Series Preview: Phillies at Marlins, May 20-22

The Phillies (21-23) hit the road this week, beginning a three-game series against the Marlins (12-23) in Miami on Monday night
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Looking to get back on the positive side of .500, the Phillies will kick off the series with two of their main stars ailing, as Ryan Howard is sidelined with right knee soreness and Carlos Ruiz left Sunday's contest against the Reds with a right hamstring issue.

The Phils have won four of seven meetings with Miami thus far this season.

Read ahead for full details on the pitching match ups from this series and plenty more key stats from this series.

Monday, 7:10 PM. Cole Hamels (1-6, 4.61 ERA) vs. Alex Sanabia (2-6, 5.00 ERA). In four road starts this year, Hamels is 1-2 with a 3.52 ERA. In 26 career starts against the Marlins, Hamels is 8-11 with a 3.24 ERA. In two career starts against the Phils, Sanabia is 0-1 with a 2.45 ERA. Sanabia is 1-3 with a 5.70 ERA in four home starts this season. Jimmy Rollins is 0-for-6 against the right-handed Sanabia.

Tuesday, 7:10 PM. Tyler Cloyd (0-0, 2.84 ERA) vs. Jose Fernandez (2-2, 3.48 ERA). Cloyd gave up just two hits and two earned runs in his lone MLB start this season against Arizona on May 10th. Cloyd was 1-4 with a 6.57 ERA in seven starts for Triple-A Lehigh Valley this year. In two starts against the Phillies this season, the rookie Fernandez is 1-0 with no runs allowed in 13 innings pitched. Fernandez has a 2.12 ERA with a .169 batting average against in three home starts this season. Fernandez, a righty, was the Marlins' 1st round draft pick in 2011.

Wednesday, 7:10 PM. Cliff Lee (4-2, 2.83 ERA) vs. Kevin Slowey (1-4, 3.44 ERA). Lee is 3-1 with a 2.00 ERA in five road starts this season. In his past three starts, Lee is 2-0 with a 1.64 ERA. In three career starts against the Phils, the right-handed Slowey is 1-0 with a 5.14 ERA. Slowey held the Phillies scoreless over seven innings on May 5th, to lock down a win. Ryan Howard is 3-for-7 (.429 avg) with a double and a home run in his career against Slowey.

In 12 road games this year, Freddy Galvis is batting .400 with two homers and three RBI. Galvis is a .294 career hitter in 10 games against the Marlins.

Michael Young is batting .211 in 16 games this month. In 21 games against the Marlins in his career, Young is a .289 hitter with five doubles and nine RBI.

Chase Utley is batting .308 with four home runs and 15 RBI in 21 road games this season.

Placido Polanco has a career .287 average with three doubles and four RBI in 28 games against the Phillies. Polanco is batting .239 in 20 home games this season.

Heading into action on Sunday, righty hitting opponents were batting .115 against Marlins closer Steve Cishek while lefties had tallied a .316 average.

Rookie outfielder Marcell Ozuna is 8-for-16 with four doubles a homer and eight RBI in four career games against the Phillies. Ozuna is batting .286 in eight home games.

Sunday School: Phillies History Lesson 73

Danny Ozark was the Phillies' manager from 1973-1979. During his tenure as the team's general, Ozark led Philadelphia to three straight division titles. In his playing days, Ozark was a first baseman, who was a career minor leaguer in the Dodgers system. When Ozark took over the team in 1973, the Phillies were fresh off 5 consecutive losing seasons and 3 straight last place finishes. During his first season in charge, the Phillies would again finish in last place, 20 games under .500, but as his core of young talent, like Mike Schmidt and Larry Bowa, developed, the Phillies' win totals rose. Within 2 years, the Phillies were above .500 and in the playoff hunt until late in the season and the most successful era of Phillies history was about to begin. By 1976, the Phillies were headed to the post-season for the first time since 1950. The Phils would enjoy a 10-game lead over their nearest division rival at the midway point of the season. Despite a lul, which saw their lead d...

PhoulBallz Interview: First round pick Bryson Stott

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Velasquez shut down, Eflin on deck?

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