.95 ERA against them in 3 starts.

The two teams have met the last two season in the playoffs, with the Phillies coming out on top both times. Philadelphia currently leads the Wild card race, by 1 1/2 games over San Francisco and sits 2 games behind the Eastern division leading Atlanta Braves. The Dodgers are 6 1/2 games behind the Phillies in the Wild card race, while they sit 10 games behind the West division leading Padres.

Continue reading for details on the pitching match ups and plenty more statistical information on this series.


Monday, 10:10pm. Roy Halladay (16-9, 2.22 ERA) vs. Hiroki Kuroda (9-11, 3.56 ERA). In 3 career starts against the Dodgers, Halladay is 3-0 with a 1.50 ERA. Former Phillie Rod Barajas is 0-for-9 in his career against Halladay. In 8 starts since the All-star break, Halladay has posted a 6-2 record with a 2.29 ERA. In his last 5 starts, Kuroda is 1-2 with a 3.66 ERA. Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard and Shane Victorino are a combined 0-for-19 against Kuroda in regular season games.

Tuesday, 10:10pm. Kyle Kendrick (8-7, 4.64 ERA) vs. Carlos Monasterios (3-4, 3.54 ERA). In 5 career starts against the Dodgers, Kendrick has a 2-3 record with an 8.14 ERA. Over his last 5 starts, Kendrick is 2-3 with a 5.53 ERA. Andre Ethier is 5-for-10 with 2 homeruns against Kendrick. Monasterios, who was once acquired by the Phillies from the Yankees in the Bobby Abreu/Cory Lidle trade, was taken in the Rule 5 draft last off-season by the Mets, who later sent Monasterios to the Dodgers. In 9 games since the All-star break, Monasterios is 0-2 with a 2.89 ERA.

Wednesday, 3:10pm. Roy Oswalt (9-13, 3.12 ERA) vs. Clayton Kershaw (11-8, 3.01 ERA). In 6 starts as a Phillie, Oswalt is 3-1 with a 2.18 ERA. In 6 games at Dodger Stadium, Oswalt is 3-3 with a 4.08 ERA. In 5 career regular season starts against the Phillies, Kershaw has posted a 0-3 record with a 5.67 ERA. In his last 4 starts this season, Kershaw is 1-1 with a 2.02 ERA.


Rod Barajas is a career .348 hitter with an 1.146 OPS in 24 games against the Phillies.

Matt Kemp is a .363 hitter in 27 regular season games against the Phillies. In 43 games since the All-star break, Kemp is batting .242.

In 27 career regular season games against the Phillies, James Loney is a .355 hitter.

In 43 games since the All-star break, Jayson Werth has posted a .321 batting average.

Placido Polanco is 2-for-17 (.118 avg) in his last 4 games. Polanco is 2-for-12 (.167) in his career against reliever Octavio Dotel.

In 20 career regular season games against the Dodgers, Brad Lidge has a 3.98 ERA and has blown 4 of 13 save opportunities.

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Comments

obc said…
KK will shut em down tonight!

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