Series Preview: Marlins at Phillies, July 24-26

Rhys Hoskins, image- Jay Floyd

At long last, it is Opening Day for the Phillies. The delayed season, a result of the global coronavirus pandemic, gets underway for the Phils and Marlins on Friday, as the two teams open a three-game series at Citizens Bank Park.

Entering the 2020 campaign with new manager Joe Girardi at the helm, the Phillies hope this is the year they can return to the postseason for the first time since 2011 after under-performing and faltering down the stretch in each of the past two seasons.

On Thursday, Major League Baseball announced arrangements for an expanded playoff format this year, increasing the amount of post-season teams from 10 to 16.

Coming off back-to-back last place finishes in the National League East division, Miami looks to surprise many and contend for one of those spots. The Marlins lost 105 games last year.

Read ahead for specifics on the pitching match ups and more from this series.

Friday, 7/24/20...7:05PM. RHP Sandy Alcantara (6-14, 3.88 ERA in 2019) vs. RHP Aaron Nola (12-7, 3.87 ERA in 2019). The 24-year-old Miami starter had a 2-0 record with a 1.32 ERA in a pair of starts at Citizens Bank Park last season. In four career starts against the Phils, Alcantara has a .130 batting average against. In 13 career starts against the Marlins, Nola sports a 3-6 record with a 3.28 ERA. Nola possesses a 3.03 ERA and a 10.5 K/9 mark in 65 career regular season games at Citizens Bank Park. This will mark Nola's third straight Opening Day start. Friday's game will reportedly feature a pregame ceremony in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.

Saturday, 7/25/20...4:05PM. LHP Caleb Smith (10-11, 4.52 ERA in 2019) vs. RHP Zack Wheeler (11-8, 3.96 ERA for the Mets last year). Smith, who will turn 29 years old next week, had a 5.40 ERA in 15 road starts last season. In four career starts facing the Phils, Smith has a 1-2 record with a 4.50 ERA. In 14 career starts against Miami, the 30-year-old Wheeler's got a 1.91 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP. Originally, a 1st round pick (6th overall) of San Francisco in 2009, Wheeler was traded to the Mets for Carlos Beltran in 2011 and signed with the Phils as a free agent over this past off-season.

Sunday, 7/26/20...1:05PM.RHP Jose Urena (4-10, 5.21 ERA in 2019) vs. RHP Vince Velasquez (7-8, 4.91 ERA in 2019). Urena, 28, notched a 1.81 ERA in three appearances against the Phillies last year. Urena sports a 5.79 ERA in nine career outings against the Phils. Jay Bruce is 5-for-16 (.313 avg) with a double, two homers and six RBI in his career against Uerana. Velasquez, 28, had a 4.61 ERA in 11 home outings last season. In five appearances against the Marlins in 2019, Velasquez notched a 7.06 ERA. In 46 career games at CBP Velasquez holds a 13-15 record with a 4.60 ERA.

Colombian catcher and former Phillie Jorge Alfaro tallied a .262/.312/.425 slash line last year in his first full season with the Marlins, following a trade that sent JT Realmuto to the Phils. In 10 career games against the Phillies, Alfaro sports a .432 average with three home runs.

Former Phillies prospect Jonathan Villar has a .246 average with four home runs and 11 RBI in 18 career games facing the Phils. It has been nearly ten years since Villar was traded to Houston along with J.A. Happ and Anthony Gose for Roy Oswalt.

In 81 home games last year, outfielder Bryce Harper posted a .264 batting average with 20 home runs and 63 RBI. Harper is a .293 hitter with 28 homers and 92 RBI in 131 career games facing the Marlins.

First baseman Rhys Hoskins performed much better against lefties (.980 OPS) than he did against righties (.764 OPS) last season. Hoskins, the Phillies' 5th round draft choice in 2014, has enjoyed success against the Marlins in his career, as he's tallied a 1.024 OPS in 48 games against them.

Infielder Jean Segura may be considered day to day to start the season, after being hit by a pitch in the left hand in an exhibition game this week. Segura has a .348 batting average against the Marlins for his career.

The Phillies (.246) and Marlins (.241) ranked 22nd and 26th in the big leagues respectively in team batting average last season.

Q&A with Justin De Fratus

Justin De Fratus is a 21 year old right handed relief pitcher with the Lakewood BlueClaws. An 11th round draft choice in 2007, Justin had been a starter in his first two seasons in the Phillies organization. Informed this spring that he'd be switched from the rotation to the bullpen, Justin has excelled and become one of the most reliable pitchers on the Lakewood staff. In 19 games this season, Justin is 2-0, with a 1.83 ERA and 0.89 WHIP over 39 1/3 innings pitched. PhoulBallz.com spoke with Justin De Fratus just last night. Here's how that went down... Justin, South Atlantic League all star selections were announced this week, and you were named to the team. Can I get your reaction to that? How excited were you? Very excited about it. Well, especially this year because I just got moved to the bullpen, so this is a new role for me. So, if anything, it's reassuring that I'm doing my job. It's the first time in my pro career that I've been selected as an all star...

All in the Family

22-year-old pitching prospect Nick Hernandez's father helps him stay fit during the off-season Phillies pitching prospect Nick Hernandez spent much of the 2010 regular season on the disabled list with an injury to his throwing shoulder. The 6'4", 215 pound lefty, who was named a mid-season South Atlantic League all-star with the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws, attempted comebacks twice during the season, making rehab outings for the rookie level Gulf Coast League Phillies, but experienced setbacks that curtailed his return to the mound and kept him from helping his teammates lock down a second consecutive league championship for Lakewood. In 8 starts with the BlueClaws last season, the 12th round draft pick from 2009 posted a 3-1 record with a 1.61 ERA and averaged 7 innings per start. Hernandez's strength is throwing a lot of strikes and he owes some of his success to his father, also named Nick (Dad's full first name is spelled Nicolas, while son's name is spell...

Ring-a-ling

This week I heard old news about how when the Indianapolis Colts won the Super Bowl, they gave former Colt Edgerrin James a championship ring. "Edge" had been a Colt for seven years, and even though he was gone when they won the big one, the team and the coaching staff felt as though James had contributed in building the team that won it all, so they awarded him a ring. This got me wondering which people, in an extended Phillies phamily , would be deserving of a 2008 World Series Champions ring. I heard an interview with Mike Schmidt, in the days that followed the Series, and when asked if he thought he'd get a ring, he said, "They have my (ring) size." Schmidt, the Hall of Fame thirdbaseman , was a long time Phillie, a one time coach of the single-A Clearwater Threshers (where he managed World Series MVP Cole Hamels ) and appears as a guest hitting instructor in Phillies spring training every year. With all those things in mind, of course Mike Schmidt shou...

PhoulBallz.com

Search This Blog