After avoiding a sweep in the series finale against the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday afternoon, the Philadelphia Phillies (74-60) must bring their winning ways to Anaheim, California, for a three-game set against the Los Angeles Angels (52-82). While the blue squad in L.A. has been collecting championship rings recently, the red team has created a habit of accumulating losses over the last few seasons.
The Phillies must force the Angels to swallow a few more home L’s this weekend as the East Coast-based squad looks to maintain a spot in an ever-changing National League playoff race taking shape over the final month of the season.
Who: Philadelphia Phillies (74-60) @ Los Angeles Angels (52-82)
When: Tonight, 9:38 pm ET
Saturday, 10:07 pm ET
Sunday, 4:07 pm ET
Where: Angel Stadium (Anaheim, California)
Friday: RHP Andrew Painter (3-8, 6.04 ERA) vs. LHP Reid Detmers (4-8, 3.62 ERA)
Saturday: LHP Cristopher Sánchez (16-4, 2.62 ERA) vs. RHP Ryan Johnson (3-7, 5.75 ERA)
Sunday: RHP Zack Wheeler (10-5, 3.40 ERA) vs. LHP Yusei Kikuchi (0-4, 6.25 ERA)
Kyle Schwarber became the league’s first hitter to hit 40 home runs after smashing a 425-foot blast to center field in the second inning of Wednesday night’s contest.
Schwarber has hit three home runs in his last five games and enters the weekend series with a three-homer lead over Atlanta’s Matt Olson (37). The Phillies and Braves battle in a critical divisional series when Philadelphia returns home to Citizens Bank Park during Labor Day weekend following the current nine-game West Coast road trip.
Bryce Harper has significantly benefited from the protection of a hitter like Luis Arraez. He brings a career-high 29-game on-base streak into the series against Los Angeles after securing two hits in each of the three games against Seattle, including a 388-foot homer in the first inning of the finale against the Mariners that kick-started the Phillies' offense that afternoon.
Harper suffered through a terrible July with 15 hits and a .172 batting average in 87 at-bats, but has rebounded well since the calendar flipped to August with 27 hits for a .338 average and a season-best 28 walks this month.
Los Angeles’ pitching staff has allowed the sixth-most runs (623) and walked the second-most batters (550) in the American League this season. If Phillies hitters can showcase some of that renewed patience at the plate this weekend, they should get plenty of opportunities to put runs on the board in Anaheim.
On the other end of the spectrum, what do the Phillies get out of starting pitchers Andrew Painter and Zack Wheeler this weekend? Painter has earned two wins in six starts since returning from a demotion to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The rookie owns a 3.80 ERA in 21 1/3 innings this month and stopped the bleeding in the fifth-starter’s spot.
Meanwhile, Wheeler has struggled massively recently, picking up three losses and featuring a 7.59 ERA in 21 1/3 IP this month. He has allowed a season-worst six home runs and 18 earned runs over his last five starts. The 36-year-old will look to bounce back on Sunday afternoon against an Angels squad with the third-worst team batting average (.235) in the A.L. this season.
Despite constant sunshine in Southern California, it’s been cloudy skies surrounding the Angels franchise. The squad enters the series against Philadelphia following a three-game sweep at home to the Cleveland Guardians. While none of the contests were uncompetitive, it’s more of the same for a franchise that last saw postseason action more than a decade ago.
Despite the disappointing sweep by Cleveland, Los Angeles owns a better record at home (29-39) than on the road (23-43) this season. Still, Philadelphia must claim wins against a squad tied for the worst record in the majors.
Offensively, the Angels are powered by Zach Neto, Nolan Schanuel and Mike Trout. Neto leads the squad in hits (123), home runs (22), and RBIs (64), while Schanuel leads the team with a .276 average. Of course, you can never forget about Eagles season-ticket holder Mike Trout any time he is in the lineup. The 12-time All-Star owns a .241 BA with 20 HRs and 47 RBIs in his 16th MLB season.
Detmers, Friday night’s starter, has logged the most innings (149), holds the best ERA (3.62), and has struck out the most hitters (172) on the Angels staff this season. He’s also allowed the most runs (60) of any pitcher for L.A. this season, which helps to showcase the kind of season Angels fans are enduring.
Philadelphia’s lineup should receive a good opportunity to get the bats going against a pair of pitchers with inflated ERAs entering the series… even if one of those starters (Kikuchi) is a dreaded southpaw starting the series finale on Sunday afternoon.
MORE: Previewing the Phillies' playoff landscape
