As expected following Cody Asche coming up lame at first base (video) after a single in the seventh last night, the young third baseman is out of the lineup this afternoon to give his strained hamstring some rest. And as Dom Brown's absence from the starting nine showed over the past few days, the Phillies are currently in no position to rush their young talents back from injury only to play in quasi meaningless games.
But Brown is feeling good enough this afternoon to the point where Ryne Sandberg has penciled him in as the starter in left. He'll bat cleanup.
Sandberg talked earlier in the week about the bench time being a little challenging for Brown:
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"He's champing at the bit a little bit," Sandberg said. "He's anxious. That's why he's coming out here to test it and see where he's at. I know that he's anxious."
Ryne will trot out yet another new lineup this afternoon, this one including Kevin Frandsen in the two hole and John McDonald down in the eight spot and playing shortstop.
Can't miss this day game.
It's Ethan Martin (2-2, 6.33) taking on right-hander Carlos Torres (2-2, 2.96) in a 1:10 start time. Beating the Mets is imperative.