Phils, Marlins continue set in South Beach
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Desperate for a boost on the diamond, the Miami Marlins are set to unveil catching prospect Rob Brantly tonight in the second installment of a three-game series versus the Philadelphia Phillies.
Brantly was acquired in a deal that sent Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante to Detroit and had his contract selected from Triple-A New Orleans on Monday. Brantly hit .365 with a .389 on-base percentage, four doubles, two homers and 11 RBIs in 14 games with the minor league club, and will give catcher John Buck a breather tonight.
"One thing he needs to work on a little bit is the defense," Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen said. "But they say he swings the bat pretty good and has a chance to be a good player. We'll see pretty soon how good he can be."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The young backstop will catch ace Josh Johnson, who will try to get back into the win column after taking a loss to the New York Mets on Thursday. Johnson gave up three runs in six innings of a 6-1 loss at Citi Field and is 7-8 with a 3.88 earned run average in 23 starts. The right-hander was 2-0 in his previous three starts.
Johnson is 1-1 in two starts against Philadelphia this season and 6-4 with a 3.53 ERA in 16 career games, 14 of which have been starts, in this series.
Miami hopes Johnson can pitch better than Nathan Eovaldi did in last night's 4-0 loss in the series opener. Eovaldi lasted five innings and permitted three runs -- two earned -- and eight hits. He struck out two batters and walked three to fall to 3-8 with both the Dodgers and Marlins this season.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"He has to throw strikes," Guillen said. "He's a kid. We have to figure out how to help him. I don't care how much good stuff you have, if you don't throw strikes, you're going to run into trouble, and that's what I see with him."
Donovan Solano and Jose Reyes had two hits apiece for Miami, which lost for the 10th time in 15 tries.
Philadelphia opened a seven-game trek on a high note thanks to another brilliant pitching performance from Cole Hamels. The high-priced left-hander tossed his second straight shutout by holding the Marlins to seven hits while striking out five and walking one.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I play to win and I'm not gonna go out there and give up when a season can supposedly be given up on already," said Hamels. "I want to win every game I possibly can."
Juan Pierre picked up three hits and drove in a run for the Phillies, who snapped a five-game losing streak against the Marlins and won for third time in four tries. The Phillies are 8-5 in the past 13 games, and will visit Milwaukee for four games on the road trip.
The Phillies placed outfielder Nate Schierholtz on the disabled list with a broken right big toe and recalled infielder Hector Luna from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Schierholtz is expected to miss about a month of action.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kyle Kendrick gets the nod for the Phils tonight and he is 4-9 with a 4.86 earned run average in 27 games (15 starts) this season. Kendrick lasted just 3 1/3 innings in a 12-6 loss to Atlanta last Wednesday and gave up six runs and seven hits.
The right-hander defeated the Marlins back on June 1 and has fared well in his career against them, going 8-2 with a 4.31 ERA in 17 games (12 starts).
Miami is 6-4 against the Phillies this season.