The Phillies made a change to the top of their cold lineup Sunday afternoon, moving Andrew McCutchen from the leadoff spot down to sixth in the order.
McCutchen had hit .111 with 20 strikeouts in his last 12 games and gone 17 in a row without a multi-hit game entering Sunday, when he went 1 for 4 in the Phillies' 6-2 loss. On the season, he’s hitting .199/.316/.362.
It was only the second time in McCutchen’s 154 starts as a Phillie that he did not lead off. He batted fifth on April 28.
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"He’s been scuffling," manager Joe Girardi said. "I think he was 3 for his last 32 with 16 strikeouts. ... Trying to get Cutch going.”
Odubel Herrera led off Sunday and went 1 for 5. He lined out to left-center with the bases loaded to end the game. The Phillies faced a right-handed Rays opener in Collin McHugh, which had a little something to do with Herrera leading off instead of Jean Segura.
The Phillies have averaged 2.8 runs over their last 11 games. They entered Sunday ranked 20th in the majors this season in runs per game, 17th in batting average, 18th in on-base percentage and 22nd in slugging.
They made a roster move Sunday morning, placing Roman Quinn (left Achilles) on the 60-day injured list and selecting the contract of veteran outfielder Travis Jankowski. The 30-year-old, left-handed hitter has 994 major-league plate appearances in six seasons, five with the Padres, though he's more glove than bat.
MLB
Quinn is expected to miss the rest of the season.
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