Thursday, May 31, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils had the day off today and after three straight losses they needed it. Tomorrow they begin a 3 game weekend series with Barry and and San Francisco Giants. It should be an interesting series and hopefully a good one for the Phils.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Until the 8th tonight's game was nothing more than old-fashioned pitcher's duel between veterans Jamie Moyer and Randy Johnson. In 6 innings of work Johnson allowed just 1 hit, that's all 1 hit, a single by Pat Burrell, which went for naught as the Phils failed to score off Johnson. Moyer meanwhile, allowed just run and a few hits through 7, with the one run coming on an Eric Byrnes solo homer. In the 8th however, all heck broke lose. Byrnes hit another solo homer to make it 2-0, and rookie Mark Reynolds hit a two run shot later in the inning to up the diamondback lead to 4-0. Eventually, Ryan Madson came in and bailed him out, but it was just a tad too late. Still, the Phils weren't willing to be swept quietly and in the bottom of the 9th they mounted a final rally. Aaron Rowand was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, and Shane Victorino singled off, yes off, the chest of SS orlando hudson, who subsequently crumbled to the ground in pain as the ball rolled into the outfield, obviously feigning injury to cover up his blunder. As a result Rowand wound up on third and Victorino wound up on second. Jimmy Rollins then hit a line smash to the gap in left-center just out of the reach of diving centerfielder Chris Young, who got to watch the ball roll past him as Jimmy rolled into 3rd with a triple. After Chase Utley flew out to right field, Pat Burrell singled to score Rollins, which if not for that reynolds homer would have won the game for the Phils. Instead, Ryan Howard, who had the day off, obviously to avoid the left-handed Johnson, came in to pinch hit. Micheal Bourn of course also came in to run for Burrell. Howard battled valiantly with Diamondback closer Jose Valverde, working the count to 3-2, then he crushed a line drive which for anyone other batter would have been a single to score Bourn, who had just stolen second, but for Howard with the infield shifted to the right, it went right into the glove of you guessed it, Orlando Hudson, who was conveniently covering the gap between first and second. Hudson then doubled Bourn, who had been running on the play and who was already rounding 3rd base (yes he is that fast), off of a second to the end the game in a 4-3 win for Arizona. Thus the diamondbacks got their sweep, and the Phils are back under .500(26-27) again. so life really sucks now.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Well, this was one for the ages, the dark ages that is. Jon Lieber was touched up for 5 runs in the 2nd inning, but that would be all the Diamondbacks would get off him as he settled down and wound up pitching 6 and 2/3rds innings, striking out 5 and allowing 13 hits to go along with those 5 runs. The Phils mounted a comeback behind Chase Utley's 4 hits and 2 RBIs, cutting the lead to 5-3, by the time Lieber left the game with 2 outs and 2 on in the 7th. Fortunately for the Phils Yoel hernandez managed to get out of that jam and keep it at 5-3 game going into the 8th. However, In the 8th inning, with Geoff Geary now on the mound all hopes of Phils comeback quickly evaporated as Geary was touched up for 5 more runs on 2 hits. Clay Condrey eventually came in and bailed him out, but by then it was too late, as the Arizona now led 10-3. Greg Dobbs hit a solo homer in the bottom of the inning, but it was of little consequence, as the Diamondbacks tacked on another run for the laughable final score of 11-3. So the Phils are back at .500 (26-26) and searching for answers. Due to this turn of events, life of course still sucks. Anyway, the Phils will try to salvage a game in this series tomorrow as Jamie Moyer faces off against Randy Johnson for the second time this season in what should be an interesting contest, as Moyer and the Phils prevailed the first time around, and Johnson will thus be seeking redemption.
