Series preview: at Philadelphia Phillies
When (TV): 7:05 p.m. Friday (FSSO), 7:05 p.m. Saturday (FSSO), 1:35 p.m. Sunday (FSSO)
Radio: 680, 93.7, 106.7
Probable starting pitchers:
Friday: Braves RH Ervin Santana (14-10, 3.88 ERA) vs. RH Jerome Williams (4-2, 2.45)
Saturday: Braves RH Aaron Harang (11-12, 3.60) vs. RH A.J. Burnett (8-17, 4.57)
Sunday: Braves LH Alex Wood (11-11, 2.78) vs. LH Cole Hamels (9-8, 2.47)
About the Braves:
Batting: Justin Upton ended a homerless streak of 278 at-bats over eight games by the Braves when he hit a two-run homer off Jeff Locke, his 28th home run. He has 99 RBIs and is trying to break 100 for the first time in his career. Chris Johnson doubled twice Wednesday to break a streak of a month (since Aug. 21) without an extra-base hit. The Braves were 5-16 in September through Wednesday and had scored only 46 runs, the fewest in the major leagues. Evan Gattis has hit five home runs in seven games played at Citizens Bank Park, including a 484-foot shot off Cole Hamels last September.
Pitching: Free-agent-to-be Santana makes his likely final start as a Brave after admitting frustration over the lack of run support that Braves pitchers have received this season. Santana was 7-2 with a 2.62 ERA in his first nine starts after the All-Star break, but he is 1-3 with a 6.55 ERA and a .289 opponents' batting average in September. Santana is 3-1 with a 2.60 ERA in five starts against the Phillies this season. Ben Revere is his toughest out in the Phillies' lineup, going 5-for-10 against Santana with two doubles.
Miscellaneous: The Braves are 6-1 against the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park this season, including a four-game sweep on June 27-29 — their first four-game sweep in Philadelphia since 1964.
About the Phillies:
Batting: Chase Utley is amid the longest home-run drought of his career, dating to Aug. 10 and extending through 138 at-bats through Wednesday. The Phillies are batting .247 with runners on base, which is 26th of 30 teams in the majors. Jimmy Rollins has not played since Sept. 8 because of a hamstring injury. Ben Revere had 16 hits in his past 13 games through Wednesday, batting .291 (16-for-55) with four stolen bases and four RBIs over that time. He's hitting .396 (21-for-53) with two doubles, two triples, five steals and six RBIs against Braves pitchers this season.
Pitching: Williams is pitching for his third team of the 2014 season, first with the Astros, then the Rangers and now the Phillies. He has pitched for seven teams in his eight-year career, including six starts with the Nationals in 2007. The 32-year-old Hawaii native has allowed one unearned run in his past 14 2/3 innings over his past two starts with the Phillies — at Oakland and at San Diego. He last faced the Braves on June 25, pitching an inning of scoreless relief with the Astros. Jonathan Papelbon's seven-game suspension for making a lewd gesture at fans ended Sunday, and he has returned to the closer's role for the Phillies.
Miscellaneous: The Phillies had lost seven of 10 games through Wednesday. Revere needs three steals to become the first Phillie to steal 50 bases since Juan Samuel, now the first base coach, stole 53 in 1985.
