Final: Phillies 5, Rays 3
WP: David Buchanan (1-5, 7.00 ERA) LP: Matt Moore (1-1, 7.23 ERA) SV: Jonathan Papelbon (16)
Philadelphia, PA - Playing against the Tampa Bay Rays (47-48) for the first time since 2012, the Philadelphia Phillies (33-62) came out on top against their former World Series opponent in the Interleague series opener.
Closer Jonathan Papelbon recorded his 16th save of the season, 122nd save as a Phillie, and 341st save of his career in the top of the ninth inning. He has tied Hall of Famer Rollie Fingers for 12th on the all-time saves list.
Right fielder Grady Sizemore, who released by the Phillies on June 1, went 2-2 with a walk and run scored tonight in his return to Citizens Bank Park.
Sizemore, 32, hit .250/.304/.354 over 99 career games in red pinstripes.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
| Rays | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 2 |
| Phillies | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 5 | 9 | 1 |
The Rays were the first to score, in the top of the second inning, with a pair of runs. With center fielder Kevin Kiermaier on third base and Sizemore on first, second baseman Logan Forsythe brought both runners home on a deep double to left center field.
This lead for Tampa would not last long, however, as the Phillies answered in the next half-inning. After two walks and a single loaded the bases, the runner on third, right fielder Jeff Francoeur, scored on a wild pitch by opposing southpaw, Matt Moore. Two batters later, after Phillies' starter David Buchanan helped his own cause with a walk to re-load the bases, second baseman Cesar Hernandez hit a two-run double to give his team a 3-2 advantage.
Three innings later, the Phillies tacked-on two insurance runs to increase their lead. After Buchanan struck out, Hernandez tripled for the second time of the season to put a runner in scoring position with less than two outs. Even though left fielder Ben Revere struck out looking, the Phillies were still able to capitalize. Against right handed reliever Alex Colomé, who came on in relief, rookie third baseman Maikel Franco hit a RBI-single to left field. This was Franco's 35th RBI of the season in 59 games.
Later in bottom of the fifth against Colomé, first baseman Darin Ruf, hit a RBI-single to right field, giving the Phillies a 5-2 lead.
Buchanan lasted 6.1 innings tonight, allowing three runs on six hits and three walks. He was pulled by interim manager Pete Mackanin after allowing a one out, RBI-single to pinch-hitter Brandon Guyer in the top of the seventh. Relievers Jake Diekman and Luis Garcia escaped the inning without further damage, striking out pinch-hitter Joey Butler and Forsythe respectively.
Right handed reliever Jeanmar Gomez threw a scoreless inning of relief for the Phillies in the top of the eighth inning. Gomez has allowed just five earned runs over his last 22 appearances (25.0 innings).
All 14 of Papelbon's pitches thrown in the ninth inning were strikes.
Tonight's victory snapped a 15-start winless streak for Buchanan, which dated back to early August of last season.
Starting Pitchers
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Moore | 4.2 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 7.23 |
| David Buchanan | 6.1 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 7.00 |
- Moore: L; 83 pitches, 48 strikes; 2 groundouts, 4 flyouts; 20 faced batters
- Buchanan: W; 98 pitches, 67 strikes; 6 groundouts, 2 flyouts; 27 faced batters
Out of the 'Pen
Rays
- Alex Colomé (5th, 6th): 1.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 4.66 ERA
- Xavier Cedeno (7th): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO, 0 HR, 2.74 ERA
- Steven Geltz (8th): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO, 0 HR, 3.35 ERA
Phillies
- Jake Diekman (7th): 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 5.19 ERA
- Luis Garcia (7th): 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 3.59 ERA
- Jeanmar Gomez (8th): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 2.38 ERA
- Jonathan Papelbon (9th): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0 HR, 1.72 ERA
At the Plate
Rays
- Logan Forsythe: 1-3, 2B, 2 RBI, BB, .280 AVG
- Kevin Kiermaier: 2-4, 2 R, 2B, .250 AVG
- Brandon Guyer: 1-2, RBI, .262 AVG
Phillies
- Cesar Hernandez: 2-4, R, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI, .280 AVG
- Maikel Franco: 2-4, R, RBI, .283 AVG
- Jeff Francoeur: 2-3, R, BB, .263 AVG
What's Next:
- Tuesday, July 21, 2015: vs. Tampa Bay Rays, 7:05 pm
- RHP Nathan Karns (4-5, 3.63 ERA) vs. RHP Aaron Nola (MLB debut)
- TV: CSN; Radio: 94 WIP, 1210 WPHT, WTTM 1680 (Sp.)
Matt Rappa (@mattrappasports) is managing editor of Philliedelphia.com.
