Final: Braves 9, Phillies 0
WP: Shelby Miller (4-1, 1.66 ERA) LP: Chad Billingsley (0-1, 9.00 ERA)
Atlanta, GA – Coming off two wins in a row, the Phillies looked to continue their winning ways on Tuesday night with the Phillies debut of Chad Billingsley, his first game in the major leagues since 2013 following rehab from two elbow surgeries.
Unfortunately it was not to be. Billingsley showed some positive signs in his five innings of work but also showed some rust which got the better of him in the first inning when Freddie Freeman took him deep and put the Phillies in a quick two run deficit. More damage came in the 4th when Kelly Johnson hit a three run blast for his 999th career hit in what would be a four run inning. Billingsley would escape the 5th unscathed but at 6-0, the damage was done and the Phillies bats were silent.
Johnson would notch that milestone 1,000th hit in the 6th as we saw Phillies pitcher Elvis Araujo make his major league debut. Araujo would record two strike outs though and notch his first inning in the bigs with no damage. Unfortunately the flood gates opened again in the 7th when Dustin McGowan walked four batters in a third of an inning and allowed three runs. Justin De Fratus would restore order to the out of hand inning but there was no saving this game.
Shelby Miller left Phillies fans asking if he was that good or if the Phillies were that bad. It was a bit of both. They had impatient bats and were getting themselves out early all night. Really the only one who looked like he had a clue at the plate was Cesar Hernandez who worked out Miller's lone walk and singled. Yet credit does go to Miller who struck out eight and went the distance in a shutout win.
Starting Pitchers
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chad Billingsley | 5 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 9.00 |
| Shelby Miller | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 1.66 |
Out of the 'Pen
Phillies
- Elvis Araujo (6th): 1.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0 HR, 0.00 ERA
- Dustin McGowan (7th): 0.1 IP, 1 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 0 SO, 0 HR, 5.75 ERA
- Justin De Fratus (7th and 8th): 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 2.93 ERA
What's Next
Wednesday, May 6, 2015: at Atlanta Braves, 7:10 pm
- RHP Jerome Williams (2-1, 4.08 ERA) vs. RHP Mike Foltynewicz (1-0, 3.60 ERA)
- TV: CSN; Radio: 94 WIP, 1210 WPHT, SBP 1480 (Sp.)
Greg Vince (@GregVince) is a staff writer for Philliedelphia.com.
