San Diego @ Philadelphia preview
Citizens Bank Park
Last Meeting ( Jun 5, 2010 ) San Diego 2, Philadelphia 6
Joe Blanton's numbers this season are much like his waistline.
As one might expect, fans of the Philadelphia Phillies, and even Jenny Craig, have not been pleased with the results.
Blanton (1-4, 5.68 ERA) will look to tighten his belt today as the Phillies (30-24) vie for their third straight victory against the San Diego Padres (33-23) at Citizens Bank Park.
On Saturday, veteran Jamie Moyer recorded his second complete game of the season and 33rd career and Jayson Werth belted a two-run home run as the Phillies posted a 6-2 triumph over the Padres.
Ryan Howard had a two-run double and Chase Utley added an RBI single to highlight a four-run third inning for Philadelphia, which notched a 3-2 victory in the series opener.
Blanton would certainly welcome an offensive outburst from the Phillies, who had scored 14 runs in their 11 previous games heading into this series.
Signed to a three-year extension worth $24 million in January, the 29-year-old Tennessee native stumbled out of the blocks by suffering an oblique injury in spring training.
The burly 6-foot-3 hurler, who tips the scales at a healthy 245 pounds, struggled upon returning to the mound. He allowed four runs or more in four of his six outings this season.
Blanton permitted six runs and eight hits in six innings in his last outing - a 9-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Monday.
The Padres will counter with Kevin Correia (5-4, 4.55), who is also putting up numbers that would make good ole' Miss Craig blush. The 29-year-old right-hander has a 1-3 career record with an inflated 7.71 ERA and a .352 batting average against vs. the Phillies.
In his last outing, Correia allowed six runs and seven hits - surprisingly in a winning effort. That's because San Diego belted out 18 runs en route to pounding the New York Mets, who perform about as well on the road as an obscure 1970s singing group.
For what it's worth, the victory served as Correia's first since April 28. Then again, asking for another 18 runs of support seems a bit greedy, wouldn't you say?
Thus far, San Diego has mustered two runs in as many games against Philadelphia. On Saturday, Yorvit Torrealba had an RBI double to open the scoring for the Padres.