PHI: 5-7, 5th in NL East; SD: 3-10, 5th in NL West
When: April 19-22
Where: PETCO Park (San Diego, CA)
Probable Pitchers
Thursday: Vance Worley (0-1, 3.75) vs Joe Wieland (0-1, 10.80)
Friday: Cole Hamels (1-1, 3.65) vs Edinson Volquez (0-1, 4.24)
Saturday: Roy Halladay (3-0, 1.17) vs Cory Luebke (1-1, 3.71)
Sunday: Joe Blanton (1-2, 4.26) vs Anthony Bass (0-2, 3.38)
Broadcast Info
Thursday, 10:05, CSN
Friday, 10:05, CSN
Saturday, 8:05, PHL 17
Sunday, 4:05, PHL 17
All Games on 94.1 FM
Player to Watch – 3B Chase Headley (.283; 4 HR; 12 RBI): Headley has been one of the bright spots for the Padres so far. He is hitting .283 with 4 homers and 12 RBIs and is hitting .371 in his last 10 games. Headley is a career .269 hitter and is coming off a two-home run game against Colorado. He is hitting right-handed pitching well as he takes a .310 average into Thursday. The Phillies have a right-hander in Vance Worley on the mound.
Series Overview: Over the last few seasons, the San Diego Padres haven’t been very good. They’ve seen the likes of Adrian Gonzalez and Mat Latos shipped out for few talent. The Padres are not a team that is in a position to win anytime soon. They are off to a 3-10 start in 2012 and have lost their last two games.
San Diego doesn’t have a particularly strong offensive lineup. Yonder Alonso, Jeremy Hermida, Will Venable, and Headley are the only regulars who are hitting above the mendoza line. This is a lineup that Phillies pitching should feast on.
It also could be a series that could bring the Phillies out of their hitting slump. After a 1-0 10-inning loss to the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday night, things couldn’t get much worse. Not all the bats are struggling. Hunter Pence is hitting .326 with 2 homers and 7 RBIs so far. Pence is expected to carry the offense in the absence of Chase Utley and Ryan Howard. Carlos Ruiz is also enjoying a great start as he is hitting .306.
The Phillies are leaving a very large amount of runners on base lately. They are leaving 6.75 runners on base so far this season including eight in Wednesday’s loss. That will need to change if they want to snap out of the loss column.
TTB 