The first part of the home-and-home series with the Toronto Blue Jays did not go so well for Ryne Sandberg's club. The Phils struggled mightily to put runs on the board outside of one Cody-Asche-grand-slam fueled inning on Tuesday.
They'll have their swag-leader Jimmy Rollins back in the lineup tonight after getting a couple of nights off to rest a sore groin. He'll still get a bit of a reprieve as he'll bat second in the Phils designated hitter spot. Ryan Howard is not in the lineup as the Phils face tough lefty Mark Buehrle.
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CSNPhilly's Corey Seidman has the scouting report on Buehrle:
Buehrle, 35, leads the AL with five wins and has shaved one full hit per inning off last year's rate of 9.9 per nine innings.
Buehrle's made eight career starts against the Phillies, but the three from 2002-04 are meaningless in regard to tonight's game.
In 2012, Buehrle faced the Phillies five times as a Marlin and went 2-2 with a 3.24 ERA. In 33 1/3 innings, he struck out 22 and walked two.
Chooch is your cleanup hitter for the evening and JMJ takes Howard's spot at first. That Nix guy is playing shortstop over Freddy Galvis, which is a decision I'd like to know how Sandberg makes. Not because I disagree per se, but really, how do you choose between those two?
The Phils counter with their ace, Cliff Lee, who looks to stop the skid and get the club back to .500