MLB Baseball Matchup
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Philadelphia Phillies |
Atlanta Braves |
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| Teams |
|
|
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| Philadelphia Phillies |
9 |
9½ |
9½ |
| Atlanta Braves |
-154 |
-150 |
-155 |
Odds subject to change |
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 Reigning NL MVP Jimmy Rollins' struggles haven't kept the Philadelphia Phillies from holding on to first place in the NL East. Former MVP Chipper Jones' hot hitting isn't getting the Atlanta Braves any closer to the top spot.
Rollins and the Phillies look to increase their lead over Jones and the Braves in the NL East when the teams open a three-game series Friday night.
Philadelphia (36-26) has won nine of 11, taking a 2 1/2-game division lead over second-place Florida and a 3 1/2-game lead over third-place Atlanta (32-29).
The Phillies continue to win even though Rollins is batting .161 (5-for-31) with no homers and one RBI in his last eight games. In a 5-0 win over Cincinnati on Thursday, the 2007 NL MVP was yanked by manager Charlie Manuel after failing to run hard on a popup that was dropped.
"He's the manager and that's what he had to do," Rollins said. "He has two rules: Be on time and hustle. I broke one."
Rollins will try to get back on track Friday, when he faces a Braves team against which he is hitting .357 (5-for-14) this season. He helped Philadelphia take two of three games at home against Atlanta from May 13-15.
But the Phillies will have to contend with Jones, who went 5-for-8 with a home run and a double in that series. The 1999 NL MVP has a 15-game hitting streak against Philadelphia, batting .362 (21-for-58) with seven home runs, six doubles and 18 RBIs.
On Thursday night, Jones hit his 400th homer as the Braves beat the Marlins 7-5. He is the third switch-hitter to hit 400, following Hall of Famers Mickey Mantle (536) and Eddie Murray (504).
"To be lumped in with those guys is what I'm shooting for," Jones said. "This is a step closer but still a long, long way from those guys. They set the bar really high."
Jones also went 4-for-5 to raise his major league-leading batting average to .418. The last player to hit .400 for a season was Boston's Ted Williams, who batted .406 in 1941.
The Braves won three of four against the Marlins despite allowing 20 runs. Atlanta now gives the ball to ace Tim Hudson (7-4, 3.01 ERA), who is 1-2 with a 4.00 ERA in his last four starts.
Hudson, who is recovering from a strained left hamstring, said Wednesday he will be able to start. Braves manager Bobby Cox has said he'd have an emergency starter ready.
In his last outing, the right-hander gave up four runs - three earned - and seven hits in six innings as Atlanta lost 6-2 at Cincinnati on Sunday.
Hudson is facing the Phillies for the first time this season. He is 0-3 with a 5.24 ERA in his last seven outings against them.
Rollins was 7-for-17 (.412) with two doubles and two triples against Hudson last year. Phillies slugger Ryan Howard, homerless in six consecutive games and 10 of 11, has hit .321 (9-for-28) with three homers lifetime against Hudson.
Philadelphia will start Jamie Moyer (6-3, 4.65 ERA), who has won four straight outings. Moyer, though, has allowed nine runs in his last two starts.
The veteran left-hander gave up five runs and seven hits in seven innings as Philadelphia beat Florida 7-5 on Sunday. It was his 236th career victory, tying him with Whitey Ford for 57th place on the all-time list.
Moyer went 2-2 with a 5.55 ERA in four starts versus the Braves last season, and is 3-8 with a 5.42 ERA in 11 starts and one relief appearance all-time against them.
Pick: Atlanta Braves
Result: Lost
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