The Phillies had their tails handed to them yesterday at the hands of the Yankees. In their 4-0 loss, the only bright spot in the game came from 24-year old Dave Buchanan, who threw two scoreless innings against the Yanks. Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez debuted with the Phils, only to not live up to expectation (yet). The right hander tossed 51 pitches, walking four and striking out two in his Grapefruit League debut.
Today the Phillies will send out newly-aquired RHP A.J. Burnett (2013: 10-11, 3.30 ERA) to the hill to make the start against the Pirates. Burnett, 37, signed with the Phillies on February 16th after spending the last two seasons with the Pirates. Last season Burnett dealt with a calf muscle tear and missed nearly a month, but still made 30 starts and struck out 209. Burnett is starting fresh with the Phillies and looks to help them make a push for the postseason. Jesse Biddle, Jonathan Papelbon, Antonio Bastardo, Brad Lincoln and Jake Diekman are all slated to pitch tomorrow after Burnett.
Stolmy Pimentel (2013: 0-0, 1.93 ERA) will be making the start for the Pirates this afternoon. The 24-year old Pimentel made his MLB debut last September as rosters expanded. With the Pirates on their way to their first winning season in over 20 years, Pimentel helped his team from the bullpen – making five appearances and allowing two runs over 9 1/3 innings of work. Pimentel has never faced the Phillies and is looking to break into the Pirates' big league club this year.
Game Notes:
- In two seasons (61 GS) with the Pirates, A.J. Burnett went 26-21 w/ a 3.41 ERA.
- Jesse Biddle, Brad Lincoln, and Jake Diekman are all arms to watch today.
Lineups:
Phillies lineup:
- Tony Gwynn CF
- Carlos Ruiz C
- Chase Utley 2B
- Ryan Howard 1B
- Marlon Byrd RF
- Bobby Abreu DH
- Freddy Galvis SS
- Cody Asche 3B
- Zach Collier LF
A.J. Burnett is starting today's game.
Pirates lineup:
- Jaff Decker LF
- Gregory Polanco CF
- Travis Snider DH
- Pedro Alvarez 3B
- Chris Dickerson RF
- Chris McGuinness 1B
- Chris Stewart C
- Josh Harrison 2B
- Jordy Mercer SS
Stolmy Pimentel is starting today's game.
First Pitch: 1:05 PM ET
Location: Bright House Field, Clearwater, Florida
Weather: 81° – Sunny – 0% Precip
TV: CSN
Erik Seybold is a writer for Philliedelphia.com. Follow him on Twitter @ErikSeyboldPHI.
