By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor 
Philadelphia Phillies (55-44) ace Aaron Nola will aim to notch his National League-leading 13th win in the second of a three game set against Chase Utley, Manny Machado and the Los Angeles Dodgers (56-44) Tuesday evening at Citizens Bank Park.
The Phillies were edged, 7-6, in a home run-filled series opener Monday evening, as Utley made his first of potentially three final regular season appearances in South Philadelphia. A total of eight home runs were hit in the contest, three of which were surrendered by Phillies starter RHP Zach Eflin. Trailing 4-1 in the fifth, Rhys Hoskins and Odubel Herrera launched back-to-back home runs to give the Phillies a 5-4 lead. Seranthony Dominguez entered in the ninth with the game tied at five, but yielded two runs on a hit and three walks, en route to his third losing decision of 2018.
Utley went 0-for-4 in Monday's opener, while Machado went 1-for-5 with a triple and run scored. Utley and Machado are each hitless in three career at-bats opposite Nola.
Starting Pitching Matchup:
| Los Angeles Dodgers (56-44) | Philadelphia Phillies (55-44) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RHP | Kenta Maeda | RHP | Aaron Nola | ||
| (7-5, 3.12 ERA) | (12-3, 2.30 ERA) | ||||
RHP Kenta Maeda, Age: 30
- 2018 vs. PHI: 0-1, 10.80 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 1 2/3 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, HR, BB, 2 SO, 2.400 WHIP
- Career vs. PHI: 3-1, 4.37 ERA, 5 G, 5 GS, 22 2/3 IP, 20 H, 11 R, 11 ER, 6 HR, 7 BB, 26 SO, 1.191 WHIP
- Career at Citizens Bank Park: 1-0, 4.00 ERA, 2 G, 2 GS, 9 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 HR, 3 BB, 12 SO, 1.000 WHIP
Maeda is 3-1 with a 3.54 ERA, 50-15 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 1.180 WHIP in 40 2/3 innings on the road, as opposed to going 4-4 with a 2.74 ERA, 58-17 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 1.261 WHIP in 46 innings at home.
The three-year veteran pitched his sixth-career relief appearance in his most recent outing, July 15 against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Maeda recorded one out and earned the win, striking out second baseman Ian Kinsler swinging with the bases loaded in relief of Clayton Kershaw.
Maeda last faced the Phillies on May 29 at home, and retired just five of his nine batters faced spanning 38 pitches and 26 strikes. Nick Williams homered off the Senboku-gun, Japan, native, as the Dodgers would go on to fall 6-1 in the contest.
RHP Aaron Nola, Age: 25
- 2018 vs. LAD: 1-0, 1.29 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 7 IP, 2 H, R, ER, 0 HR, BB, 7 SO, 0.429 WHIP
- Career vs. LAD: 2-0, 1.93 ERA, 2 G, 2 GS, 14 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, HR, 3 BB, 15 SO, 0.714 WHIP
- Career at Citizens Bank Park: 22-12, 3.07 ERA, 38 G, 38 GS, 243 2/3 IP, 205 H, 89 R, 83 ER, 29 HR, 60 BB, 280 SO, 1.088 WHIP
Nola is 8-0 with a 1.71 ERA, 72-13 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 0.952 WHIP through nine starts and 63 innings at home this season.
The right-hander's six-decision winning streak was snapped in his most recent start, July 14 away against the Miami Marlins. Despite allowing just two runs in six innings, the Phillies offense failed to score opposite Trevor Richards, Brad Ziegler, Drew Steckenrider and Kyle Barraclough, going 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position an leaving nine runners on base.
Nola tossed 15 pitches in a scoreless fifth inning in the 89th Midsummer Classic last Tuesday at Nationals Park. Nola surrendered just a two-out single, while striking out two batters.
Starting Lineups:
| Los Angeles Dodgers (56-44) | Philadelphia Phillies (55-44) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Player | Bats | Position | Player | Bats | ||
| 1 | LF | Joc Pederson | L | 1 | 2B | Cesar Hernandez | S |
| 2 | 3B | Manny Machado | R | 2 | LF | Rhys Hoskins | R |
| 3 | 1B | Max Muncy | L | 3 | CF | Odubel Herrera | L |
| 4 | C | Yasmani Grandal | S | 4 | 1B | Carlos Santana | S |
| 5 | SS | Chris Taylor | R | 5 | 3B | Maikel Franco | R |
| 6 | CF | Cody Bellinger | L | 6 | RF | Nick Williams | L |
| 7 | 2B | Enrique Hernandez | R | 7 | SS | Jesmuel Valentin | S |
| 8 | RF | Alex Verdugo | L | 8 | C | Jorge Alfaro | R |
| 9 | P | Kenta Maeda | R | 9 | P | Aaron Nola | R |
Broadcast Information:
- First pitch: 7:05 p.m.
- TV: NBCSP
- Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
Game Notes:
- With the Phillies' loss on Monday, they fell to a tie for the National League East lead with the Atlanta Braves. Both the Phillies and Braves are 5-5 in their last 10 games.
- The Phillies have won six of their last eight home games, and 14 of their last 22 games overall since June 27. The club has collected at least one extra-base hit in 95 consecutive games.
- Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp is 0-for-11 all-time against Nola with a walk and three strikeouts. Likewise, Herrera is just 1-for-11 lifetime against Maeda with four strikeouts.
What's Next:
Wednesday, July 25, 2018: vs. Los Angeles Dodgers, 12:35 p.m.
- Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pa.
- RHP Walker Buehler (4-2, 3.45 ERA) vs. RHP Jake Arrieta (7-6, 3.47 ERA)
- TV: NBCSP, MLBN; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
