After a four-hit game, Ben Revere returns to the leadoff spot.
Photo: Philliedelphia/Andrew Gillen
David Buchanan was nothing short of impressive in his first major league start, tossing five innings and securing the victory for both himself and the Phillies. For the second straight series now, the team has a chance to win the series going into the rubber match. Last Thursday, Jake Diekman surrendered a walkoff single to Christian Yelich that gave the Miami Marlins a 2-1 series victory. Los Angeles shutout the Phillies on Friday, while Buchanan's outing yesterday evened the three game set. Now, A.J. Burnett will set out to redeem his last few outings in an effort to help right the ship. On the other side of the field, Josh Beckett will be taking the ball.
All season, A.J. Burnett's statistical numbers have shown a worse season than some would believe. At home, he has some inflated numbers, a set of which includes his walk and strikeout rates. At home, Burnett is averaging 8.87 Ks to 6.04 BBs, putting his overall K/BB at 1.47 in Citizens Bank Park. Cliff Lee ranks sixth of the 65 pitchers with at least 20 IP at home in the National League with a K/BB rate of 7.20. On the other end of the spectrum, the Phillies have two pitchers ranked between 61-65. Burnett sits at number 61 with his 1.47, while Roberto Hernandez sits down even further (64 with a 1.33). Burnett is allowing too many baserunners to be truly successful.
Burnett will be squaring off against former teammate Josh Beckett. Perhaps they rubbed off on one another in past seasons, because Beckett is having a similarly deceiving season. While his ERA sits at just 2.89, Beckett's FIP is at 4.25. That ranks among the highest in the National League, while most of his numbers are just about average. In his last outing, Beckett surrendered four earned runs in a game for the third time in 2014. He struckout six while walking two in five innings of work against the New York Mets.
Game Notes
- The last time Josh Beckett pitched in Citizens Bank Park was May 20th, 2012, when he was still with the Boston Red Sox. Beckett went 7.2 innings, allowing just a single run and striking out five in a winning effort.
- Yesterday, Ben Revere had his second four-hit game of the season, both strangely against the Dodgers. Revere now has a hit in each of the last three games, and is batting leadoff once again.
- Wil Nieves has a hit in all but two of his starts this season. His batting average still remains above the .300 mark, but still has not walked in any of his at bats.
Phillies Lineup
- Ben Revere CF
- Jimmy Rollins SS
- Chase Utley 2B
- Ryan Howard 1B
- Marlon Byrd RF
- Domonic Brown LF
- Wil Nieves C
- Cesar Hernandez 3B
- A.J. Burnett P
Dodgers Lineup
- Dee Gordon 2B
- Carl Crawford LF
- Yasiel Puig RF
- Adrian Gonzalez 1B
- Andre Ethier CF
- Justin Turner 3B
- Drew Butera C
- Erisbel Arruebarrena SS
- Josh Beckett P
Location: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Weather: 76°F – Clear – 15% PoP
Game Time: 1:35 PM Eastern
Andrew Gillen, Philliedelphia Managing Editor/Gameday Coordinator
