Cole Hamels (9-3, 3.34) vs. Josh Outman (0-2, 8.44)
Time: 7:05, Citizens Bank Park
TV: PHL 17
Weather: 79, partly cloudy
Updates: Freddy Galvis has been suspended 50 games after testing positive for a performance enhancing substance… Ruben Amaro Jr. stated that David Herndon has visited with Dr. James Andrews and there’s a “strong possibility” he’ll require Tommy John Surgery… Michael Stutes may undergo exploratory surgery on his right shoulder after not progressing the way the Phillies would have liked… Laynce Nix suffered a setback in his recovery when he felt a pull in his injured calf while running the bases.
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During the ebbs and flows of every baseball season, each team reaches a defining moment in which they’re struggling. The good teams battle back, finding a way to turn things around; the bad ones slip further into the abyss that eventually morphs into meaningless baseball over the final weeks of the season. The Phillies seemed to reach a defining moment on Sunday, after they were swept out of Toronto by the Blue Jays. Now, they can either fight back and begin to make some headway in the standings, or they can continue their recent skid, and watch as a season that once held promise turns into a death march through the dog days of summer. We’ll begin to see just what the Phillies mettle is made of tonight when they begin a ten-game home stand against the Colorado Rockies with Cole Hamels on the mound.
The last few starts have not been friendly to Hamels. Since June 1st, he’s gone 1-2 with a 6.75 ERA. Teams have hit .281 against him in that span. If the Phillies are going to turn it around, it should start tonight with Hamels facing a much maligned Rockies lineup. Though his career numbers against Colorado aren’t great (1-1, 5.09), there’s really no excuse for Hamels to lay an egg tonight. He’s a bona fide ace, and the Phillies need him to pitch like one.
On the bump for the Rockies is former Phillies farmhand Josh Outman. Despite his suggestive moniker, Josh has gotten many men out in his first three starts, as his 7.94 ERA in games started suggests. In his lone start against the Phillies, Outman allowed three runs over six innings of work.
Lineup: Rollins SS, Polanco 3B, Pence RF, Ruiz C, Victorino CF, Wigginton 1B, Mayberry LF, Martinez 2B, Hamels P
In typical Saranac fashion, this brew features a wide array of tastes for your palette. Because it’s a wheat ale, the taste is particularly hoppy, with a slight bitterness. It’s light-bodied and a very drinkable beer. Have it with a roast beef sandwich and some veggies. – By RD
Go Phillies!
