The Phillies (36-48) will look to avoid a seven-game losing streak tonight as they try to pull out a win against the Marlins (41-43) at 6:10PM. A few weeks back, it looked as if this team may have a glimmer of hope with their veteran core, but reality has set back in and now 12 games under .500 and 10.5 games out of first place. The Phils have not won since June 26th against the Marlins and are showing absolutely no signs of life on the offensive side of things, while the bullpen and starting pitching is starting to show some wear as well. Tonight, Kyle Kendrick will get his third start of the season against the Marlins while Brad Hand takes the hill for the opposition.
Kyle Kendrick (3-8, 4.22) has been known for one thing all season. Not being able to get out of the first inning without giving up runs. The Phils right-hander has surrendered 16 runs in 16 first innings pitched this season. Kendrick, in his career, has given up 108 runs in the first inning in 169 innings pitched, good for a 5.75 ERA. In his last start, against the Braves on Friday, he allowed three runs in the opening frame, but just one over his next seven. He has a 9.00 ERA in the first inning this season, but a 3.34 ERA in every other inning. He is 0-1 with a 6.17 ERA this season against Miami. Kendrick faced them most recently on May 21st in a 14-5 Phillies loss. He lasted 5.2 innings and gave up six runs on seven hits. Back in April, he fared much better, giving up just two earned runs in six innings of work, striking out seven.
The Marlins are looking for the sweep and will attempt to do so with Brad Hand (0-1, 6.38) on the mound, who will be making his first start after spending time on the DL with an ankle injury. Hand has appeared in 16 games this season, primarily as a reliever. He last pitched on May 23rd against Milwaukee, where he gave up two runs on three hits in two innings of work as a part of a 9-5 Marlins defeat. He started two games this season and gave up eight runs combined over just 6.1 innings, all against the Nationals. The Marlins left-hander has had difficulty staying ahead in the count, which has hurt him in starts when it comes to effectiveness.
Game Notes:
- The Phillies have been shutout 11 times this season after losing 5-0 last night. They have won only five of 16 games started by Kyle Kendrick.
- With Domonic Brown still on paternity leave, Aaron Altherr gets his first major league start this evening, hitting seventh and playing left field. Before his call-up, Altherr hit just .200 over his last ten games with Double-A Reading.
- In 23 at-bats against Kyle Kendrick, Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton is hitting just .130 with a homer, three RBI's and eight strikeouts. Casey McGehee has endured success against the Phils righty, hitting a double, homer and five RBI's in just 11 at-bats. Garrett Jones has also taken Kendrick deep.
- The Phils only have a combined 29 at-bats against Brad Hand. Chase Utley is 2-for-6 against him while John Mayberry, who isn't playing tonight, is 2-for-3 with a homer and four RBI's.
- Phillies top prospect, Maikel Franco, is having a tough go at Lehigh Valley this season but went 4-for-4 at the plate on Wednesday night. He is hitting .219 with five homers and 31 RBI's on the season.
- Cliff Lee is scheduled to pitch for Clearwater this weekend and Aaron Nola made his second pro start on Tuesday night. Check out the latest news on that right here.
Phillies Lineup:
- Ben Revere CF
- Jimmy Rollins SS
- Chase Utley 2B
- Ryan Howard 1B
- Marlon Byrd RF
- Cesar Hernandez 3B
- Aaron Altherr LF
- Cameron Rupp C
- Kyle Kendrick P
Marlins Lineup:
- Christian Yelich LF
- Ed Lucas SS
- Giancarlo Stanton RF
- Casey McGehee 3B
- Garrett Jones 1B
- Jarrod Saltalamacchia C
- Marcell Ozuna CF
- Donovan Solano 2B
- Brad Hand P
First Pitch: 6:10 PM ET
Location: Marlins Park, Miami, Florida
Weather: 87° – Partly Cloudy – 10% PoP
TV: CSN
Brandon Apter, Publishing Editor for Philliedelphia.com
