The Philadelphia Phillies are likely going to
need a good deal of help to make the playoffs, but getting back to .500
is a first step.
The Phillies look to
match their season high with a sixth straight win Tuesday night when
they continue their series against the Miami Marlins.
Philadelphia was 14 games under .500 after losing its first game out
of the All-Star break, but just when it seemed the Phillies were set to
miss the playoffs for the first time in six years and finish with a
losing record for the first time since 2002, a late run has them back in
contention.
Kyle Kendrick struck out a
career-high eight over seven innings and Domonic Brown hit a two-run
homer as Philadelphia won for the 16th time in 22 games, 3-1 in Monday's
series opener.
Kendrick won for the
fifth time in six starts and is part of a staff that has compiled a 2.74
ERA over the last 22 games after posting a 4.25 mark in the first 88
games through July 13.
Philadelphia still
would have to make up considerable ground on St. Louis and three other
teams are also in the mix for the second wild card.
"We definitely know where we're at," Kendrick said. "We've got to win
every night. But we're in the hunt. That's fun. Hopefully we can make
something happen."
A win Tuesday would
bring the Phillies (70-71) to .500 for the first time since June 4 when
they were 28-28. They haven't won six in a row since May 13-18.
Roy Halladay (9-7, 3.87 ERA) will try to extend a run of his own Tuesday and win his fourth straight decision.
The veteran is 5-1 with a 3.00 ERA over his last seven starts,
including 4-0 with a 2.48 ERA at home. He gave up one run over 7 1-3
innings in a 6-2 win at Cincinnati on Wednesday.
"Roy did fine," manager Charlie Manuel said of Halladay, who came off
the disabled list in July. "As his arm gets stronger, he'll get more
velocity. He has good movement. He made pitches when he had to."
The right-hander is 1-1 with a 2.57 ERA in two starts against the
Marlins this year. He surrendered three runs and struck out seven over
seven innings in a 9-2 loss Aug. 15.
Miami (63-79) was held to three hits Monday and lost for the eighth time in 12 games.
"We had opportunities with the right people at the plate, but we didn't swing the ball well," manager Ozzie Guillen said.
Giancarlo Stanton went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts after hitting a
home run in each of his previous three games. He's batting .167 (4 for
24) with no homers and one RBI at Philadelphia this season.
The Marlins send Nathan Eovaldi (4-11, 4.44) to the mound hoping he can snap a personal three-start losing streak.
Eovaldi gave up two runs in five innings of an 8-5 loss to Milwaukee
on Wednesday. The right-hander has received four total runs of support
during his three-game skid.
He is 0-2
with a 4.50 ERA in two starts against the Phillies this year. Jimmy
Rollins and Ryan Howard have both homered off Eovaldi.
