By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor 
Winners of 14 of their last 18 games, the Philadelphia Phillies (15-8) and RHP Ben Lively will aim for their fifth series win of the season in Thursday's series finale matinee against the Arizona Diamondbacks (16-7) at Citizens Bank Park. The club did not win five series last season until June 2-4. Lively will oppose rookie RHP Matt Koch.
Jake Arrieta outdueled fellow ace Zack Greinke in the Phillies' 5-3 win Wednesday evening. The Phillies right-hander improved to 3-0, as he allowed just three runs (one earned) on four hits, two walks and two strikeouts through seven innings and 107 pitches (63 strikes). Behind 3-2 in the sixth, Aaron Altherr delivered with a clutch, three-run home run to seal the victory.
The series finale will be the Phillies' second Facebook-exclusive game this season. The club's Thursday, May 10, home matinee against the San Francisco Giants is also set to be streamed exclusively on the social media platform.
Starting Pitching Matchup:
| Arizona Diamondbacks (16-7) | Philadelphia Phillies (15-8) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RHP | Matt Koch | RHP | Ben Lively | ||
| (0-0, 1.13 ERA) | (0-1, 4.64 ERA) | ||||
RHP Matt Koch, Age: 27
- Career vs. PHI: N/A
- Career at Citizens Bank Park: N/A
Koch, who has just 10 career appearances since his big league debut on Sept. 9, 2016, will make his fourth career start and third appearance of the season. The Diamondbacks recalled Koch from Triple-A Reno on Friday to replace the injured Taijuan Walker in the rotation. In six innings against the San Diego Padres, Koch allowed one run on two hits, two walks and one home run while striking out four batters on 86 pitches (55 strikes).
RHP Ben Lively, Age: 26
- Career vs. ARI: 0-1, 5.56 ERA, 2 G, 2 GS, 11 1/3 IP, 15 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 3 HR, BB, 6 SO, 1.412 WHIP
- Career at Citizens Bank Park: 2-2, 4.64 ERA, 8 G, 8 GS, 42 2/3 IP, 44 H, 24 R, 22 ER, 10 HR, 12 BB, 32 SO, 1.313 WHIP
Lively will make his 20th career start and third against the Diamondbacks. The right-hander is coming off of his first start this season in which he tossed at least six innings. In the Friday no-decision opposite the Pittsburgh Pirates, Lively allowed five hits on one run, three walks, four strikeouts and 96 pitches (56 strikes).
Starting Lineups:
| Arizona Diamondbacks (16-7) | Philadelphia Phillies (15-8) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Player | Bats | Position | Player | Bats | ||
| 1 | LF | David Peralta | L | 1 | 2B | Cesar Hernandez | S |
| 2 | RF | Jarrod Dyson | L | 2 | 1B | Carlos Santana | S |
| 3 | 1B | Paul Goldschmidt | R | 3 | CF | Odubel Herrera | L |
| 4 | CF | A.J. Pollock | R | 4 | LF | Rhys Hoskins | R |
| 5 | 3B | Daniel Descalso | L | 5 | RF | Aaron Altherr | R |
| 6 | 2B | Chris Owings | R | 6 | C | Andrew Knapp | S |
| 7 | C | Alex Avila | L | 7 | 3B | Maikel Franco | R |
| 8 | SS | Nick Ahmed | R | 8 | P | Ben Lively | R |
| 9 | P | Matt Koch | L | 9 | SS | J.P. Crawford | L |
Broadcast Information:
- First pitch: 1:05 p.m.
- TV: Facebook Watch
- Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
Game Notes:
- Center fielder Odubel Herrera has reached base safely in a career-best 25 straight games and has an eight-game hitting streak.
- In six career at-bats against Lively, Diamondbacks slugger Paul Goldschmidt is 2-6 with a home run and two RBI.
- The Phillies enter Thursday's finale just a 1/2 game behind the New York Mets for the division lead. The club is just one of two teams in baseball to win 10 games at home so far this season, joining the New York Yankees.
What's Next:
- Friday, April 27, 2018: vs. Atlanta Braves, 7:05 p.m.
- Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pa.
- RHP Julio Teheran (1-1, 4.00 ERA) vs. RHP Aaron Nola (2-1, 2.30 ERA)
- TV: NBCSP+; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
