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NL East Series Preview 8-28-09 through 8-30-09
Filed Under (Series Preview) by mrose at 3:30 PM on 08-28-2009
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| The Philadelphia Phillies(73-52, 1st in NL East) had a bit of a surprise and a possible worry when in Pittsburgh this week. They had opportunities to win all three games, and three times late comebacks caused at the least, extra innings if not a loss. Monday and Tuesday the leads were blown by the bullpen, luckily Ryan Howard saved them on Wednesday, but on Thursday they allowed the starter J.A. Happ to try to finish and he couldn’t do it either. They hope to get the wheels rollin again at home against division rival Atlanta.  Phillies Phandom will have all the information on this series you need.
The Atlanta Braves(67-60, tied for 2nd in NL East 7GB) also had a tough week, one that they thought should be an easy one. They managed to take the finale of a three game set against the pesky Padres with a blowout victory Thursday afternoon. The Braves started the week alone in second, but now find themselves back in a tie for second with the Marlins. Neither team looks to have the horses to get a playoff birth right now, but a good weekend could change that. Check out The Braves Baseball Blog for more. Probable pitching matchups are below: |
| Friday @ 7:05PM EST – Hanson,ATL(9-2,3.12 ERA) vs. Martinez,PHI(2-0,5.14 ERA) |
| Saturday @ 7:05PM EST – Lowe,ATL(12-8,4.48 ERA) vs. Lee,PHI(12-9,2.63 ERA) |
| Sunday @ 8:05PM EST – Jurrjens,ATL(10-8,2.91 ERA) vs. Blanton,PHI(8-6,3.88 ERA) |
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| The Florida Marlins(67-60, tied for 2nd in NL East 7GB) welcomed in the AAA Mets this week to South Florida and they couldn’t even up the attendance with Mets fans! The Fish did manage to take the first two games of the series before the pitching failed them in the finale on Thursday. The series win moved them back into a second place tie, and they look to gain ground in an unlikely playoff race now. FishGuts will have more on the Marlins and this defining series.
The San Diego Padres(54-75, 6th in NL West 22.5GB) are into the role of playing spoiler now. They went into Atlanta as mentioned previously and took two of three from the playoff hopeful Padres, dashing many of their hopes. They can put a real damper in the hearts of the Marlins fans this weekend in South Florida. Probable pitching matchups are below: |
| Friday @ 7:10PM EST – Correia,SD(8-10,4.46 ERA) vs. Volstad,FLA(9-10,4.73 ERA) |
| Saturday @ 6:10PM EST – TBA,SD(—,-.– ERA) vs. Nolasco,FLA(9-8,5.31 ERA) |
| Sunday @ 1:10PM EST – Latos,SD(4-3,4.06 ERA) vs. West,FLA(5-5,4.44 ERA) |
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| The New York Mets(58-70, 4th in NL East 16.5GB) got more injury news this week, as Johan Santana, JJ Putz and Oliver Perez are all now done for the season. Oddly enough, David Wright looks to be coming back in a few days, but they just want to get through the season with no more injuries, or at least none that will linger to next year. This weekend they go to Chicago where the Cubs don’t have the injury excuse for their play, they just aren’t playing to the level they should be. It should be interesting, do the underachivers win, or the injury depleted team? The Real Dirty Mets Blog has more.
The Chicago Cubs (63-62, 2nd in NL Central 9GB) are just a lost team since the all-star break and one could make the argument, all season. They are now 9 full games out of first and just lost a series to the Washington Nationals, so things are just not going well for them. This should be an interesting series to watch..for all the wrong reasons. Probable pitching matchups are below: |
| Friday @ 2:20PM EST – Misch,NYM(0-1,4.09 ERA) vs. Lilly,CHI(9-8,3.40 ERA) |
| Saturday @ 4:10PM EST – Parnell,NYM(3-6,5.08 ERA) vs. Dempster,CHI(7-7,4.07 ERA) |
| Sunday @ 2:20PM EST – Figueroa,NYM(1-3,5.40 ERA) vs. Zambrano,CHI(7-5,3.80 ERA) |
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| The Washington Nationals(46-82, 5th in NL East 28.5GB) are enjoying playing spoiler, or this week, maybe more appropriately, embarasser. The Cubs don’t have that many injuries as stated above, but they are still floundering and lost two of three to the Nationals this week. The Nats can put a dent into the Cardinals this weekend, but they likely will not effect their playoff standing much with the nine game lead.  Check out CenterfieldGate for more.
The St. Louis Cardinals(74-55, 1st in NL Central) are running away with the division right now. The combination of having Matt Holliday in their now vaunted lineupe and good pitching, including the newcomer John Smoltz has put them out to a nine game lead over the Cubs. They should be able to cruise into the playoffs now, but look for them to still try to stay sharp. Probable pitching matchups are below: |
| Friday @ 8:15PM EST – Lannan,WAS(8-9,4.03 ERA) vs. Smoltz,STL(3-5,7.40 ERA) |
| Saturday @ 7:15PM EST – Stammen,WAS(4-6,5.08 ERA) vs. Boggs,STL(1-2,4.58 ERA) |
| Sunday @ 2:15PM EST – Mock,WAS(3-5,5.23 ERA) vs. Wainwright,STL(15-7,2.50 ERA) |
