Phillies at Rays
The Philadelphia Phillies look to continue an offensive surge and extend their winning streak to six when they attempt to complete a three-game sweep of the host Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday afternoon. The Phillies scored six times in the second inning Saturday and finished with 13 hits overall to register a 9-4 victory, pushing their total to 55 runs while winning seven of their last eight contests.
Shortstop J.P. Crawford homered for the second time in three contests Saturday while center fielder Odubel Herrera recorded three hits to raise his average to a team-best .348 for Philadelphia after going 7-for-18 during a four-game hitting streak. Right-hander Ben Lively tries to complete six innings for the first time this season as he gets the call on the mound for the Phillies against rookie left-hander Ryan Yarbrough, who will be making his first major-league start. The Rays are off to the worst start in franchise history (3-11) after losing their third straight contest Saturday and have dropped five in a row at home since winning the season opener against Boston. Outfielder Mallex Smith has been a spark plug of late for Tampa Bay while going 9-for-19 over the last five games with three runs scored and a pair of RBIs.
TV: 1:10 p.m. ET, NBCS Philadelphia, FS Sun (Tampa Bay)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Phillies RH Ben Lively (0-1, 5.56 ERA) vs. Rays LH Ryan Yarbrough (0-0, 2.25)
Lively did not get a decision Monday when he gave up five runs on nine hits over 5 2/3 innings of a 6-5 victory over Cincinnati. The 26-year-old Floridian suffered the loss in his season debut on April 3, as he surrendered two runs over 5 2/3 frames in a 2-0 setback against the New York Mets. Lively, who boasts 12 strikeouts in two starts, faces Tampa Bay for the first time in his career and is 0-0 with a 4.50 ERA in two interleague starts while Denard Span is 1-for-5 against him.
Yarbrough, who was acquired from Seattle in the Drew Smyly trade before last season, has allowed two runs over eight innings in three relief appearances in 2018 against Boston. The 26-year-old Texan has struggled with his command a bit with seven walks and threw exactly 73 pitches over four innings in two of the outings while tossing nine in the other. Yarbrough went 13-6 with a 3.43 ERA in 26 starts with Triple-A Durham last year, collecting 159 strikeouts in 157 1/3 innings.
WALK-OFFS
1. Philadelphia OF Nick Williams is 8-for-22 during a seven-game hitting streak after registering a double and a single Saturday.
2. Tampa Bay’s 26-year-old OF Johnny Field went 0-for-3 with a walk in his major-league debut Saturday.
3. Philadelphia C Andrew Knapp (stomach virus), who has not played since April 10, is expected back in the lineup Sunday.