Monday, May 28, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils went for their 4th win in a row tonight in their first of three games against the Diamondbacks. Unfortunately their red hot lineup was shutdown by Diamondback slow-balller Doug Davis. Davis went 8 innings allowing just 1 run on 7 hits while striking out 5, one of which was a Ryan Howard solo homer. Freddy Garcia himself went 8 innings for the Phils but he allowed 3 runs on 7 hits. Then in the top of the 9th Arizona tacked on 2 more runs off Ryan Madson. The Phils, were not ready to quit though. With 2 on and 2 out Greg Dobbs came in to pinch hit and cracked a 3 run homer to cut the lead to 5-4. Then Pat Burrell came in to hit for Abraham Nunez and he singled. Micheal Bourn then came in to run for Burrell and Carlos Ruiz hit another single right through the legs of first basemen Conor Jackson, and suddenly bourn was on 3rd with the tying run and ruiz was aboard first with the winning run. Next up, Rod Barajas to bat for Madson. Barajas then came oh so close to winning it for the Phils as he hit a deep fly ball to right field but he didn't quite get all of it and Carlos Quentin squeezed it in his glove on the warning track. So the Phils have now fallen back to 26-25, and they need to win tomorrow to stay above .500 and life sucks again.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils finished a 3 game sweep of the Braves today in convincing fashion. Greg Dobbs and Ryan Howard both hit 2 run homers in the 1st inning for an early 4-0 Phils lead and Cole Hamels mowed down the Braves for 6 innings allowing just 3 runs on 6 hits while striking out 8. The Phils banged out 7 more runs in the 5th inning, and even Hamels got into the act with an RBI. Howard then added two more runs in the 8th inning with another 2 run blast. In all the Phils pounded out 13 runs and 15 hits. Howard himself had 3 hits and 4 RBIs, Greg Dobbs chipped in for 2 hits and 3 RBIs and Jimmy Rollins also had 2 hits and 2 RBIs. All of which amounted to a 13-6 laugher in the Phils favor. So the Phils have now improved to 26-24 with their 3rd win in a row. They currently trail Atlanta by just 2 games for second in the NL East, and the Mets by 6.5 for 1st in the NL East. Also they trail the LA Dodgers by 3 games in the early goings of wild card race. So the Phils obviously still have a bit of work to do, but they are at last on the right track again, so life remains beautiful. Happy Memorial Day everyone!
Saturday, May 26, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Well, the 5th time was the charm for the Phils. In there 5th attempt to do so, the Phils finally got above .500 at 25-24. The Phils trailed early 1-0, but Micheal Bourn bunted for a hit and scored in the 3rd inning, to get the Phils started and Chase Utley then doubled in a couple runs two batters later and Shane Victorino scored on a passed ball to put the Phils up and running 4-1. Atlanta rallied for a couple in the bottom of the inning, but after that Adam Eaton took charge with 6 solid innings allowing just 4 runs on 6 hits. Chase Utley added a run in the 5th with a single to finish his day with 3 RBIs and Shane Victorino added a solo homer in the 7th to finish his day just a double short of the cycle with an RBI and 3 runs scored and a couple great plays in the outfield. The Phils bullpen again shut the door by committee with Micheal Zagurski pitching his second scoreless inning in the 7th and Geoff Geary doing likewise in the 8th, while Antonio Alfonseca registered his first save since 2002 in the 9th for a 6-4 Phils win. So the Phils are finally above .500 at 25-24, just 3 games behind Atlanta for 2nd in the NL east and wild card, and Life is beautiful again. I just hope they keep it up and get the sweep tomorrow.
Friday, May 25, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Big night for the Phils tonight. At one game under .500 they needed a win to get back to .500 yet again, and get back to .500 they would. Fresh off his worst start of the season, Jamie Moyer rebounded for 7 strong innings, allowing just 3 runs on 5 hits while striking out 4. The Phils meanwhile, romped to an early 3-1 lead which stood until the 6th inning when a Ryan Howard error opened the door for the Braves to tie it at 3. Greg Dobbs put the Phils right back ahead in the 7th though, with a 2 run double. Then in the 8th Howard atoned for his blunder with a two run double of his own to all but seal deal as the Phils went up 7-3, but they weren't done yet. Jayson Werth hit a pinch solo homer in the top of the 9th for good measure, to put the Phils up 8-3. Rookies Michael Zagurski ,who was just called up from double A reading ot fill Brett Myers roster spot, and Yoel Hernandez ,who had only pitched 2 innings so far this season then closed it out with perfect 8th and 9th innings respectively. Who knows, maybe they're the answer in the bullpen right now, well at least until Myers returns from DL. Anyway the Phils once again try to get above .500(they are now 24-24, 4 behind Atlanta for 2nd in the NL East and Wild Card) tomorrow at 3:35, and since life is now beautiful again they better keep me happy and finally do it.