Even after last night's 6-3 rout over the NL East-leading Nationals, the Phillies remain 5 1/2 games out of the Wild Card standings. With eight games left in the regular season, the Phillies basically have to go 8-0 to have a shot. Even if they do go undefeated the rest of the season they still might not make it. Kyle Kendrick (10-11, 3.89 ERA) will attempt to play the role of spoiler tonight as he takes on John Lannan (3-0, 4.43 ERA) and the Nats in game two of this three-game set.
In Kyle Kendrick's last start, a win over the Braves, the right hander tossed 6 2/3 innings of two-run ball. Striking out six and walking two, Kendrick earned his 10th win of the year. Kendrick has arguably been the Phillies' best starting pitcher of the second half. Despite being inconsistent throughout the season, Kendrick has jumped on a long ride of success over the past couple of months. Over his last ten starts (61 1/3 innings), a span starting on August 3, Kendrick is 6-3 with a 3.08 ERA (21 ER). Kendrick also won four-straight games from August 14 to August 30. Kendrick is 1-1 against the Nats this season while he is 3-4 with a 4.75 ERA in his career against them.
Spending majority of the year in AAA, it's safe to say that John Lannan didn't help the Nationals get to where they are this season. Lannan, 28, went 9-11 with a 4.30 ERA in 24 starts for AAA-Syracuse this season. Since returning to the big-league club, Lannan is 3-0 with a 4.33 ERA in four starts. In his last outing, against the Dodgers on Wednesday, Lannan was shelled for six earned runs over 3 2/3 innings. He was let off the hook by his teammates, and he would get a no-decision. Over the years, the Phillies have proven their dominance over John Lannan. In over 80 career-innings against the Phillies, Lannan is 2-12 with a 5.79 ERA. In seven career starts at Citizens Bank Park, Lannan is 1-5 with a 7.06 ERA. Last season, Lannan went 1-2 with a 9.00 ERA in three games there.
Tonight's lineup vs Nationals:
- Rollins SS
- Mayberry CF
- Utley 2B
- Howard 1B
- Chooch C
- Brown RF
- Ruf LF
- Frandsen 3B
- Kendrick P.
TV: CSN, ESPN2 ; Radio: 1210 WPHT, 94.1 WIP.
Follow Erik on Twitter @ErikSeyboldPHI.
