The Philadelphia Phillies (33-29) are coming off another sweep of the San Diego Padres in the last two weeks and now sit a season-high four games over .500. They also own the best record in baseball over the last 34 games at 24-10, which marks the beginning of Don Mattingly’s tenure as interim manager.
Philadelphia has not won by wide margins during their hot stretch, but did get their best offensive showing in over two weeks in their 6-4 win on Thursday. The six runs marked the first time since May 18 the lineup scored five or more runs in a game, while their double-digit hit effort in the victory was the first since May 15.
Despite the low offensive output, the Phillies relied on strong pitching to go 12-6 during that 18-game stretch.
They are also holding on to one of the three wild-card spots in the National League.
The surprising Chicago White Sox (33-29) will look to sour the back end of the homestand in this weekend's three-game series. Chicago sits just two games out of first place in the AL Central. The White Sox are coming off an off day on Thursday after dropping two of three at Minnesota.
Both teams have won seven of their last 10 games.
First Pitch Times: Friday, 6:40 p.m. EDT (NBSCP); Saturday, 4:05 p.m. EDT (NBSCP); Sunday, 1:35 p.m. EDT. (NBCSP)
Luzardo did not factor into the decision in his last outing on the road against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The southpaw scattered seven hits, allowed just two earned runs, walked two and struck out six in 5 ⅓ innings in a 4-3 Phillies win, the only victory for the team in that three-game set.
Luzardo has struggled at Citizens Bank Park this season, posting a 7.31 ERA in 32 innings spanning six starts where he’s allowed 36 hits and 26 earned runs, opposed to an impressive 1.54 ERA in six road starts working 35 innings.
This will be the lefty's first home start since May 19, when he faced the Reds and suffered a tough-luck loss after allowing just two earned runs in six innings of work.
The Phillies have struggled against left-handed starters this season, hitting just .185 with a .572 OPS against southpaws, and they will face one to open up the series in Kay.
The 31-year-old was a former first-round pick by the New York Mets in the 2016 Draft out of UConn and owns a 4.86 career ERA. This season, he has been solid for the White Sox.
Kay has allowed two earned runs or less in each of his last six starts, posting a 1.95 ERA in 32 ⅓ innings pitched with 27 strikeouts to 10 walks. The White Sox have gone 5-1 in those games.
Painter is still dealing with some rookie lumps this season, with his last outing against the Dodgers being another example. The righty lasted just 3 ⅓ innings, the shortest outing of his young career, getting tagged for four earned runs on seven hits with two being homers.
The prized pitching prospect’s fastball has been somewhat of an issue so far at the big-league level despite the velocity averaging near 97 mph. Opponents are hitting .383 against his heater, slugging .543 against the pitch and generating less than a 10-percent whiff rate.
He will look to bounce back against a White Sox lineup that is without slugger Munetaka Murakami, who was named the AL Rookie of the Month for May.
Burke is the opposite with his four-seam fastball. He’s had success as opposing hitters are batting just .190 against the pitch with a .320 slugging percentage. It sits at 94 mph and has been his primary pitch, so he will look to use it to keep the Phillies at bay.
Over his last two starts, the righty has racked up 14 strikeouts in 12 ⅓ innings, allowing just six hits and three earned runs.
Are we seeing the new Aaron Nola?
He has seemingly scrapped his four-seam fastball and is bombarding opposing lineups with his knuckle curve. The results have been better for the veteran who is trying to put behind him a rough first half of the season with a few more starts leading up to the All-Star break.
Nola’s last two starts were against the Padres, a lineup that has not been very good this season. However, the righty did what he needed and combined to throw 11 innings, allowing four earned runs on seven hits and striking out 13 while not walking a single hitter.
Will his command and production continue to improve against a White Sox lineup that has hit the fourth-most home runs in MLB?
Sandlin is in his rookie season and was called up at the end of May. He made his big-league debut against the Twins, where he shined, tossing six innings of one-run ball while allowing just one hit, no walks and striking out four.
However, facing the Twins for a second time in as many starts, he struggled, allowing eight earned runs on eight hits in four innings of work.
Adolis García might be breaking out of his 3-for-57 slump he was in heading into the Padres series. The right fielder picked up a hit in each of the three games, including a double and a home run. García is hitting just .196 on the season with a .591 OPS, but the Phillies need him to produce more to help lengthen this lineup that, until Thursday, has struggled to provide a ton of offense.
Over the last month, the Phillies’ pitching staff has posted the sixth-best ERA (3.28), while the team posted a 16-9 record during that stretch. The staff also has the fourth-most strikeouts (234), the second-best WHIP (1.07) and the ninth-lowest batting average against (.229)
The Phillies have yet to win in their City Connect uniforms (0-4), which they wear every Friday home game. This will be the last Phillies home game on a Friday until the end of July, when they welcome the New York Yankees on July 24.
MORE: A potential catching update becomes available for the Phillies
