Phillies (47-80) vs. Cubs (68-59)
7:05 p.m. on NBC 10; streaming live on CSNPhilly.com and the NBC Sports App
After a disappointing loss Thursday, the Phillies rebounded in a big way with a 7-1 win over the Chicago Cubs (see story). Not only did they get five quality innings out Jerad Eickhoff, their bats got to the Cubs' top trade deadline acquisition, Jose Quintana.
Now the Phillies turn to Ben Lively against Kyle Hendricks in their first chance at a surprising series win.
Here are five things to know about Saturday's matchup.
1. He did it again?
Rhys Hoskins continues to rake, even against top competition.
After Kyle Schwarber handed the Cubs an early 1-0 lead, Hoskins responded in the only way he knows how: yet another home run. His ninth of the year gave the Phils a lead they would never relinquish and proved historic along the way.
He is the first player in MLB history with nine homers in his first 16 games. The rookie has also hit a home run in over 16 percent of his at-bats and those blasts account for more than half of his 16 hits.
MLB
It was also the sixth straight gameday that he's homered on.
Most sluggers of his caliber also tend to strike out a fair amount, but he's been able to command the strike zone, walking 11 times while striking out just 12 times.
He wasn't the only Phillie to provide some major offense Friday. Cesar Hernandez had three hits, including a three-run triple. He has seven hits over the last three games, his best three-game stretch since April.
The only starter not to reach base safely was Nick Williams, who had multiple hits Thursday. For a young Phillies squad firmly out of the playoff chase, it's still a good sign to see their offense come around.
2. Living Lively
After returning to the rotation in San Francisco, Lively lived up to his last name with a solid outing.
In six innings, he allowed just two runs on just six hits and two walks. He even struck out four batters, tied for his second-most in a start this year. While the Giants' offense ranks among the worst in baseball, it had put up nine runs against the Phillies a day before, so Lively's start was surely welcomed.
Eight starts into his big league career, Lively has a strong 3.70 ERA, although his underlying stats indicate he could be in line for some regression. He has struck out just 10.3 percent of batters faced, well below league average. He doesn't walk too many batters, but where he excels is simply keeping the ball in the ballpark. He's allowed just four home runs in 48 2/3 innings.
In recent years, baseball has tended toward pitchers who go for strikeouts and leave fewer balls in play, but Lively flies in the face of that. He doesn't have an extreme groundball rate, yet he still allows very few home runs.
The 25-year-old rookie doesn't have a large platoon split, so the Cubs' looming lefty bats shouldn't be overwhelming. This will be the best offense Lively has opposed this season, so it'll be another hurdle to clear in his pursuit of a permanent rotation spot.
3. Hendricks still strong
During the Cubs' 2016 World Series run, Hendrick had a career year. He was simply stupendous, finishing with a 2.13 ERA in 190 innings in just his third season. He placed third in the Cy Young voting.
And he excelled in the postseason, too. He was trusted enough to earn two of the Cubs' most important starts of the season: Game 6 of the NLCS to pitch the Cubs into their first Fall Classic in 72 years and Game 7 of the World Series. Those aren't assignments to be overlooked.
This season, he's taken a step back, which is only natural after a career season that was followed by a long playoff run. He's also dealt with an injury as he was placed on the shelf for a month and a half with hand tendonitis.
But the fourth-year starter has still held up, perhaps better than expected. He's been more like his 2016 self since returning from the disabled list after the All-Star break. He has a sterling 2.45 ERA with a 30-11 K-BB ratio in 33 innings since returning.
While he's still had a fine season when on the mound, his numbers have fallen across the board. He has his lowest strikeout rate since his rookie year and is walking more batters than ever before. He's also allowing more hits and home runs than he ever has, although not to an extreme extent.
Another glaring difference between this season and last is the length of his outings. The Dartmouth grad has gone from averaging 6.27 innings per start to just 5.57 per outing this season.
Like Eickhoff, he's seen a dip in his velocity. His fastball has lost two mph, so it's now sitting in mid-80s instead of high-80s. He's never been reliant on blowing by hitters (many of his strikeouts are of the looking variety), but velocity can be a difference maker. His changeup is his key offspeed pitch and is still as good as last year. His bread and butter is still his fastball, which he can throw as a sinker or two-seamer in addition to a traditional four-seamer.
4. Players to watch
Phillies: Maikel Franco, who turns 25 today, came through with a late solo home run to pad the Phillies' lead Friday. He had two hits for the game after going hitless with two walks in his last two games.
Cubs: There are few players in the game as electrifying as Javy Baez. The super-utility man is a standout fielder around the diamond and swings out of shoes, providing plenty of power and even more strikeouts.
5. This and that
• The Phillies are 2-3 against the Cubs this year after losing three of four at Wrigley Field earlier this season. They lost five of six to them in 2016, but they fared well during the Cubs' breakout 2015, winning five of seven meetings.
• Freddy Galvis is 3 for 6 with two doubles off Hendricks. All three outs, though, are strikeouts.
• Scott Kingery went 1 for 4 with a double and a walk in Triple A Lehigh Valley's win Friday. The double extended his hitting streak to 23 games. Dylan Cozens hit his third home run in the last two days.