By: Josh Liddick, Staff Writer
Final: Phillies 4, Royals 3 ❖ Attendance: 30,263
PHILADELPHIA— The defending World Series champion Kansas City Royals(42-37) made their way to Citizen's Bank Park on Friday night for the first of a three-game interleague series.
An great offensive performance by Odubel Herrera allowed the Phillies(36-45) to get on the board quickly and consistently, as they took the first game victory by a score of 4-3.
The Phils got their first home win in seven games, dating back to June 7 vs. the Cubs. The win was also the Phillies' fourth straight victory, after sweeping the Diamondbacks in Phoenix.
Philadelphia will look to keep the 'W' train moving as they can win the series tomorrow night at 5:05 p.m. vs. Kansas City.
WP: Jeremy Hellickson (6-6, 4.06 ERA) ❖ LP: Ian Kennedy (6-7, 4.04 ERA) ❖ SV: Jeanmar Gomez (22)
Hub: Game Summary ❖ Starting Pitchers ❖ At the Plate ❖ Bullpen ❖ What's Next
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
| KC | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 2 |
| PHI |
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | X | 4 | 12 | 0 |
The Phillies got the scoring going early on in the bottom of the first, as Odubel Herrera hit his ninth home run of the season, his first leadoff homer, and the Phillies took a 1-0 lead.
It wasn't too long after until the Royals would match that one run scored by the Phillies, as Cheslor Cuthbert singled to Herrera in center and scored Alcides Escobar to tie the game at 1.
In the bottom of the third inning, Herrera was able to steal 2nd base, and reach 3rd on a throwing error. Maikel Franco stepped in and delivered a two-out line drive single to score Herrera and give the Phillies a 2-1 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, with one out, Cody Asche hit his 11th double of the season, which scored Peter Bourjos from first base. The Phillies took a 3-1 lead over the Royals.
Odubel Herrera gathered his second hit of the game in the bottom of the sixth, and it was a big one. Herrera's RBI single drove in Cesar Hernandez and the Phillies took a 4-1 lead heading into the seventh inning.
It was a quiet scoring night for the Royals, that is until Kendrys Morales hit a two-run shot to cut the Phillies' lead to 4-3 in the top of the eighth inning.
Jeanmar Gomez came in to close out the ninth inning, and he was successful in retiring the side. The Phillies took the first game of the series 4-3.
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ian Kennedy | 5.0 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 4.04 |
| Jeremy Hellickson | 6.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 4.06 |
Royals
- Alcides Escobar: (2-4, R, 2 2B, .264 AVG)
- Whit Merrifield: (2-4, R, .311 AVG)
- Kendrys Morales: (1-4, HR, R, 2 RBI, SO, .262 AVG)
Phillies
- Odubel Herrera: (2-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB, SO, .306 AVG)
- Cameron Rupp: (3-4, 2 2B, 1 SO, .283 AVG)
- Maikel Franco: (2-3, RBI, BB, SO, .247 AVG)
Royals
- Chien-Ming Wang (6th): 1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 3.82 ERA
- Brian Flynn (7th): 2.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0 HR, 2.50 ERA
Phillies
- Edubray Ramos (7th): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 1.93 ERA
- David Hernandez (8th): 1.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO, 1 HR, 4.76 ERA
- Jeanmar Gomez(9th): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO, 0 HR, 2.82 ERA
What's Next
- Saturday, July 2, 2016: vs. Kansas City Royals, 5:50 p.m.
- Citizens Bank Park
- RHP Aaron Nola (5-7, 4.45 ERA) vs. LHP Danny Duffy (3-1, 3.24 ERA)
- TV: CSN; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
