Zimmermann (8-2) allowed two runs and six hits with no walks over seven innings — actually raising his ERA to 1.71 — on an unseasonably chilly and windy night in the nation’s capital. There was at least a bit of heat from the Nationals’ bats, which have been going through such a cold spell that manager Davey Johnson said before the game he wouldn’t shave again until his lineup started hitting.

As it turned out, the Nationals scored their most runs in a week, and they got four or more in the same inning for the first time almost a month. Steve Lombardozzi, playing second while Danny Espinosa recovers from a broken wrist, had three hits, including a two-out, two-run double that capped the rally in the four-run fifth.

Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick (4-3) had his shortest outing of the season, allowing five runs and eight hits over five innings. He walked four for the second consecutive start, including three consecutive bases on balls that allowed the Nationals to score a run in the second with a sacrifice fly and no hits.

The Phillies missed a chance to pull even in two ways. A win would have put them at .500 for the first time since April 14, and it also would have tied them with the Nationals, who had lost four of five and have been mired in mediocrity while dealing with the expectations of Johnson’s preseason proclamation of “World Series or bust.”

The Nationals just completed a 10-game West Coast road trip that included a four-game losing streak, the team’s sixth shutout loss of the season, Bryce Harper’s head-first collision with a wall and a broken hand for Ryan Mattheus after he punched his locker following a rough outing. Washington entered the game hitting .225, second worst in the majors, and the scraggly-looking Johnson arrived at the ballpark saying: “I decided I wouldn’t shave until we started hitting.”

Both teams are missing some star power. The Phillies don’t have Roy Halladay (shoulder surgery) and Chase Utley (oblique strain), while the Nationals are making do without Jayson Werth (hamstring) and Espinosa, who learned Friday that he’s been playing with a slight fracture in his right wrist and will need a few days of rest, if not more.

Domonic Brown’s RBI single in the second and Erik Kratz’ sacrifice fly in the fifth gave the Phillies a 2-1 lead, but the Nationals put together five hits in the bottom of the inning to go ahead 5-2. Adam LaRoche hit an RBI triple off the center field wall and Kurt Suzuki had an RBI single before Lombardozzi’s drove in two more.

Tyler Clippard pitched the eighth for the Nationals, and Rafael Soriano sailed through the ninth for his 14th save.

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – After taking two out of three in Miami, the Phillies will continue their road trip on Friday night as they open a weekend series in Washington against the Nationals.

The Phillies sit at 23-24 on the season, which is good for third place in the National League East. They are 5 1/2 games behind the first-place Braves, and just a game behind the second-place Nationals. This is the first of nineteen match-ups between the Phillies and Nationals this season.

The Phillies will be without second baseman Chase Utley for at least the next couple of weeks. He has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with an oblique strain. To take his place on the roster, utilityman Michael Martinez has been recalled from AAA Lehigh Valley.

It should be a good pitching match-up in this series opener as the Phillies give the ball to right-hander Kyle Kendrick and the Nats counter with Jordan Zimmerman.

Kendrick is 4-2 this season with a 2.82 ERA and he has probably been the Phillies most consistent starter. In 19 career appearances against Washington, Kendrick is 4-5 with a 4.68 ERA.

Zimmerman has been one of the best starters in the National League, as he brings a 7-2 record into tonight and he sports a 1.62 ERA.

KYW’s Matt Leon spoke with Kevin Cooney of the Bucks County Courier Times about Friday night’s match-up.

You can follow Matt on Twitter @mattleonkyw.

    You can hear tonight’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

Utley could miss up to four weeks. The team will make a roster move before Friday’s game at Washington.

“We do believe and hope that Chase will be ready to play in Philadelphia within 15 days,” general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said. “We are being cautious with this injury as it is a tricky one and want to make sure it isn’t an issue for him throughout the season.”

Utley is batting .272 with seven homers and 25 RBIs. Freddy Galvis has replaced him in the starting lineup.

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – It’s not the sort of thing you like to talk about after the team has won two games in a row, and seven of the last ten. It’s not the sort of thing you wanted to discuss in a year that was supposed to be the last gasp of an aging core. And it’s certainly not the sort of thing you want to ponder the day after Cliff Lee looks dominant.

But whether you want to talk about it or not, if the Phillies don’t show some signs of being a serious contender very quickly, trading Cliff Lee has to be at least something the team will, and should, discuss.

“He’s one of the most attractive people on the trade market,” MLB analyst Peter Gammons told Angelo Cataldi and the 94WIP Morning Show on Thursday. “The problem that you have is, that under the new draft rules, if a player is traded during the season and decides to move on at the end of the season, that team doesn’t get any draft choices. Now, Lee is a long-term contract so he should be able to stay away from that, but still, it’s one of those things you have to think about it.”

Lee is 5-2 on the season, with an ERA of 2.48. He’s been dominant in his last four starts, going 3-0, allowing just four earned runs in 31 innings. He’s following up a strange 2012, where he pitched very well, but struggled to get the number of wins that are usually associated with the sort of numbers he put up otherwise.

“I think if they went out there and look at, whether it’s Texas or even the Yankees—although I don’t know, at this point, the Yankees are aging so much,” Gammons said.  “As much as they’re in contention, I’m not sure they would give up a lot. Baltimore maybe, I think that would be an ideal spot for him because they desperately need a veteran starting pitcher. I think that there would be a few teams—St. Louis could be one, they have a great farm system. So, I think there would be a lot of call for him. I mean, Cliff Lee is an absolute animal. He is so strong, he loves pitching under pressure, he has shown that he can move in the middle of the season as high-end guy and perform.”

Jon Heyman of CBS Sports ranks Lee as the 12th most likely starting pitcher to be traded by this  year’s deadline. “He’s still a star,” Heyman wrote. “And someone last summer was willing to claim him (OK, it was the Dodgers) and absorb his $25 million salary, and even the $12.5 million buyout at the end. Lee still has about $82 million to go through 2015, which sounds high, especially with the Dodgers quite possibly not being a buyer this time. It’s hard to know how much the Phillies are willing to do, too. If available, a game changer.”

Of the Phillies veterans that could be available come July, Lee’s performance this year probably makes him the most value, especially if the Phillies would eat some of his contract. Chase Utley is only a rental, and has injury problems. Rollins could be of value to a competitor, but isn’t the sort of game changer that Lee is. Ryan Howard figures to be impossible to trade, given his contract. The only Phillies player on the roster who could bring back the kind of haul Lee could figures to be Jonathan Papelbon.

It’s important to remember as well that just because the Phillies may try to “sell” at the trade deadline, it doesn’t mean the team would be in full “rebuild” mode. The organization has put itself in the position that modes like the one the Marlins and Astros are in will likely not exist for the foreseeable future. The Red Sox made a major “sell” move last year with their blockbuster with the Dodgers, and they’ve actually improved.

Whether the Phillies trade Lee remains to be seen, but what seems like is for sure is that they will have the option to do so.

Lee (5-2) struck out five, walked two and hit a batter in his first shutout since Sept. 5, 2011. The Marlins were blanked for the ninth time this season.

Lee also helped himself by getting two hits.

Young hit a solo home run off Kevin Slowey (1-5) in the fourth. It was Young’s third homer, including a drive off Miami’s Jose Fernandez on Tuesday night.

Slowey exited before the sixth inning with a strained left lat muscle. The Marlins said he was day to day.

Slowey allowed six hits and struck out six.

Lee has allowed three or less runs in eight of his 10 starts. Miami’s only hits were Marcell Ozuna’s infield single leading off the second, Miguel Olivo’s lined single opening the sixth and Derek Dietrich’s infield single in the ninth.

Philadelphia scored twice off Wade LeBlanc with two outs in the sixth to go ahead 3-0.

Young reached on a two-out infield hit and scored on Domonic Brown’s triple. Freddy Galvis singled home Brown.

The Marlins failed to score despite loading the bases with none out in the second. Nick Green grounded into a third-to-home-to-first double play and Jeff Mathis popped up.

