Series Preview: Phillies at Braves, September 26-29

The Phillies (72-86) will close out their 2013 season with a four-game series against the postseason bound Atlanta Braves (93-65).

When the teams last met in Philadelphia earlier this month, the Braves were swept in a three-game set. The Phils have dropped four of six meetings at Turner Field, where this series will take place, thus far this season.

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

Thursday, 7:10 PM. Tyler Cloyd (2-6, 5.40 ERA) vs. David Hale (0-0, 0.00 ERA). In three starts this month, Cloyd has an 11.77 ERA. In six road starts, Cloyd is 2-2 with a 4.60 ERA. Hale, a 25-year-old Princeton product, threw five scoreless frames in his big league debut against the Padres earlier this month. Hale had a 6-9 record with a 3.22 ERA in 22 Triple-A games this season.

Friday, 7:30 PM. Cliff Lee (14-7, 2.93 ERA) vs. Kris Medlen (14-12, 3.24 ERA). In 14 career games against Atlanta, Lee has a 7-5 record with a 2.95 ERA. Lee sports a 7-2 record with a 2.52 ERA in 15 road starts this season. Freddie Freeman is 1-for-11 against Lee this year. Medlen has a 3-2 record with a 5.17 ERA and a .306 batting average against in 17 career games against the Phillies. In his last five starts, Medlen is 4-0 with a 1.03 ERA. Medlen, a righty, has a 2.45 ERA in 16 home games this year.

Saturday, 7:10 PM. To be determined vs. Mike Minor (13-8, 3.22 ERA). With arm fatigue experienced by righty hurler Roy Halladay earlier this week, the Phillies are slated to utilize their bullpen throughout Saturday's contest. Minor is 0-4 with a 4.15 ERA in four starts this month. In 16 home starts this year, Minor has a 6-4 record with a 3.65 ERA and a .223 batting average against. Chase Utley is 4-for-17 (.235 avg) with a homer in his career against Minor.

Sunday, 1:35 PM. Zach Miner (0-1, 3.08 ERA) vs. Julio Teheran (13-8, 3.09 ERA). The 31-year-old Miner has a 3.65 ERA and a .306 batting average against in seven road contests this year. B.J. Upton is 3-for-11 (.273 avg) with a double in his career against Miner. Teheran, 22, has a 2.66 ERA in 11 starts since the All-Star break. In 15 home games this year, Teheran has a 7-4 record with a 2.82 ERA. Jimmy Rollins is 4-for-6 (.667 avg) with a double and a home run in his career against Teheran.

In 27 road games this season, Darin Ruf is batting .217 with three homers and seven RBI. Ruf has a .333 average with three home runs and five RBI in 12 career games against the Braves.

Chase Utley is batting .347 with two home runs and 16 RBI in 21 games this month. In 15 games against Atlanta this year, Utley has a .310 average with two homers and nine RBI.

Domonic Brown, who hit 12 home runs in 28 May games, has hit 12 home runs in 81 games since then.

Atlanta closer Craig Kimbrel has 15 saves and a 1.11 ERA in 26 career games against the Phillies. Kimbrel has a 0.80 ERA in 34 home games this season.

Justin Upton, who leads the Braves in homers with 26 this season, has a .295 career average with seven homers and 16 RBI in 39 games against the Phils.

Outfielder Jordan Schafer has a .143 average with two homers and three RBI in 16 career games against the Phillies. The lefty batting Schafer sports a .167 average since the All-Star break.

Phillies team OPS in September- .698 (16th in MLB)
Braves team OPS in September- .640 (28th in MLB)

Diekman a Late Addition to Mesa AFL Roster

On Wednesday, Phillies lefty pitching prospect Jacob Diekman made his Arizona Fall League debut. Diekman, who was drafted in the 30th round of the 2007 amateur draft, was assigned to Mesa late, in order to increase his 2010 innings total, according to Mesa hitting coach Mark Parent, who managed Diekman in Lakewood this past season. Diekman, 23, posted a 2-0 record with 1.90 ERA in 21 games with Class A Lakewood before being promoted to High-A Clearwater on June 24th. In 24 games with the Threshers, Diekman went 0-2 with a 3.66 ERA. Combined, Diekman tossed 55 2/3 innings and held opponents to a .187 batting average against at two levels in 2010. However, after not pitching in an official game since he threw a shutout inning to wrap up the Clearwater season on September 5th, Diekman was unable to record an out as all seven batters he faced reached base, six with hits, one on an error. Diekman was charged with 5 earned runs in the outing. Diekman had spent time at instructional ball from

2022 Phillies Top Prospects Countdown: #24 RHP Cristian Hernandez

Venezuelan born right-hander Cristian Hernandez has begun to earn recognition as one of the Phillies most promising pitching prospects. Signed as a 16-year-old in 2017 for a reported $120,000, Hernandez got his professional career started the following summer as a starter for the Phillies' Red Dominican Summer League club. There, in 13 starts, Hernandez tallied a 2-3 record with 2.57 ERA, a 1.14 WHIP as well as a 7.0 K/9 mark. An injury sidelined Hernandez in 2019 and the 2020 season was cancelled due to the global pandemic. In 2021, Hernandez saw his first regular season action in the United States, starting his season in Florida Complex League. After two appearances there, the six-foot-three 185-pounder was promoted to the Class A Clearwater Threshers. In 20 combined outings (17 starts), Hernandez notched a 2-7 record with a 3.57 ERA, a .228 batting average against and an 11.2 K/9 mark. Projectability is something that baseball folks like about Hernandez. His size, consistent

Who is Your Favorite Willie 'Mays' Hayes?

PhoulBallz.com is wondering which individual who has portrayed Willie "Mays" Hayes is the favorite of the public. Hayes, of course, is the character made famous in the Major League motion picture series. In Major League , Willie "Mays" Hayes was portrayed by budding Hollywood actor Wesley Snipes, who would go on to action movie superstardom. Snipes has starred in major motion pictures like the Blade trilogy, Passenger 57 , Undisputed and many more. Snipes remains an impact Hollywood actor, despite legal troubles related to income tax evasion. Snipes was replaced for the sequel, Major League II when his busy career, and possibly the film's budget, would not allow him to return, by Omar Epps. Another budding actor, Epps had previously worked with director David S. Ward, on the film The Program , and landed the role of Hayes, who had become a Hollywood action star over the off-season that occured between the two films. Epps' career portraying athletes rolle

PhoulBallz.com

Search This Blog