Sunday, April 10
(7-2) Philadelphia Phillies - 3
(4-6) Atlanta Braves - 0
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Cole Hamels Bucks the Trend in Rubber Game Win:
Hamels had history going against him in Sunday's game against the Braves. Several Atlanta hitters have had success against the left-hander in the past. Brian McCann was 12-37 with six doubles, a homer and 11 RBI. Martin Prado was 10-32 with three doubles, one homer and three RBI. Chipper Jones was 9-24 with four doubles, two homers and six RBI, including six walks. Aside from Jason Heyward, who was 1-4 against him in his career, this is the core of the Atlanta lineup, and having your offensive core with solid numbers against a pitcher usually bodes well.
Another factor that was on the Braves' side was Hamels' last start, in which he went 2.2 innings, allowing six runs on seven hits against the Mets.
However, Hamels shut down the core of the Braves offense, as well as the rest of it. Chipper was 0-4, McCann was 0-4, Prado was 1-4 with two strikeouts and Heyward was 1-3.
The Braves were in the game the entire way due to Derek Lowe's solid seven innings of two-run ball, but they couldn't manage to drive in a run despite several chances. Their first hit was a one-out double in the fourth by Nate McLouth, but it led to nothing after two straight outs by Chipper and McCann. Freddie Freeman singled to lead off the sixth and moved to second on a sac bunt, but Prado struck out and Chipper grounded out.
Heyward and Alex Gonzalez hit consecutive singles with two outs in the seventh, but Freeman grounded out. Prado singled with one out in the eighth but was erased by a McLouth double play.
Stat of the Day:
Phillies center fielder Shane Victorino recorded nine hits, one home run and three RBI in the series. The Braves had 11 hits in the final two games of the series.
WPA Winners:
(PHI) Cole Hamels: .440
(PHI) Shane Victorino: .193
(PHI) Ryan Madson: .085
WPA Losers:
(ATL) Chipper Jones: -.139
(ATL) Brian McCann: -.129
(ATL) Dan Uggla: -.080
The Game Changer:
Shane Victorino's solo home run in the sixth put the Phillies ahead 2-0, worth .122 WPA.
Game graph courtesy of FanGraphs:
For more on the series, Braves fans check out Talking Chop and Phillies fans check out The Good Phight.