In the fifth, Chris Coghlan walked but was thrown out at second as he tried to advance when Green flied out to deep right. Young threw to shortstop Jimmy Rollins, who applied the tag as Coghlan slid in headfirst.

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Utley scratched from the lineup for Philadelphia’s 7-3 win against the Miami Marlins on Tuesday night after feeling discomfort in his ribcage during batting practice. He was not in the lineup for Wednesday night’s series finale.

Utley hopes to avoid a trip to the disabled list.

“I think we caught it early enough, but it’s hard to tell until we have some type of evaluation on it,” he said.

Utley is hitting .272 with seven homers and 25 RBIs. He was sidelined with knee problems for significant stretches the past two seasons.

“It definitely scared me a little bit,” Utley said. “I took my first swing in BP and felt something. On the second swing, I felt it again. Third swing, felt it again. After the fourth swing, I realized something wasn’t right.”

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    You can hear tonight’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

With the local playoff calendar bare, Eagles general manager Howie Roseman, Flyers president Peter Luukko, Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr., and 76ers CEO Adam Aron made a rare — possibly, first — joint appearance together on Wednesday to talk all things Philly sports.

Just like the fans, they’re tired of losing.

For various reasons, they all believe they’re headed back in the winning direction and appear set to jump into the thick of championship contention over the next few seasons. The Eagles and Sixers each have a new coach. The Flyers are taking the summer to regroup. The Phillies hope to overcome a crop of injuries.

“The four of us on the dais have four of the most enjoyable jobs on the face of the earth,” Aron said, “when our teams are winning.”

The four executives were part of a panel on The Impact of Sports sponsored by The Rothman Institute. Gov. Tom Corbett, team physicians and media personalities were part of discussions at Lincoln Financial Field, home of the Eagles, that mostly centered on athletes and their injuries.

The Phillies have been hit hard by injuries, with ace Roy Halladay sidelined after shoulder surgery and John Lannan (knee) also on the disabled list. Second baseman Chase Utley was a late scratch Tuesday night against the Marlins with a rib injury suffered during batting practice and needed an MRI.

Amaro said Utley “felt a twinge” in his side and could miss some time. Utley had been healthy this season after battling knee issues last year. A free agent at the end of the year, Utley’s health and production could determine if the Phillies offer him another long-term deal.

Last July, the Phillies gave Cole Hamels a six-year, $144 million extension to forgo free agency. He’s off to a 1-7 start with a 4.45 ERA.

Amaro said balancing health, age and dollars in determining a contract offer is one of the trickiest parts of his job.

“Cole didn’t have a pristine medical background,” Amaro said. “It was very good, but we waited long enough to watch him pitch in the year prior to becoming a free agent and continued to analyze his health before we made the decision to go ahead and make the long-term commitment. We’ll do the same with Chase. We hope to make an intelligent decision.”

The Sixers saw their gamble on a player with a sketchy medical history backfire when Andrew Bynum didn’t play this season because of bone bruises in his knees. Bynum, an All-Star with the Lakers, was acquired with some of the greatest fanfare in recent Philadelphia sports history and was welcomed to the city with a public press conference at the National Constitution Center.

“It is now folk hero status in Philadelphia,” Aron said. “It sure seemed like a good idea at the time. We had every confidence Andrew would take us to glory. Whatever it was, six weeks later, we learned on the MRIs his knees were very different in September than they were in August. They got worse and worse as the season went on.”

The NHL, MLB and NBA all usually make teams disclose injuries and an expected length of absence. In the NHL, injuries are simply designated upper body or lower body, making the concealed ailments tough for fans and media clamoring for the latest medical update.

“I know it frustrates the media,” Luukko said, “but we really don’t care.”

Because each person responds differently to injuries, Luukko said it’s often tough to put an exact timetable on a return.

“If we think it’s eight weeks, we’re going to say 10,” Luukko said. “You don’t want to rush an athlete back. You want that player playing healthy and you want them to be effective.”

All four executives said they’ve never asked part of a team’s medical staff to clear an injured player to play because he was needed in action.

“Not once have I ever sensed any pressure from the owner, coach or GM to get that athlete back on the field or ice,” Flyers and Eagles physician Peter DeLuca said. “It just doesn’t happen. … Have I gotten pressure from an agent? Yeah.”

Also, Corbett defended his federal lawsuit against the NCAA over the penalties handed down against Penn State. Corbett sued the NCAA in January, claiming the $60 million fine and other penalties levied against Penn State over its handling of the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal violated federal antitrust rules. He will learn within the next few weeks whether the lawsuit will be allowed to continue.

“We have an obligation to protect the interest of our local community,” he said.

Corbett also said he’d like to see an NBA team in Pittsburgh and gave Pocono Raceway credit for boosting the state’s profile in auto racing.

The Sixers, Flyers, Eagles and Phillies all made their version of the finals from 2000-10. The Phillies won the World Series in 2008 and lost in 2009; the Eagles lost the 2005 Super Bowl; the 76ers lost in the 2001 NBA finals; and the Flyers lost the 2010 Stanley Cup championship.

“We had a difficult year,” Luukko said. “But we had a great decade of success.”

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Phillies hope to build on some offensive momentum for a change on Wednesday night as they go for a series win in Miami against the Marlins.

After scoring just four runs in three games, the Phillies struck for seven last night in a 7-3 win over Miami.  They pounded out 15 hits, three of them off the bat of Ryan Howard, who returned to line line-up after missing a couple of games with a sore knee.  Howard knocked in three runs.

The Phillies played without second baseman Chase Utley last night and it looks like they will again on Wednesday.  He was a late scratch prior to Tuesday’s game with discomfort in his side and it looks like he will undergo an MRI on Thursday.

Cliff Lee will get the start for the Phillies in this game.  The veteran left-hander is 4-2 with a 2.83 ERA.  He has thrown the ball very well as of late.  In his last three starts, his ERA is 1.64.  Lee is 3-1 in his career against the Marlins.

Miami will start veteran right-hander Kevin Slowey.  He is 1-4, but his one win came against the Phillies and he has been dominant against them this season.  In two starts (12 1/3 innings), Slowey has allowed just one run.

KYW’s Matt Leon spoke with Phillies broadcaster Chris Wheeler about tonight’s match-up.

You can follow Matt on Twitter @mattleonkyw.

    You can hear tonight’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

Lidge’s retirement ceremony will take place on August 1st, and Schilling’s ceremony will take place on August 2nd.

Saturday August 3rd will be Alumni Night, and will feature more than 50 former Phillies and pay tribute to the 1983 and 1993 teams.

Sunday August 4th will feature a tribute to the 1993 team, including manager Jim Fregosi.

We at RotoAnalysis try to bring you a breakdown into a variety of different things each week and they all start from a stat or theory we look at. This week, rather than digging into specific topics, we have a general list of stats and comments that you can use to up your knowledge about specific players and situations around the league. This week we focused on hitters with 25 key stats, and next week we’ll do the same with pitchers.

1. Everybody’s talking about it, but the numbers speak for themselves. In April Mike Trout hit .261 with 2 homers, and in May he’s batting .308 with 6 homers. He also cut his strikeout rate from 28% to 21%.

2. Colby Rasmus is striking out in 39.1% of his plate appearances, worse than any qualified hitter in the last three seasons.

3. In the majors, Jean Segura has 21 stolen bases to only three caught stealings so far in his career.

4. Throughout his minor league career, Segura had 139 steals to only 38 caught stealings, good for a 78.5% efficiency rate. The guy is a legitimately talented base stealer.

5. Since the beginning of the 2012 season, David Ortiz has played in 116 games and hit 30 homers. That’s a home run on average in about one out of every 3.9 games.

6. That’s better than the career rates of Miguel Cabrera, Jose Bautista and Ryan Braun.

7. This may come as somewhat of a surprise, but the Rays’ James Loney has the fourth highest average among qualified hitters in major league baseball at .348.

