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Cliff Lee, Phillies Host Charging Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are making a hard charge at the Philadelphia Phillies as the teams meet in Saturday’s Game 2, their final series before the All-Star break.
The afternoon affair from Citizens Bank Park will begin at 1:10 p.m. (PT). Cliff Lee will oppose the visiting Tommy Hanson.
Atlanta (53-36) trailed Philadelphia by six games in the NL East standings on June 19, but is 14-3 since and has cut the lead to 2.5.The Phillies are actually a solid 10-6 in that span, winning their last five series.
Friday night’s opener is still pending with Philadelphia a hefty 170 favorite behind Roy Halladay.
Hanson (10-4, 2.52 ERA) is officially an All-Star snub at fourth in the NL in ERA and among the leaders in wins. He’s been even better the last five starts, going 5-0 with a 1.97 ERA. Pitching in the shadow of teammate Jair Jurrjens (12-3, 1.87 ERA) hasn’t helped.
The 24-year-old right-hander does have a higher ERA away (2.81) than at home (2.23). However, the team is 6-0 in his last six road starts with just a 2.08 ERA.
Hanson has somehow avoided the Phillies in the three series this year. His final two starts against them last year were 11 shutout innings, although Atlanta lost both. He has six career starts against them (1-2, 2.45 ERA), going 0-1 with a 1.13 ERA in the two at Citizens Bank Park.
The ‘under’ is 5-1 in Hanson’s starts against Philadelphia.
Philadelphia (55-33) hit well in its recent six-game road trip (6.17 runs per game). The ‘over’ went 5-1.
The Phillies surprisingly struggled hitting in both May and June (3.73 runs per game combined). Fortunately, the pitching staff has come through all year (3.05 ERA). Atlanta leads the NL with a 3.02 ERA.
Lee (9-6, 2.92 ERA) was selected to pitch in his third All-Star game in addition to teammates Roy Halladay and Cole Hamels. That’s what Phillies brass was expecting when it signed Lee this offseason to form a dream rotation including Roy Oswalt.
Lee struggled with a 3.94 ERA through May with Philadelphia going 6-6. He was tremendous in five June starts (5-0, .21 ERA), before getting roughed up at Toronto (six earned runs over 7 1/3 innings) last Sunday in a 7-4 loss.
The 32-year-old is 0-2 with a 7.84 ERA in two starts against Atlanta this year. The one in Philly was decent on May 6, three earned runs over seven innings in a 5-0 loss.
The crafty lefty will be pitching on an extra day’s rest. He has an incredible 0.57 ERA in his last six starts in that situation, with the ‘under’ going 6-0.
There rivals have already played nine times this season with the Braves winning five. They took two of three at the Phillies in May, holding them to five total runs and the ‘under’ going 2-0-1. The ‘under’ is 12-3-2 in the last 17 meetings overall in Philadelphia.
Philly has baseball’s second-best home record at 32-14, (+10.9 units). The ‘under’ is 6-0-1 in its last seven home games.
Atlanta is a very respectable 25-18 on the road (+6.3 units) after going 10-3 in its last 13. However, none of the last four road series came against winning teams.
A thumb injury landed Philly outfielder Shane Victorino on the disabled list Friday while Placido Polanco (back) was questionable. Atlanta still has outfielder Martin Prado (calf) on the DL.
Weather will be clear and warm in the 80s. Sunday’s afternoon finale will be another good pitching matchup of Cole Hamels against Derek Lowe.
The Atlanta Braves are making a hard charge at the Philadelphia Phillies as the teams meet in Saturday’s Game 2, their final series before the All-Star break.
The afternoon affair from Citizens Bank Park will begin at 1:10 p.m. (PT). Cliff Lee will oppose the visiting Tommy Hanson.
Atlanta (53-36) trailed Philadelphia by six games in the NL East standings on June 19, but is 14-3 since and has cut the lead to 2.5.The Phillies are actually a solid 10-6 in that span, winning their last five series.
Friday night’s opener is still pending with Philadelphia a hefty 170 favorite behind Roy Halladay.
Hanson (10-4, 2.52 ERA) is officially an All-Star snub at fourth in the NL in ERA and among the leaders in wins. He’s been even better the last five starts, going 5-0 with a 1.97 ERA. Pitching in the shadow of teammate Jair Jurrjens (12-3, 1.87 ERA) hasn’t helped.
The 24-year-old right-hander does have a higher ERA away (2.81) than at home (2.23). However, the team is 6-0 in his last six road starts with just a 2.08 ERA.
Hanson has somehow avoided the Phillies in the three series this year. His final two starts against them last year were 11 shutout innings, although Atlanta lost both. He has six career starts against them (1-2, 2.45 ERA), going 0-1 with a 1.13 ERA in the two at Citizens Bank Park.
The ‘under’ is 5-1 in Hanson’s starts against Philadelphia.
Philadelphia (55-33) hit well in its recent six-game road trip (6.17 runs per game). The ‘over’ went 5-1.
The Phillies surprisingly struggled hitting in both May and June (3.73 runs per game combined). Fortunately, the pitching staff has come through all year (3.05 ERA). Atlanta leads the NL with a 3.02 ERA.
Lee (9-6, 2.92 ERA) was selected to pitch in his third All-Star game in addition to teammates Roy Halladay and Cole Hamels. That’s what Phillies brass was expecting when it signed Lee this offseason to form a dream rotation including Roy Oswalt.
Lee struggled with a 3.94 ERA through May with Philadelphia going 6-6. He was tremendous in five June starts (5-0, .21 ERA), before getting roughed up at Toronto (six earned runs over 7 1/3 innings) last Sunday in a 7-4 loss.
The 32-year-old is 0-2 with a 7.84 ERA in two starts against Atlanta this year. The one in Philly was decent on May 6, three earned runs over seven innings in a 5-0 loss.
The crafty lefty will be pitching on an extra day’s rest. He has an incredible 0.57 ERA in his last six starts in that situation, with the ‘under’ going 6-0.
There rivals have already played nine times this season with the Braves winning five. They took two of three at the Phillies in May, holding them to five total runs and the ‘under’ going 2-0-1. The ‘under’ is 12-3-2 in the last 17 meetings overall in Philadelphia.
Philly has baseball’s second-best home record at 32-14, (+10.9 units). The ‘under’ is 6-0-1 in its last seven home games.
Atlanta is a very respectable 25-18 on the road (+6.3 units) after going 10-3 in its last 13. However, none of the last four road series came against winning teams.
A thumb injury landed Philly outfielder Shane Victorino on the disabled list Friday while Placido Polanco (back) was questionable. Atlanta still has outfielder Martin Prado (calf) on the DL.
Weather will be clear and warm in the 80s. Sunday’s afternoon finale will be another good pitching matchup of Cole Hamels against Derek Lowe.
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