Halladay to make home debut as Phils host Marlins
Acquired from Toronto in a three-team deal that sent Lee to the Mariners over the summer, Halladay landed in Philadelphia with large expectations and so far has impressed in each of his two starts. The 2003 AL Cy Young Award winner fired seven innings of one-run ball in his Phillies debut on April 5 at Washington, then went the distance in another win versus Houston on Sunday, allowing one unearned run with eight strikeouts and no walks.
The right-hander, who's sporting a microscopic 0.56 ERA, will face Florida for only the third time in his career. Halladay is 0-1 with a 5.00 earned run average in two starts against the Marlins.
The Phillies had a five-game winning streak cut short in the finale of a three-game series versus the Washington Nationals, as they suffered a 7-5 loss Thursday afternoon. Shane Victorino and Chase Utley both homered while Juan Castro, who is filling in for injured shortstop Jimmy Rollins, ended with three hits and two RBI.
Placido Polanco posted a pair of hits and Phillies starter J.A. Happ did not record a decision after giving up one unearned run in 5 1/3 innings. Reliever Danys Baez was dealt the loss for allowing three runs and two homers.
"I gave it everything I could," said Happ. "I battled and this is the second game this year this has happened. I couldn't quite find the rhythm and I need to be more consistent."
Florida will begin a nine-game road trip against Philadelphia, Houston and Colorado on Friday and just went 4-3 on a seven-game homestand. In Thursday's 10-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds in the finale of a four-game series, Cameron Maybin finished with three hits, including a home run, while Cody Ross contributed three hits and three runs batted in.
Dan Uggla had three hits and two RBI and John Baker drove in a pair of runs for the Marlins, who had a 15-7 advantage in hits. Starter Josh Johnson improved to 1-1 on the season by tossing six innings of one-run ball with 10 strikeouts and only one walk. Clay Hensley and Christopher Leroux closed the door the rest of the way.
"He didn't walk as many, he was throwing strikes and he was throwing really hard," Baker said of his battery mate Johnson. "It was definitely his best outing so far."
In other news, Marlins third baseman Jorge Cantu has now tallied at least one hit and one RBI in each of the first 10 games. He already has 15 RBI this season.
Anibal Sanchez will take the mound for the Marlins tonight and is 0-0 with a 6.00 ERA through one start. Sanchez did not record a decision in a 6-5 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday, as he yielded five runs -- four earned -- and seven hits in six innings.
The righty will now face the Phillies for the eighth time in his career, and owns a 2-4 mark with a 5.40 earned run average in seven previous appearances.
Florida and Philadelphia split 18 meetings a year ago, but the Marlins went 7-2 in the City of Brotherly Love. The Marlins have won seven of the past nine matchups between the NL East rivals.
04/16 11:04:22 ET
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