Phillies at Mariners
While June has proven to be a defining month for the Seattle Mariners, it has been little more than a continuation of an ongoing nightmare for the Philadelphia Phillies. Already assured of their first winning month of the season, the Mariners attempt to crawl back over .500 on Tuesday when they host the first of two games against the league-worst Phillies.
Seattle navigated through a litany of injuries over the first two months and finally saw its perseverance pay off in the form of a six-game winning streak last week, allowing the club to reach its high-water mark of the season at 39-37 with Friday's 13-3 victory over Houston. Despite dropping their final two games to the Astros over the weekend, the Mariners are 14-10 in June as the offense has scored a major-league high 144 runs this month. By comparison, Philadelphia has lost 16 of 19 overall and sports the worst record in the majors (24-51), managing only 80 runs in June. The Phillies fell to 7-17 this month and lost for the 10th time in last 11 road outings following Monday's 6-1 defeat in Arizona - the 14th time they have scored no more than one run.
TV: 10:10 p.m. ET, CSN Philadelphia, ROOT Northwest (Seattle)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Phillies RH Aaron Nola (4-5, 4.32 ERA) vs. Mariners LH James Paxton (5-2, 3.39)
Nola struck out a season-high eight in Thursday's 5-1 victory over St. Louis, giving up only a solo homer among the four hits he permitted over 7 1/3 innings. "That looked like the old Nola, and that was great to see. That's the Nola we have come to love. He was outstanding, hitting paint on both sides," manager Pete Mackanin told reporters. The 24-year-old Louisiana native will attempt to improve his 1-4 record and 7.71 ERA in six interleague starts as he faces Seattle for the first time.
Paxton fanned eight but otherwise labored through a no-decision Wednesday against Detroit, allowing four runs (three earned) on nine hits and two walks while throwing 101 pitches over 5 1/3 innings. The 28-year-old Canadian is 0-2 with a 9.69 ERA in his last three starts after going 5-0, 1.69 over his first eight turns of the season. Howie Kendrick is 5-for-14 against Paxton, who was tagged for four runs (one earned) across four innings in his only start against the Phillies in 2014.
WALK-OFFS
1. Mariners C Mike Zunino needs three RBIs over the last three games of the month to tie Mike Blowers and Edgar Martinez for the most in a calendar month in team history (33).
2. Philadelphia OF Odubel Herrera is in the midst of a 10-game hitting streak in which he is hitting .333
3. Seattle OF Ben Gamel (groin) and 1B Danny Valencia (wrist) are expected to return to the lineup Tuesday after nursing injuries over the weekend.