8. That’s largely because James Loney also has the highest line drive rate in major league baseball at 33.1%.

9. That 33.1% would be the highest rate in the past decade.

10. Fantasy owners are worried about Josh Hamilton’s free swinging woes, but Ryan Howard actually has a higher swinging strike rate than him, with a league-worst 17.6%.

11. Josh Willingham is currently striking out 6% more than his career average while hitting 7% less line drives.

12. While Miguel Cabrera’s league leading OPS in May would surprise no one, Eric Chavez is second in the majors this month.

13. Danny Espinosa is currently hitting .163 with only 3 home runs and 1 steal.

14. Nationals top prospect Anthony Rendon, an infielder, is currently hitting .346 with 6 home runs in the minor leagues.

15. Despite stealing 30 of his 33 attempted bases last season, Emilio Bonifacio has only attempted 4 steals this season (he has not been caught).

16. 31 of 71 pitchers with over 10 plate appearances have a better batting average than Ike Davis

17. James Loney has the lowest strikeout rate of any qualified first basemen this month at 9.9%

18. Miguel Cabrera is 2 runs scores away from leading the league in runs, RBIs, and average.

19. The only players to walk more than they strikeout are an interesting 3 — Lance Berkman, Norichika Aoki, and Nick Markakis.

20. The top 10 guys who hit a lot more groundballs than flyballs include a lot of speedsters like Everth Cabrera, Elvis Andrus, and Denard Span.

21. However, 3rd on that list is Eric Hosmer. The guy just doesn’t have much power and seems to have lost his swing.

22. Marco Scutaro has the highest contact percentage in the majors, and has only swung and missed at 1.5% of the strikes against him.

23. The league leader in doubles? Not Miguel Cabrera, not Mike Trout, but Manny Machado.

24. Paul Goldschmidt’s home run to fly ball rate is at double what it was last year – while he’s good, his power should drop a little bit.

25. The rookie of the year races are looking pretty shallow. There is no rookie in either league with more than 4 HRs and a .250 average.

Agree? Disagree? Questions? Tweet @RotoAnalysis and be sure to follow Moe @MoeProblems and Matt @Schwimingly. Check out their work on RotoAnalysis.com, as well as The RotoAnalysis Fantasy Sports Podcast.

Tyler Cloyd (1-0) allowed two runs and eight hits in seven innings. He was recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley (International League) earlier in the day.

Miami’s Jose Fernandez went five innings, allowing one run and five hits. He walked one and struck out two.

Philadelphia went ahead 2-1 in the sixth when Domonic Brown’s ground out scored Howard from third. Howard led off with a single and took third on Young’s double to deep center off Duane Below (0-1).

Howard’s single with the bases loaded scored two runs and highlighted a four-run seventh that gave the Phillies a 6-1 lead. Howard returned to the lineup after missing two games with a sore left knee. He received a cortisone shot Sunday.

Young’s ground out and Brown’s double scored the other Phillies runs in the seventh. Young homered to left-center on a 2-2 pitch with one out in the fourth. It was his second home run of the season.

Juan Pierre’s seventh-inning RBI single pulled Miami within 6-2.

Howard added an RBI single in the eighth off Wade LeBlanc.

Miami’s Justin Ruggiano had a run-scoring double with two outs in the ninth.

Pinch-hitter Jordan Brown’s sacrifice fly in the fifth scored Placido Polanco to tie it at 1 and take Fernandez off the hook.

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Howard was listed fourth in the Phillies’ batting order against Marlins starter Jose Fernandez.

Howard receiving a cortisone injection Sunday to alleviate inflammation and changes in the meniscus. He missed Philadelphia’s 3-2 win against Cincinnati on Sunday and a 5-1 loss in the opener of this series on Monday night.

Howard, batting .245 with six home runs and 22 RBIs this season, had five homers and 16 RBIs in his previous 22 games.

Earlier Tuesday, the Phillies placed catcher Carlos Ruiz on the 15-day disabled list with a Grade 2 strained hamstring. He could be sidelined three to four weeks.

Right-hander Tyler Cloyd was recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley and was Tuesday night’s scheduled starter against Miami.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

    You can hear tonight’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Phillies offense has been inconsistent at best so far during the 2013 season.

But when they face Jose Fernandez, it has been downright nonexistent.

The rookie right-hander will start for the Marlins tonight against the Phillies in the middle game of this three-game series in Miami.  In his first two starts against Philadelphia this season, Fernandez has pitched 13 innings, not allowing a run.  In fact, the Phillies have touched him for just three hits (all singles) in 42 at bats.  That’s an .071 batting average.

Phillies haven’t done much scoring at all as of late.  They have just four runs in their last 27 innings of work.  That includes their 5-1 loss last night.  Three of the four runs during this time have come courtesy of solo home runs.

The Phillies will give the ball to Tyler Cloyd tonight.  He is returning from AAA, taking the roster spot of catcher Carlos Ruiz who has been placed on the disabled list with that bad hamstring.  Cloyd has struggled with Lehigh Valley, going 1-4 in seven starts with a 6.57 ERA.  But in his one start with the Phillies this season, he was quite good.  Cloyd allowed two runs on two hits in six-and-a-third innings on May 10th in Arizona.  He got a no-decision in a game the Phillies lost 3-2.

The Phillies bring a 21-24 record into tonight, they are 5 1/2 games behind the first-place Braves in National League East.  The Marlins are 13-32.  Four of their wins have come against the Phillies.

KYW’s Matt Leon caught up with Bill Baer of the website Crashburn Alley, to talk about tonight’s match-up.

You can follow Matt on Twitter @mattleonkyw.

    You can hear tonight’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – In what has become an all too common occurrence, the Phillies struggled against a subpar pitcher on Monday night. Marlins righthander Alex Sanabia came into Monday night’s game against the Phillies with an ERA over 5.00. The Phillies, not surprisingly, managed just one run on a Dom Brown home run.

The Phillies may have an excuse in this one. Maybe this is just wishful thinking, but maybe just this one time they have an excuse.

After Brown’s home run, Sanabia is seen on video clearly spitting on the new baseball he was thrown that he would use against the next batter. He is seen rubbing the ball vigorously after spitting on it.

Spitting on the baseball is illegal in MLB, and has been for almost 100 years.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t quite explain every other game in which the Phillies only score one run.

    You can hear tonight’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

Justin Ruggiano and Nick Green each drove in two runs for Miami in front of a season-low crowd of 13,231 at Marlins Park. Sanabia (3-6) allowed one run and seven hits over 6 1-3 innings.

Hamels (1-7) struck out 10 in six effective innings but has not won since April 28 at the New York Mets. Domonic Brown homered for the Phillies.

Miami had 11 hits and struck out 13 times on its way to scoring more than three runs for just the second time in 13 games. The Marlins have won two straight after dropping seven in a row and 10 of 11.

Sanabia and Hamels entered tied with Cubs right-hander Edwin Jackson for the NL lead in losses, but both pitched well.

Hamels, the 2008 World Series and NLCS MVP, gave up two runs and seven hits without a walk. The left-hander allowed three singles in the first inning and they resulted in a run when Marcell Ozuna drove in Adeiny Hechavarria for an early Marlins lead.

Brown homered to right in the second, his eighth of the season.

Hamels, who signed a $144 million, six-year contract last July, settled down after the first and fanned seven of 10 batters during one stretch. He gave up a leadoff single to Placido Polanco in the sixth and a two-out RBI double to Ruggiano that snapped an 0-for-18 slump and put the Marlins ahead 2-1.

Philadelphia had a pair of runners on base with one out in the seventh, but Ryan Webb relieved Sanabia and retired the next two batters to preserve the lead.

Chase Utley was caught stealing to end the eighth.

Miami tacked on three runs in the bottom half. Ruggiano had an RBI single off Phillippe Aumont to score Polanco. Two batters later, Green blooped a two-run single to shallow center that Ben Revere couldn’t come up with, making it 5-1.

Chad Qualls struck out two in a hitless ninth.

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Both players had MRI exams on Monday before Philadelphia’s game against Miami.

Ruiz has a Grade 2 hamstring strain. He has played in 16 games and is hitting .235 with two RBIs.

