Stros over Phils

By on March 3, 2016

Clearwater, Fla. — The Philadelphia Phillies came up on the short end of a 3-2 score against the Houston Astros in a split-squad spring training game Thursday, March 3 at Bright House Field in Clearwater, Florida. The Phillies outhit the Astros 9-8, and drew eight walks during the contest, but the inability to deliver big hits with runners in scoring position ultimately sealed the team’s fate.

Houston opened the scoring in the top of the second inning thanks to second baseman Nolan Fontana, who coaxed a bases-loaded walk from Philadelphia starter and eventual losing pitcher Jake Thompson. The Astros added another tally in the top of the third thanks to some sloppy play by the Phillies: a hit batsman, a walk, a wild pitch and a throwing error by third baseman Taylor Featherstone resulted in an unearned Houston run.

Houston Astros third baseman Matt Duffy hit a mammoth home run against Philadelphia on Thursday. (Buck Davidson photo)

Houston Astros third baseman Matt Duffy hit a mammoth home run against Philadelphia on Thursday. (Buck Davidson photo)

Astros third baseman Matt Duffy launched a tape-measure solo home run to left field in the top of the fifth inning to account for the third Houston run. Meanwhile, the Phillies were busy squandering scoring opportunities in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth innings. The Phils finally broke the spell in the bottom of the seventh, with Brock Stassi’s groundout plating Odubel Herrera with the first Philadelphia run of the game. Philly tried to rally in the bottom of the ninth: Carlos Ruiz smacked a two-out RBI single, but Nick Williams struck out to end the game. All told, the Phillies left 13 runners on base in the contest; a feat which was nearly matched by the Astros, who stranded a dozen ducks on their pond.

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Peter Bourjos had two hits and drew a walk in a losing cause against Houston. (Buck Davidson photo)

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Peter Bourjos had two hits and drew a walk in a losing cause against Houston. (Buck Davidson photo)

Herrera and fellow outfielder Peter Bourjos were two offensive bright spots for the Phils; Herrera had two hits – including a triple – and scored twice, while Bourjos smacked out two hits and drew a walk. Bourjos was also cut down trying to steal in the fifth inning, however, which helped to squelch a potential rally. Catcher Andrew Knapp added a pair of hits to aid the Philadelphia cause.

Houston outfielder George Springer enjoyed a fine day at the dish, racking up a pair of doubles and being hit by a pitch in his other plate appearance. Astros’ starting pitcher Doug Fister twirled two solid innings, allowing two hits, walking one and striking out four batters in picking up the victory. Infielder Alex Bregman, who was the second overall pick in the 2015 draft, struck out in both of his plate appearances, while highly regarded prospect A.J. Reed went 1-for-2 with a single in his pair of trips to the plate. The powerful Reed could play a significant role in the Houston offense in the near future – possibly as early as the 2016 campaign.

Houston Astros outfielder George Springer was one of the offensive stars of Thursday's win against the Philadelphia (Buck Davidson photo)

Houston Astros outfielder George Springer was one of the offensive stars of Thursday’s win against the Philadelphia (Buck Davidson photo)

The Phillies will host the Atlanta Braves Friday, March 4 at Bright House Field, and then the team heads to Dunedin for a date with the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday, March 5.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
HOU 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 1
PHI 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 2
HOUSTON (3) AT PHILADELPHIA (2)

 HOUSTON          AB  R  H BI  PHILADELPHIA     AB  R  H BI
 Marisnick cf      3  0  0  0  Herrera cf        5  2  2  0 
 Aplin cf          2  0  1  0  Bourjos lf        4  0  2  0 
 Springer rf       2  1  2  0  Knapp c           3  0  2  0 
 Kemmer pr-rf      2  0  0  0  Lino c            0  0  0  0 
 P. Tucker lf      3  0  0  0  Sweeney ph        1  0  0  0 
 E Perez lf        1  0  0  0  Howard 1b         3  0  0  0 
 Duffy 3b          2  1  1  1  Stassi 1b         1  0  0  1 
 Bregman ph-ss     2  0  0  0  Ruiz dh           4  0  1  1 
 Singleton 1b      3  0  0  0  N. Williams rf    3  0  1  0 
 Reed ph-1b        2  0  1  0  C. Hernández 2b   2  0  0  0 
 White dh          3  1  1  0  Galvis ss         4  0  1  0 
 Sclafani ph-dh    2  0  0  0  T Featherston 3b  4  0  0  0 
 Worth ss          1  0  1  0  
 Moran 3b          0  0  0  0  
 Stassi c          3  0  1  0  
 Heineman ph-c     1  0  0  0  
 Fontana 2b        2  0  0  1  
 Kemp 2b           1  0  0  0  
 TOTALS           35  3  8  2  TOTALS           34  2  9  2

 HOUSTON                   011 010 000 --  3
 PHILADELPHIA              000 000 101 --  2

 E--Kemp, T Featherston 2. DP--HOUSTON 2, 
 PHILADELPHIA 1. LOB--HOUSTON 12, PHILADELPHIA 13. 
 2B--Springer 2, Aplin, Galvis, Herrera. 
 3B--Herrera. HR--Duffy 1 (1) (off Frieri). 
 CS--Moran, Bourjos.
                                   IP   H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR
  HOUSTON
 Fister (W,1-0)                     2   2   0   0   1   4   0
 Chapman                            1   2   0   0   0   0   0
 Feliz                              2   2   0   0   2   2   0
 Hoyt                               1   0   0   0   2   2   0
 McCurry                            1   1   1   1   1   1   0
 Reynolds                           1   1   0   0   1   0   0
 Gustave (S,1)                      1   1   1   0   1   2   0
  PHILADELPHIA
 Thompson (L,0-1)                   2   3   1   0   1   1   0
 Eflin                              2   1   1   0   2   1   0
 Frieri                             1   2   1   1   1   1   1
 Russell                            1   1   0   0   0   3   0
 Araujo                             1   0   0   0   1   0   0
 Burke                              1   0   0   0   0   0   0
 Murray                             1   1   0   0   0   1   0

 WP--Hoyt 2, Reynolds, Eflin. HBP--Springer by 
 Eflin, E Perez by Russell. SO--HOU: Bregman 2, 
 Singleton, Kemmer, Duffy, Fontana, Reed. PHI: T 
 Featherston 3, N. Williams 2, C. Hernández 2, Ruiz
 2, Howard, Sweeney. BB--HOU: Worth 2, Moran, 
 Duffy, Fontana. PHI: C. Hernández 2, N. Williams 
 2, Stassi, Lino, Bourjos, Ruiz. T--3:11. A--4,018.
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