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Well, the Phils just aren't meant to get above .500 this season. Tonight for the 4th time they had a chance to do so, and for the 4th consecutive time they failed and are once again one game under .500. The game began with an 85 minute rain delay, and the Phils then came out firing. Aaron Rowand doubled and the Phils went up early 2-0 in the first inning. Jon Lieber had bit of a rough outing though, allowing 4 runs on 6 hits in only 5 innings of work, and by the 6th inning the Marlins had rallied ahead 3-2 behind clutch hitting and the left arm of Dontrelle Willis. Willis starting getting wild in the 6th, walking the bases loaded and the Phils used a sac fly to tie it up at 3, but could do no more damage. Florida took the lead again in the bottom of the 6th on a double by Jeremy Hermida, but again the Phils rallied back in the 8th as Shane Victorino singled in the tying run. They had a chance for more earlier in the inning, but alas after a boneheaded move to send him Micheal Bourn was gunned down at home trying to score from first on a double by Greg Dobbs. Dobbs of course was the runner who later scored on Victorino's single. Anyway, the Phils bullpen somehow kept it going until the 11th. There they watched a golden opportunity slip away and then watched the Marlins celebrate. In the top of the 11th, they loaded the bases with one out, only to watch Greg Dobbs strike out, and Victorino ground out. Then in bottom of the inning Hanley Ramirez singled and Miguel Cabrera doubled to score him and end the game in a 5-4 marlins win. So life sucks again and the Phils are back under .500 as they head to Atlanta for the weekend, where Ryan Howard should finally return to the team.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Even when the Phils won tonight they lost. Freddy Garcia had another solid outing, going 6 innings and allowing just 3 runs on 5 hits, 2 of them solo homers by Dan Uggla and Hanley Ramirez. The Phils led by Chase Utley's 2 run homer in the 1st inning racked up 4 runs and 5 hits off Marlins starter Byung Hung Kim. Until the 9th inning those 4 runs were all they needed. Entering the top of the 9th they still led 4-3 and greatly increased their chances of winning, from a possibility to sure thing, by romping for 3 runs off the Marlins bullpen to take a 7-3 lead into the bottom of the 9th. Then things turned upside down. Brett Myers came in to close it and watched as the Marlins came all the way back to tie it at 7. They hit a couple of soft singles, a triple and Josh Willingham was hit by a pitch. Then after Myers retired the next two batters Aaron Boone lined a single, to score Hanley Ramirez with the tying run, even though Jayson Werth's throw from left field beat him by 10 feet. Catcher Rod Barajas failed to block the plate and instead tried to stand up and tag him, but Ramirez slid through Barajas' legs and beat the tag. Things then went from bad to worse for the Phils as two pitches later with Barajas and Charlie Manuel both ejected for arguing, Myers uncorked a wild pitch and ran off the field holding his shoulder. With runners now on 2nd and 3rd as a result of the pitch and Myers now on the bench with a shoulder strain, Clay Condrey came in to bail the Phils out and bail them out he did. Florida's Todd Linden hit a screaming line drive right back at Condrey on the next pitch and somehow he caught it to end the inning and force the game into extra innings. There in the top of the 10th Abraham Nunez singled in a run and Clay Condrey stayed in to close it out in the bottom of the 10th for an 8-7 Phils win. Still, despite the win which puts them back at .500 again they are now in big trouble. As both Tom Gordon and Brett Myers will now be on the DL. Thus, they now have no closer, and will either have to close by committee, or try out someone else in the closer's role. Neither of those possibilities looks good on paper, considering they didn't have much in the bullpen to begin with. So even though life is beautiful again, it still sucks.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Once again the Phils had a chance to get above the .500 mark tonight and once again they failed to do so. One would think with ubertalent Cole Hamels on the mound tonight they would have been able to do so easily but that was not the case. Early on things looked pretty good for the Phils. In a rare start in place of Pat Burrell , who was greeted with a rare day off, Jayson Werth Homered twice, driving in all 3 of the Phils runs on the night, and Hamels looked lights out as the Phils led 3-1 through 5 and 1/2 innings. Then Hamels stepped in to pitch the bottom of the 6th and the wheels fell off. Before the 6th Hamels had only given up 1 run on 2 hits for the night after the 6th those totals had risen to 5 runs and 6 hits and Hamels was on the bench. All 4 Marlins hits in the inning went for extra bases including a misplayed fly ball by Aaron Rowand which wound up as a Miguel Cabrera triple and then saw Cabrera score after Chase Utley threw away his relay to 3rd which probably wouldn't have caught Cabrera anyway even if it had been on line. A Josh Willingham double followed and suddenly the Phils were behind 5-3. They would not recover. In the final 3 innings they mustered only 1 hit and failed to score. So the Phils lost 5-3 and now stand at 22-23 once again one game under .500. Life sucks once again.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers played the lottery tonight, that is the NBA draft lottery and well let's just say they didn't win the big bucks, but they matched a couple numbers and won the $500 or whatever they give you for only matching 2 or 3 of the numbers. Anyway, they didn't even come close to getting one of the top 3 picks, as they were left with the 12th pick in the draft. Still, with the talent pool in this draft, considered one of the deepest in recent history, there's still a chance they could get somebody pretty good even as low as the 12th pick. Or, with their other 2 picks in the draft, 21 and 30, respectively they could make their selection some sort of package deal, so as to trade up into the top 3 for Kevin Durant or Greg Oden. Or they could keep all 3 of their picks and use them. Either way, they are still in pretty good shape as far as I am concerned.
