Domonic Brown Will Only Need to Wait Four Batters Before Homering Off a First-Time Starter Tonight

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"Move Domonic Brown up in the batting order!" you demanded, and your comments did not fall on deaf ears--Ryan Howard heard your cries, and will be heroically sitting out with a "sore knee" in order to give our young masher a chance to do his damange one spot higher in the lineup tonight, and we here at the Level are very excited. It's just like our man Kulp said: "Stop! No! Don’t do it! Right now you don’t want Dom Brown thinking about anything other than what he’s been doing already...Don’t make a single change that might mess with the hot streak he’s riding." Oh. Well, tough noogies, Kulp, he's batting fifth.

Domonic Mordecai will get his chance to tee off in one of the first two innings off Red Sox starter Franklin Morales, who despite pitching in 175 games across seven seasons for the Rockies and Red Sox in his career, has never started a big-league game before. Morales will be taking the place of injured All-Star Clay Buchholz, and hopefully the Phils can find ways to take advantage of his lack of experience, like convincing him that the home team gets four outs in the first three innings of the game! Classic reliever-turned-starter prank.

In the meantime, also take a minute to say hello to Philly second baseman Cesar Hernandez, making his first-ever start for the Phillies tonight after an extremely successful start to the season for the IronPigs, posting a .305/.328/.428 stat line with 15 steals in 19 attempts. Only 23 years old, Hernandez is already being pegged as a potential long-term successor to Chase Utley, though it may be a good game to see him play at least one game for the Phillies (maybe even five) before we deem the best Phillie since Mike Schmidt expendable in his name. I know, formalities.

7:05 first pitch from CBP. Jonathan Pettibone on the mound for the Phils, with the chance to go 4-0 for the year and get the Phils back up to .500 for the first time in a month-and-a-half in the process. Do it for Shane, Jonny.

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