Series Preview: Phillies at Marlins, 5/9-5/11

The last time Phillies ace Roy Halladay and Marlins ace Josh Johnson faced each other in Florida, was last May. The end result was a legendary outing, as Halladay tossed a perfect game. Those same hurlers will square off again in game 2 of a 3-game series this week at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, FL.

Before then, the Phillies (22-11) will send Joe Blanton to the mound, fresh off a disable list stint for an elbow impingement, in the series opener. The Marlins (20-13) will counter with right-hander Javier Vazquez.

The Phils and Marlins split two games when the two teams first faced off in April at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

Read ahead for details on the pitching match ups and more information on this series.

Monday, 7:10PM. Joe Blanton (0-1, 5.92 ERA) vs. Javier Vazquez (2-2, 6.39 ERA). Vazquez allowed 3 earned runs in 5 innings while not earning a decision in his previous start against the Phillies this season. In 2 home starts this season, Vazquez is 0-2 with a 7.56 ERA. In 29 career starts against the Phils, Vazquez has a 12-8 record with a 4.30 ERA. Raul Ibanez is 10-for-28 (.357 avg) with 4 homers and 8 RBI in his career against Vazquez. In 2 starts last season against the Marlins, Blanton posted a 1-0 record with a 2.19 ERA. In 3 career starts at Sun Life Stadium, Blanton is 3-0 with a 1.50 ERA.

Tuesday, 7:10PM. Roy Halladay (5-1, 2.19 ERA) vs. Josh Johnson (3-1, 1.68 ERA). In 7 career starts against the Marlins, Halladay is 4-2 with a 2.30 ERA. In 2 road starts this season, Halladay is 2-0 with a 1.53 ERA and opponents are batting .177 against him. Omar Infante is 1-for-12 (.083 avg) in his career against Halladay. In 13 career games against the Phillies, Johnson has a 5-3 record with a 3.34 ERA. Ryan Howard is 9-for-29 (.310 avg) with 2 doubles and 2 homeruns in his career against Johnson. In 4 home starts this season, Johnson is 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA.

Wednesday, 7:10PM. Cliff Lee (2-3, 3.69 ERA) vs. Ricky Nolansco (3-0, ). In 2 career starts against Florida, Lee is 1-0 with a 4.09 ERA. In 3 road starts this season, Lee has a 1-2 record with a 4.66 ERA. In 4 home starts this season, Nolasco is 1-0 with a 2.30 ERA. Carlos Ruiz is 1-for-11 (.091 avg) in his career against Nolasco.

In 43 games at Sun Life Stadium, Placido Polanco is a .262 hitter. Polanco's .365 batting average prior to action on Sunday was 4th best in the National League.

Ryan Howard has a .307 average in 97 career games against the Marlins with 29 homeruns and a 1.056 OPS.

Headed into action on Sunday, Shane Victorino has a .227 batting average in 22 night games.

Dominican Republic native Leo Nunez has a 2.95 ERA in 18 career games against the Phillies with 8 saves and 1 blown save. Polanco is 3-for-15 (.200 avg) against Nunez.

In 13 career games against the Phillies, Mike Stanton is a .296 hitter with 3 doubles and 4 homeruns.

Gaby Sanchez is a .293 hitter in 23 games against the Phillies.

Phillies team batting average- .258
Marlins team batting average- .249

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Kendrick & LaGrossa- Second Phils/Survivor Marriage

On Saturday, Phillies pitcher Kyle Kendrick married 3-time Survivor contestant and former Flyers employee Stephenie LaGrossa. The couple exchanged vows in front of 105 guests at the Silverado Resort in Napa, California. Their special day featured many personalized aspects, including cocktail hour snacks modeled in the fashion of mini Philly cheesesteaks, as well as the couple's two dogs, Bebe and Champ, serving as flower girl and ring bearer during the ceremony. The pets wore a white dress and a tuxedo, respectively. Kendrick is now the second Phillies pitcher to marry a former contestant of the CBS reality competition program, as lefty Cole Hamels wedded Heidi Strobel, who appeared on the sixth season of Survivor, in 2007. _________________________________________________________________ Be sure to follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter, for updates, stats and info, by clicking HERE . Photos- People.com

Michael Taylor Q&A

Michael Taylor is currently leading the Reading Phillies' offense and is near the top of the Eastern League in most stat categories (3rd in batting avg- .342, 3rd in HR- 14, tied for second in RBI- 55, 2nd in OPS.- .994, tied for 1st in runs scored- 49, tied for 1st in hits...). The 23 year old Taylor is 6 feet 6 inches tall and has quickly grabbed the attention of phans and media alike as a top prospect to watch. I spoke with Mike Taylor over the weekend, and here is that interview. With all the big stats and being among the league leaders in so many categories, do you think you're ready for the next step? It's kind of a difficult question. Do you have anything left to prove here? There's always something to prove. There's stuff to prove every game. I mean that's one thing that's very interesting about this game. It's such a numbers oriented game. You're only as good as your last "whatever statistical category that someone's valuing". ...

Rappers in Phillies Caps

Weekend greetings to you phine pholks out there. Today's post features pictures of rappers wearing Phillies caps. Why rappers in Phillies caps, you ask? Because... Any other questions? We will start things off properly by going with a highly recognizable hip hop star. 50 Cent stays constantly relavant by consistantly creating radio friendly material to help sell (G) units, while he "keeps it real" by still rapping about the thug life he lived before becoming the 2nd highest earning black entertainer in America. 50 is seen here in a recent interview rocking a throw-back Phillies cap. Next up we'll use a throw-back screen cap from what may be the very first major appearance by a rapper wearing Phillies gear. Chuck D, of legendary rap group Public Enemy, wore a Phillies cap in the music video for rap anthem Fight The Power in 1989. The song was the lead single from the soundtrack for Spike Lee's film Do The Right Thing . Next up we'll go with some home grown tal...

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