Monday, May 21, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils got the day off today for their annual fan festival to raise money in support of the fight against ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease as they call it now. Tomorrow they head to Florida to begin a 3 game series with Marlins. Hopefully when it's over their record will finally be back above .500 on the season.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils finished off their 10 game homestand today and they are now in pretty good shape. Adam Eaton got the start today and delivered what Jamie Moyer couldn't yesterday. He pitched 6 strong, scoreless innings, allowing just 4 hits. He left early only because he spent too much time running the bases in the bottom of the 6th. At any rate the Phils bats backed him up competently as Aaron Rowand and Pat Burrell both went yard, and Rowand and Greg Dobbs both had RBI singles, staking the Phils to a 5-0 lead through 6 innings. Thanks to a nightmare 8th inning pitched by Geoff Geary, in which he allowed 3 homers, by Alexis Rios, Matt Stairs, and Vernon Well, that lead almost evaporated. Fortunately Brett Myers again came into the game early, finishing off the 8th and closing it out in the 9th for a 5-3 Phils win, and another series win. As it stands now the Phils are back at .500 with a 22-22 record, and trail the Braves by 4 games for 2nd in NL East, and the Mets by 6.5 games for 1st in the NL East, far better shape than they were in after their 10 game road trip. Also Ryan Howard is expected to return to the Phils as soon as next weekend when they head to Atlanta for a 3 game series. So life is beautiful again.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils got whacked today and I mean whacked. You would have though that with Jamie Moyer on the hill for tonight's game that they would've had a good chance to get over .500 for the first time all season, but Moyer's presence made no difference. Early on Moyer somehow managed to get out of jams in the 1st and 2nd innings. He wasn't so lucky in the 3rd and 4th innings. Troy Glaus homered in the 3rd, and Lyle Overbay homered in the 4th as the Jays racked up a combined 7 runs in the 2 innings and chased Moyer from the game with only 3 and 1/3rd innings pitched and 7 runs on 8 hits allowed, not exactly the kind of outing the Phils were expecting from him. The Phils meanwhile were held to 2 runs on 4 hits through 6 strong innings pitched by Shawn Marcum. The Phils only highlight in those 6 innings was a solo homer by Chase Utley, his 8th of the season thus far. Still, the Phils only trailed 7-2 going into the 8th inning and given the late inning heroics they have been coming up with lately, you thought maybe they could do it again, by putting up a couple runs in each of the last 2 innings, but the Toronto ensured that wouldn't happen with their performance in the top of the 8th inning. All told they put up 6 more runs including a Matt Stairs Grand Slam off Clay Condrey. That made it 13-2 Jays and that was all she wrote. So once again the Phils are under .500 at 21-22 and life sucks.
Friday, May 18, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Jon Lieber pitched 7 strong innings allowing only 3 runs on 6 hits while striking out 7. Meanwhile the Phils put 5 runs in the 5th inning, highlighted by RBI singles by Aaron Rowand and Shane Victorino. Those 5 runs would then be all the Phils would need as Antonio Alfonseca and Brett Myers each pitched scoreless frames in the 8th and 9th innings respectively. The Phils thus got the win 5-3 to open their weekend interleague series against the Blue Jays and are once again at.500 with a 21-21 record. Life is beautiful again. I would talk more but I don't much time tonight, so this will have to do, but tomorrow I'll have a post of normal length so no worries.
