Series Preview: Padres at Phillies, September 10-12

Tyler Cloyd, Image- Jay Floyd

Fresh off a series sweep of the National League East division leading Braves over the weekend, the Phillies (66-77) will continue their homestand as they host the San Diego Padres (65-77).

During their successful sweep, Phils starting pitchers posted a 2.45 ERA while striking out 27 batters in the three games.

In the opening contest of the three-game set, the Phillies will send right-hander Tyler Cloyd, who tallied a 1.36 ERA in his final eight minor league games this season, to the mound. San Diego will counter with righty Andrew Cashner, who has a 2.18 ERA in his last five starts.

The Phils were victorious in two of three meetings with the Padres at Citizens Bank Park last season.

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

Tuesday, 7:05 PM. Andrew Cashner (8-8, 3.45 ERA) vs. Tyler Cloyd (2-3, 3.57 ERA). In 16 road games this season, the righty Cashner has a 3-5 record with a 4.61 ERA. Cashner, who was a first round draft pick of the Cubs in 2008, sports a 2.77 ERA in eight starts since the All-Star break. Cashner, who will be one day shy of his 27th birthday, has allowed one earned run in five career innings against the Phillies. Cloyd, 26, last appeared in a big league game on August 24th, when he threw five scoreless innings against Arizona. The Nebraska native has a 3.50 ERA in three home outings this season.

Wednesday, 7:05 PM. Eric Stults (8-13, 4.07 ERA) vs. Roy Halladay (3-4, 7.19 ERA). In 15 road starts this season, Stults has a 3-9 record with a 5.04 ERA. The 33-year-old has not won a game since July 14th. Since that time, Stilts has gone 0-6 with a 5.68 ERA in nine starts. In five career starts against the Padres, Halladay is 3-2 with a 2.15 ERA. Halladay has a 2-2 record with a 6.32 ERA in six home games this season. Chase Headley is 3-for-17 (.176 avg) in his career against Halladay.

Thursday, 7:05 PM. Burch Smith (0-1, ) vs. Cliff Lee (12-6, 3.01 ERA). The 23-year-old Smith was a 14th round pick by the Padres in 2011. Smith has a 9.95 ERA in four road starts this season. Lee has a 1-2 record along with a 4.42 ERA in six career starts against San Diego. In eight starts since the All-Star break, Lee is 2-3 with a 3.40 ERA. Chase Headley is 6-for-13 (.462 avg) with two doubles against Lee in his career.

In 22 career games against the Phillies, Will Venable has a .183 batting average with a double and two RBI. Venable is batting .343 in 45 games since the All-Star break after he sported a .224 average prior to the mid-summer classic.

First baseman Jesus Guzman has hit all eight of his home runs on the road this season. Guzman is 1-for-10 (.100 avg) in three games against the Phillies in 2013.

In 19 outings since the All-Star break, Padres closer Huston Street has a 0.47 ERA and a .111 batting average against.

Lefty reliever Jake Diekman has a 2.20 ERA and has allowed just six hits in 16 games since July. In 19 home games, Diekman has held opponents to a .209 batting average this year.

Carlos Ruiz is 6-for-11 (.525 avg) in three games against the Padres this season. Ruiz sports a .307 average with four homers and 17 RBI in 41 home games this season.

Rookie third baseman Cody Asche has a .291 batting average with six doubles, three home runs and 13 RBI in 23 home games this season. The lefty batting 23-year-old is hitting .333 against left-handed pitchers in the big leagues this year.

Padres team ERA since the All-Star break- 3.86 (17th in MLB)
Phillies team ERA since the All-Star break- 4.65 (29th in MLB)

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