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Happy Labor Day! The Braves (82-57), who hold the lead in the National League Wild Card standings by 8 1/2 games, and Phillies (88-48) who are currently 7 1/2 games ahead of Atlanta in the NL East division, are set to begin a three-game series at Philadelphia's Citizens Bank Park on Monday night. With both clubs seemingly set for a post-season run, this could potentially be a preview of this year's National League Championship Series. Read ahead for key info on the pitching match ups and other statistics from this series. Monday, 7:05 PM. Derek Lowe (9-12, 4.52 ERA) vs. Cliff Lee (15-7, 2.59 ERA). In 21 career games against the Phillies, Lowe has an 8-6 record with 2 saves, 1 blown save and a 3.15 ERA. In 2 starts at Citizens Bank Park this year, Lowe is 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA. Chase Utley is 13-for-33 (.394 avg) with 3 doubles and 2 HR in his career against Lowe. In 6 career starts against Atlanta, Lee has a 1-3 record with a 4.98 ERA. Lee is 10-2 with a 2.13 ERA in 15 h...

The Phillies (21-9) look to continue a strong home stand, as the division rival Atlanta Braves (18-15) come to town for a 3-game series. Roy Oswalt has returned to the Phillies after leaving the team for a week to be with his family, following the devastating tornadoes that ravage his home region in Mississippi. He is slated to start the second game of the series. He'll face 25-year-old righty Jair Jurrjens, who hasn't lost this season. In the series opener on Friday, the Phillies will look to stay on a hot streak, as they've won 6 of their past 7 games, including a 3-game sweep of the Nationals this week. The Braves are on a roll of their own, fresh off a 4-game sweep of the Brewers in Atlanta. Read ahead for a look at the pitching match ups and loads more details for this series. Friday, 7:05PM. Derek Lowe (2-3, 3.72 ERA) vs. Cliff Lee (2-2, 3.66 ERA). Lowe was arrested recently and charged with DUI. In 7 career starts at Citizens Bank Park, Lowe is 4-2 with a 2.96...

The first place Atlanta Braves (48-34) come to town, to face the third place Phillies (42-38) for a 3-game series. Atlanta currently leads Philadelphia by 5 games in the National League East standings. With a steady stream of injuries this year, the Phillies haven't been able to maintain their head lock on the top spot in the division. The team is aware that this head-to-head meeting with the division leader is their chance to bounce back. The Phillies will try to take a chunk out of that deficit in the standings by sending their ace, all-star Roy Halladay to the mound in game one. The Braves will counter with Derek Lowe, who is 1-2 with a 6.00 ERA in three starts against the Phillies in 3 outings this year. Read ahead for details in the pitching match ups and loads more information, as the division rivals meet in this crucial series. Monday, 7:05pm. Derek Lowe (9-6, 4.53 ERA) vs. Roy Halladay (9-7, 2.42 ERA). Lowe has a 4.75 ERA and a 1-2 record over his last 5 starts. In his ca...

This Memorial Day, the Phillies (28-21) head to Atlanta to battle over first place in the National League East division, against the Braves (28-22). Philadelphia's recent offensive struggles and 6 losses in their last 8 games, have left a door open for the Braves, who have won 5 straight and 10 of their past 12 games, to creep upward in the standings. Two weeks ago, the Braves sat in last place, 6 1/2 games behind the Phillies. Now, the Braves are in second place just 1/2 game in back of the Phils. The Phillies have been in first place since May 2nd. The Braves will be lead by starting pitcher Tommy Hanson in the series opener, on Monday afternoon, while the Phillies will counter with Joe Blanton. Read ahead for details on the pitching match ups as well as plenty more stats and info. Monday, 1:05pm. Joe Blanton (1-3, 5.63 ERA) vs. Tommy Hanson (4-3, 4.06 ERA). In 7 career games against Atlanta, Blanton is 1-2 with a 5.31 ERA. In two road starts this season, Blanton is 1-1 with a 7...

The Braves make their first visit to Philadelphia this weekend, as the Braves (12-16) will face the Phillies (17-11) in a 3-game series. The series opener will see the 2nd meeting of Derek Lowe and Jamie Moyer this season. The first match up saw Moyer come out on top, when he pitched 6 shut out innings in Atlanta. That win clinched the series victory for the Phils. Off to a good start after winning that series opener against the Phils, the Braves have lost 11 of 15 games since then. The Braves won 5 of the 9 games against the Phils at Citizens Bank Park last season. Atlanta is currently in last place, 5 games behind the division leading Phillies. Read ahead for pitching match ups and other key stats from this series. Friday, 7:05pm. Derek Lowe (4-2, 5.81 ERA) vs. Jamie Moyer (3-2, 5.70 ERA). Lowe is 4-0 with a 1.60 ERA in five career starts at Citizens Bank Park. Lowe is 6-2 with a 2.87 ERA in 15 career games against Philadelphia. Raul Ibanez is 2-for-28 (.071 avg) in his career again...

