Pitching, fielding, the offense, it all went cold this past weekend at Citizens Bank Park and yet the Phillies sit just 1 1/2 games out in the division with the fourth best record in the National League.
The Marlins, meanwhile, sit nine games below .500 but are riding a two-game winning streak.
Jake Arrieta gets the nod for the Phillies in the series opener. Through four starts he's carrying a 1.82 ERA to go along with a 0.94 WHIP. He's surrendered just one run over his last two starts, having tossed seven innings in each.
The Marlins counter with Dan Straily who will be making his first start of the season after coming off the disabled list with a right forearm strain.
Favorable Matchup
It's a small sample size, but Rhys Hoskins has outstanding career numbers against Straily; 6-for-8 with three homers and seven RBIs.
Matter of Time
Carlos Santana enters Monday with a .176 BABIP, the second lowest of 174 qualifying hitters in baseball. His career BABIP is .267, so it should be a matter of time before the hits start falling favorably. His medium plus hard contact for the year is 79% whereas he finished last year with 81.6% - the numbers are there, just the luck hasn't been.
Roster Move
After Sunday's game the Phillies optioned Jake Thompson to Triple-A Lehigh Valley and today they recalled left-handed reliever Zac Curtis. The 25-year-old left-hander had a 2.61 ERA over nine appearances with the IronPigs this season. For his career at the major league level, he has a 4.57 ERA and 1.62 WHIP over 27 appearances.
Tonight's Phillies Starting Lineup
1. Cesar Hernandez 4
2. Rhys Hoskins 7
3. Odubel Herrera 8
4. Aaron Altherr 9
5. Carlos Santana 3
6. Scott Kingery 6
7. Maikel Franco 5
8. Jorge Alfaro 2
9. Jake Arrieta 1
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