Gameday 27: Phillies vs. Nationals
Philadelphia Phillies (13-13) at Washington Nationals (16-12)
Starting Pitchers:
PHI: Cliff Lee
vs.
TEX: Stephen Strasburg
Time: 7:05, Citizens Bank Park
TV: CSN
Weather: Partly sunny, 66
Media: Twitter and Facebook
A Note for Tonight:
Friday’s opener with the Nationals is the first game the Phillies have played since Tuesday, and their altered rotation has created what shapes up on paper to be a terrific pitcher’s duel. Cliff Lee will take the mound for the Phillies, coming off a less than stellar start against the Diamondbacks in which he allowed five runs (three earned) on eight hits in six innings. Lee has pitched well against the Nationals in his career, going 6-4 in 11 starts with a 2.87 ERA, and he averages a strikeout per inning against Washington.
Lee’s counterpart will be power right-hander Stephen Strasburg, who has scuffled at times this year but is coming off a seven inning shutout performance against San Diego in which he punched out 11 batters. Strasburg has had some success against the Phillies, pitching to a 2.65 ERA in six career starts against them. Against current Phillies players, however, he has yielded only two homers and five RBI in 53 at bats.
Lineup:
Revere CF/ Rollins SS/ Utley 2B/ Howard 1B/ Byrd RF/ Brown LF/ Ruiz C/ Asche 3B/ Lee P
