Categories: Gameday

Struggling Phillies and resurgent Nationals try to open again on Tuesday

Nationals mascot, Screech, hopes to be able to get the fans in Washington going as Phillies and Nationals again duck rain on Tuesday night in D.C. (Keith Allison)

The Philadelphia Phillies (39-32) and Washington Nationals (33-38) were rained out of what was originally scheduled to be the opener of a four-game series on Monday night.

The two teams will try once again to get the series underway, this time on Tuesday night at Nationals Park as the forecast once again is calling for a good chance of showers and thunderstorms in the D.C. area.

The National Weather Service as of late on Tuesday afternoon has placed the D.C. area under a severe thunderstorm watch until 10:00pm EDT, so we’ll just have to see whether they have better luck this time around in dodging those storms.

The Phillies are currently in second place in the National League East Division standings and control the second NL Wildcard playoff berth. The Nationals are in fourth place, six games behind the Phillies.

These are two teams who have been headed in opposite directions for weeks. But that direction would not be as reflected in their position in those current standings.

Washington has gone 14-7 over the last three weeks. They have begun to dig their way out of a deep hole in which the club found itself after the first two months of the schedule had been played. Meanwhile, the Phillies led the division for all but seven days until just about a week ago. But the club has dropped 10 of its last 16 games and has been unable to put together any kind of lengthy winning stretch.

TUESDAY STARTING LINEUPS

PHILLIES

Phillies manager Gabe Kapler is giving catcher J.T. Realmuto and left fielder Jay Bruce another day to rest from their recent injuries, which are still listed publicly as minor. Both hope to return in the coming days. Bruce was listed as available to pinch-hit on Monday night, so is likely considered same on Tuesday.

NATIONALS

Nationals manager Dave Martinez going with the old pitcher-hitting-eighth strategy here.

SHIBE VINTAGE SPORTS STARTING PITCHING MATCHUP

PHILLIES – Jake Arrieta: 6-5, 4.31 ERA, 1.447 WHIP, 88 hits over 85.2 IP across 14 starts with a 70/36 K:BB

NATIONALS – Patrick Corbin: 5-5, 4.11 ERA, 1.219 WHIP, 75 hits over 85.1 IP across 14 starts with a 94/29 K:BB

PHILLIES NUGGETS PREGAME NOTES

Key for the Phillies, as usual, is scoring four or more runs. The club is 35-7 this season when reaching that mark, and just 4-25 when scoring three runs or fewer.
This will mark the 12th start of the season for both Knapp and Rodriguez, and the seventh start for Quinn.
Kingery is hitting .500 over his last six games. Eight of his 11 hits going for extra bases (3 doubles, a triple, 4 homers) for a 1.273 slugging percentage. He is one of just three MLB players this season with 130 plate appearances who are hitting at least .340 with a .380 OBP and a .660 SLG %. The other two are the consensus NL MVP leaders, Cody Bellinger

and Christian Yelich. He is batting .385 with five doubles, two homers, and 14 RBIs with RISP this season.
Harper’s .917 caeer OPS at Nationals Park is tops among all players with 1,000 plate appearances, and his 93 career home runs rank second. He is hitting .385 with three doubles over 13 career at-bats vs Corbin. Harper is just four home runs shy of 200 for his big-league career.
Hoskins is one of only two NL hitters (Bellinger) with more than 45 RBI and 45 walks this season.
Arrieta will be working with six days of rest if he starts on Tuesday. The veteran righty is 19-5, 2.60 ERA in 37 career starts on six or more days rest.
Soto is probably the one major under-achieving Nationals hitter to this point, but he has taken Arrieta deep twice in just a half-dozen career at-bats.
On Friday, when the Phillies return home, Chase Utley will be honored for his illustrious career with the club on what will be Toyota Chase Utley Retirement Night. All fans will receive an Utley bobble figurine styled after his famous World Series parade speech.

INJURY REPORT

Phillies: Activated Roman Quinn and placed Jerad Eickhoff on the IL prior to Monday’s rainout. Quinn is being immediately inserted into the starting lineup, giving the club a legitimate defensive center fielder. Pat Neshek is also now back from the IL. He has walked only one of the 75 batters faced in 2019; his 1.33% walk rate is lowest among qualifying relievers, and Neshek has converted eight of his last nine save opportunities dating back to July 2018.