After a disappointing 3-4 road trip against a pair of divisional rivals in the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Francisco Giants, the Los Angeles Dodgers now take on the Philadelphia Phillies for the first time this season. Friday’s matchup marks the start of a six-game homestand.
Making his fifth start of the season is right-hander Kenta Maeda, who’s looking to close out the month of April on a positive note.
In his last outing against the Diamondbacks, Maeda allowed six earned runs and nine hits (four home runs) in five innings pitched — increasing his ERA to 8.05 and home runs allowed per nine innings to 3.3 in the process.
Maeda has allowed at least one home run and a minimum of three runs in each of his four starts thus far. Maeda’s struggles are confounding but may be a result of overthrowing, as velocities on his pitches is up from last season.
The Phillies counter with 26-year old Jerad Eickhoff, who is making his second career start against the Dodgers.
Eickhoff last pitched on Saturday against the Atlanta Braves, yielding just one earned run and four baserunners in five frames with seven strikeouts. When Eickhoff faced the Dodgers last season he allowed four runs on seven hits, including two home runs.
The right-hander did record eight strikeouts over six innings, but didn’t factor into the decision of a Phillies home win.
Justin Turner enters Friday’s contest with a career-high 13-game hitting streak. During the span, he is batting .373 (19-for-51) with four doubles and five runs scored. Turner leads the National League with nine doubles this season, trailing only Boston’s Mitch Moreland (11) for most in the Majors.
Corey Seager, who celebrated his 23rd birthday on Thursday, has homered in two consecutive games. For the season, the 2016 National League Rookie of the Year has posted a slash line of .318/.398/.565 with 11 extra-base hits in 85 at-bats.
Yasiel Puig sits for the first time, having played every inning thus far through 23 games. Kiké Hernandez starts in right field, which places Andrew Toles in center. Cody Bellinger makes his fourth career start in left field.
The red-hot Phillies enter play riding a six-game winning streak and in second place in the NL East with an 11-9 record. Cesar Hernandez leads all Philadelphia players (minimum 30 at-bats) in batting average (.321), on-base percentage (.367), slugging (.536), and is tied with Maikel Franco for the team lead with four home runs.
Though, Hernandez’s 10 RBI are tied with Freddy Galvis for second on the team, behind Franco (20).
Dodgers lineup:
CF: Andrew Toles
SS: Corey Seager
3B: Justin Turner
1B: Adrian Gonzalez
C: Yasmani Grandal
2B: Chase Utley
LF: Cody Bellinger
RF: Kiké Hernandez
P: Kenta Maeda
Phillies lineup:
2B: Cesar Hernandez
SS: Freddy Galvis
CF: Odubel Herrera
3B: Maikel Franco
RF: Michael Saunders
LF: Aaron Altherr
1B: Tommy Joseph
C: Cameron Rupp
P: Jerad Eickhoff
