Skip to main content

Series Preview: Braves at Phillies, July 6-8

The last place Phillies (37-47) have yet to find a cure for their struggles this season. Returning from injury, Ryan Howard (left Achilles tendon) may offer a solution. The former National League Most Valuable Player has averaged more than 36 HR and over 121 RBI per year over the past three seasons for the Phils.

This weekend the Phillies will host the division rival Atlanta Braves (43-39) in a three-game series at Citizens Bank Park. Atlanta dropped two of three meetings with the Phillies when the two teams met earlier this season.

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


Friday, 7:05 PM. Tim Hudson (6-4, 3.87 ERA) vs. Kyle Kendrick (2-8, 5.35 ERA). In 5 road starts this year, Hudson has a 3-1 record with a 2.34 ERA. Hudson is 1-3 with a 4.30 ERA in 6 career starts at Citizens Bank Park. Ryan Howard is 17-for-52 (.327 avg) with 6 HR and 14 RBI in his career against Hudson. In his last 5 starts, Kendrick has a 0-4 record with a 7.67 ERA. Kendrick has a 1-5 record with a 5.54 ERA in 8 home games this season. Martin Prado is 7-for-12 (.583 avg) with a HR in his career against Kendrick.

Saturday, 7:15 PM. Tommy Hanson (9-5, 3.70 ERA) vs. Joe Blanton (7-7, 4.85 ERA). In 8 career starts against the Phillies, Hanson has a 1-2 record with a 2.93 ERA. In his past 6 starts, Hanson has posted a 4-1 record with a 3.49 ERA. Ryan Howard is 2-for-15 (.133 avg) with a HR in his career against Hanson. Blanton has a 2-4 record with a 4.65 ERA in 12 games against the Braves. In his last 5 starts, Blanton has a 3-1 record with a 4.03 ERA.

Sunday, 1:35 PM. Jair Jurrjens (2-2, 5.19 ERA) vs. Vance Worley (4-5, 3.46 ERA). In 3 starts since returning from the minors, Jurrjens is 2-0 with a 1.47 ERA. Jurrjens has a 5-3 record with a 2.45 ERA in 11 career starts against the Phillies. Ryan Howard is 8-for-30 (.267 avg) with a triple and a HR in his career against Jurrjens. In 6 home starts this season, Worley has a 2-2 record with a 4.00 ERA. Dan Uggla is 2-for-5 with a homer and 2 walks in his career against Worley.


Uggla is a career .232 hitter with 23 HR and 65 RBI in 109 games against the Phillies. In 29 games since May, Uggla has posted a .144 batting average.

Former Phillie Michael Bourn has a .298 average with 2 HR, 10 RBI and 19 SB in 33 career games against the Phils.

In 31 career games against the Phillies, Jason Heyward is a .193 hitter with 1 HR and 2 RBI. Heyward is batting .296 with 9 HR and 26 RBI in 40 road games this season.

Carlos Ruiz is hitting .331 with 6 HR and 21 RBI in 39 home games this season. Ruiz is a .285 career hitter in 72 games against Atlanta.

In 35 career games against the Braves, Hunter Pence is a .323 hitter with 3 HR and 20 RBI.

Juan Pierre is batting .239 in 36 home games this year. Pierre is batting .442 in 23 day games in 2012.

Braves team ERA- 3.99 (15th in MLB)
Phillies team ERA- 4.22 (22nd in MLB)

_________________________________________

You can follow PhoulBallz on Twitter by clicking HERE.

Also connect with PhoulBallz on Facebook by clicking HERE.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Eric B Needs to be Cut (and My Name is Rakim)

While the Phillies are on a hot streak this month, one player on the team is not. Eric Bruntlett is 1-for-12 in July. Since the start of May, Bruntlett's apex in batting average has been .167 on June 14th. Bruntlett's ineptitude can be tolerated no longer. Get rid of this guy NOW! Eric B. is the 2009 Endy Chavez. Remember Endy...the guy who in 2005 managed just 2 hits in his final 42 games played as a Phillie? That is about the sort of output the Phillies are getting from Bruntlett, and it's time to fix this void. Julio Lugo was designated for assignment last week by the Red Sox and is expected to become a free agent. The Metropolitans are rumored to be interested. Why wouldn't the Phillies be interested in a guy who could surely outhit Bruntlett? Lugo was hitting .284 through 37 games played this season with Boston. Suspended Lehigh Valley IronPig Pablo Ozuna is eligible to return next Wednesday. Ozuna is batting .294 through 51 games at triple A. Miguel Cairo is also...

5th spot, Wall, Old timers, Links

The race for the Phillies' fifth starter spot is still on. While it's not fully fair to compare Grapefruit League stats, when some of the pitchers have had "B game" and scrimmage outings mixed in, Kyle Kendrick and Carlos Carrasco look to be falling behind Chan Ho Park and "Jay" Happ. Happ added to his solid Grapefruit League stats (2.45 ERA, 1.09 WHIP in 4 games) today against the Rays. Pitching coach Rich Dubee had been displeased with Kendrick even before he surrendered 8 earned runs in 3 innings of work yesterday against the Braves. Park has been working on improving his change up, with (Coach) Jamie Moyer. Park noticed Moyer's location control on his change, so he sought out Moyer to teach him the grip and positioning of the ball. Moyer, of course, feels good about helping anyone on the Phils' staff. Park has been coached by greats like Nolan Ryan with the Rangers and Sandy Koufax with the Dodgers, so Moyer is in great company. Park is working h...

Yankees Fans Misled By Pepsi Promotion

**** Today, New York Yankees fans attended a Pepsi promotion in Times Square hoping for chances to win opening day tickets to the new stadium, but the tickets, which were difficult to track down due to poor organization on Pepsi's part, were actually for a game in June. Furthermore, the 250 pairs that were promised were actually only 100 pairs. The fans, who were made to sprint through traffic over multiple city blocks when locations for the promotion changed, quickly turned against the soda brand by pooring out their beverages and chanting anti-Pepsi phrases. Yankees fans are even threatening a boycott of Pepsi. An appearance by Yankee great Goose Gossage could not even settle the angry mob, as he had to be whisked away, as a precaution, according to the Daily News . Ooo , I'd hate to see what "the worst fans in sports" (Philadelphia fans) would have done to their free Pepsi cans and beloved reliever in that situation. Because this happened in a non-Philly city, th...