The Philadelphia Phillies made a change to their lineup ahead of the series opener against the Cincinnati Reds.
Philadelphia is coming off a 15-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Monday and will kick off a three-game road series against the Reds. One change is that Realmuto is now hitting sixth after batting eighth on Monday.
The Phillies’ lineup for their series opener on Tuesday is as follows:
- T. Turner SS
- K. Schwarber DH
- B. Harper 1B
- A. Bohm 3B
- E. Sosa LF
- J. Realmuto C
- B. Stott 2B
- D. Hill RF
- J. Crawford CF
Realmuto went 1-for-3 on Monday while striking out twice, but interim manager Don Mattingly decided to move him up before the Reds series.
The Phillies veteran catcher is hitting .204 with 6 home runs and 27 RBIs this season. Realmuto signed a three-year, $45 million contract to return to Philadelphia this offseason.
First pitch between Philadelphia and Cincinnati is set for 7:10 p.m. ET.
Phillies Blown Out by Royals
Philadelphia kicks off its series against the Reds after a 15-1 blowout loss to Kansas City.
In the loss, Cristopher Sanchez gave up a career-worst nine 9 runs in just 3.1 innings, and the ace isn’t sure what went wrong as he felt good going into the start.
“Nothing really,” Sanchez said. “I mean, it’s just a game. As I learn from the good things that we have on the field, and the things when we perform well, the same thing when I don’t perform. I just try to learn from it. … I feel great. That’s why I was a little surprised to have such an outing today, because I feel really good.”
The Phillies’ blowout loss was also contributed by a costly error by Trea Turner, yet, Mattingly doesn’t put much blame on the shortstop, as he felt like the entire team played poorly.
“I know you can’t assume a double play, but with Trea, you would think it’s a double play,” Mattingly said. “You gotta make that throw. But after that, we didn’t really stop them either. And we had some chances. In the first couple innings, we get the bases loaded twice, (and) we don’t score. We end up leaving 15. (We had) 10 hits, seven walks and only get one run, we had chances to kind of creep back in it.”
Philadelphia is 50-41 and 3 games back of the Braves.
Philadelphia Fans React to Lineup
After the Phillies posted the lineup, some fans were frustrated with it, especially after losing 15-1.
“Does this team actually want to hit tonight or are they just gonna look stupid again tonight?,” a fan wrote.
“Boy, does this team lack RH batters,” a fan added.
“How about hitting the ball?,” a fan wrote.
Although Phillies fans are angry after Monday’s loss, Philadelphia is still firmly in the playoff picture.
“Marshy needs the breather But this lineup really shows how little depth we have right now,” a fan wrote.
“Turner should be benched,” a fan added.
“We’re struggling hitting the ball so let’s sit our best hitter,” a fan wrote.
The Phillies are 5-5 in their last 10 games.
Phillies Make J.T. Realmuto Change Before Reds Series Opener