PHI: 21-9, 1st in NL East; ATL: 18-15, 3rd in NL East
When: April May 6-8
Where: Citizens Bank Park (Philly, PA)
Probable Pitchers
Friday: Cliff Lee (2-2, 3.66) vs. Derek Lowe (2-3, 3.72)
Saturday: Kyle Kendrick (1-2, 2.08) vs. Julio Teheran (0-0, -.–)
Sunday: Cole Hamels (4-1, 2.66) vs. Jair Jurrjens (3-0, 1.52)
Broadcast Info
Friday, 7:05, TCN
Saturday, 7:05, PHL 17
Sunday, 8:00, ESPN
All Games on 1210 AM
Player to Watch – 3B Chipper Jones: He’s definitely back to his usual dominant form. Jones has been consistent in the first month of the season for the Braves, hitting .286 with three home runs and a team-high 23 RBIs.
There was a lot of skepticism this off season on whether or not Jones would be fully healthy for the Braves to start the season. He’s proved a lot of the critics wrong, getting himself back into his normal game shape where he can be a scary bat any given day.
Overview: First thing’s first: Roy Oswalt will miss his start. In his place, Kyle Kendrick will start on Saturday. The Braves are calling up Julio Teheran to make a spot start on Saturday, bumping back Jair Jurrjens to Sunday’s start so Tommy Hanson or Tim Hudson won’t pitch on short rest.
The Braves and Phillies are back at it again. The Phils lead the season series 2-1, after shutting down the Braves twice in Atlanta. With the best record in the NL, the Phils have a target on their back. But no one is eying them more than the division rival Braves, who are sick of being number 2 (and we all know what number 2 is).
The Braves have themself a strong cast of weapons offensively. To go with Jones, they have second year player Jason Heyward (.233/7/14) who is struggling, catcher Brian McCann (.304/2/16) and 2B Martin Prado (.270/3/18).
The pitching is going to be the main story of this series. Atlanta boasts the best ERA in the NL with a 2.94. The Phils are in third with a 3.03. Both teams also have five shut outs but the Phils have four complete games as opposed to Atlanta’s two. They are also both two-of-four teams who have yet to allow 100 runs this season (Milwaukee and Oakland) and second and third in strike outs in the majors.
You would say to expect some low-scoring games this weekend but with the location of the series being in Philly, we could see some high-scoring matches and the pitching thrown out the window.
TTB 