“Right now he’ll probably be out three to four weeks — relative time frame,” Phillies trainer Scott Sheridan said. “That’s kind of what we’re thinking right now based on the size of the tear and location.”

Howard has had symptoms for the past couple of weeks and is hitting .179 in 16 games this month.

“He’s got some changes in his meniscus in his knee and also has some inflammation in his knee that concerns us,” Sheridan said. “We did a cortisone injection with him (Sunday) and he’s not available to play tonight and we will just treat him day to day right now and go from there.”

Howard is batting .245 with six home runs and 22 RBIs in 41 games. He has been replaced at first base by Michael Young.

“If he doesn’t respond to the treatment we’ve provided so far, you’ve got to re-evaluate what you’re doing,” Sheridan said. “At no point are we going to put Ryan out there to risk it.”

Right-handed pitcher Mike Adams (back strain) was placed on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 11. Catcher Humberto Quintero has been recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – When the Phillies went into the bottom of the ninth inning down 2-1, the prospects for a comeback seemed small with Aroldis Chapman on the mound for the Reds. When Cliff Lee got picked off of first base while pinch running for Delmon Young, a comeback went from what seemed unlikely to what seemed like impossible. Back-to-back home runs from Erik Kratz and Freddy Galvis gave the Phillies a 3-2 win, and most were left asking “how did that happen?”

One man who might have some insight is Phillies Spanish-language broadcaster Rickie Ricardo, who brought Chapman a gift before the game.

“Aroldis Chapman, since he arrived in the U.S. and on a major league team, he has become a friend of mine, and as I do for many Cuban players they always ask me—there is a little Cuban bakery up near where I live in the Cuban strong hold of Union City, New Jersey,” Ricardo told Angelo Cataldi and the 94WIP Morning Show on Monday. “They cook this little Cuban pastry, which is a flaky-crust pasty with cream cheese and guava and it’s baked, and it’s absolutely delicious. Now, if you eat more than two of these you’re clogging up your arteries—you’re a stroke waiting to happen! Well, Chapman asked me on Friday night after the game to stop by the bakery and pick up a box of 50. For example, Livan Hernandez, guys like that—even Chooch, guys on our team, they’ll put 10-15 of these things away with a couple of glasses of milk. It’s equivalent of the Krispy Kreme donuts when they come right out of the oven, it’s that kind of a thing.”

LISTEN: Angelo Cataldi interviews Rickie Ricardo

“Could you imagine cream cheese and guava on a baked pastry? Well Chapman asked me for a box of 100, two boxes of 50. When I saw him on Sunday morning before the game, he was in the club house, he had just eaten about 18 of them. He couldn’t breathe! I looked at my partner, I said, ‘he’s ripe for the taking today.”

Chapman’s fastball, often clocked at over 100 mph, hovered around 95 mph for most of the ninth inning, hitting 98 and 99 occasionally.

    You can hear tonight’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

Galvis and Erik Kratz each homered off closer Aroldis Chapman in the bottom of the ninth inning Sunday after Lee’s baserunning mistake, rallying the Philadelphia Phillies past the Cincinnati Reds for a stunning 3-2 victory.

“As soon as I hit it, it felt good,” Galvis, who never had hit a walkoff homer at any level, said. “Awesome. I think I’ll never forget it.”

Chapman (3-2) blew his second straight save opportunity after converting his first eight chances this season. The 100 mph-throwing left-hander walked pinch-hitter Delmon Young on four pitches to open the ninth.

Lee, the Phillies’ left-hander, pinch ran and was caught trying to steal second base, but Chapman wouldn’t record another out. Kratz, who entered the game in the third inning after Carlos Ruiz left with a strained right hamstring, pulled a 3-2 pitch over the seats in left to tie it at 2-all.

Galvis followed by lining a 1-1 pitch just inside the foul pole in left.

Lee breathed a sigh of relief after his inexplicable gaffe.

“That’s basically the last thing you need to do right there,” he said. “It was brutal. I felt horrible. (Winning) was a really good feeling.”

Antonio Bastardo (2-1) pitched a scoreless ninth inning for Philadelphia.

“Today’s game was definitely a pick me up,” said manager Charlie Manuel, whose Phillies open a three-game set at Miami on Monday. “It will give us a nice, little ride to Florida.”

Slugging first baseman Ryan Howard will not be making the trip to Miami with the team. He’s going to have an MRI Monday on his sore left knee.

Howard, who is batting .245 with 46 strikeouts in 151 at-bats this season, has four hits in his last 34 at-bats.

Manuel didn’t sound optimistic about Howard’s chances to play on Monday.

“We’ll see,” Howard said. “It’s been acting up. I’ve been able to tough it out but told (Manuel) it was sore.”

Ruiz left the game after straining his right hamstring running the bases in the second inning. He didn’t make the trip to Miami with the Phillies and will have an MRI on Monday. Ruiz, who said he heard a “pop” while running, hopes to rejoin the team on Tuesday.

Jay Bruce homered and Homer Bailey tossed seven scoreless innings for the Reds, who appeared headed for their ninth win in 10 games.

“I would’ve lost a lot of money if I’d bet on that one,” Bailey said. “But that’s the game.”

Bruce led off the second with a towering shot to straightaway center to extend his hitting streak to 10 games. He is batting .390 (16 for 41) with four homers and 12 RBIs during the spurt.

Joey Votto also stayed hot by going 2 for 4 for the Reds. Votto extended his hitting streak to eight games, and he is batting .515 (17 for 33) over the stretch.

Bailey shut down the Phillies for the second time this season and left without a victory for the second time. He allowed five hits with three strikeouts and a walk. He also got a no-decision on April 16 in a 1-0 loss to the Phillies when he pitched eight scoreless innings while allowing two hits with a career high-tying 10 strikeouts and no walks.

“An unfortunate ending, stunning, but that’s the game,” Reds manager Dusty Baker said. “It kind of spoils you because you always expect (Chapman) to come through. We’ve got to get him out of the funk he’s in and hope it doesn’t last too long.”

Chapman got off to a rough start Sunday against Young and seemed upset with home plate umpire Tim Welke while facing the Philadelphia pinch hitter, as Welke called at least two close pitches balls.

“I thought I threw good pitches to the first batter,” Chapman said through an interpreter.

And the lefty wasn’t upset with the location of Galvis’ homer, nor did he expect the loss to linger.

“A fastball where I wanted it,” he said. “I don’t see any problems. Everybody gets hit. Why not me?”

The Phillies looked as if they were on their way to a seventh shutout of the season before the eighth.

Chase Utley’s RBI single in the eighth inning snapped the Phillies’ 16 scoreless innings skid.

Ben Revere, returning to the starting lineup after sitting out the last four, had three hits for the Phillies. Revere raised his average from .237 to .256.

Jonathan Pettibone gave up two runs — one earned — on seven hits in seven innings and has yet to allow more than three earned runs in six career starts.

The Reds tacked on a run in the sixth on Todd Frazier’s RBI double. The run was unearned, though, as Votto advanced to second on Domonic Brown’s throwing error after leading off with a single.

Philadelphia got to 2-1 in the eighth on Utley’s single that scored Revere, but Brown flew out to right with runners on first and second against reliever Sean Marshall to end the threat.

Regular Phillies third baseman Michael Young started at first base for the first time this season. Young went 0 for 3 with a walk.

NOTES: The Phillies have been shut out six times this season, which is the same total they were blanked in all of 2012. … The Phillies said right-hander Tyler Cloyd will be called up from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to pitch Tuesday’s game at Miami. The team needs a fifth starter with Roy Halladay sidelined after shoulder surgery and John Lannan (knee) on the DL. … Cincinnati right-hander Johnny Cueto (1-0, 2.60), on the DL since April 15 (strained right lat), is scheduled to face Mets righty Shaun Marcum (0-4, 6.75) when the teams open a three-game series in New York at 7:10 p.m. Monday. … Phillies lefty Cole Hamels (1-6, 4.61) is slated to oppose Marlins righty Alex Sanabia (2-6, 5.00) at 7:10 p.m. Monday in Miami.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Arroyo (4-4) struck out six and allowed one runner to reach third in winning his third straight start against Philadelphia. He was 1-7 in his first 10 games against the Phillies, but has figured them out over the last two seasons.

