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Asche keeping a positive attitude

Cody Asche is out of the starting lineup for the third straight game. He has seen his playing time cut back dramatically since Freddy Galvis returned from the DL. But the 23-year-old third baseman is staying positive.

Cody Asche sat out the first two games of the Phillies four game series at Dodger Stadium. Los Angeles threw lefthanded starters in each of those two games.

But the Dodgers are sending righthander Zack Greinke up against Cole Hamels tonight, and Asche is once again out of the lineup. It's his this straight game out of the starting nine.

Since Freddy Galvis returned from the disabled list two Fridays ago, Asche has started just 6 of the 12 games the Phillies have played. But the 23-year-old Asche, the youngest player on the Phillies roster, isn't letting it get him frustrated.

"The only thing you can really control is your attitude. you know?" Asche said before taking pregame batting practice Wednesday. "When you see you're not in the lineup, you just have to continue to have a good attitude. There might be an opportunity in the seventh or eighth where I have to come in in a big at-bat, or I have to go in for defense. So whatever can help the team win. We've won the last 3 games. So what more can you do? You just try to help the team win."

Asche's struggles have been well documented recently. A recap:

He's hitting .196. Among the 113 major league players with at least 50 plate appearances, only 8 players are hitting lower.

He has a .275 OBP. Among those same 113 players, Asche's OBP ranks 95th.

"You can't change anything in the past," Asche said. "You can't dwell on it. Obviously I'd like to be hitting a little better, and make decisions easier on them. But that's not the case. I just have to keep a good attitude, keep working on what I've been working on, keep doing my thing."

When asked if he was giving the young infielder a mental break, Sandberg said that wasn't the case. He said the Phillies have won three games in a row in large part to their pitching and defense, so he wanted Galvis on the field.

Galvis, the best fielding infielder on the team, is hitting .056 (1-for-18) in 7 games.

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