Nick Pivetta is hoping to get back on track as the Philadelphia Phillies go for their first series win in three weeks.
Pivetta will take the mound to face left-hander Tyler Anderson and the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday night at Citizens Bank Park.
A right-hander Authentic Pernell McPhee Jersey , Pivetta (4-5, 3.76 ERA) has a 5.79 ERA over his last three starts and opponents are hitting .294 against him in those games. Pivetta picked up a loss in all three of those outings, including last Thursday when he gave up four earned runs on six hits in five innings against the Cubs.
Pivetta made one start against the Rockies in his two-year major league career, and it did not go well. He allowed eight runs in 2 2/3 innings on Aug. 5, 2017 at Coors Field.
The Phillies held on for a 5-4 win in the series opener against the Rockies on Tuesday night and got a 10-strikeout performance from right-hander Aaron Nola and a four-RBI night from Scott Kingery. The win was the second in a row for the Phillies (34-30), marking the first time since May 16-17 that they won back-to-back games.
If they win one of the next two against the Rockies, the Phillies will have their first series win since taking two of three from the Braves on May 21-23.
The Rockies, meanwhile, are on a five-game losing streak. It’s their longest skid of 2018 and the worst losing streak the team has had since it lost eight straight games from June 21-28 in 2017.
The Rockies have been outscored 41-24 during their last five games and, at 32-34 Authentic Anthony Averett Jersey , are two games below .500 for the first time since they were 5-7 on April 10.
Anderson (3-1, 4.81 ERA) is coming off one of his best starts of the year. He matched his season best with seven innings and gave up just two runs on five hits to the Reds while striking out five.
“That was a very solid outing,” Rockies manager Bud Black told MLB.com of Anderson after the start. “I thought the changeup was really effective. He commanded the fastball well.”
Anderson has previously faced the Phillies three times in his career and is 1-1 with a 3.94 ERA and 1.313 WHIP.
Anderson will face Kingery, a rookie, for the first time in his career. Kingery has been the Phillies’ everyday shortstop for the past two weeks and his four RBIs on Tuesday night tied a career high.
Kingery’s batting average is only at .215 through 200 at-bats this season, but he’s had multi-RBI games twice in his last five contests.
“That’s how you want to start a series, especially against a good team like this,” Kingery, who hit a three-run homer in the first inning, told NBC Sports Philadelphia after the win. “You want to be the first team to score. Nola did a great job right before that. This kind of gives us some momentum.”
The New York Yankees are in the midst of their longest losing streak of the season.
It’s only three losses in a row for the Yankees Authentic Russell Bodine Jersey , but they enter the week with an injured starting catcher and a meeting with a surging opponent.
The Philadelphia Phillies have won four consecutive series and will host the Yankees for a three-game set at Citizens Bank Park. Vince Velasquez of the Phillies will face rookie right-hander Jonathan Loaisiga of the Yankees in the series opener on Monday night.
New York was swept in a three-game weekend series on the road by the Tampa Bay Rays. It’s the first time in 2018 the Yankees have lost three consecutive games — something the team had not done since Aug. 28-30, 2017.
“As far as the losses, I look at it as a bump in the road,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone told MLB.com after a 7-6 loss in the series finale. “Unfortunately, it’s bound to happen in a long season. You’ve just got to turn the page.”
The Yankees lost more than a game on Sunday. Catcher Gary Sanchez hurt his right groin/hip while running to first base in the 10th inning. Sanchez is scheduled to get an MRI on Monday, and Boone told reporters that it’s likely the 25-year-old will be placed on the disabled list.
Sanchez, in his third major league season, is hitting .190 with a .724 OPS and 14 homers through 63 games this season.
Despite being swept, the Yankees (50-25) are still tied with the Boston Red Sox for the American League East lead.
The Phillies (41-34) have won nine of their last 13 games and moved within 2 1/2 games of the Atlanta Braves for the top spot in the National League East.
Velasquez (5-7, 4.82 ERA) will try to make it five straight wins for the Phillies on Monday night. The right-hander has pitched into the seventh inning in three of his last four starts Authentic Phillip Gaines Jersey , including his last outing.
Velasquez struck out eight and allowed four runs against the St. Louis Cardinals last Tuesday. He allowed just four hits in the start, but two of them were homers.
Velasquez has faced the Yankees twice in his career, and both appearances came during the 2015 season when he was with the Houston Astros. He has a 3.24 ERA and 0.840 WHIP in those games.
Loaisiga (1-0, 3.12 ERA) will make just the third start of his major league career.
The 23-year-old from Nicaragua was sharp in his debut, throwing five scoreless innings against the Rays on June 15. Loaisiga had a tougher time in his second start. Facing the Seattle Mariners last Wednesday, he allowed three runs and six hits and used 84 pitches to get through 3 2/3 innings.
The Yankees and Phillies are meeting for the first time since the 2015 season. Philadelphia took two of three at Yankee Stadium from June 22 to June 24 three years ago.