16
NL East Series Preview for 7-16-09 to 7-19-09
Filed Under (Series Preview) by mrose on 16-07-2009
Tagged Under : Andrew Miller, Atlanta Braves, Brendan Donnelly, Carlos Zambrano, Centerfieldgate, Chicago Cubs, Chris Volstad, Cole Hamels, Derek Lowe, Fernando Nieve, Fishguts, Florida Marlins, Garrett Mock, J.A. Happ, Jair Jurrjens, Jamie Moyer, Javier Vazquez, Jeff Francoeur, Jim riggleman, Joe Blanton, Johan Santana, John Lannan, Jordan Zimmermann, Josh Johnson, Kenshin Kawakami, Luis Ayala, Manny Acta, Mike Pelfrey, New York Mets, Oliver Perez, Pedro Martinez, Philadelphia Phillies, Phillies Phandom, Pittsburgh Pirates, Rich Harden, Ricky Nolasco, Scott Olsen, St. Louis Cardinals, Ted Lilly, The Braves Baseball Blog, The Real Dirty Mets Blog, Washington Nationals, Wild Card
 |
 |
 |
| When we last left the Philadelphia Phillies(48-38, 1st in NL East) they were heading into a weekend series against the Pirates on quite a roll. That didn’t stop as they swept the Pirates, including a dramatic come from behind victory on Saturday night coming from five down in the ninth to win. They are 9-1 now after allowing the Marlins to tie them for first and have extended their lead to four games in the division. Five of their players did not get much of an All-Star BREAK as they were sent to participate in the game in St. Louis. The Phillies hope to continue their roll and march toward a third division title in the second half. Check out Phillies Phandom for more Philadelphia insight.Over at Fishguts, they provide this preview:
The Marlins (46-44, 2nd in NL East 4GB) sit four games back from first place and can make up some serious ground right away. The Marlins have struggled thus far versus the Phillies going 2-4 on the season, with the Phillies getting a series sweep back in May at Philadelphia. The four game set will kick off at Land Shark Stadium and both teams will have a bit of a different look since last seeing each other. As of today the Phillies have added Pedro Martinez to the roster and then proceeded to place him on the disabled list with a mild shoulder strain. For the Marlins, they have added some bullpen depth calling up Luis Ayala from AAA, and signing veteran free agent Brendan Donnelly. If the Marlins plan on catching the Phillies atop the NL East they will need strong performances from the starting rotation. Check out Fishguts for more Marlins news and information and a more in depth series preview.. Probable pitching matchups are below: |
| Thursday @ 7:10PM EST – Moyer,PHI(8-6,5.99 ERA) vs. Volstad,FLA(6-8,4.44 ERA) |
| Friday @ 7:10PM EST -Hamels,PHI(5-5,4.87 ERA) vs. Nolasco,FLA(6-7,5.76 ERA) |
| Saturday @ 7:10PM EST – Blanton,PHI(6-4,4.44 ERA) vs. Johnson,FLA(8-2,2.74 ERA) |
| Sunday @ 1:10PM EST – Happ,PHI(6-0,2.90 ERA) vs. Miller,FLA(3-4,4.50 ERA) |
 |
|
 |
| The Mets(42-25, 4th in NL East 6.5GB) entered the All-Star break with two wins in a row and only their second series victory since the beginning of June. They hope that they can build on that success and start becoming healthy in the second half. They have looked dismal of late with bad defense, very little hitting and even the pitching has been sub-par. There is still no news on most of their injuries, specifically to Beltran and Reyes. They begin their four game set in Atlanta against their long time rivals in hopes of getting closer to the division or Wild Card lead. Check out The Real Dirty Mets blog for more Mets information. The Atlanta Braves(43-45, 3rd in NL East 6GB) went into the break after splitting a four game set in Colorado with two losses blamed on the bullpen. The team can’t be too annoyed with the bullpen which seems to have the same suspects mentioned in post game write-ups day by day and you can only expect so many great outtings. Virtually all of their team, including all pitchers got the past three days off, so they are fresh and ready to battle. They will welcome in recently traded Jeff Francouer this weekend with his new mates for a four game set. Check out The Braves Baseball blog for more insight. The probable pitchers are shown below: |
| Thursday @ 7:00PM EST – Perez,NYM(2-2,8.78 ERA) vs. Lowe,ATL(8-7,4.39 ERA) |
| Friday @ 7:35PM EST – Pelfrey,NYM(7-4,4.47 ERA) vs. Jurrjens,ATL(7-7,2.91 ERA) |
| Saturday @ 4:00PM EST – Santana,NYM(10-7,3.09 ERA) vs. Kawakami,ATL(5-6,4.26 ERA) |
| Sunday @ 6:00PM EST – Nieve,NYM(3-3,3.03 ERA) vs. Vazquez,ATL(6-7,2.95 ERA) |
 |
|
 |
| The Washington Nationals(26-61, 5th in NL East 22.5GB) have had probably the busiest All-Star week a team can have when you only send one player to the game. On Sunday after the game, they made multiple player moves while trying to get some fresh blood on the team. Later that night, they made a big move, while expected and fired Manny Acta as team manager, with Jim Riggleman replacing him on an interim basis. They will welcome in the Chicago Cubs to Nats park this weekend and hope that the infusion of new blood will change this team. They have a huge uphill climb if they hope to do anything this season, but more likely are hoping to plan and find some gems for next year. Check out CenterfieldGate for more news, information and insight on the Nats.
The Chicago Cubs(43-43, third in NL Central 3.5GB) split four games with the Cardinals this weekend and have climbed back to the .500 mark for the season at the break. Many people’s off season pick to win the NL Central, the Cubs have been underwhelming this year and hope a fresh start only 3.5 games back in the second half will propel them. The probable pitchers are shown below: |
| Thursday @ 7:05PM EST-Harden,CHI(5-6,5.47 ERA) vs. Lannan,WAS(6-6,3.70 ERA) |
| Friday @ 7:05PM EST – Zambrano,CHI(5-4,3.53 ERA) vs. Olsen,WAS(2-4,6.03 ERA) |
| Saturday @ 7:05PM EST – Lilly,CHI(9-6,3.18 ERA) vs. Zimmermann,WAS(3-4,4.50 ERA) |
| Sunday @ 1:35PM EST – TBA,CHI vs. Mock,WAS(0-2,6.92 ERA) |
Be sure to check back to NLEC or the team affiliate blog frequently!
If interested in helping the NLEC, please contact mrose@nleastchatter.com
