After weeks of what felt like absolute baseball hell, the Phillies were finally able to record two consecutive games with several runs scored. In their final two games against the Cinncinatti Reds, Philadelphia collected twenty runs scored, along with six homeruns from the lineup. With their season now making the move down to Miami to take on their division-foe, runs may become hard to score once again. In an even 200 inning pitched at home, the Marlins have collected an ERA and FIP of 2.61 and 3.18, both good for fourth in the majors. One positive statistic for the Phillies is their ability to get on base when away from Citizens Bank Park. In their 21 road games, the team has an OBP of .320, third best in the National League.
Allan Burnett will be taking the hill for the tenth time this season, this time against the team he came into the major leagues with. The last time I talked about Burnett, I discussed the deceiving nature of his stats thus far in the season. Interestingly enough, Burnett's season ERA is lower than his road ERA, but his FIP on the road is lower than his season's. The same can be said about his WHIP. While the numbers are not significantly different, it does suggest A.J. is performing slightly better than when he is under the watchful eye of the home fans.
Back in the offseason in which the Marlins and Toronto Blue Jays had their blockbuster trade that included names like Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson, and Emilio Bonifacio, Anthony DeSclafani was sent down to Miami. He split time between High-A and AA last season in the Marlins' farm system, and began this year in AA. When Jose Fernandez was set to undergo Tommy John surgery, the team called DeSclafani up to take his spot in the rotation. In his major league debut against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the right-hander tossed six innings, giving up two earned runs and striking out seven. He will make his first start in Miami tonight.
Game Notes:
- Miami is an incredible 17-5 when playing at home. In those 22 games, the team has an OBP of .364, are slugging at .463, and have collected 120 RBIs.
- In March and April, third basemen Cody Asche was able to accumulate just 12 hits. Now in May, Asche has 16 hits and his batting .333. He ranks second in the NL for homeruns this month (3), and is tied for the league lead in RBIs (12). His one hangup?: He is ranked dead last in defensive WAR (-3.3)
- Tony Gwynn Jr. gets the start in center field. In Gwynn's last eleven games (25 plate appearances), he has just a single hit that came on Saturday against the Reds. Gwynn has a .290 OBP this season.
Phillies Lineup
- Jimmy Rollins SS
- Carlos Ruiz C
- Chase Utley 2B
- Ryan Howard 1B
- Marlon Byrd RF
- Cody Asche 3B
- Domonic Brown LF
- Tony Gwynn Jr. CF
- A. J. Burnett P
Marlins Lineup
- Christian Yelich LF
- Derek Dietrich 2B
- Giancarlo Stanton RF
- Casey McGehee 3B
- Garrett Jones 1B
- Jarrod Saltalamacchia C
- Marcell Ozuna CF
- Adeiny Hechavarria SS
- Anthony DeSclafani P
Location: Marlins Park, Miami, Florida
Weather: 78° – Clear – 0% PoP
First Pitch: 7:10 PM Eastern
Andrew Gillen, Philliedelphia Managing Editor/Gameday Coordinator
