Phillies Preview: September 30, 2009

Houston Astros (73-84) at Philadelphia Phillies (91-66)

7:05pm - Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA

Brian Moehler, RHP (8-11, 5.21) v. Pedro Martinez, RHP (5-1, 3.32)

In a game that could be the clincher for the Phillies, Pedro Martinez will get the start against the Astros. Martinez, a big-game pitcher, should relish the opportunity to work in front of an electric Philadelphia crowd tonight. Pedro will be opposed by the Astros' Brian Moehler. Though he has a high ERA, Moehler is a formidable opponent and should be a solid challenge for the Phillies offense tonight.

The Phillies will look for Pedro Martinez to pick up where he left off before straining his neck 11 days ago. Prior to that, the Phillies were 7-1 in Martinez's starts. For his career against the Astros, Martinez has held batters to a .260 average in 164 plate appearances. Pedro will need to get off to a strong start, as he often struggles in the first inning. If he can do that and keep his fastball on the corners, then he should be poised for success.

The Astros will send their righty, Brian Moehler, to the mound this evening. Moehler has battled through a tough season, in which he has allowed a lot of runs, but won a handful of games in spite of it. He has some experience against the Phillies and will try to keep their bats off the board. In 182 career plate appearances, current Phillies are hitting .305 against Moehler with nine home runs. They will want to be aggressive tonight against this soft-tosser, as he does throw a lot of strikes.

With the division crown in striking distance tonight, there is no doubt that the team and fans want to clinch tonight. The magic number is at one, so even with a loss, the Phillies could back into the NL East title with a loss from the Braves. However, knowing the Phillies, they will want to have a good start from Pedro Martinez and put a lot of runs on the board and win this game and the third straight division outright.