, who rebounded from two straight subpar outings by allowing one run and five hits with six strikeouts and no walks.Braves infielder Brandon Phillips had two hits to reach 1,999 in his career. Atlanta has dropped 12 of 14 games to the Phillies this season and all eight in Philadelphia.Nola's only blemish was Phillips' RBI single in the sixth. Phillips held his bat in the air after the hit, perhaps thinking he had reached the milestone. Phillips, who extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a fourth-inning single, had a chance to reach 2,000 but grounded out in the eighth.Nola also got some help from his defense, as Williams robbed Freddie Freeman of a hit with a diving catch in right field in the sixth, and Maikel Franco ranged far to his right at third to backhand Tyler Flowers' ground and threw him out at first from well into foul territory.After Hoskins' double in the sixth, Franco gave the Phillies a two-run lead with a single to center. And Rupp led off the seventh with his 14th homer of the season.Rookie Lucas Sims (2-4), making his sixth career start, allowed four runs and eight hits with seven strikeouts and one walk in 6 1/3 innings.Hoskins also singled in the eighth and is batting .309 with 11 homers and 25 RBIs in 19 games since his call-up from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Aug. 10.TRAINER'S ROOMBraves: LHP Ian Krol (left oblique strain) and RHP Luke Jackson (right shoulder strain) will take another step toward their return as both will pitch Wednesday in rehab outings. Each could come off the DL on Friday. Krol has been on the DL since Aug. 4 and Jackson since Aug. 19. ... Johan Camargo (right knee bone bruise) flew to Florida to begin taking live batting practice. Camargo has been out since Aug. 9.Phillies: Pedro Florimon fouled a pitch off his left foot in the third inning. He limped around the batter's box for a few minutes, but then drilled the next pitch into right-center for a triple.UP NEXTPhillies RHP Mark Leiter Jr. (2-3, 3.86) opposes Braves RHP R. A. Dickey (8-8, 4.06) in the second contest of the three-game set on Tuesday night.---More baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball)
Phillies' Hoskins aims to continue torrid run vs. Braves 3h ago• 2 min read PHILADELPHIA -- Rhys Hoskins was the center of attention at Citizens Bank Park in recent days. And for good reason.The 24-year-old rookie on Sunday became the fastest player to 11 career home runs in major league history, reaching the mark in his 18th game. In a lost season, Hoskins is providing a glimmer of hope that a rebuilding Phillies team has a power hitter in its future.On Monday, though, all eyes will turn to right-hander Aaron Nola, the Phillies' expected top-end starter of the future.Nola (9-9, 3.58 ERA) takes the mound opposite Atlanta right-hander Lucas Sims (2-3, 4.13) as the Phillies (48-81) open a three-game series against the Braves (57-71) at Citizens Bank Park.Nola, 24, has struggled in his past two outings on the heels of a streak of 10 consecutive starts in which he allowed two runs or fewer.Inconsistent early in his young career, Nola was shelled for seven runs on nine hits -- including two homers -- in 6 1/3 innings Tuesday against the Miami Marlins. That start came after he lasted just five innings and yielded five runs in a 5-4 loss in San Francisco."He wasn't the same," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said after Nola's start Tuesday. "He made more mistakes than he usually does." Nola credited the struggles to leaving the ball up in the zone more and allowing leadoff runners to get on base.He will be making his seventh career start against the Braves on Monday. Nola is 4-1 with a 2.08 ERA in the previous six outings. In his only start against Atlanta this season, a 3-1 Phillies win on June 6, Nola allowed one run on five hits in eight innings.That start came after consecutive losses. He will be hoping for a similar result Monday.Sims, who was called up on Aug. 1, will make his sixth career start. He has yet to face the Phillies.He had his best performance to date his last time out, going six scoreless innings in a 4-0 win over the Seattle Mariners. Sims allowed just three hits and struck out four against two walks.One of Sims' best qualities has been stranding runners on base. Through his first five starts, opposing hitters are 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position and two outs."The kid never stops pitching," Braves manager Brian Snitker told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I mean, he doesn't get flustered. He pulls that hat down and goes to work. He competes and gets after it and just keeps trying to make pitches." The Phillies have dominated the Braves so far in 2017, owning an 11-2 record over their division foe, including six straight victories. The 11 wins account for 23 percent of all Philadelphia victories this season.The Phillies beat the Braves 3-2 on Aug. 9 in the most recent meeting."Everybody pitches like they're Bob Gibson against us, regardless of their history," Snitker said after that game. It's just one of those things. You can't explain it. ... It's just a baseball quirk or something."
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