By: Brandon Apter, contributor
Final: Phillies 5, Braves 0 ❖ Attendance: 23,367
Philadelphia, PA — An efficient outing on the mound from Jerad Eickhoff paired with a strong showing from the offense resulted in a 5-0 Phillies win this afternoon at Citizens Bank Park. The victory avoided a sweep at the hands of the MLB-worst Braves and it was the first time since May 12 the Phils scored five runs in a game, the ninth time this season. During the first two games of the series, the Phillies offense managed just one run on eight hits. This afternoon they scored five runs and had 13 hits.
Following a string of mediocre starts, right-hander Jerad Eickhoff was very strong, getting ahead in the count early on and pitching to contact for the majority of the day. He finished with seven shutout innings, scattering five hits while striking out three and walking one. Of his 85 pitches, 57 were strikes. Eickhoff lowered his ERA to 3.86 after entering the game with a 4.44. Meanwhile, Maikel Franco drove in a pair of runs with a bloop single and Cameron Rupp had a career-high three hits, including a homer, in the winning effort.
The Phillies begin an interleague series with the Detroit Tigers on Monday night at Comerica Park. Vince Velasquez will look to earn his sixth win of the year. He'll be opposed by veteran righty Mike Pelfrey.
WP: Jerad Eickhoff (2-6, 3.86 ERA) ❖ LP: Casey Kelly (0-1, 4.50 ERA)
Hub: Game Summary ❖ Starting Pitchers ❖ At the Plate ❖ Bullpen ❖ What's Next
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
ATL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
PHI | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 13 | 0 |
After stranding Odubel Herrera on third in the first inning, the Phillies capitalized on a couple of opportunities in the second. Cameron Rupp led off the inning with an opposite-field home run to give the Phils a 1-0 lead. Two batters later, Tyler Goeddel laced a triple over the head of Braves center fielder Mallex Smith. Peter Bourjos followed with an RBI-single up the middle, extending the lead to 2-0.
Freddy Galvis began the bottom of the fourth with a triple to right. Following Tyler Goeddel being hit by a pitch, Jerad Eickhoff hit an RBI-groundout to plate Galvis, giving the Phillies a 3-0 edge. They had a golden opportunity to add on some more runs in the fifth. Maikel Franco led off with a single and moved to second on a wild pitch. With one down, Cameron Rupp singled, putting runners on the corners for the Phils. Unfortunately, Freddy Galvis bunted and popped out to the pitcher and Tyler Goeddel grounded out to end the inning.
In the sixth, Philadelphia tacked on two more runs. Odubel Herrera and Cesar Hernandez hit singles with two down. Maikel Franco drove both of them in with a bloop single to right, making it a 5-0 ballgame.
IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Casey Kelly | 6.0 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4.50 |
Jerad Eickhoff | 7.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3.84 |
Braves
- Daniel Castro: 2-3, .213 AVG
- Freddie Freeman: 1-4, K, .272 AVG
- Mallex Smith: 1-3, .243 AVG
Phillies
- Cameron Rupp: 3-4, HR, R, RBI, .274 AVG
- Maikel Franco: 2-4, 2 RBI, .247 AVG
- Freddy Galvis: 2-4, 3B, R, .241 AVG
Braves
- Eric O'Flaherty: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 5.84 ERA
- Alexi Ogando: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 3.15 ERA
- Ian Krol: 2.0 IP, 3 H, 2 K, 2.57 ERA
Phillies
- Hector Neris: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1.38 ERA
- Jeanmar Gomez: 1.0 IP, 1 K, 2.55 ERA
What's Next
- Friday, May 12th, 2016: at Detroit, 7:10 p.m.
- Detroit, MI – Comerica Park
- RHP Vince Velasquez (5-1, 2.42 ERA) vs. RHP Mike Pelfrey (0-4, 5.49 ERA)
- TV: CSN, MLB.TV; Radio: 94 WIP