Phillies (27-25) vs. Miami Marlins (29-22)7:05 p.m. on CSN
The Phillies return home from a successful 5-2 road trip for three weekend games with the Marlins and four with the Dodgers.
The Phils have won six of eight, but Miami brings in a streak of its ownthe Fish have won five of six and were 21-8 in May. The next-best NL team in the month of May was the Reds, at 16-12.
The Marlins are coming off of a three-game home sweep of the Nationals that brought them to within a half-game of first place. Miami won each game by two runs and Heath Bell picked up back-to-back-to-back saves. The struggling Bell (7.20 ERA) has closed out seven games since blowing his fourth save of the year on May 4.
Starting pitchers
Kyle Kendrick (1-4, 4.10 ERA) hopes to use Fridays assignment to prolong his recent success. In his last five starts, Kendrick has a 1.64 ERA, a 54 percent groundball rate and 21 strikeouts to just five walks.
Dating back to the last Julybeginning with a start against the Marlins -- Kendrick has a 2.65 ERA in his last 15 starts. Hes also averaged 5.9 innings per game, a solid average for any fifth starter.
Kendricks done a commendable job against the Marlins of late, too, allowing just three runs in his last 18 innings.
MLB
Hell be opposed by lefty Mark Buehrle, who still looks strange outside of a White Sox uniform. The Marlins 58-million-dollar man is 5-4 with a 3.26 ERA in his first 10 National League starts. Hes posted a stellar 1.12 WHIP and has walked just 11 batters through 69 innings.
Buehrle has faced the Phils four times in his career, but his loss on April 12 was his first visit to Citizens Bank Park. Buehrle allowed three runs in 6 13 innings that afternoon. Shane Victorino and Ty Wigginton each hit solo home runs.
Note of interest
The Phillies are 20-7 against the Marlins dating back to Sept. 2010 and are 8-1-1 in the last 10 series.
Key matchup(s)
Hanley Ramirez and Giancarlo Stanton are each blazing hot. Ramirez is hitting .354 since dropping below .200 earlier this season and Stanton in May hit .343 with 12 home runs (first in majors) and 30 RBI (third).
Kendrick will have to be careful with both, and he's actually handled both in his career. Ramirez and Stanton are a combined 9 for 37 (.243) off KK with two home runs.
Jose Reyes, though, is 10 for 25 (.385) off Kendrick with a double, triple, two homers and three walks.
Few Phillies have faced Buehrle more than a couple of times, but Placido Polanco is 15 for 38 (.395) off him and Wigginton has four extra-base hits in 22 at-bats.
Sound off
Do you see the Marlins as a bigger threat than the Nationals?
E-mail Corey Seidman at cseidman@comcastsportsnet.com