Votto had a two-run shot and walked twice to reach safely six times. Ryan Hanigan hit a three-run homer.

Kyle Kendrick (4-2) gave up four runs and eight hits with a season-high four walks in six innings. Kendrick hadn’t allowed more than two runs in his previous seven starts.

Cincinnati won for the seventh time in its last eight games and improved to 4-1 against the Phillies this year.

Arroyo entered with a 6.00 career ERA against the Phillies, including a 9.60 ERA in three starts at Citizens Bank Park. He’s 3-0 with a 1.52 ERA in three starts against them since last Aug. 22.

Todd Frazier led off the second with an infield single, snapping an 0-for-19 slump. Donald Lutz followed with a single. Then Hanigan connected for his first extra-base hit of the season, giving the Reds a 3-0 lead. Hanigan had eight singles in 54 at-bats before taking Kendrick deep to left.

Hanigan was hit by a pitch leading off the sixth. He advanced on a sacrifice and scored on Zack Cozart’s two-out double to right to make it 4-0.

The Reds added four runs off three relievers in the eighth. Votto hit one out in the ninth.

Arroyo didn’t need all that support. He baffled hitters with his assortment of slow stuff, occasionally mixing a fastball with his mid-70s off-speed pitches.

For Kendrick, it was his worst outing since allowing five runs in Philadelphia’s home opener. Kendrick has been Philadelphia’s most consistent starter this season, posting a 2.82 ERA and outperforming Cole Hamels, Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay.

Since returning to the rotation last August, Kendrick is 11-6 with a 3.02 ERA in 21 starts.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Jimmy Rollins hit a two-run homer and Cliff Lee threw seven sharp innings for the Phillies, who’ve won four of five.

Joey Votto hit a tying solo homer off Antonio Bastardo in the eighth, and Jay Bruce connected for a two-run shot for Cincinnati.

Lee gave up two runs and six hits, striking out seven. Justin De Fratus (2-0) got two batters out in the eighth and Jonathan Papelbon finished for his eighth save in eight tries.

Reds rookie starter Tony Cingrani allowed three runs and five hits in five innings.

After Cincinnati tied it in the eighth, the Phillies answered in the bottom half against Sean Marshall (0-1). Michael Young worked his third walk of the game with one out. Ryan Howard followed with a check-swing, infield single. Jonathan Broxton came in and hit Delmon Young to load the bases.

Brown then hit a grounder up the middle that shortstop Zack Cozart fielded on the second base side. Second baseman Brandon Phillips tried to barehand Cozart’s flip and dropped it for an error. Young crossed the plate with the go-ahead run and Howard scored on a headfirst dive on Carlos Ruiz’s sacrifice fly for a 5-3 lead.

The Reds closed to 3-2 when Bruce connected in the sixth after Phillips led off with a double.

They tied it when Votto took Bastardo deep to right-center leading off the eighth. Bastardo, who normally works the seventh, was pitching in the setup role because Mike Adams is day to day with a mid-back strain.

Bastardo left after Bruce hit a one-out single. De Fratus came in and nearly gave up a go-ahead extra-base hit to Todd Frazier, but right fielder Delmon Young made a leaping catch at the warning track.

Rollins blasted a 3-1 pitch out to left to put the Phillies up 2-0 in the third inning. He is batting .375 (9 for 24) in his last six games.

Lee, a good-hitting pitcher, helped himself with a leadoff double in the bottom of the fifth. Lee knocks balls out of the park routinely in batting practice, and just missed his third career homer when his drive to right bounced high off the wall. He hustled into second after trotting down the first-base line, and appeared slightly annoyed the ball didn’t go out.

Lee advanced to third on a sacrifice by Rollins and scored on Michael Young’s two-out triple to deep left-center for a 3-0 lead.

The Reds had chances in the first two innings, but couldn’t get a key hit. Lee stranded five runners, striking out Cozart to leaves the bases loaded in the second.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Rosenberg was 1-2 with a 6.12 ERA in 22 relief appearances for Philadelphia last season. He was 1-3 and had a 4.30 ERA in seven starts at Lehigh this season.

Valdes was 1-0 with a 7.65 ERA in 10 appearances out of the bullpen.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Angelo’s winner of the week is Roy Halladay for his compelling, truthful apology and successful surgery.

Angelo’s weasel of the week is Ilya Bryzgalov for his comments on Philadelphia and Joseph Stalin.

Caller winner (approved by Rhea Hughes) is the Boston Bruins for overcoming a 4-1 deficit in the third period of their game 7 against the Maple Leafs, to win 5-4 in OT and advance.

Caller weasel (approved by Al Morganti) is Eddie Jordan for never actually identifying himself as a graduate of Rutgers University.

Who are your winners and weasels? Let us know in the comments.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Phillies’ bullpen has been an adventure so far in 2013.  While Jonathan Papelbon has been lights out and Mike Adams has been pretty good for the most part when healthy, the rest of that unit has been inconsistent at best.

However, 25-year-old right-hander Justin De Fratus could be ready to help add some stability to the corps.

The Phillies 11th-round pick in the 2007 MLB draft, De Fratus was 3-0 in 13 games with AAA Lehigh Valley with a 1.89 ERA.  Since being called up last week, De Fratus has made two one-batter appearances, retiring both and picking up the win Sunday in Arizona.

“I feel pretty good,” De Fratus tells KYW Newsradio.  “Just been trying to go out and attack hitters and give myself the best chance to succeed.”

After getting a taste of the bigs for the first time with the Phillies in 2011, De Fratus probably could have made a real impact in the Phils ‘pen last season.  However, he missed much of the campaign with an elbow issue.  He didn’t arrive in Philadelphia until September.

“I felt 100% once I was off the DL last year,” De Fratus says.  “It just took a little longer than we anticipated.  But we wanted to make sure I was fully healthy last year before I got taken off the DL.  Once I got back, I felt 100%.”

One thing you really have to like about De Fratus is the way he keeps the ball in the ballpark.  In 20 career big league appearances, he has yet to allow a home run.  And in 424.1 minor league frames, he has been taken deep just 14 times.

The California native is doing his best to enjoy the ride as he tries to stick in Philadelphia.

“The biggest thing I’ve learned is patience,” De Fratus says.  “And really to just enjoy every day, because you don’t know when you’re going to back down or stay up or what not.  I just have learned patience and (also), in my time up here, that I do have the ability to get people out up here and to trust in my ability.”

De Fratus and the Phillies return to action on Friday night when they open a three-game series with the Reds at Citizens Bank Park.

You can follow Matt on Twitter @mattleonkyw.

    You can hear tonight’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball appears set for a vast expansion of video review by umpires in 2014 and is examining whether all calls other than balls or strikes should be subject to instant replay.

Replay has been in place for home run calls since August 2008. Commissioner Bud Selig initially wanted to add trap plays and fair/foul calls down the lines for 2013, but change was put off while more radical options were examined.

“My opinion has evolved,” baseball Commissioner Bud Selig said Thursday after MLB executive vice president Joe Torre gave an update at a quarterly owners’ meeting.

Torre hopes to have proposals by the Aug. 14-15 session in Cooperstown.

Umpires are under heightened scrutiny following two bad decisions last week. After initially failing to award Oakland’s Adam Rosales a tying home run in the ninth inning at Cleveland on May 8, Angel Hernandez’s umpiring crew reviewed video and still didn’t award him the homer even though replays showed the ball clearly went over the fence.

The following day, umpire Fieldin Culbreth’s crew allowed Houston manager Bo Porter to improperly switch relievers in the middle of an inning, leading to a two-game suspension for the crew chief.

“Have we had a bad week or so? Yeah,” Torre said. “One was a rules thing; it had nothing to do with replay.”

