Hot Dbacks try to take series as Phillies try to hold first place in NL East

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The Phanatic will entertain kids of all ages on Tuesday night

The Philadelphia Phillies (37-29) and Arizona Diamondbacks (35-32) will meet again on Tuesday night at Citizens Bank Park. Last night the two clubs combined for 13 home runs to set a new Major League Baseball record.

Whereas Monday night’s tilt was delayed at the outside by rain on what was a dreary weather day in the Philly area, today will be just the opposite. Clear skies and steady breeze will be the conditions under which they will play on Tuesday evening.

For the Phillies, it will mark the first time since late April that they open a game not sitting alone on top of the National League East Division standings. Their loss on Monday coupled with a victory by the Atlanta Braves left the two rivals tied. The Phillies and Braves will meet this weekend in Atlanta in what should be a real barn-burner of a series.

But before that takes place, the Phillies need to find a way to cool down the red-hot Diamondbacks. Arizona has now won five straight games, and they are within 2.5 games of the final NL Wildcard playoff berth. They have scored the most runs and have the fourth-highest OPS in the entire league.

One key for the Phillies, perhaps the biggest, will be getting a strong performance from starting pitcher Jake Arrieta. The 33-year-old veteran right-hander leads the starting rotation with eight Quality Starts. However, Arrieta has been shelled in his last two outings, and has not looked good in four of his last six, incurring the wrath of some in the fan base and on local sports talk radio.

TUESDAY STARTING LINEUPS

Fightin' Phils Battle ALS

The Philadelphia Phillies bill their annual "Phillies Phestival" as a "fun-filled autograph and auction party for all ages", and this year's event will take place this evening at Citizens Bank Park on what is an open date in the Phils MLB schedule.

The goal of the Phestival is to raise funds to help battle the devastating, deadly, incurable neuromuscular condition of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) known in the colloquial as Lou Gehrig's Disease.

The latter designation comes from the New York Yankees legendary Hall of Fame 1st baseman Lou Gehrig, whose career and life were very publicly and tragically cut short by the disease back in 1941.

From June 1st, 1925 through April 20th, 1939, Gehrig appeared in a record 2,130 consecutive games, a record that would stand for more than five decades until broken by Cal Ripken Jr.

But during the 1938 season, Gehrig began to sense that something was wrong. By the start of the 1939 season, it was obvious to him and everyone else as his performance and physical condition began to seriously deteriorate. 

At the world-renowned Mayo Clinic, he was officially diagnosed with ALS on June 19th of that year, his 36th birthday.