I’m currently on a flight from Philadelphia to Orlando. The guy across the aisle from here kicked his shoes off like he’s in his own family room. I’m also row 22, right next to the bathroom, a high traffic area on the plane. Fortunately for everyone who reads the The Liberty Line, the blog game never stops, even under such terrible conditions. If you want to know how truly disgusting and rude people are, hope in an aluminum tube with them and fly 30,000 feet up in the air with them. Disgust will eventually show it’s ugly face. Anyways, let’s talk about Jhailyn Ortiz and then we’ll get into tonight’s Phillies starting lineup.

The Philadelphia Phillies No. 20 prospect has been on an absolute tear over the last month. Honestly, I’m willing to go as far as saying he’s the hottest hitter in baseball, but maybe that’s just the fake oxygen being pumped into the airplane cabin. The 22-year old Ortiz went 3-for-5 with two home runs, a double, and six RBIs for the Jersey Shore BlueClaws. Yes, two home runs and six RBIs. In one game. To make it even better, it was Jhailyn’s second game in a row with two home runs.

In the month of July, Ortiz now has 12 home runs, a double, and has driven in 24 runs over 21 games. He’s slashing a healthy .286/.382/.779 with a 1.161 OPS.

Phillies Starting Lineup

Onto the Phillies, Matt Moore will be on the mound tonight for game two against the Nationals. Alec Bohm is notably out of the lineup, Ronald Torreyes will be at third base for the Phils in a very important game as the trade deadline approaches.

In today’s roster moves, Mickey Moniak has been optioned back to Lehigh Valley while JD Hammer has been reinstated from the COVID related injury list. For Moniak, it’s better to have him down in Triple A playing every day to continue his hot streak.

Ring it. Let’s keep things rolling.

Mandatory Credit: The Athletic