In tests last year at Yankee Stadium and Citi Field, MLB experimented with the Hawk-Eye animation system that is used to judge line calls in tennis and the TrackMan radar software used by the PGA Tour.

While initially assigned to a large “special committee for on-field matters” that Selig established in 2009, replay recommendations will now come from a subcommittee of three: Torre, former St. Louis manager Tony La Russa and Atlanta president John Schuerholz, who is chairing the group.

“There are a lot of hurdles,” Torre said. “You could start replaying stuff from the first inning on and then time the game by your calendar. That would be crazy. We have a rhythm in this game that we certainly don’t want to disrupt.”

The group is examining whether to have replay officials in booths at ballparks or at a central location, and whether to have umpires wear headsets as soccer officials do. Torre is against giving managers a challenge system, as NFL coaches have, but says opinion is split.

“Managers have to make enough decisions,” he said. “We’ve tried to stay away from technology telling us what to do.”

Torre said his decision to examine a vast expansion came after Jeff Nelson blew a call at second base in the second game of last year’s AL championship series. Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano tagged Detroit’s Omar Infante, and Nelson ruled him safe instead of calling an inning-ending out. Detroit stretched its lead from one run to three and went on to a 3-0 victory and a four-game sweep.

“That really caught my eye and caught my attention with the fact that there was more conversation about that instead of the game itself,” Torre said. “There’s no question we’re considering much more than the trap play and fair/foul. But again, one of the decisions we have to make is how much of this do we want to do without really disrupting and putting people to sleep?”

Roy Halladay had successful shoulder surgery [Wednesday]. He had an arthroscopic evlauation and underwent debridement of his labrum and rotator cuff as well as a removal of an inflamed bursa. He’ll begin a progressive rehabilitation program and if all goes well he may possibly begin a throwing program in 6-8 weeks.

Halladay originally said the surgery could keep him sidelined for two to three months.

The right handed Zambrano, 31 years old, has a lifetime record of 132-91 with an ERA of 3.66 in 12 seasons with the Cubs and Marlins. He was 7-10 in 2012 with the Marlins, with an ERA of 4.49, striking out 95 and walking 75 batters in 132 innings.

Zambrano is a very good hitter for a pitcher, with a lifetime batting average of .248, with 24 home runs.

The Phillies are missing two of the five starters in their opening day rotation, as John Lannan continues to recover from a knee injury, and Roy Halladay is likely out for at least 2-3 months following shoulder surgery.

Phillies Tune-In Day Game

     You can hear today’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

Usually, we take this column as an opportunity to give our opinions on a variety of different fantasy-relevant players with varying values to help as widespread a portion of the fantasy community as possible. While the advantage to that strategy is that it helps a larger portion of the fantasy community at least somewhat, it does have the intrinsic disadvantage of us writers being unable to go as in-depth on each guy as we possible could. So, as a change of pace, this week we decided to focus on two players who we wanted to ‘Go Deep’ on, meaning guys we wanted to do slightly more elaborate research on so we could share some more finessed opinions with you guys. So, we decided to go deep on the Tigers’ Max Scherzer and the Indians’ Carlos Santana.

Max Scherzer, Starting Pitcher, Tigers

Max Scherzer is having one of the strangest starts of the 2013 fantasy baseball season. His ERA is nearly identical to what it was last season—3.74 ERA in 2012 vs 3.61 ERA so far this year—despite the fact that he’s improved in essentially every category across the board. Not only has Scherzer sustained the jump he made last year from around 8 K/9 previously in his career to the 11.08 K/9 he posted last season, but he’s actually improved on it, currently posting an 11.60 K/9 rate. Scherzer has also decreased his already solid mid-twos walk rate all the way down to a spectacular 1.71 BB/9, making his current K:BB ratio an elite 6.78:1, more than double the rate of Justin Verlander. On the batted balls side of things, Scherzer has also increased his ground ball rate to a career high 43.6%, and lowered his HR/9 rate to a career low 0.57 HR/9. So why has Scherzer’s ERA not followed suit with the rest of his improving stat line? The answer is simple: bad luck.

Among qualified starters, Scherzer has the sixth lowest Left On Base Percentage (LOB%) in major league baseball, which is the percentage of runners a pitcher strands on base. This stat is almost entirely uncontrollable by the pitcher, and subject to large fluctuations. If with that outlandishly low rate Scherzer is capable of managing a 3.61 ERA, the rest of the way I’d project him for a sub-3.00 ERA which should match his currently impeccable 0.97 WHIP and make him a top 15 fantasy pitcher the rest of the way. If Scherzer’s owner undervalues him because of some small sample bad luck in the ERA department, I’d be more than willing to pounce on his four-category dominance.

Carlos Santana, Catcher, Indians

Carlos Santana seems to have taken the next step to being a perennial all-star catcher. After a frustrating first few seasons in the league laden with high expectations, Santana had an incredibly strong finish to last season and has taken even more steps in the right direction this year. One sign that always gave Santana hope was his incredible walk rate, which has never been lower than 14.7% in the majors. This season Santana’s Batting Average on Balls in Play (BABIP) has taken a major step forward—from a .279 career rate to .367 this season—and while some of that is fluky, it’s not entirely due to luck. One of the main reasons for Santana’s increased BABIP is his improved Line Drive rate. It has improved steadily from 2011 when it reached a low of 15%. This season it is bordering on 20% and that seems to be more in line with his second half numbers last season.

Additionally, Santana’s strikeout rate also has the potential to improve. In the second half last year, Santana only struck out 13% of the time and his contact rates have improved this season despite a relatively high strikeout rate. Although his BABIP may be fluky, it is probably going to be offset in the long-term by Santana depressing his K-rate. While making all of these adjustments and changes, Santana hasn’t had to sacrifice any power as he already has seven homers and his RBI’s should get a small boost with the return of Michael Bourn. While many are looking to sell high on Santana, I would be looking to buy low (or I suppose buy high) on the former top prospect. I would look for Santana to be in the conversation with Buster Posey for the #1 catcher for years to come and remember that Santana has the ability to DH on his off days unlike Posey, which could mean a lot to his long-term durability.

Agree? Disagree? Questions? Tweet @RotoAnalysis and be sure to follow Moe @MoeProblems and Matt @Schwimingly. Check out their work on RotoAnalysis.com, as well as The RotoAnalysis Fantasy Sports Podcast.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Sports Illustrated released their “Fortunate 50″ for this year, a list of the highest paid US athletes, and Philadelphia has four members of the club. More specifically, the Phillies have four members of the club.

Cliff Lee comes in at #17, Ryan Howard at #25, Roy Halladay at #39, and Cole Hamels at #44.

The rankings include both salary and endorsement earnings. Lee is making $25,280,000 this year, Ryan Howard $23,200,000, Roy Halladay $20,210,000 and Hamels at $19,900,000.

There is not a member of the Sixers, Flyers or Eagles on the list.

The Yankees have five members of the Fortunate 50, and the Dodgers have four.

Boxer Floyd “Money” Mayweather tops the list at $90,000,000, followed by Lebron James, Drew Brees, Kobe Bryant and Tiger Woods rounding out the top five.

Candidates from the list must either be US Citizens or play for a US team.

I should have practiced my jump shot and fastball more when I was growing up.

     You can hear today’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.

John Mayberry Jr. had three hits and three RBIs, including a go-ahead two-run double for the Phillies, who won their third straight game to get within two games of .500.

Pettibone (3-0) allowed two runs and four hits in 6 2-3 innings, the longest of his five career starts. Three relievers got the next four outs and Jonathan Papelbon finished in a non-save situation after Philadelphia tacked on two runs in the eighth.

The Phillies improved to 12-4 when Pettibone, Kyle Kendrick or John Lannan start. They’re 7-16 in games started by the $64.5 million trio of Cole Hamels, Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee.

Cleveland’s Scott Kazmir (2-2) gave up four runs and six hits in five-plus innings.

The Indians had won seven of nine. They swept a two-game series at home against the Phillies two weeks ago, outscoring them 20-2.

