The Philadelphia Phillies will aim to snap a three-game overall losing streak and a four-game home skid on Tuesday night when they play the opener of a two-game series against the visiting Miami Marlins.
The Phillies have dropped 10 of their last 14 games, with the team giving up 23 runs over the last two contests.
“Not our best, obviously,” slugger Bryce Harper said after Philadelphia’s 12-5 setback to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday. “Not playing the way we need to be playing right now. Just gotta get home, flush this road trip, take the good things that we can and get ready for Tuesday.”
Harper said the National League East-leading Phillies have plenty of room to improve. The two-time NL MVP added they can’t let up in their two-game series vs. the cellar-dwelling Marlins and four-game set against the fourth-place Washington Nationals.
“It’s still the big leagues, so still got to go in and play the game the right way,” Harper said. “We’ve just got to be better, both sides of the ball.”
Philadelphia’s Alec Bohm has been pretty good in his own right, however. He had a two-run double in the first inning Sunday to extend his hitting streak to 13 games, during which he is 18-for-58 with nine RBIs and seven runs.
Unfortunately for the Phillies, Bryson Stott is 3-for-31 in August, and Brandon Marsh was 0-for-20 until his RBI single in the seventh inning on Sunday.
The Phillies will turn to right-hander Taijuan Walker (3-3, 5.60 ERA) to start Tuesday’s game. He is expected to be reinstated from the injured list after being sidelined following a start on June 21 due to a finger injury.
Against Miami on May 11, Walker allowed one run on eight hits in six innings of the Phillies’ 8-3 victory. He is 6-2 with a 3.26 ERA in 13 career appearances (12 starts) against the Marlins.
Walker would be wise to tread lightly around Jake Burger, who homered in his third straight game Sunday as Miami snapped a three-game skid with a 7-6 victory over the San Diego Padres.
Burger has gone deep 12 times since the All-Star break.
“I’ve always felt like I’m one of the best power hitters in the game, and now it’s just swinging at the right pitches and having the right approach and going about it the right way every single day,” said Burger, 28.
“I give kudos to this coaching staff. Just keep hammering that home. It’s baseball, there’s ebbs and flows, so I’m not immune to knowing that this isn’t going to last forever, but if I can keep myself in these types of zones for longer, I feel like I’m going to have a really, really good career.”
Burger also homered in Miami’s 7-4 victory over Philadelphia on June 27. Teammate Jesus Sanchez went deep on Sunday against San Diego and drove in two runs for the second straight game.
The Marlins, who have won three of seven meetings vs. the Phillies this season, have yet to announce their starting pitcher for the series opener.
–Field Level Media