Phillies and Pivetta look to avoid sweep

By Nick Mandarano, Sports Talk Philly Staff  

PHILADELPHIA — The Phillies will have their hands full while they attempt to break an eight-game losing skid as they go up against Chris Sale and the Boston Red Sox. 

Since being shutout against St. Louis on June 10, the Phillies have averaged four runs per game. Unfortunately, they've allowed 5.75 runs per game in the same span and Sale has allowed more than three earned runs in only two of his 13 starts this season. After winning four of their first five games in June, the Phillies will be looking for their first victory since June 6.

Starting Pitching Matchup:

Nick Pivetta — Age: 24;

• Last Start: June 10, 2017, @ STL: L, 5.0 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 SO, 0 HR
• Career vs. Red Sox: N/A

In six starts this season, Nick Pivetta has yet to go deeper than five innings in a game and has reached 100 pitches only twice. After allowing just two earned runs in his debut on April 30, Pivetta has carried a 5.92 ERA and .287 BAA.

Pivetta was 5-0 in five starts with a 1.41 ERA, 0.844 WHIP, 10.4 K/9 and 18.5 K/BB in AAA Lehigh Valley this season. There he averaged just over six innings per start but is averaging less than five at the Major League level.

Chris Sale — Age: 28;

• Last Start: June 10, 2017, vs. DET: W, 7.0 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 7 SO, 0 HR
• Career vs. Phillies: (0-1), 1 G, 4.0 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 5 SO, 1 HR, 13.50 ERA

The Phillies lineup has hit a cumulative .243 against Chris Sale. Michael Saunders has the most experience against the lefty (13 AB, .231), but will not be starting. Howie Kendrick, who will be starting at second base, is the only other Phillie with more than three career at-bats against Sale (11 AB, .182).

Opposing hitters are hitting just .210 against Sale and .165 against his fastball in 2017. His 126 strikeouts, 12.5 K/9, and 1.84 FIP are each best in baseball. Sale also boasts a Major League-leading in-zone swing-and-miss rate at 20.2%.

The Red Sox are 10-3 in Chris Sale’s starts, including 7-1 in his last 8 and 4-0 in his last 4. In the three games Boston lost, the Red Sox scored a total of 3 runs. Sale is 7-0 in his last 8 starts, which is the third-longest winning streak of his career.

Starting Lineups:

Broadcast Information:

• First pitch: 7:05 p.m.
• TV: CSN
• Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP

Game Notes:

• Tommy Joseph has hit safely in each of his last ten games and is batting .366 with four doubles, a home run and seven RBI's in that span.
• Odubel Herrera leads the majors with 13 extra-base hits this month. He has 23 doubles all season, which leads the MLB. His 11 doubles this month is only three shy of the franchise modern-day record for June (Pinky Whitney, 14 2B in 1931).
• Philadelphia has lost eight consecutive games against Interleague opponents, matching the franchise's worst stretch (2014).

Standings:

What's Next:

• Friday, June 16, 2017: vs. Arizona Diamondbacks, 7:05 p.m.
• Citizens Bank Park
  
• RHP Aaron Nola (3-4, 4.40 ERA) vs. LHP Patrick Corbin (5-6, 5.38 ERA)
• TV: CSN; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP.