(Photo credit: David Richard-Imagn Images)

Andrew Abbott has been one of the best pitchers in the National League this season, but he knows he still has room for improvement.Abbott will get the nod for the Cincinnati Reds on Friday afternoon when they open a three-game road series against the Philadelphia Phillies.In his most recent start, Abbott (7-1, 1.79 ERA) limited the San Diego Padres to one run on seven hits over five innings. However, he threw 102 pitches and walked two batters for the first time in more than a month. The Reds lost the game 6-4 on Saturday, and Abbott took a no-decision.'(The high pitch count) keeps you from going too deep in the game, obviously,' Abbott said. 'You want to stay around 15 pitches (per inning). It's going to happen, but you've just got to keep your foot down and keep grinding for the team.'Reds manager Terry Francona agreed with that assessment but also acknowledged that he continues to be pleased with the 26-year-old left-hander's progress.'He gave up one (run). That's pretty impressive,' Francona said after the game. 'It's a good lineup. He threw a lot of pitches. It's hot, but he doesn't give in (and) holds his stuff.'On Friday, Abbott will take on a Philadelphia lineup that he has faced twice previously, with both games last season. He gave up three runs and five hits in a combined 9 2/3 innings in those contests, good for a tidy 2.80 ERA in a pair of no-decisions.The Phillies enter the series opener after winning three of their past four games, including the nightcap of Wednesday's doubleheader against the San Diego Padres. Max Kepler and Brandon Marsh homered in support of Cristopher Sanchez, who logged seven strong innings to fuel a 5-1 home victory.'He's been just like the rest of them, really,' Phillies manager Rob Thomson said about Sanchez, a key part of the Phillies' strong rotation. 'Just wonderful.'Thomson hopes that Jesus Luzardo (7-4, 4.06) can continue that trend. The lefty yielded two runs over five innings on Saturday against the Atlanta Braves. Luzardo allowed seven hits and three walks in that contest but limited the damage in an eventual 6-1 defeat.'Every time we go out there, we don't want to give up any runs,' Luzardo said. 'So it doesn't matter if we score 10 or if we don't score any, our mentality never changes (as a rotation). 'Luzardo has been impressive in two career starts against Cincinnati, posting a 1.64 ERA with 13 strikeouts and one walk over 11 innings.This time around, Luzardo will be facing a Reds team that enters with momentum after an 8-4 victory in Boston on Wednesday. Cincinnati stunned the Red Sox with eight runs in the final three innings, highlighted by Christian Encarnacion-Strand's first career grand slam.Matt McLain had five hits, including two doubles, and drove in three runs in the series. The teams completed a suspended game earlier Wednesday before playing the series finale Wednesday evening.'We did some good things,' Francona said, adding: 'Face it, that's a really long day. And when you're down for most of the day, it's longer. So (that comeback win) is going to make that plane ride a heckuva lot better.'This is the first meeting of the season between the Reds and Phillies.--Field Level Media