The Rockies had a good start to the road trip over the weekend as they took the first game of the series against the Orioles, but they faltered in the last two and lost them both. They are headed into Philadelphia to take take on the Phillies. For the first time in nine years the Rockies will look over and not see Charlie Manuel in the Phillies dugout. Manuel was "replaced" by the Phillies after they lost 19 of 23 games. Ryne Sandberg is getting his first shot at managing at the Major League level as he was named the replacement for the Phillies. The Rockies will look to make it a rough transition for Sandberg and make sure that he does not get the team rolling while they are in town.
The Rockies will be sending Jeff Manship to the mound tonight to face off against the Phillies. Manship has not made a very good impression with the Rockies this year in his two starts so far. He is 0-2 on the year with a very poor 7.20 ERA. He is still looking for his first win as a member of the Rockies and his first win in the National League. He came over from Minnesota as a free agent after last season but has failed to impress so far. The 28 year old pitched for Notre Dame and was a 14th round selection of the Twins in the 2006 draft. This year he made one start on the road which was against the Mets on August 8th. He did not pitch bad in the game but still took the loss. He went five innings allowing four hits, two runs, walked three and struck out four. There is a brief history between Manship and current Phillies hitters as they are hitting for a .462 average with one home run and eight RBI in 14 combined at bats. This year at the Major League level he has struggled with the location of his pitches. He has issued five walks in his 10 innings pitched on the year which is a high number, but he is also leaving pitches up in the zone that opposing players are doing damage with. He does not have the type of stuff to get away with pitches up in the zone. He needs to keep the ball down and make sure hitters can't extend their arms on the swing.
The Phillies will be sending Ethan Martin to the hill tonight to take on the Rockies offense. On the year Martin is 1-2 with a 6.28 ERA in three games started. Martin was called up on the first of August to fill in for the depleted starting staff. He has good stuff as his fastball sits in the mid 90's and has a plus curveball that he uses as his secondary pitch. His slider is average right now but has the potential to be a better pitch for him. He has struggled at times early on in his career with control but if he manages to control his stuff then he could be a very dangerous opponent. This will be the first time that the Rockies have ever faced Martin, so they will look to see his arsenal early in the game and then jump all over his mistakes.
The Phillies lineup for the game tonight is as follows:
1. Jimmy Rollins, SS
2. Carlos Ruiz, C
3. Chase Utley, 2B
4. Dominic Brown, LF
5. Darin Ruf, 1B
6. Cody Asche, 3B
7. John Mayberry, CF
8. Casper Wells, RF
9. Ethan Martin, P
The Rockies lineup for the game tonight is as follows:
1. Dexter Fowler, CF
2. Corey Dickerson, LF
3. Troy Tulowitzki, SS
4. Michael Cuddyer, RF
5. Wilin Rosario, C
6. Todd Helton, 1B
7. Nolan Arenado, 3B
8. DJ LeMahieu, 2B
9. Jeff Manship, P
First pitch for the game tonight is at 5:05 PM Mountain time. The Rockies will look to end their mini-two game skid and get to .500 on the road trip. On paper this does not seem to be much of a pitcher's duel, so look for the offenses to duel it out tonight.
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