Phillies fans have plenty to be excited about these days. Not only is the team a Major League best 16-5 since the All-Star break, but they are also in the top five in some very important offensive and pitching categories since the Midsummer Classic, including doubles, runs scored and ERA. Tonight, the Phillies head to the desert for a three-game series with Paul Goldschmidt and the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Phils hosted the D'Backs earlier this season and swept them by scores of 4-3, 7-5 and 6-0. Aaron Harang will look to rebound from his last start against the Dodgers while Arizona will send Rubby De La Rosa to the hill to face the recently hot Phillies offense.
Starting Pitching Match-up:
| Philadelphia Phillies (45-57) | Arizona Diamondbacks (54-56) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RHP | Aaron Harang | RHP | Rubby De La Rosa | ||
| 5-12, 4.11 ERA | 9-5, 4.56 ERA | ||||
Since being activated from the disabled list, veteran right-hander Aaron Harang hasn't been great, but he hasn't been bad either. His first start came against his 2014 team, the Atlanta Braves. He tossed five innings of one-run ball in the Phillies 4-1 win. Harang's next start was against the Dodgers last week. He gave up four runs over five innings, walking five in the process during the Phillies 4-3 defeat. Harang's was most successful for the Phillies during their struggles in May. In six starts, he posted a 1.62 ERA.In eight starts since June began, Harang is 1-7 with a 7.46 ERA, and his opponents have hit .340 against him. In his career against Arizona, Harang is 4-9 with a 3.28 ERA. Meanwhile, he's 1-5 with a 3.21 ERA over seven starts at Chase Field.
The D'Backs will counter with 26-year-old right hander, Rubby De La Rosa. In one start against the Phillies in his career, he went five innings, allowing just one run on four hits. He's only allowed more than two runs in one of his last four starts. Last time out, he held the Nationals to two runs over five innings in Arizona's 11-3 rout.
Starting Lineups:
|
Philadelphia Phillies (45-67) |
Arizona Diamondbacks (54-56) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Player | Bats | Position | Player | Bats | ||
| 1 | 1B | Chase Utley | L | 1 | CF | A.J. Pollack | R |
| 2 | 2B | Cesar Hernandez | S | 2 | 3B | Jake Lamb | L |
| 3 | CF | Odubel Herrera | L | 3 | 1B | Paul Goldschmidt | R |
| 4 | 3B | Maikel Franco | R | 4 | LF | David Peralta | L |
| 5 | RF | Domonic Brown | L | 5 | C | Welington Castillo | R |
| 6 | LF | Cody Asche | L | 6 | RF | Yasmany Tomas | R |
| 7 | SS | Freddy Galvis | S | 7 | 2B | Chris Owings | R |
| 8 | C | Carlos Ruiz | R | 8 | SS | Nick Ahmed | R |
| 9 | P | Aaron Harang | R | 9 | P | Rubby De La Rosa | R |
Game Notes:
- Diamondbacks vs. Aaron Harang
- Paul Goldschmidt: 6-15, 2 2B's, 2 HR's, 5 RBI's, 6 BB, 4 K
- Jarrod Saltalamacchia: 6-14, 3 2B's, 3 RBI's, BB, 3 K
- Aaron hill: 4-19, 2B, RBI, BB, 6 K
- Phillies vs. Rubby De La Rosa
- Carlos Ruiz: 1-1, BB
- Ryan Howard: 0-2, 2 K
- Domonic Brown: 0-1, BB, K
- The Phillies are hitting .277 in the second half, good for third in baseball behind the Rangers (.287) and White Sox (.278). They're tied for fifth in both runs scored with 110 and doubles with 42. The pitching staff has also performed well since the All-Star Break. The teams' 3.31 ERA is good for fourth in Major League Baseball.
- Ryan Howard needs one more homer to reach 20 on the season, which would give him his ninth season with that many long balls, passing Pat Burrell for second on the Phillies all-time list. Mike Schmidt leads that list with 14 seasons with 20+ home runs.
- The Phillies haven't lost a series in Arizona since 2011 and are 26-31 all-time at Chase Field.
- Odubel Herrera and Maikel Franco are the first pair of Phillies rookies to have 20 or more doubles in the same season since Don Money and Larry Hisle in 1969.
- D'Backs starter Rubby De La Rosa has given up 24 home runs this season, second only to former Phillie Kyle Kendrick. He's given up 26.
Broadcast Information:
Gametime: 9:40pm EST
Location: Chase Field, Phoenix , AZ
Weather: 99 degrees, mostly cloudy, 0% chance of rain
TV: CSN
Radio: 94 WIP, 1210 WPHT, WTTM 1680, SBP 1480 (Sp.)
Brandon Apter, Publishing Editor for Philliedelphia.com