Brown got Philadelphia’s rally going in the fourth by lining a one-out single. Carlos Ruiz then walked to bring up Mayberry. He ripped a two-run double to left-center to put the Phillies up 3-2.

Brown roped his seventh homer into the right-field seats to make it 4-2 in the sixth. Since Brown hit a three-run homer against the New York Mets on April 27, the team’s last 16 homers have been solo shots.

Mayberry and Freddy Galvis had RBI singles in the eighth.

Frandsen hit a 1-2 pitch into the flower bed just beyond the left-field wall to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead in the first.

Nick Swisher led off the second with a single and Carlos Santana followed with an opposite-field double down the left-field line. After Mark Reynolds popped out to shallow right, Michael Brantley hit a two-run single up the middle off a 1-2 pitch.

Asdrubal Cabrera led off the eighth with a triple off Antonio Bastardo, but was stranded. Bastardo struck out Nick Swisher looking. After Santana walked, Justin De Fratus entered and retired Reynolds on an infield pop. Jeremy Horst then came in and fanned Brantley to end the inning.

Pettibone had location issues in the third when he loaded the bases on a walk and hit consecutive batters. But he retired Reynolds on a pop-up to escape the jam.

The surprising Indians, coming off a 68-94 season, are 21-17 under first-year manager Terry Francona, who managed the Phillies to four losing seasons from 1997-2000 before leading Boston to two World Series titles in 2004 and 2007.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Phillies will look for an improved performance against the Indians on Tuesday night as they open a two-game, interleague series with Cleveland at Citizens Bank Park.

The first time these two teams met this season was an unmitigated disaster for the Phillies.  They dropped two games in Cleveland ( April 30th and May 1st) by a combined score of 20-2.  Roy Halladay was bombed in one game (14-2) and Cliff Lee was hit around in the other (6-0).

In this series opener, it will be Jonathan Pettibone getting the start for the Phillies.  The rookie right-hander has pitched solid baseball since his promotion from AAA, going 2-0 in four starts with a 3.63 ERA.  Last time out he got a no-decison in San Francisco, allowing three runs in 5 2/3 innings of a game the Phillies eventually lost in ten innings, 4-3.

The Indians will give the ball to veteran left-hander Scott Kazmir.  He is 2-1 in four starts with a 4.87 ERA.  Kazmir was once one of the top young pitchers in baseball with Tampa Bay (he started Games #1 and #5 in the 2008 World Series against the Phillies), but his career went into a tailspin and he ended up in the Atlantic League in 2012, pitching for the Sugar Land Skeeters.  However, he has returned to the bigs and done a pretty good job in the Indians rotation here in 2013.

The Phillies are 18-21 on the season and they come into play tonight in third place in National League East, 4 1/2 games behind first-place Atlanta.

KYW’s Matt Leon spoke with Jim Rosenhaus, a member of the Indians radio broadcast team, to get his take on this series.

You can follow Matt on Twitter @mattleonkyw.

It didn’t matter that Howard had been hitless in his previous 18 at-bats, striking out in half of those. No matter that he was facing a pitcher who hadn’t given up a run all season, either.

With the game on the line, few players are better than the Phillies’ bashing first baseman.

Shaking off what had been a disappointing day and series, Howard looped a two-run single to right field, lifting the Phillies to a 4-2 comeback victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday.

“When he’s going bad, he looks bad, but he can take one swing and get the game over,” Philadelphia manager Charlie Manuel said.

Shut down by Brandon McCarthy for the first eight innings, the Phillies scored two runs in the ninth against fill-in Diamondbacks closer Heath Bell. Delmon Young drove in one with a double and Domonic Brown tied it at 2 with a single up the middle.

Justin De Fratus (1-0) got a huge out with a runner on in the bottom half, striking out Paul Goldschmidt — who began the day second in the NL with 30 RBIs.

Jimmy Rollins then singled with one out in the 10th off Matt Reynolds (0-1), and Chase Utley followed with his fourth hit, a double to the corner in right.

Howard was hitless in four previous at-bats and came up against Reynolds, who had not allowed a run in 19 straight appearances to open the season.

Howard came through, though, just as the Phillies expected.

Swinging on an inside pitch, Howard muscled a ball to right that likely would have been caught had the Diamondbacks been in their usual shift for the slugger. Instead of sending the second baseman out to shallow right against Howard, Arizona had its infield drawn in and the ball landed safely on the outfield grass, allowing Rollins and Utley to score.

Jonathan Papelbon worked a one-hit 10th for his seventh save in as many chances and the Phillies had 15 hits — none bigger than Howard’s.

“That was big for Ryan to get a big hit like that,” said Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick, who shook off a shaky first inning to give Philadelphia a chance. “I’m not saying that just because I was pitching, but it’s just nice to see later in the game like that.”

McCarthy had an early lead after Gerardo Parra hit his second career leadoff homer and A.J. Pollock drove in another run in the first inning off Kendrick.

Inconsistent through most of his first season with Arizona, McCarthy was sharp in his eighth start for the Diamondbacks, scattering seven singles over eight scoreless innings.

The right-hander had only thrown 88 pitches, but Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson opted to pull him for Bell, who had earned three straight saves since closer J.J. Putz went on the disabled list.

Bell blew the lead in the ninth and Reynolds was uncharacteristically shaky in the 10th, giving up four hits to see his overall scoreless outings streak end at 22 games, dating to last season.

“I guess we went the way we thought was the best way to go,” Gibson said. “It didn’t work out. We know now it didn’t work out and even if we left him in we don’t know how that would have worked out. Sometimes you make decisions and it doesn’t work out. That was my decision.”

McCarthy was solid in his previous outing, giving up three runs over 6 2-3 innings against the Dodgers, but didn’t figure in the decision after the Diamondbacks pulled out a victory in the ninth inning.

Staked to an early 2-0 lead this time, he was sharp against Philadelphia, shaking off a pair of singles in the second inning by getting groundouts and stranding runners every time the Phillies got hits.

First baseman Eric Hinske gave McCarthy some help in the sixth with a diving stop on a hard-hit ball by Howard, and shortstop Didi Gregorius ended the seventh with a double play after coming up with a tough one-hopper.

McCarthy induced another double play after pinch-hitter Michael Young led off the eighth with a single. McCarthy pitched eight scoreless innings for the first time since Sept. 3, 2011, against Seattle.

“At 88 (pitches) I was a little tired but I felt that I was at least shoring some things up,” McCarthy said. “It is an inning that I always like to go back out. The last few weeks haven’t been smooth and I haven’t really been a guy that you counted on. I would like to get that reputation back where it is a no-brainer and I get the ball in the ninth.”

Kendrick, who has struggled against Arizona, was in trouble right away on Sunday, leaving a 1-2 pitch up in the zone that Parra hit out to right. Gregorius followed with a triple to the gap and Pollock added a run-scoring single to put Arizona up 2-0 after one inning.

Kendrick settled down after that and got some help in the third, when Brown nonchalantly reached over the wall in left to rob Eric Chavez of a homer.

Kendrick allowed two runs on six hits and struck out four in seven innings.

“I just made a couple of bad pitches, pitches that were up over the plate,” he said. “The guy on the other side was pitching well, so it was good to see us go out and get that win.”

NOTES: McCarthy hasn’t won since Aug. 31 against Boston while pitching for Oakland. … Reynolds’ 19 straight scoreless outings matched Joe Patterson’s 2011 team record. … Diamondbacks LHP Wade Miley, who starts Monday’s series opener against Atlanta, has allowed two earned runs in 11 innings in two home starts this season. … The Phillies have a day off before RHP Jonathan Pettibone (2-0) pitches against Cleveland LHP Scott Kazmir to open a two-game series Tuesday.

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – There are a few more empty seats at Citizens Bank Park this season, compared to last year.

This time last season, the Phils were selling out every game; this season, not quite.

Phillies 2013 attendance, through 18 home games, is down 6,700 per game compared to last season. Fans like Nancy at the ballpark ticket window have noticed.

