Phillies at Tigers
The Philadelphia Phillies enter the week a half-game out of the second National League wild card spot and are building momentum after a dramatic series win over the weekend. The Phillies will try to keep pushing forward when they host the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday in the opener of a two-game interleague series.
The Phillies are waiting for the big bats in their lineup to break out and carry the team for a stretch, and got a strong sign that one was waking up when Rhys Hoskins blasted a solo home run in the 11th inning on Sunday to lead the team to a 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. "Sometimes you need a reminder that you can do it, you can still do it," Hoskins, who went 2-for-4 in the win after going 1-for-18 over the previous five contests, told reporters. "I barreled a ball right at a guy early in the game. But it just doesn't feel the same when it doesn't get the job done. Hopefully it's big." The Tigers are battling the Baltimore Orioles for the worst record in baseball but snapped a six-game slide on Nick Castellanos' walk-off homer on Sunday to become the final team to reach 30 wins. The Phillies will try to take advantage of Detroit behind right-hander Aaron Nola (8-2, 3.77 ERA) while the Tigers counter with lefty Matthew Boyd.
TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, NBCS Philadelphia, FS Detroit
PITCHING MATCHUP: Phillies RH Aaron Nola (8-2, 3.77 ERA) vs. Tigers LH Matthew Boyd (6-8, 4.13)
Nola had a string of five straight quality starts come to an end against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday, when he was reached for four runs and five hits - three homers - in five innings without factoring in the decision. The LSU product is struggling with his control of late and issued a total of 13 walks over 25 2/3 innings over the last four turns. Nola faced Detroit at home on May 1, yielding one run on seven hits and three walks across 5 2/3 innings.
Boyd could be making his last start with the Tigers and should have plenty of opposing scouts in attendance as one of the most coveted trade candidates on the market. The 28-year-old is posting big strikeout numbers but watched his ERA rise from 2.85 to 4.13 over his last eight starts and was reached for five runs along with six hits - two homers - over six innings in a loss at Cleveland on Thursday. Boyd is seeing Philadelphia for the first time and is 2-4 with a 4.53 ERA in 12 career interleague games.
WALK-OFFS
1. Phillies SS Jean Segura (heel soreness) left Sunday's game and is day-to-day.
2. Detroit CF JaCoby Jones went 5-for-13 with a double and a home run in the last three games.
3. Philadelphia RF Bryce Harper doubled in five of the last seven contests.