Phillies 5 - 8 Brewers
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Apr 24, 2016 - 5:37 AM If given a choice, it's doubtful that Maikel Franco would want to leave Miller Park.

The Philadelphia Phillies third baseman has delighted with two tremendous performances in his first road games against the Milwaukee Brewers and looks to lead his team to a three-game sweep Sunday.

Franco went 3 for 4 with two home runs to end a 3-for-29 slump in his debut in Milwaukee, a 5-2 win Friday. He had another three hits - including his fifth homer of the season - and drove in four runs Saturday in a 10-6 victory.

Franco has seven of his 12 RBIs in the two games against the Brewers (7-11) and has boosted his average 58 points to .299. Odubel Herrera went 3 for 4 on Saturday and helped put the game out of reach with a two-run homer in the ninth inning.

Herrera has reached base in 15 consecutive games, three shy of matching his career-high streak from last season, and has drawn 14 walks in his last 11 games. He already has 17 after accruing 28 in 147 games as a rookie.

"It means a lot when those guys get going and they look like they're lighting up a little bit," manager Pete Mackanin told MLB's official website.

The Phillies (9-9) seek their second sweep in three visits to the Brewers on Sunday. They won all four games in Milwaukee in 2014, but were swept in their lone visit last season from Aug. 14-16.

Jerad Eickhoff (1-2, 1.89 ERA) also tries to lead Philadelphia to its first five-game road win streak since June 2014, and a fourth consecutive overall victory. The right-hander gave up two runs in seven innings and fanned nine on Monday against the New York Mets, but took a 5-2 loss.

He's been given a combined four runs of support in his three starts and earned his lone win by pitching seven scoreless innings against San Diego on April 13. Eickhoff is 3-2 with a 1.34 ERA in his seven starts since Sept. 7.

"The guy is a bulldog out there," catcher Cameron Rupp said. "He's just as tough as any guy on any roster. He's going to go out there, he's going to compete. He knows how to work, he knows how to pitch. He's got No. 1 kind of stuff, and he's shown it."

Eickhoff will pitch opposite Wily Peralta (0-3, 8.35) in his first appearance against Milwaukee, and the Phillies could use a lengthy start after Charlie Morton left in the second inning Saturday with a strained left hamstring.

Peralta was in line for a win after shaking off some early struggles Tuesday in Minnesota, but his teammates couldn't hold on to a three-run lead in a 6-5 victory.

Peralta gave up single runs in the first two of his five innings despite loading the bases with no outs in both but settled down to keep the Twins scoreless after that.

"Each start, I've been feeling better and better. I think I'm getting closer and closer," he said. "It's not easy when you're struggling, but you have to keep making pitches."

Peralta pitched seven scoreless innings in his only start against Philadelphia last season, a 3-1 victory Aug. 14 in Milwaukee, after going 1-2 with an 8.82 ERA in his previous three matchups.

Franco has never faced Peralta, while Ryan Howard is 1 for 10 with three strikeouts.

Kirk Nieuwenhuis is the only Brewers hitter to have faced Eickhoff, collecting two doubles in three at-bats.






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