The Phillies hit the road and will begin a 3-game series in Atlanta on Tuesday night. The 3-time defending National League East Division Champions from Philadelphia will get their first regular season look at the rookie with all the hype, Jason Heyward, who is batting .302 through his first 12 Major League games. Following a 7-1 start, the Phillies have lost three of their last four games, including their first series loss of the season, as they dropped 2 of 3 to the Marlins over the weekend. The Braves have a 7-5 record and are hoping to knock the champs down. Read on for details on the pitching match ups for this series and other key notes. Tuesday, 7:10pm. Kyle Kendrick (0-0, 17.47 ERA) vs. Tommy Hanson (1-1, 2.38 ERA). Kendrick's time in the Phillies' starting rotation could be in jeopardy as the man he is filling in for, Joe Blanton, work his way back from an oblique injury. Kendrick has pitched just 5 2/3 inning in two starts this season. In 7 career games against Atlant...

The Braves (67-60) visit Philadelphia for what promises to be a wet 3 games series with the Phillies (73-52) this weekend. The Braves are in second place, tied with the Marlins, 7 games behind the Phillies. Read on, for pitching match ups and other key notes for this series. Friday, 7:05pm. Tommy Hanson (9-2, 3.12 ERA) vs. Pedro Martinez (2-0, 5.14 ERA). Hanson is celebrating his 23rd birthday on Friday and has won his last 4 starts while posting a 2.81 ERA in those games. Hanson, the rookie, has not faced the Phillies yet. The Phillies have won all three of Pedro's starts this season. The Phillies have averaged more than 7 runs of support for Martinez in those games. Saturday, 7:05pm. Derek Lowe (12-8, 4.48 ERA) vs. Cliff Lee (5-0, 0.68 ERA). Lowe is 1-0 with a 1.29 ERA in two starts against the Phillies this year. In his career, Lowe is 3-0 with a 1.61 ERA and .180 batting avg. against in 4 regular season starts at Citizens Bank Park. Raul Ibanez, Ryan Howard, Jayson Werth and ...

The last time we saw the Phillies take the field at home on national TV, Harry Kalas topped the night with his rendition of High Hopes. Sunday night they returned to the nation wide stage, and got shut down by Braves starter Derek Lowe. Hey, remember when our Phillies were rumored to be interested and were among the final suitors for Lowe? Yeah, you do. Also, do you remember when our Phillies signed left handed hitting Raul Ibanez because, as Ruben Amaro Jr. stated, the Phillies feared returning the same team to the field in 2009? Well the lefty who replaced righty Pat Burrell, in the lineup, allowed Braves lefty reliever Mike Gonzalez the best possible matchups versus three straight lefty hitters in the Phils' lineup, when he got to face Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Ibanez in a row, and halt the Phils' 9th inning rally. I was surprised to see Charlie Manuels' lineup that featured those three straight lefties. Switch hitting Shane Victorino could easily bat 2nd, while Jayso...

Be on the look out on your Comcast On Demand menu. Certain local divisions of Comcast have a World Series section in their "Get Local" menu, that features every game of the World Series. Also, there is a "Phillies" option that features parade footage, and CSN-Philly is still providing the Post Game Live from after game 5 of the World Series. All of these programs are available for FREE. Tadahito Iguchi, who refused an assignment to triple A Lehigh Valley in order to become a free agent, may be heading to play full time in Japan. The Chiba Lotte Marines are set to begin talks with Tad on a new contract. Derek Lowe has reportedly rejected a contract offer from the Mets, that was for 3 yrs/$36 million. MLBTradeRumors.com reports that the Phillies are still contenders to sign Lowe and are the Mets' main competition for his services, along with the Braves. Phormer Phillie and current White Sox pitcher Gavin Floyd's name has been mentioned in a potential tr...

MLB's winter meetings begin this coming Monday. According to new Phillies general manager Rueben Amaro Jr., the Phils' priorities are to add a starting pitcher and to improve the bullpen. Many expected Jamie Moyer to be re-signed by now, but it is likely that the Phillies are only willing to offer a 1-year contract, while Moyer and his agent, Jim Bronner, are wishing for a 2-year dealio. Derek Lowe's name has been in the media this week as a pitcher the Phillies have had talks with. The gift giving season is also upon us. Phillies Phans young and old alike will have the World Series DVD on the wish lists this month. Allow me to give you a tip on where to find the glorious 8-disc set the cheapest. http://www.deepdiscount.com/viewproduct.htm?productId=54055428 DeepDiscount.com offers the full collector's set for the low price of $48.61, no tax, and shipping included. Amazon.com's item description of the bonus features includes this blurb... Alternate audio tra...