Thursday, May 17, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils went for the sweep of the Brewers today and they came oh so close. They got a solid effort from Freddy Garcia who went 5 and 2/3rd innings allowing just 2 runs on 7 hits, while striking out 5. Both runs came on solo homers by Gabe Gross who was batting only about .190 coming into today. Meanwhile, for the Phils Pat Burrell hit a solo homer but that would be about all the Phils would get for most of the day as they were dazzled by Brewers ace Ben Sheets to the tune of 7 and 2/3rds innings, only 2 runs on 5 hits, and 8 strikeouts. Not until the 8th inning did the Phils finally get to him as Aaron Rowand doubled and scored to pull the Phils within a run at 3-2. Then in the bottom 9th inning with Brewer closer Francisco Cordero on the hill for the first time of the series, Pat Burrell stepped up again with one out and cracked one and it was going, going, outta here!!!! or so everyone thought. Unfortunately replays and the blank stare of the umpire clearly showed the ball hitting off the top of the wall, just inches short of Citizens Bank's designated homerun line and Burrell was forced to stop at second for a double. Micheal Bourn quickly replaced him as a pinch runner, but he wound stranded there as Wes Helms and Abraham Nunez both hit weak groundouts. So the Brewers salvaged a game, and the Phils lost to fall back under .500 at 20-21. Life Sucks again.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued to roll tonight with a masterful performance by Cole Hamels. Despite a 1:32 rain delay at the onset The Bank was rocking all night long as Hamels pitched six perfect innings to open the night. Meanwhile, Aaron Rowand hit a 3 run homer in the 2nd inning and the Phils coasted to an early 5-0 lead. After they tacked on another run in the 6th for a 6-0 lead, Hamels came out for the 7th and walked Rickie Weeks to start the inning and there went the perfect game. The next batter J.J Hardy then homered and there went the no-hitter. Still, Hamels remained resolute, retiring the side in the 7th and the 8th. In all, Hamels went 8 innings allowing 2 runs on 2 hits while striking out 11. Incredibly Hamels himself had 2 hits to equal the Brewer output on the night. Brett Myers then stepped in a non-save situation in the 9th and closed it out with another 1-2-3 inning. Hamels improved to 6-1 on the season, and the Phils finally got back to .500 for the first time since the season began, as they are now 20-20. Unfortunately they still trail the Mets and the Braves by 5 games for 1st in the NL East. Life is still beautiful though.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils are officially on a roll now. Even Adam Eaton, yes Adam Eaton, the biggest question mark in the Phils rotation, had a heck of a game today. Eaton went 7 and 2/3rds innings, allowing just 2 runs on 4 hits, while striking out 5. The Only Mistake Eaton made on the night, was his last pitch to Prince Fielder which ended up deep in the seats in right field and cut the Phils lead at the time to 1. Meanwhile, the Brewers Claudio Vargas didn't fare to badly himself, going 6 innings while allowing only 3 runs on 7 hits, including a homer by Greg Dobbs. Jimmy Rollins and Pat Burrell knocked in the other two runs, and the Phils led 3-1 after 7 innings and seemed on their way to a win. Then in the 8th inning everything changed just like last night. Eaton made his one mistake and suddenly the lead was down to 3-2. Then after finishing off the 8th, Brett Myers opened the 9th by serving up a homerun ball to Johhny Estrada, and suddenly it was tied 3-3. Fortunately for the Phils ,Derrick Turnbow, touched up last night for 4 runs on 4 hits, was waiting in the wings again to pitch the bottom of the 9th and with two outs up-stepped Carlos Ruiz to face him. A few pitches later Ruiz went down and got a Turnbow sinker and watched it fly through air into the seats for a Phils victory. Mobbed by his teammates at home plate Ruiz would later receive the greatest of compliments, as he was pied in the face by Shane Victorino. So again the Phils used some late heroics to defeat Milwaukee and are 19-20, once again just one game under .500. Life is still beautiful.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers have recently re-signed youngsters Ben Eager and Scottie Upshall to two year deals. Translation: we like what we've seen from you and we're willing to give you a chance, show us you deserve it.
