By: Nick Mandarano, contributor 
PHILADELPHIA — The Phillies have had a challenging schedule recently, which may be the primary reason they seem to be falling apart. Their last six series include two with the Cubs, two with the Nationals, one with the Blue Jays, one with the Brewers. The Cubs, who boast the best record in baseball (44-20), swept the Phillies in Chicago and took two of three in Philadelphia. The Nationals, currently holding the second best record in baseball (42-25), swept the Phillies in both series. The Blue Jays, the fourth best team in the American League (38-31), took three of four in the Phillies' most recent series. Philadelphia was able to split a four-game series with Milwaukee (31-36), however.
Perhaps the Phillies aren't falling apart, but instead had to play their toughest opponents in the same chunk of the season. Now 12.0 games behind the Nationals, the Phillies's battle becomes the pursuit of .500 baseball. Last night, manager Pete Mackanin held a closed-door team meeting. Tonight they'll face the Arizona Diamondbacks in an attempt to get back on track.
This will be the first time in each starting pitcher's career that they will be facing their respective opponent. Offensively, Mackanin will be batting the pitcher eighth in the lineup, which means Cesar Hernandez will bat ninth. In that spot, Hernandez bats .238, which is only a bit lower than his overall .249, but noticeably lower than .256 and .300 which are his batting averages when hitting first and second, respectively. A win for the Phillies tonight would be just their seventh in their last 27 games.
Starting Pitching Matchup:
| Arizona Diamondbacks (29-39) | Philadelphia Phillies (30-37) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LHP | Robbie Ray | LHP | Adam Morgan | ||
| (3-5, 4.57 ERA) | (1-5, 6.33 ERA) | ||||
Robbie Ray — Age: 24;
- Last Appearance: June 12, 2016, vs. MIA: W, 7.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 6 SO, 0 HR
- Career vs. PHI: N/A
Robbie Ray had his longest outing of the season last time out against Miami, matching a career high with 7.2 scoreless innings. Tonight, he will be looking to win consecutive starts for the first time this year. Ray's fastball averages 94.62 mph, which is the highest average fastball velocity among all left-handed starters. Despite that, only five of his 77 strikes in his last start were due to a swing-and-miss.
Ray averages just over five innings pitched per start, but his 10.17 K/9 is eighth-highest in the National League and fourth-highest among lefties. The young lefty has four straight starts with at least six strikeouts. Opposing hitters are batting .280 against Ray this season and finding the most success against his change (.452) and sinker (.387).
Adam Morgan — Age: 26;
- Last Appearance: June 12, 2016, @ WSN: ND, 6.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 8 SO, 1 HR
- Career vs. ARI: N/A
The Phillies will look to end a streak of six straight losses in Adam Morgan starts. In order to do so, they're going to have to score. Morgan has received a total of only four runs of support in 32.1 innings on the mound during that stretch. Only José Quintana has a lower run support average in the majors over the same time.
Morgan's average fastball velocity (91.94) has increased by more than 2 mph from last season. In addition to an improves fastball, his slider has been a solid out-pitch all year, ending 24 of his 37 strikeouts with it. Morgan also has a change and curve in his repertoire, which he has used much more against righties than lefties. However, opponents are teeing off against his change, hitting .424. Morgan will also be looking to put an end to Paul Goldschmidt's 10-game hitting streak.
Starting Lineups:
| Arizona Diamondbacks (29-39) | Philadelphia Phillies (30-37) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Player | Bats | Position | Player | Bats | ||
| 1 | 2B | Jean Segura | R | 1 | CF | Odubel Herrera | L |
| 2 | CF | Michael Bourn | L | 2 | LF | Cody Asche | L |
| 3 | 1B | Paul Goldschmidt | R | 3 | 1B | Tommy Joseph | R |
| 4 | C | Welington Castillo | R | 4 | 3B | Maikel Franco | R |
| 5 | LF | Peter O'Brien | R | 5 | C | Cameron Rupp | R |
| 6 | RF | Yasmany Tomás | R | 6 | SS | Freddy Galvis | S |
| 7 | 3B | Jake Lamb | L | 7 | RF | Peter Bourjos | R |
| 8 | SS | Nick Ahmed | R | 8 | P | Adam Morgan | L |
| 9 | P | Robbie Ray | L | 9 | 2B | Cesar Hernandez | S |
Broadcast Information:
- First pitch: 7:05 p.m.
- TV: NBC 10
- Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
Game Notes:
- Phillies starters have failed to pitch past the 4th inning in four of their last eight games. They are 1-5 with a Major League-high 8.39 ERA during that period. Over their first two turns in the rotation, Philadelphia led the majors in starters ERA (2.14), opponents AVG (.173), OBP (.218), SLG % (.280) and OPS (.498).
- Former Phillie Michael Bourn is hitting .325 (25-for-77) with 3 doubles, 1 triple, 1 homer, 7 RBI and 8 walks in his last 20 games against Philadelphia.
- The Phillies are averaging just 2.85 runs per game at Citizens Bank Park this season, half a run lower than any other team in MLB (29th: ATL, 3.36 RPG).
What's Next:
- Saturday, June 18, 2016: vs. Arizona Diamondbacks, 3:05 p.m.
- Citizens Bank Park
- RHP Zack Greinke (9-3, 3.75 ERA) vs. RHP Jerad Eickhoff (4-8, 3.40 ERA)
- TV: CSN; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
