Phillies Week in Review: They're On the Home Stretch Now
Sep 21, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Maikel Franco (7) hits a two RBI single during the sixth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies defeated the White Sox, 8-3. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
The Phillies are heading into their final week of action in 2016. Take a look at who’s struggling and surging in the home stretch of the season.
The biggest news in baseball this week was the tragic death of the Marlins young ace Jose Fernandez. The loss was felt throughout the baseball world as each MLB team honored Fernandez’s memory with a moment of silence on Sunday.
The Phillies finished the week with a 3-3 record, taking both games of their short series against the White Sox and dropping two of three against the Wild Card leading Mets.
The Phils pitching was readful this week. The bullpen struggled mightily, and the team lost to the Mets in historically bad fashion on Sunday when they were shut out 17-0.
Let’s take a look at who was surging and who was struggling for the Fightins as we head into the home stretch of the 2016 MLB regular season.
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Surging Hitters
Darin Ruf was red hot at the plate this week in limited playing time. Ruf hit .667 with two homers and five RBI in just two games played this week.
Cody Asche had a nice week at the dish after some recent struggles. Asche hit .429 over his last seven games.
Cesar Hernandez continued his strong offensive season this week. Cesar hit .364 with two triples.
Odubel Herrera also had a great week. Odubel batted .364 with a homer and a triple.
Maikel Franco had a fantastic offensive week. The young third baseman hit .360 with three homers and ten RBI.
Freddy Galvis and Tommy Joseph also finished the week with strong offensive numbers. The duo combined to hit .311 with a homer, three doubles, and six RBI.
Struggling Hitters
Cameron Rupp had a tough week at the plate. Rupp hit just .188 with five strikeouts in 16 at bats.
More from That Balls Outta Here
Jorge Alfaro also had a poor week. The promising young catcher hit just .167 in two games played.
Aaron Altherr had a rough week at the dish. Altherr hit just .063 with six strikeouts in 16 official at bats.
Ryan Howard’s farewell tour is off to a poor sport. Howard batted just .125 with a homer. This final week of games will be Howard’s goodbye to the City of Brotherly Love.
Here’s hoping he can finish the season strong and have his final chapter with the Fightins end on a happy note.
Surging Pitchers
Alec Asher had a strong outing this week, throwing five strong innings in the Phillies 10-8 win against the Mets. The final score was the result of some sloppy defensive plays. Asher had to exit the game after the 5th after two costly errors from Freddy Gavlis and Maikel Franco.
Severino Gonzalez and David Hernandez had nice week’s out of the pen. The duo combined for six scorless innings and four strikeouts.
Jerad Eickhoff had a nice start against the White Sox this week. Eickhoff gave up just three earned runs in seven innings pitched with six strikeouts to just one walk.
Struggling Pitchers
It was a dreadful week for the Phillies relief arms not named Severino Gonzalez or David Hernandez. The rest of the Fightins bullpen combined to give up 30 earned runs in 17 innings pitched, which is good for a 15.88 ERA.
Jeremy Hellickson had a tough start this week for the Phils. Hellickson gave up six earned runs in just 4.1 innings pitched against the Mets.
Jake Thompson had a rough week out of the rotation. Thompson finished the week with a 6.00 ERA over two starts.
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