Photo: Philliedelphia/Andrew Gillen
Last night's opening contest against the LA Angels of Anahiem was completely dominated by the home return of Mike Trout. What came after was the realization of a bigger issue at third base, and the continuation of struggles in interleague contests. Cody Asche is now hitting just over .215 on the season, and collected an unprecedented three errors at the hot corner last night. The Phillies are now 0-7 against American League opponents since their Opening Day victory against the Texas Rangers. Sitting three games under .500 (17-20), this afternoon's game is vital.
To the casual fan, A.J. Burnett's 2-2 record with a sub-3.00 ERA are signs of a decent season. A closer look reveals a different story. In his eight games started this season, Burnett has amassed a 4.41 FIP. FIP, or Fielder Independent Pitching, is a bit better representation of a pitcher's season than ERA because it adjusts the results based on league average play. Basically, Burnett's low ERA is misleading, to say the least. A 4.41 total places Burnett 84th overall in the majors, 50th in the National League. Against a team ranked in the top five in runs scored and slugging percentage, Burnett may be in for a tough task this afternoon.
On the other side of the mound, Garrett Richards is having an even better season than many would think. Standing at 3-0 with a 2.80 ERA, Richards' deeper numbers are more impressive. His FIP sits even lower at 2.74, and his WAR is a pretty 1.2, placing him in the top-10 of the American League. Perhaps his best asset is his league-leading .186 opponents' batting average. With the Phillies in the bottom half of the league in batting average, Richards could be in for an impressive start.
Game Notes:
- Chase Utley is hitting .360 in his last five contests, going 9-for-25. He's also collected five more RBIs to bring his season total to 20.
- Cody Asche returns to the lineup after a disappointing first game of the series. Ryne Sandberg seems to have enough confidence in Asche to let his play out of his struggles.
- Batting cleanup and playing left field for the Angels today is former Phillie Raul Ibanez. It will be his first appearance at Citizens Bank Park since 2011.
Phillies Lineup
- Ben Revere CF
- Jimmy Rollins SS
- Chase Utley 2B
- Ryan Howard 1B
- Marlon Byrd RF
- Domonic Brown LF
- Carlos Ruiz C
- Cody Asche 3B
- A.J. Burnett P
Angels Lineup
- Efren Navarro RF
- Mike Trout CF
- Albert Pujols 1B
- Raul Ibanez LF
- Erick Aybar SS
- Hank Conger C
- Grant Green 2B
- Luis Jimenez 3B
- Garrett Richards P
First Pitch: 1:05 PM Eastern
Location: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Weather: 65°F – Overcast – 0% PoP
Andrew Gillen, Philliedelphia Managing Editor/Gameday Manager
