Rookies help Phillies blank Marlins, 8-0
PHILADELPHIA » Mark Leiter Jr. allowed one hit over seven innings, Rhys Hoskins homered and drove in five runs and the Philadelphia Phillies rode that rookie tandem to an 8-0 victory over the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night.
Leiter (2-3) didn’t allow a hit until Miguel Rojas doubled to lead off the sixth with a hard chopper that bounded over the head of drawn-in third baseman Maikel Franco. He struck out five and walked two to help the Phillies rebound from a doubleheader sweep Tuesday in which the Marlins homered six times while scoring 19 runs.
Miami couldn’t muster anything close to that kind of offense against the 26-year-old Leiter, who averages less than 90 mph
with his fastball. A 22nd round draft pick, Leiter had a 19.29 ERA in three previous appearances against the Marlins, but the lefthander baffled the Marlins with a mixture of changeups, sliders and a well-positioned fastball.
Leiter is the son of former Phillies pitcher Mark Leiter and the nephew of twotime All-Star left-hander Al Leiter.
Hoskins continued to impress. The young slugger has clubbed seven homers in 14 games since his call-up from Triple-A earlier this month. He has 16 RBIs during that time.
After reaching .500 for the first time since April with Tuesday’s sweep, the Marlins dropped to 62-63. They began the day 5 ½ games behind Colorado for the second NL wild card but also behind Milwaukee and St. Louis.
Justin Nicolino (2-2) lasted just 2 1/3 innings, giving up six runs and eight hits. It was a step back for Nicolino, who was making his third start since getting demoted to TripleA in July. The left-hander had allowed two runs in 10 1/3 innings in his previous two starts, but he struggled against Philadelphia on this particular night.
After Tommy Joseph’s two-out RBI double in the first gave the Phillies a 1-0 lead, Philadelphia broke out with five runs on six hits in the third.
The big blow was Hoskins’ three-run shot projected at 445 feet to the upper deck in left field. Hoskins put Philadelphia in front 8-0 in the sixth with a two-run double just inside third base.
Leiter’s outing was a much-needed one for the Phillies, who used six relievers on Tuesday and recalled right-hander Drew Anderson prior to the game to shore up the arms in the bullpen.
TRAINER’S ROOM
MARLINS » 3B Derek Dietrich was in the lineup and showed no ill effects after fouling a ball hard off his left in the nightcap of Tuesday’s doubleheader.
UP NEXT
PHILLIES » RHP Jake Thompson (1-1, 4.20) is expected to be recalled from Triple-A and get the ball for Philadelphia. Thompson would be going and making his third start of the season so far. MARLINS » RHP Vance Worley (2-3, 4.82) closes out the four-game series on Thursday for the Marlins. Worley is 1-1 with a 4.85 ERA in four games.