PITTSBURGH – The Phillies' pitching plans are set for the next couple of days.
Drew Anderson will come up from Triple A Lehigh Valley and make Sunday’s start against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Phillies, who have won six in a row, will be looking for their 50th win of the season and first-ever sweep in PNC Park.
On Monday, the Phils will play a doubleheader against the New York Mets at Citi Field. Aaron Nola and Zach Eflin will start those games in a yet to be determined order.
Nola and Eflin are the Phillies’ two hottest starters so the Phillies are clearly looking to make a bold statement in the first two games of that four-game series against the Mets.
The Phils have not announced their pitching plans beyond Monday. They will need a starter on Tuesday. Ben Lively and Ranger Suarez are both on the 40-man roster, but they are both hurt. Enyel De Los Santos, acquired in the Freddy Galvis trade over the winter, would be an intriguing possibility if the Phillies added him to the 40-man roster. However, he is scheduled to start the Triple A All-Star Game on Wednesday and the team might want him to pitch in that game. Depending on how things go Sunday and Monday, the Phils could fill Tuesday’s start with the bullpen, led by Mark Leiter Jr.
Vince Velasquez is expected to come off the disabled list and pitch on Wednesday.
Nola, tied for the NL lead with 11 wins and ranked fifth with a 2.41 ERA, will be named to the All-Star team on Sunday. After Monday’s start, he would make his final start before the All-Star break on Saturday in Miami. That would put him on track to pitch an inning in the All-Star Game on July 17 in Washington.
MLB
Anderson, 24, pitched in two games of relief with the Phillies last season. He allowed six earned runs in 2 1/3 innings. He is 5-3 with a 4.15 ERA in 10 starts this season at Triple A.