Braves 6 - 2 Phillies
Final
  for this game

Braves-Phillies Preview

Aug 2, 2015 - 4:32 AM The Philadelphia Phillies have proved a handful for their opponents since the All-Star break, and the scuffling Atlanta Braves have provided them little resistance.

The Phillies will try to finish off their first four-game home sweep of the Braves in 66 years Sunday.

Philadelphia (41-64) improved to 12-2 in the second half with a 12-2 rout Saturday. Cameron Rupp and Freddy Galvis hit three-run homers in the club's eighth win in nine home games.

"It looks to me like everybody feels we're going to score runs," interim manager Pete Mackanin said. "They look like they feel they're going to win. We're on a pretty good roll right now."

The Phillies have averaged 5.6 runs since the break compared with a major league-worst 3.4 in the first half. They have also posted a 2.98 ERA in their last 14 games after also ranking last with a 4.83 mark before the break.

"We basically just came out the second half with a brand-new mind-set," said first baseman Ryan Howard, who is batting .462 with 12 RBIs in his last seven games. "The first half was the first half. We left it there and came out just playing loose, having fun."

The Phillies have outscored the Braves 25-6 in this series and will try to register their first four-game sweep in Philadelphia since Sept. 2-4, 1949, against the then-Boston Braves. They haven't swept any four-game series against Atlanta since May 5-8, 1995.

Adam Morgan (2-2, 4.05 ERA) will try to secure that feat for Philadelphia while building on his first win in five starts. The left-hander yielded two runs in six innings in a 3-2 victory in Toronto on Tuesday, his sixth major league outing. He was 0-2 with a 4.98 ERA in his previous four.

Morgan gave up two runs in seven innings at Atlanta (46-58) on July 3 but was outdueled by Julio Teheran (6-6, 4.71) in a 2-1 defeat.

Teheran, though, has labored mightily on the road, going 1-5 with a 7.24 ERA in 11 starts compared with a 5-1 record and a 2.37 ERA in 10 home starts. He gave up five runs in four innings in a 7-3 loss in Baltimore on Tuesday.

"I don't know if it's mental, but the numbers sure show it," manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "We can't pick and choose when he pitches. You got a five-man rotation and we're on a 10-day road trip. Send him home for the 10 days? We got to get through it."

Teheran went 2-0 with a 0.56 ERA in his two starts in Philadelphia last season and is 4-1 with a 1.69 ERA in his last six overall matchups.

He'll try to snap Atlanta's six-game losing streak - its longest since an 0-8 road trip July 29-Aug. 6, 2014. The Braves have been outscored 36-10 in the last six.

They've dropped 13 of 14 on the road, failing to score more than three runs in any of the past 13. Atlanta has totaled 16 runs in its past 10 overall contests and is 4-16 since July 8.

"Every single day, we come to the yard, just hoping for something to click," first baseman Freddie Freeman said. "When you (score two runs) in the first inning like that, you think it's going to be the day, but obviously it wasn't today. So, we've got to come back tomorrow and hopefully, it changes."

Galvis, batting .413 in 12 games against Atlanta this season compared to .253 versus everyone else, is 2 for 6 lifetime against Teheran.






Related News