Left-handed pitcher Cole Hamels is in desperate need of a win for the season to help boost his confidence as he'll look to get his first when the Philadelphia Phillies host the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates Tuesday night at 7:05 p.m. ET.
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Via ESPN:
The Phillies (9-11) rarely did anything but win when Hamels took the mound over the last two months in 2012, going 9-1 in his final 10 starts as the three-time All-Star posted a 2.58 ERA.
Hamels (0-2, 6.46 ERA) lost his first two starts of 2013 behind a 10.97 ERA, but he's been considerably better in his last two. He held the Marlins to a run over six innings in a 2-1 loss at Miami on April 13, then allowed three runs over seven -- striking out a season-high eight -- in a 4-3 defeat to St. Louis on Thursday.
"I felt really good. Everything was working really well," Hamels said. "But mistakes are coming at the wrong time right now. I have to be better than good. In order to win ballgames, you have to be great. I go out there expecting perfection."
Hamels' last three starts against Pittsburgh (10-9) -- the last of which occurred in June 2011 -- haven't been perfect, but they haven't been too far off. He's posted a 1.57 ERA in those outings but is 0-1.
Philadelphia's bullpen, which had a 4.98 ERA through Hamels' latest start, has been perfect in 10 2/3 innings since. The Phillies' relievers shut down the Pirates over the last 3 2/3 in a 3-2 win Monday as Jonathan Papelbon closed it out for his seventh straight scoreless outing.
"We have to win the one-run games," manager Charlie Manuel said.
This will be Jeff Locke's first start against the Phillies, and he's coming off a rough outing at home against Atlanta. The left-hander walked four and allowed four runs on three homers over 4 2/3 innings Thursday as the Pirates lost 6-4.
"The one thing that continues to challenge him is overall consistency," manager Clint Hurdle told the team's official website. "Some sequences are sharp, but there are too many misses. He's got to get ahead of more counts, to pitch competitively up here."
