Vance Worley will be on the mound this afternoon at 2:20 pm eastern as the Phillies look to take the rubber game of their three game set with the Cubs at Wrigley Field. The Phils came from behind last night to beat the Cubs and restore their 3.5 game lead in the NL East after Atlanta was blown out in Colorado.
Cubs 2B Jeff Baker had to give credit where it’s due.
“They have the best record in the league, and there’s a reason why,” Baker said. “Even when we’re up, 2-0, we know it’s not a safe lead. They had no panic whatsoever. Cliff Lee is out there and getting hit around a little bit but still able to make pitches. They never really buckled. They bend, but didn’t break, and there’s a reason they’re the best team in the league.”
The Phils will look to give Worley more run support than they did Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee, who got just one run of support while in the mound in the first two games of the series. To do so, they will need to get to 34 year old Ryan Dempster, who has a 4.90 ERA against the Phils.
Worley himself is 3-0 with a 0.89 ERA in his five starts since re-entering the Phils starting rotation. This will be his first career start against the Cubs.