“Last year I couldn’t come down to this window and get any ticket I wanted. This year I can. So there’s not as many people here. Last year they were sold out lots of games. This year they’re not sold out,” says Nancy.

The Phils are seventh in attendance right now. Last season they led all of baseball.

It’s a trend to keep an eye on, because lower attendance translates to less revenue to spend on the team payroll.

Domonic Brown added an RBI single in the seventh for the Phillies, who snapped a three-game losing streak.

Lee (4-2) gave up six hits, struck out three and walked two in winning consecutive road starts for the first time since August 2011.

Down 2-0, Arizona loaded the bases with two outs in the seventh before pinch-hitter Will Nieves grounded out.

Jonathan Papelbon pitched the final 1 2-3 innings for his sixth save in as many chances.

The Diamondbacks put runners on second and third against Papelbon with one out in the ninth. He struck out pinch-hitter Eric Hinske and A.J. Pollock for his first five-out save since July 14, 2012, at Colorado. Pollock had doubled twice earlier.

Philadelphia had been shut out in two of Lee’s past starts and the Phillies have scored 23 runs total in his seven starts — eight coming in one game.

Arizona starter Trevor Cahill (2-4) could commiserate. The Diamondbacks have scored 22 runs in his seven starts, nine coming in a 9-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 6.

The Phillies manufactured a run to take a 1-0 lead in the fifth. Ben Revere walked, was sacrificed to second by Lee, went to third on a wild pitch and scored on a sacrifice fly to deep center by Rollins.

Philadelphia made it 2-0 in the seventh when Revere singled off Josh Collmenter, stole second, moved up on Lee’s third sacrifice bunt of the game and scored when Rollins singled.

Michael Young walked and later scored on Brown’s single against Tony Sipp in the eighth to extend the Phillies’ lead to 3-0.

NOTES: Diamondbacks RHP Matt Reynolds notched his 22nd scoreless appearance dating back to last season. He matched a franchise record with his 19th straight scoreless outing to start the season, first set by Joe Paterson in 2011. … Phillies 1B Ryan Howard went 0 for 5 with four strikeouts. Since homering in his final at-bat Tuesday at San Francisco, Howard is 0 for 14 with nine strikeouts, dropping his batting average from .320 to .252. … Pollock leads the NL with 14 doubles. … Lee helped his cause in the third when he picked off Pollock at second base. … Diamondbacks LHP Daniel Hudson, who is working his way back from Tommy John surgery last July, threw 46 pitches over three innings of a simulated game earlier Saturday. … Arizona OF Adam Eaton has been transferred to Visalia of the Class A California League to continue his rehab from a left elbow strain. … Phillies RHP Kyle Kendrick will start the series finale Sunday against Diamondbacks RHP Brandon McCarthy, who is looking for his first win since signing with Arizona in the offseason. Kendrick is unbeaten in his past six starts, posting a 4-0 record and allowing two or fewer runs in each game.

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The Diamondbacks struggled against Phillies starter Tyler Cloyd, but scratched out a run in the seventh and went ahead when Montero hit the first pitch thrown by Mike Adams (1-3) in the eighth off the foul pole in right.

Kennedy gave up a leadoff homer to Jimmy Rollilns and two runs in the first inning before settling down to keep Arizona in it.

Tony Sipp (2-1) got two outs in the eighth inning and David Hernandez worked out of a jam in the ninth for his first save.

The Phillies had runners on second and third with one out in the ninth inning, but Hernandez got pinch hitter Laynce Nix on a soft pop-up and ended the game by inducing a groundout by Rollins.

Kennedy has labored since beating St. Louis on Opening Day, allowing four or more runs three times during a six-game winless streak. The right-hander lost to San Diego after allowing four runs in seven innings in his last outing and got off to a rough start against the Phillies.

Rollins hit the first pitch of the game out to right for his 44th career leadoff homer, matching Brady Anderson for fourth all-time. Domonic Brown followed a walk and another hit with a run-scoring single that put the Phillies up 2-0.

Kennedy found a rhythm after that, allowing a single in the second inning and no other hits until Ben Revere led off the seventh with a single. He was lifted for a pinch hitter in the bottom half after allowing two runs on six hits with four strikeouts.

Cloyd was just as good.

The right-hander pitched six games for the Phillies in 2012, going 2-2, and opened this season in the minors.

He was called up to start against the Diamondbacks after Roy Halladay went out with a shoulder injury.

Making his season debut in one of baseball’s most hitter-friendly parks didn’t seem to bother the 25-year-old.

In the first inning, Eric Chavez lined a double to the right field corner off him and Paul Goldschmidt just beat John Mayberry’s throw after running through — almost literally — third base coach Matt Williams’ stop sign.

Cloyd had the Diamondbacks guessing after that, working around a pair of walks in the fourth inning with a double play and allowing no hits until Cody Ross hit a one-out flare single to left in the seventh.

He was lifted after that, but didn’t figure into the decision because Ross tagged up on Jason Kubel’s long flyball to get into scoring position and scored on Prado’s run-scoring single off Antonio Bastardo. Prado’s hit ended a 29 at-bat hitless streak with runners in scoring position.

Cloyd allowed two hits and struck out four.

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Angelo’s winner: Kyle Kendrick for another strong outing on Tuesday against the Giants, as Kendrick went seven innings while allowing only six hits and two earned runs as the Phillies beat the Giants 6-2. Kendrick is now 4-1 with a 2.45 ERA on the season.

Angelo’s weasel: Ruben Amaro Jr. for saying he is “fine” with Roy Halladay not being honest and informing anyone about his shoulder pain.

Caller winner (approved by Rhea Hughes): Matt Kemp for giving an autograph ball, his cap, his jersey, and his cleats to a fan after a game. The fan is suffering from inoperable tumors in his spine and has been given 90 days to live.

Caller weasel (approved by Al Morganti): Angel Hernandez on his missed home run call on Wednesday night, even after watching it on replay.

Who are your winners and weasels? Let us know in the comments.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Phillies missed out on some big ticket items in the off-season. BJ Upton, Michae Bourn, Josh Hamilton and others wound up on other teams, while fans were dying for a big addition in Philadelphia. Though it may have been a good idea to pass on the high priced options that landed somewhere else, it’s actually the low-cost players the Phillies had access to that ended up elsewhere that would have been the most help.

Yuniesky Betancourt asked the Phillies to release him when the team felt content with keeping Freddy Galvis and Kevin Frandsen as infield backups on the major league roster. Betancourt, who landed with the Milwaukee Brewers, has eight home runs, which would lead the Phillies right now, and an OPS of .816., which would also lead the team He is making $900,000. As John Stolnis points out in his blog post today, Chase Utley is currently hitting .108 against left-handed pitching, a trend that is now two years old. Betancourt would have provided a solid platoon or fill-in option at second base, as well as the ability to take Michael Young’s place at third base and Jimmy Rollins’ spot at shortstop when necessary.

Kevin Frandsen has done a nice job against left-handers, and has provided what the Phillies had hoped. But it’s hard not to look at Betancourt’s eight home runs and not wish they happened here.

On January 28th, the Phillies decided not to tender a contract offer to outfielder Nate Schierholtz, who they got in the Hunter Pence trade with the Giants. Schierholtz signed with the Cubs for one-year and $2.25 million.

Before we get to the offense part of this, you should know that Schierholtz would instantly be the best defensive corner outfielder that the Phillies have right now. While we hold our breath waiting for Delmon Young to eventually butcher something out there and decide whether or not he’ll take even one pitch during the course of a game, the Phillies could have Schierholtz and his rocket arm instead.

Schierholtz has 12 doubles, which would lead the Phillies, a batting average of .299 and an OPS of .889, which would also lead the Phillies. His baBIP is .316, which is just about right around his career number of .310, which suggests that his production is mostly sustainable.

Again, I didn’t see too many people complaining about the Betancourt release and Frandsen has been adequate, but the Schierholtz error seems egregious at the time, and is proving to be just that.

    You can hear tonight’s game on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT or SportsRadio 94.1 WIP.