Monday, May 14, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Up against the Brewers, holders of the major league's best record coming in tonight, the Phils seemed destined to turn yesterday's loss into a long losing streak. Fortunately someone forgot to tell the players that they weren't supposed to win. Early on it was all Brewers as Jamie Moyer was touched up for 5 runs on 9 hits, including 2 homers, in only 6 and 1/3rd innings of work. The Phils meanwhile, continued to struggle with only 2 runs on 6 hits through 7 innings, and with both runs coming on a two run homer by Pat Burrell, his only hit of the night. So entering the 8th inning the Phils trailed 6-2 and with the Brewer's bullpen owning one of the top ERAs in the league, things didn't look so good. However, the Brewer bullpen looked more like the Phils bullpen tonight, imploding to the tune of 6 runs and 6 hits, all in the 8th inning and mostly off of Derrick Turnbow who showed why he is no longer the Brewer's closer, allowing 4 runs on 2 hits, as the Phillies rallied all the way back to take an 8-6 lead going into the 9th inning. Brett Myers then came in and closed it out in the 9th for his 4th save of the year. So the Phils came from behind for a big win to improve to 18-20. Life is beautiful again.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Yesterday's game was one of the most exciting you'll ever see, but today's on Mother's day of all days, was one of the least exciting. The Phils fell behind early 2-0 on shotty fielding including 2 errors and Cubs starter Ted Lilly made sure that it would stay that way. Lilly cruised through 8 innings, allowing just 1 run on 3 hits, while striking out six. So futile was the Phil's offense that the only run they scored came on a throwing error in the 8th, and they did not record a single RBI on the day and overall only 4 hits. The Cubs, meanwhile tacked on a couple runs in the 9th inning at that was about all she wrote. The Cubs won 4-1 and the Phils lost a tough one, to drop to 17-20 on the year. Life Sucks again
Saturday, May 12, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
With Ryan Howard now on the DL the Phils needed someone else to step up fill the void left by his absence. Yesterday, that someone was Pat Burrell with two homers. Today, that someone was Greg "Roy Hobbs" Dobbs in a rare start at 1st base in place of Howard. Dobbs went 4-4 on the day racking up 4 hits and 2 RBIs including the eventual game winning RBI. Initially, it didn't look like Dobbs would need to be such a hero. Freddy Garcia went 6 innings allowing just 3 runs on 8 hits, while Chase Utley homered and the Phils took a 5-1 lead into the 7th inning. Then, all hell broke lose. The Cubs suddenly came to life in the top of the 7th, quickly scoring 4 runs to tie it at 5. Then with one out and 2 on the game went into a 1 hour and 5 minute rain delay. When the game returned from delay, the Cubs scored 2 more runs and nearly added a 3rd but Shane Victorino gunned down Jacque Jones at the plate to end the inning. The Cubs had thus taken a 7-5 lead. It would not last long. After two quick outs in the bottom of the inning, Aaron Rowand laced a single in rightfield. Then Chase Utley doubled to score Rowand but only after a bad relay throw from the pitcher. After a Pat Burrell walk, Dobbs already with 3 hits on the day, stepped back into the batter's box and delivered a triple, scoring both Utley and Burrell after another bad relay throw. Abraham Nunez then doubled to score Dobbs, Carlos Ruiz homered and suddenly the Phils led again 11-7. With the help of Brett Myers, who pitched a scoreless 8th and 9th inning , and the rain which returned in the 9th, the Phils hung on for the win, improving their record to 17-19 and moving back into 3rd place in the NL East, but still 7 games behind Atlanta for first. Life is still beautiful.
