Phillies open 4-game set vs. Braves looking to move past New York woes originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
A little home cooking is exactly what the Phillies need.
At least that’s the hope.
The Phillies are back at Citizens Bank Park for a four-game series against the Braves after being swept out of New York. They were outscored 25-8 in three games against the Mets, stretching their Citi Field losing streak to 10 games in the process.
Rather than create more separation between themselves and the second place Mets, the Phillies let their NL East rivals back in the race. They have a four-game lead with 29 to play.
“It gets back to the experience of the players,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said Thursday when asked how his club will move past being swept in New York. “They just have to be themselves. Because who they are is pretty good. We have a really good group. Don’t try to do too much, just be yourself.”
The fact that the Phillies are a veteran team gives Thomson added confidence that they won’t dwell on one bad series.
“These guys have short memories,” Thomson said. “They’ve been through this for a long time. The last couple years, going into the playoffs we’ve had stretches where we didn’t play well, losing streaks and things like that… they come out of it.”
The Phillies’ home ballpark should provide a nice change of scenery. They have a 42-22 record at Citizens Bank Park this season, the fourth best home winning percentage in baseball.
Despite what transpired at Citi Field earlier this week, the Phillies are still in the driver’s seat in the NL East. The sense of urgency remains high.
“These guys want to win and they want to perform,” Thomson said. “They want to win a world championship. That’s what they play for. And a lot of these guys, they haven’t done that yet. They’ve been paid a great deal of money but they haven’t won so that’s on their mind, they want to get it done.”
This has been a lost season for the Braves, who begin this series in fourth place in the NL East with a 61-72 record. But Atlanta has played better lately – they’ve won 13 of their last 18 and scored a total of 23 runs in their last two games.
“They’re swinging the bats well, they’re scoring runs,” Thomson said of the Braves’ recent resurgence. “Their bullpen has been excellent. They’ve been playing well, they’re very talented.”
The Phillies have a 5-4 record against the Braves this season. This series represents the final four games of the season between these two division rivals.
Familiar foes
Aaron Nola will try to set the tone in Thursday’s series opener. This will be Nola’s 38th career start against Atlanta, his most against any opponent. It’s his third outing since returning from a three-month stint on the injured list.
The longest-tenured Phillie showed significant improvement in his last start, allowing two earned runs in six innings against the Nationals last Saturday. Nola’s velocity was up – his fastball topped out at 94.1 miles per hour and averaged 92.6, his highest in a start this season.
What are the expectations for Nola against the Braves?
“Exactly what he did the last time,” Thomson said. “Command the fastball. He threw a lot more curveballs (in his last start) than he normally does but that was part of the gameplan and he had a really good one. I want to see him command his fastball, keep people off balance and just attack the zone.”
Nola needs four strikeouts to pass Cole Hamels (1,844) for the third most career strikeouts in Phillies history. Steve Carlton (3,031) tops the list, followed by Robin Roberts (1,871).
Nola will be opposed by Braves righthander Cal Quantrill, who was claimed off waivers last week. Quantrill made 24 starts for the Marlins this season, including two against the Phillies. He posted a 12.27 ERA in those outings with 10 earned runs in seven and one-third innings of work.
