Series Preview: Phillies at Rockies, 8/1-8/3

The Phillies, owners of Major League Baseball's best record at 68-39, travel out west to begin a three-game series on Monday night when they take on the under-performing Rockies (51-57) who sit in third place, 10 games behind San Francisco, in the National League West division.

In a brief two-game series at Citizens Bank Park in May, the two teams each prevailed with one win.

Cole Hamels will take the mound for Philadelphia in the series opener. The lefty Hamels last faced the Rockies when he took a loss in game 2 of the 2009 NL Division Series, allowing 4 earned runs in 5 innings pitched. The Rockies will counter with right-hander Jhoulys Chacin, who is winless in his last 7 starts.

Read ahead for details on the pitching match ups and other key statistics for this series.

Monday, 8:40PM. Cole Hamels (12-6, 2.61 ERA) vs. Jhoulys Chacin (8-8, 3.50 ERA). In his last 3 road starts, Hamels is 1-2 with a 5.93 ERA. Hamels has a 1-2 record with a 4.50 ERA since the All-star Break. In 4 career regular season games against the Phillies, Chacin is 1-0 with a 1.20 ERA. Chacin has a 0-4 record with a 5.82 ERA in his last 6 games. In 11 home starts, Chacin is 4-3 with a 3.33 ERA and a .196 batting average against.

Tuesday, 8:40PM. Kyle Kendrick (5-5, 3.52 ERA) vs. Aaron Cook (2-5, 5.05 ERA). In 7 career regular season starts against Colorado, Kendrick has a 2-2 record with a 5.79 ERA. In his last 5 games, Kendrick is 1-1 with a 2.88 ERA. Cook has a 0-3 record with a 4.03 ERA in 4 home starts this season. In his last 4 games, the righty Cook is 2-2 with a 5.64 ERA. Shane Victorino is 1-for-16 (.063 avg) in his career against Cook.

Wednesday, 3:10PM. Roy Halladay (13-4, 2.44 ERA) vs. Jason Hammel (6-10, 4.65 ERA). Halladay is 2-0 with a 0.77 ERA in 3 career starts against the Rockies. In 9 road starts this season, Halladay is 5-3 with a 2.70 ERA. In his last 4 road starts, Halladay is 2-1 with a 3.12 ERA. The right-handed Hammel has a 3-7 record with a 5.10 ERA in 11 home starts this year. In his last 5 starts, Hammel is 2-3 with a 7.00 ERA.

In 26 career games against the Rockies, Hunter Pence is a .311 hitter.

Ryan Howard is batting .229 in 47 road games this year. Howard is batting .221 with the bases empty this season.

In 48 career games against the Rockies, Placido Polanco is a .341 hitter. Polanco's last HR on the road came on July 22nd, 2010.

Todd Helton has a .370 average with 16 HR in 82 career regular season games against the Phillies. Helton has posted a .325 average and a .916 OPS in 48 home games this season.

After batting .268 in 86 games prior to the All-star Break, Troy Tulowitzki has posted a .369 average in 16 games since then.

In 27 career regular season games against the Phillies, Ryan Spilborghs is a .423 hitter. Batting .215 overall in 91 games this year, Spilborghs is considerably better at Coors Field, posting a .311 average at home.

Phillies team OPS- .716 (14th best in MLB)
Rockies team OPS- .732 (10th best in MLB)

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2022 Phillies Top Prospects Countdown: #16 RHP McKinley Moore

Moore, image- Jay Floyd Acquired this spring in a deal that sent outfielder Adam Haseley to the White Sox, righty pitcher McKinley Moore joined the Phillies organization and quickly garnered attention as a promising relief option for the future. Listed at six-feet-six, 225-pounds, Moore has an imposing, sluggerish frame. A 14th round draft selection by the Chi Sox in 2019 out of Arkansas-Little Rock, Moore signed quickly and made his minor league debut that same year. In 22 relief appearances in Rookie ball, Moore collected a 4.84 ERA, a .264 batting average against and three saves. In 2021, he split his season with Class A Kannapolis and Class A Advanced Winston Salem. In 37 combined appearances, Moore tallied a 2-2 record with nine saves, a 4.20 ERA and a .234 batting average against. He also held his own in the prestigious Arizona Fall League last year, where he posted a 4.22 ERA while striking out nine and walking five in 10 2/3 innings pitched. Considered as a flame thrower,

2022 Phillies Top Prospects Countdown: #15 Infielder Kendall Simmons

An All-Star in 2019 with the short-season Class-A Williamsport Crosscutters, Kendall Simmons is one of the Phillies' most promising prospects. Simmons, an outstanding and multi-positional infielder, was the Phillies' 6th round draft pick in 2018. That year, he made his professional debut in the Rookie level Gulf Coast League, posting a .234 average with three homers and 11 RBI in 32 games. The right-handed batter tallied a .234 batting average with 12 homers, 34 RBI and five stolen bases in 51 games with Williamsport in 2019. In the 2020-2021 off-season, Simmons played in the Australian Baseball League, making up for some of the time missed due to the cancelled 2020 season. In 21 games with Adelaide, he notched a .172 batting average with a home run, seven RBI and three steals. Last year, Simmons played primarily with Class A Clearwater. With the Threshers, he recorded a .226/.321/.460 slash line in 41 games. Listed at six-feet-two, 180 pounds, strength and athleticism

This Guy Speaks For All of You

This individual, interviewed by FOX 29 on Friday as the Phillies arrived back at Citizens Bank Park, said it best. When asked how he felt regarding the Phillies, he told Steve Keeley that he was, "Stoked, baby!" The unidentified phanatic then proclaimed, "We are talking about the Fightins here, the Fightins! Said!" Check out the media player below, as the transcribed version certainly does not do this phireball of phandom justice. The Phillies forced game 6 of the National League Championship Series with a 4-2 victory over the Giants in San Francisco on Thursday night. Game 6 will feature Roy Oswalt vs. Jonathan Sanchez in a return pitching match up from game 2. First pitch is scheduled for 7:57 pm EST at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Be sure to tune in on 97.3 ESPN's Weekend Sports Guide with Tyrone Johnson this afternoon around 1:15pm to hear me chatting about the Phillies! 97.3 is based in Atlantic City. You can listen live online HERE . _________

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