Skip to main content

Series Preview: Rockies at Phillies, September 7-9

The Phillies (66-71) will host the last place Rockies (56-80) in a three-game set this weekend.

In the series opener, the Phils will send lefty ace Cliff Lee, who has the opportunity to win three consecutive starts for the first time this season, to the mound. Colorado will counter with left-hander Jeff Francis, who allowed 1 run in 5 innings of work in a no decision when he last faced the Phillies in June.

The two clubs have equally split their six previous meetings this season.

To read more about the pitching match ups and other key statistical details on this series, read head.

Friday, 7:05 PM. Jeff Francis (5-4, 5.73 ERA) vs. Cliff Lee (4-7, 3.52 ERA).
Lee is 1-1 with a 2.08 ERA in 2 career starts against the Rockies. In his last 4 starts, Lee has a 2-0 record with a 1.91 ERA. Lee has a 1-5 record with a 4.14 ERA in 11 starts at home this year. Francis is 2-0 with a 5.14 ERA in his last 6 starts. In 8 road starts this season, Francis has a 2-1 record with a 4.69 ERA. Jimmy Rollins is 7-for-15 (.467 avg) with a double and a HR in his career against Francis.

Saturday, 7:05 PM. Tyler Chatwood (4-4, 5.53 ERA) vs. Cole Hamels (14-6, 3.04 ERA).
Chatwood has a 1-2 record with a with a 5.82 ERA in 6 road games this season. The righty Chatwood was a 2nd draft pick by the Angles in 2008 and was acquired in last off-season's trade for Chris Iannetta. In 7 starts since the All-Star break, Chatwood is 3-3 with a 4.60 ERA. Hamels has a 3-0 record with a 2.15 ERA in his last 5 starts. In 12 home starts this season, Hamels has a 6-3 record with a 2.87 ERA. Hamels' next win would tie his career single season high from 2007.

Sunday, 1:35 PM. Drew Pomeranz (1-8, 4.93 ERA) vs. Tyler Cloyd (1-1, 2.77 ERA).
Pomeranz is 1-3 with a 4.86 ERA in 8 road starts this season. The lefty Pomeranz hasn't won since July 6th, a span of 10 starts. Opponents are batting .224 against the rookie right-hander Cloyd since his promotion to the big leagues. Cloyd was an 18th round draft pick by the Phillies in 2008.


Carlos Gonzalez has an offensive line of .377/.444/.627 in 63 home games this year while he has posted a .235/.308/.416 line in 59 road games this season. Gonzalez's career OPS splits are .269 lower on the road than at Coors Field.

Rookie catcher Wilin Rosario has a team high 23 HR this season. In 4 career games against the Phillies, Rosario has a .375 batting average with 3 HR and 8 RBI.

Colorado closer Rafael Betancourt has a 0.75 ERA in 25 road games this season. Betancourt has posted a 0-1 record with 1 save, 1 blown save and a 1.23 ERA in 7 career outings against the Phillies.

Jimmy Rollins has posted a .228 batting average in 50 games since the All-Star break. In 71 career regular season games against the Rockies, Rollins has a .311 batting average with 8 HR and 35 RBI in 71 games.

In 61 home games this season, John Mayberry Jr. has posted a .270 average with 7 HR and 20 RBI. Mayberry is batting .289 in 47 games since the All-Star break.

In 46 regular season games against Colorado, Chase Utley has a .348 batting average with 12 HR and 60 RBI. Utley has a .906 OPS in 30 home games this season.

Rockies team OPS since the All-Star break- .753 (12th in MLB)
Phillies team OPS since the All-Star break- .702 (23rd 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

Lidge Shaky, T-Mac Honored in Trenton

TRENTON, NJ- Brad Lidge made his second rehab appearance for the Double A Reading Phillies on Thursday night and it didn't go as well as the veteran reliever or the team had hoped. Lidge struggled with his command and turned in a rather poor outing for the club that entered the night in a playoff race, 1 game behind division rival Trenton for the Wild Card spot in the Eastern Division. On the disabled list since spring training with a strained right rotator cuff, Lidge experienced an elbow strain when he was working back from that issue in late May. In his outing against the Yankees affiliate in Trenton, Lidge displayed difficulty with his control as he threw three wild pitches, hit two batters, walked another and gave up a single, all while letting up two earned runs on 28 pitches in 2/3 of an inning. After the disappointing performance, Lidge was composed and focused on some positive aspects, having reached 89 and 90 MPH on scouts' radar guns, according to some reports. ...

Q&A with Tim Gradoville

Tim Gradoville is a career minor league catcher, who once, as a September call up, was up with the big club for the proverbial cup of coffee. Slated to be the Phillies bullpen catcher, at a later date, Gradoville is currently assigned as a special instructor with the Lakewood BlueClaws. I had the opportunity to speak with Tim and here's how that went down... What's the atmosphere with the BlueClaws like so far this season? Well, I think we have a good mix of players. We have some veteran guys, and some young guys too, so it makes for an interesting mix. I think the guys like to have a good time, and they're pretty loose and that translates into winning games. They have a good time. With a young team, you never know what you're gonna get, sometimes, but they seem to gel pretty well together, so that helps to build team unity, helps guys get along. They're having fun, they're enjoying baseball. This game can be a grind sometimes, if you're not having fun. What...

Mike McGuire Living a Dream With Favorite Team

LAKEWOOD, NJ- Every young ballplayer grows up wishing he could play for his favorite team. Mike McGuire has an opportunity to do just that after signing with the Phillies organization in July. McGuire was a 43rd round draft pick taken by the Cleveland Indians in the 2008 amateur draft out of the University of Delaware. Early scouting reports liked McGuire's abilities, despite some arm trouble. He advanced as far as High A Level Kinston last season. While there, he posted an 0-3 record with a 5.46 ERA in 9 games, 8 of which were starts. The Indians weren't happy with McGuire's efforts this spring and released him. McGuire caught on with the Sussex Skyhawks of the independent Can-Am League, where he stayed in shape and pitched against other formerly affiliated minor leaguers. As a starter with the Skyhawks, McGuire went 3-4 with a 5.29 ERA in 8 outings. From there, just as all players in those independent leagues hope for, the 24-year-old McGuire got noticed. The Phillies wer...