Down in Ft. Myers, FL on Thursday, led by their pitchers, the Phillies won their third Grapefruit League contest of the spring. 2008 World Series MVP Cole Hamels started the game, then gave way to some hungry young relievers that are trying to make a solid impression on the Phillies’ brass this spring.
Four pitchers combined to hold the Boston Red Sox to just one hit over 9 innings to help the Phillies claim a 2-0 victory.
Read ahead for some key notes on today’s Phils’ victory and some exclusive quotes from right-hander Scott Mathieson.
–Cole Hamels allowed a lone hit in his four innings of work. Hamels also walked one batter and struck out three.
-In relief, Scott Mathieson and Mike Stutes each threw a pair of innings. Mathieson walked one batter, while striking out two. Stutes allowed no runners and struck out two batters as well.
-Lefty Juan Perez worked out of a bases loaded jam in the 9th inning, following a walk and two errors, to earn the save.
-Jeff Larish started at third base and drove in both Phillies’ runs with a double in the second inning that plated John Mayberry Jr. and Ben Francisco.
-Francisco collected two safeties in the game and is now batting .375 this spring.
–Wilson Valdez saw some action in center field, once Shane Victorino‘s day was done.
–Domonic Brown went 0-for-3 and walked once. He is now 0-for-15 in Grapefruit League action and is 4-for-63 (.063 avg) in MLB regular season, MLB postseason, Dominican Winter League and Spring Training action dating back to August 24, 2010.
Many baseball experts expect that the Phillies will be led by their pitching staff all throughout the upcoming season. According to Scott Mathieson, on Thursday, Philadelphia gave the Red Sox a taste of what National League opponents will have to deal with in 2011.
“Today, pitching was the name of the game. Cole looked really good and Stutes was ‘lights out’, like he’s been all spring,” Mathieson said.
Mathieson, who has been working on the addition of a split-finger fastball to his pitching repertoire, was pleased with his own performance and feels that his efforts will continue to improve as he sees more action in Florida.
“I felt great out there today,” Mathieson stated. “(My) second inning I felt outstanding and was able to use my split a bit better. I feel like each outing this spring has gotten better and better.”
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Jay Floyd is PhilliesNation’s minor league insider. You can check out more from Jay by visiting his site, PhoulBallz.com.
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