(SportsNetwork.com) - The Philadelphia Phillies will try to keep their offense headed in the right direction on Tuesday night when they kick off a three-game set with the Miami Marlins.
The Phillies scored just 26 runs over a 2-8 stretch from May 5-16, but have nearly matched that total over a two-game winning streak. After dropping Friday's opener with the Cincinnati Reds 3-0, Philadelphia erupted for a 12-1 win on Saturday before winning the set with an 8-3 decision the following day.
Jimmy Rollins and Wil Nieves hit back-to-back homers in the first inning, while Marlon Byrd and Cody Asche also went deep. That was more than enough for Cliff Lee, who hurled 6 2/3 solid innings to snap a four-start winless drought.
"I think it was a carry-over game on the offensive side," said Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg.
A.J. Burnett won't try to carry many things over from his last start, a setback to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on Wednesday. The veteran righty yielded three runs on seven hits and five walks over five innings, also striking out six in a 3-0 setback.
Burnett was coming off a rough outing versus Toronto on May 8 in which he yielded six earned runs and three homers over six innings, and fell to 2-3 on the season with a 3.13 earned run average after the loss to the Angels.
"He was just a little off with his control early on," Sandberg said of Burnett's efforts versus the Angels. "He threw about 78 pitches through three innings and that was quite a bit."
The 37-year-old also struggled with his command when he faced the Marlins on April 11 at home. Burnett picked up a no-decision after allowing two runs on five hits and six walks over 4 1/3 frames, leaving him 1-1 in three career meetings with the Marlins with a 1.96 ERA.
Anthony DeSclafani will get the call tonight for Miami, the second start of his career as he attempts to fill the huge void left by the injured Jose Fernandez.
The 24-year-old righty made his Major League debut on Wednesday versus the Los Angeles Dodgers, and though he was backed with plenty of offense in a 13-3 win, DeSclafani did his part by allowing just two runs over six innings. He struck out seven as well.
"I told (DeSclafani) before the game to go out and have some fun. He was locked in, he was focused," said Marlins manager Mike Redmond.
Miami returns home after a 4-7 road trip, though it did win three of the final five games of the trek. The Marlins were aiming for a series victory over the San Francisco Giants, but lost Sunday's finale of a four-game series by a 4-1 score.
"I was very happy with the effort with the way we played these last four games," said Redmond. "We had a pretty rough start to this road trip and I'm pleased with the way we played against a great ballclub here."
Jacob Turner gave up four runs on six hits with a walk and seven strikeouts over six innings for the Marlins, while Christian Yelich drove in Miami's only run.
The Phillies swept a three-game set at home against the Marlins from April 11-13 and have won 11 of the previous 14 encounters.
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