Friday, May 11, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Last year, everything and I mean everything that went wrong for the Phils last year was blamed on Pat Burrell. The truth is though, that his numbers weren't really as bad as everyone seems to think they were. I mean he hit 20+ homers and and knocked close to 100 runs, which on most teams doesn't look too bad, but on a Phils team featuring Ryan Howard with 58 homers and 150 RBIs, and Chase Utley with 30 homers and 100+ RBIs, those numbers do tend to lack a bit of luster. Tonight, however Burrell began to atone for his only okay 2006. On a night when the new "lefty" Cole Hamels went 7 innings and allowed only 2 runs on 7 hits and the bullpen pitched near perfect 2 hit ball, all the Phils really needed was a couple of big blasts. A couple of big blasts was exactly what Pat Burrell gave them. In the 4th inning with 2 on and and nobody out and the Phils trailing 2-0, Burrell hit his first homer of the day off Cubs starter Rich Hill, to put the Phils up 3-2. Then in the 6th inning he did it again only this time with only one on and nobody out to increase the Phils lead to 5-2. Although that would be all the Phils would need, Chase Utley kept the momentum going anyway, knocking in a couple runs in the 7th inning with 2 outs, to put the Cubs away for good by the eventual final score of 7-2. Life is still Beautiful.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The got the day off today finally, but tomorrow the return to action back home in Philly at Citizens Bank Park against the Cubs, in the team's first meeting of the season.
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Things didn't look so good for the Phils at the onset of tonight's game. After 6 innings Jamie Moyer had been touched up for 3 runs and 6 hits and the Phils offense was continuing to struggle as Randy Johnson shut them out through 6 innings. In the seventh inning though everything changed in a big way. Johnson began the 7th by loading the bases with nobody out. As he was lifted in a favor of reliever Brandon Medders, the Phils sent in a pinch hitter to take the place of Wes Helms, and he was none other than supposedly hobbled Phil Ryan Howard. In a scene reminiscent of Kirk Gibson against the A's, Howard deposited Medders first pitch into the seats, turning a 3-0 deficit into a 4-3 Phils lead. Meanwhile, Moyer pitched a scoreless frame in the bottom of the inning to end his day on a high note. An error by Conor Jackson allowed the Phils to push the lead to 6-3 in the 8th and Shane Victorino Homer helped the Phils up it to 9-3 in the 9th inning. Two scoreless frames from Brett Myers later, the Phils had won 9-3 to push their record back up to 15-19. Hopefully, this will not only pump Howard out of the funk that caused him to get this entire series off , but pump the Phils out of their recent funk, after a 4-6 road trip, as well. Life is Beautiful, and in the immortal words of Jack Buck "I don't believe what I saw".
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The dark days continue for the Phils. Once again The phils got a start out of Adam Eaton who went 7 innings while allowing just 3 runs on 7 hits, but once again the Diamondbacks got a good start too out of young Micah Owings who also went 7 innings while allowing just 2 runs on 5 hits. In end Owings performance was good enough for the win, Eaton's was not. The Diamondbacks led early 1-0, but Greg "Roy Hobbs" Dobbs, starting his first game if the season in place of the struggling Ryan Howard, hit his first major league homer in the 5th inning to tie it. The Diamondbacks came back with a run in the 6th inning to go up 2-1, but again the Phils had answer in the bottom of the inning as Chase Utley homered to tie it at 2. The Diamondbacks once again came back with one more run off Eaton as Tony Clark homered to put Arizona up 3-2. This time there be no answer from the Phils, as the two bullpens combined for 3 scoreless innings(one for the Phils by Geoff Geary, and 2 for Arizona) to end the game. So the Phils lost 3-2 and their record now stumbles to 14-19 on the season thus far. Life still sucks.
Monday, May 07, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
Although hobbled, Freddy Garcia turned in his best start of the season thus far, going 6 innings and allowing just 2 runs on 5 hits. Unfortunately, Garcia's effort was not enough on this night in Arizona. The Phils were dazzled themselves by Diamondbacks starter Doug Davis who also went 6 innings while allowing only 2 runs on 5 hits. Then of course when the Phils had finally tied at 2 in the 6th. Antonio Alfonseca came in to pitch the 7th inning and promptly allowed the Diamondbacks to go back ahead 3-2. The Phils battled back again and tied it in the top of 8th at 3, but did so the hard by beating out consecutive double play attempts. Then of course in the bottom of the 8th inning in came Francisco Rosario who once again promptly allowed Arizona to go back ahead 4-3 and that was all they would need. The Phils only baserunner in the 9th was Jimmy Rollins who was hit by pitch and never advanced off 1st base. Thus, the Phils fell short again. It's pretty clear now that the Phils just can't win close games with the bullpen they have right now, especially not with the way they performed tonight. At any rate though the Phils dropped to 14-18, somehow by the grace of God, the Braves, Marlins, and Mets all lost tonight as well, so the Phils didn't lose any ground in the NL, they just didn't gain any either. Life sucks again.
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