Phillies at Padres
Cory Spangenberg attempts to continue his mini-roll when the San Diego Padres host the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday for the middle contest of their three-game series. Spangenberg was 3-for-3 with a homer in San Diego's 7-4 win on Monday and is 7-for-11 with three blasts and four RBIs over his last three contests.
Spangenberg, who is batting .278 with 11 homers, is trying to solidify a starting spot for the 2018 season. He was the 10th overall selection in the 2011 draft after playing his freshman season at Virginia Military Institute and his sophomore year at Indian River State College, a junior college in Florida. Philadelphia rookie Rhys Hoskins belted his first two career homers on Monday in his fifth major-league game. The loss in the opener of a seven-game trip broke the Phillies' modest three-game road winning streak and dropped its away mark to a major league-worst 19-42.
TV: 10:10 p.m. ET, CSN Philadelphia, FSN San Diego
PITCHING MATCHUP: Phillies RH Mark Leiter Jr. (1-2, 4.08 ERA) vs. Padres RH Dinelson Lamet (6-4, 5.00)
Leiter is back in the rotation and making his fourth big-league start after consecutive stellar long-relief appearances. The 26-year-old allowed one run and six hits while striking out 16 over 9 1/3 innings in the strong efforts. Leiter is 1-1 in his three starts and blanked Arizona on three hits over six frames on June 23 for his lone victory.
Lamet has won three consecutive decisions and allowed two runs or fewer in each of his last four turns. The 25-year-old did not factor in the decision in his last outing, when he gave up two runs and three hits over five innings. Lamet has struck out 85 batters in 68 1/3 innings, topped by 12 against Milwaukee on June 17.
WALK-OFFS
1. Padres rookie RF Hunter Renfroe is 3-for-24 with 13 strikeouts over his last seven games and has not homered in his last 17 appearances.
2. Philadelphia 3B Maikel Franco was hitless in four at-bats in the opener and is 3-for-24 over the past six contests.
3. San Diego C Austin Hedges went 2-for-3 with two RBIs on Monday for his fourth multi-hit performance of the month.