Philadelphia, PA – Coming off of a nine-game road trip, in which the Philadelphia Phillies (46-72) lost five of their last six, rookie right hander Aaron Nola will be making sixth career start tonight against knuckleballer R.A. Dickey and the Toronto Blue Jays (65-54) in Interleague baseball.
With right hander David Buchanan optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, the Phillies are currently running with a four-man rotation. Following Nola is LHP Adam Morgan (3-4, 4.11 ERA), RHP Jerome Williams (4-8, 5.47 ERA), and RHP Aaron Harang (5-14, 4.79 ERA). Tonight would have been Buchanan's turn in the rotation to start.
Matt Breen of The Philadelphia Inquirer alludes that Jerad Eickhoff, one of the pieces acquired from the Texas Rangers in the Cole Hamels trade, could be promoted to make his major league debut on Saturday in Miami.
Returning to the starting lineup tonight will be second baseman Chase Utley, who was off Sunday in the series finale against the Milwaukee Brewers. Both acting team president Pat Gillick and general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. stated on the air Tuesday that Utley will likely remain with the team for the remainder of the season.
Rookie third baseman Maikel Franco (wrist) has been placed on the disabled list with a small, non-displaced fracture of his left wrist. Outfielder Aaron Altherr will take his spot on the roster, according to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com.
Phillies' general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. is 'unsure' if the rookie will return this season.
Franco had been sidelined since getting hit by a pitch on August 11 against the Arizona Diamondbacks' Jeremy Hellickson in the top of the first inning.
Former Phillies outfielder Ben Revere will make his return to Citizens Bank Park tonight for the first time since being dealt to Toronto on July 31.
Starting Pitching Matchup:
| Toronto Blue Jays (65-54) | Philadelphia Phillies (46-72) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RHP | R.A. Dickey | RHP | Aaron Nola | ||
| (7-10, 3.96 ERA) | (3-1, 4.25 ERA) | ||||
Dickey, 40, will take the mound for the fourth time in his career at Citizens Bank Park. He has a lifetime 3.94 ERA and 1.813 WHIP ratio over 16.0 innings pitched at the venue.
The 2012 National League Cy Young Award winner last opposed the Phillies on July 29 at the Rogers Centre. In eight innings of work, Dickey allowed two runs, zero earned, on seven hits and a walk as the Blue Jays went on to win in convincing fashion, 8-2.
Nola, 22, was 1-0 with a 5.73 over two starts during the Phillies' recent road trip.
The right hander out of Louisiana State University allowed a career-high nine hits, and struck out a career-low two batters in his last start, August 12 at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona.
Starting Lineups:
| Toronto Blue Jays (65-54) | Philadelphia Phillies (46-72) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Player | Bats | Position | Player | Bats | ||
| 1 | SS | Troy Tulowitzki | R | 1 | 2B | Chase Utley | L |
| 2 | 3B | Josh Donaldson | R | 2 | 3B | Cesar Hernandez | S |
| 3 | RF | Jose Bautistia | R | 3 | CF | Odubel Herrera | L |
| 4 | 1B | Edwin Encarnacion | R | 4 | RF | Jeff Francoeur | R |
| 5 | C | Russell Martin | R | 5 | 1B | Darin Ruf | R |
| 6 | LF | Ezequiel Carrera | L | 6 | LF | Cody Asche | L |
| 7 | CF | Ben Revere | L | 7 | SS | Freddy Galvis | S |
| 8 | 2B | Ryan Goins | L | 8 | C | Cameron Rupp | R |
| 9 | P | R.A. Dickey | R | 9 | P | Aaron Nola | R |
Game Notes:
#Phillies -153 run differential ranks last in the Majors. #BlueJays rank first with a +138 run differential.
— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) August 18, 2015
- Active members of the Phillies' offense are batting a career .242/.296/.374 against Dickey with five doubles, one triple, two home runs, six walks and seven runs-batted-in.
- Since returning from the disabled list on August 7, Utley is batting .500/.500/.808, 13-for-26, with four runs scored, five doubles, one walk, one home run and five runs-batted-in. He is currently in the midst of a seven-game hitting streak.
- Over their last ten games played against the Blue Jays in South Philadelphia, the Phillies have been defeated in eight, averaging five runs and nine hits per contest.
Broadcast Information:
- First-pitch: 7:05 pm EST
- TV: CSN
- Radio: 94 WIP, 1210 WPHT, WTTM 1680 (Sp.)
What's Next:
- Wednesday, August 19, 2015: vs. Toronto Blue Jays, 7:05 pm
- LHP Mark Buehrle (13-5, 3.31 ERA) vs. LHP Adam Morgan (3-4, 4.11 ERA)
- TV: CSN; Radio: 94 WIP, 1210 WPHT, WTTM 1680 (Sp.)
Matt Rappa (@mattrappasports) is managing editor of Philliedelphia.com.
