Sunday, July 19, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils completed their series with the Marlins this afternoon. J.A Happ got the start and was unfathomably good yet again, tossing 7 scoreless innings, while allowing just 5 hits. From there Ryan Madson, J.C Romero, Scott Eyre, and Brad Lidge ultimately combined to complete the Phils 2nd shutout of the Marlins in 3 games, pretty impressive if I may say so myself. Meanwhile, the Phils continued their theme in this series of scoring run in the first 3 innings or so and hoping they would stand up the rest of the night. This time of course, thanks to Happ they did stand up. It all got started in the top of the 2nd. With 2 out and nobody on in the inning, Happ himself beat out an infield single. Then Jimmy Rollins singled, the Flyin Hawaiian, Shane Victorino beat out another infield single, Chase Utley was hit by a pitch to force in a run and finally Raul Ibanez doubled for 2 more runs and a 3-0 lead. In the top of the 3rd JRoll collected his 2nd hit of the day, doubling in Carlos Ruiz for a 4-0 lead. Finally in the top of the 9th, Chase Utley scored on a wild pitch to cap off the 5-0 Phils win. It's interesting the way the Phils are using their bullpen right now. Essentially they're going by committee, and bringing in relievers to face a batter or two based on the matchup. That's very similar to what the Tampa Rays did with their pen last year and it worked for them. So far it's working for the Phils too, and with all the games they have to play for the rest of the season, it's a good way to limit the workload for their key relievers. There have been round rumors going around for weeks now that Phils are considering trading Happ and some prospects to the Toronto Blue Jays for all-star pitcher Roy "Doc" Halladay. At this point I don't see anyway they can possibly let Happ go. Anyway so the Phils are now 51-38 overall and 6.5 games up in the NL East.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils attempted to continue their series with the Marlins tonight but mother nature intervened. Joe Blanton allowed the Marlins to jump out to a 2 -0 lead on an RBI double by Jeremy Hermida in the bottom of the 1st. From there the teams played only another inning and half before play was halted by rain in the bottom of the 2nd. A little over an hour later the game was cancelled thanks to an impending massive line of storms. So the Phils have yet another game to make up down the stretch of the season. That means they're going to be playing an inordinate number of games between now and the end of season with very little rest. In fact their next off day is not until August 3rd, over 2 weeks away. Hopefully they're far enough ahead in the division now that they won't have to run out of gas trying to clinch a playoff spot between now and the end of the season.
Friday, July 17, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their series with the Marlins tonight. Cole Hamels got the start and was effective allowing just 1 run in 5 innings, before mother nature ended his night with a 1 hour rain delay. Meanwhile the Phils were able to jump out to a quick 4 - 1 lead before the rain delay. However, after the delay the Phils bullpen couldn't hold the lead and the game ended up going into extra innings. Fortunately, the Phils have been exceptional in extra inning games on the road this season and tonight was no exception. Chase Utley got things going in the top of the 1st with a 2 run homer. Adam Coghlan answered in the bottom of the 1st for the fish with a solo shot to leadoff. In the top of the 4th a single by Jayson Werth and a double by Pedro Feliz made it 4-1 Phils. Then the rains came and washed away an almost assured 7 or 8 inning outing for Hamels. Instead Chan Ho Park came in for the 6th inning. He got out of that inning easily, but he allowed a run in the 7th to pull Florida to within 2. Then Ryan Madson and J.C Romero both faltered in the 8th inning, before giving way to Chad Durbin who allowed the tying run on a single by ex-Phil Wes Helms. The bullpen recovered from there on out though as Durbin, Scott Eyre, and a fresh off the DL Clay Condrey combined to blank the fish in the 9th, 10th, and 11th innings. Then in the top of the 12th the Phils finally broke the tie with RBI singles by Utley and Werth for a 6-4 lead. Finally in the bottom of the 12th, despite allowing a run, Brad Lidge came in and got the save for the 6-5 win. The Phils propensity to win games on the road like this is just remarkable. It shows that they clearly believe they can win every night they go out there. You could just see during the game tonight, even after it was tied at 4 that still believed they were going to win, while the Marlins were just hoping they would. They say that if you truly believe in yourself you can do anything, and right now that old adage applies to the Phils better than ever. Anyway so the Phils are now 50-38 overall and 6 games up in the NL East.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils returned to action today as they traveled to Florida to begin a 4 game series with the 2nd place Marlins. With the Mets and Braves also playing each other in a series right now, the Phils have a golden opportunity to put some real distance between themselves and the rest of NL East if they can take care of the Marlins in this series. To make that happen though, they first needed to start the series with a win tonight. Thanks to Jamie Moyer who tossed 7 scoreless innings in a combined 1 hitter, they were able to do just that. While Moyer tamed the fish, Raul Ibanez crushed 2 homers in the 1st 4 innings to stake the Phils to a 3-0 lead. Then Ryan Howard slammed a solo shot in the top of the 6th inning, his 200th career homerun(making him in just 658 games, the fastet in history to 200 homers, well ahead of the old record holder Ralph Kiner the Pittsburgh Pirates' Hall of famer who did it in 706 games), for a 4-0 lead. From there thanks to Ryan Madson in the 8th inning and J.C Romero in the 9th, that's how it ended. Moyer is now 7-0 in Miami and 16-2 all-time against the Marlins. He's just always in full command of his pitches against these guys and he gets them to swing at bad pitches and get way out ahead of hittable pitches. In a nutshell that's Moyer when he is at his best and I'd like to see him pitch like that against everyone, not just Marlins. Ibanez is beyond amazing at this point, I mean this is the stuff of legends we're seeing from him right now. It's incredible that he can play at this level right now considering that he's not apparently all the way back from his injury yet. So anyway the Phils move to 49-38 overall and now 5 games up in the NL East.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The rumors have been swirling for weeks now that the Phils were going to acquire pitcher Pedro Martinez, who's been a free agent since the Mets dumped him following a rough season last year. Today they made it official signing him to a one year deal worth 1 million. So far he's looked mutch better in workouts with the Phillies than he did last season, with his fastball back up into the 90s, allbeit the low 90s, and his physical health relatively good for the first time in a while. Since he hasn't started a game since last season the Phils have placed him on the DL and at least for now he'll throw some rehab starts with AAA Lehigh and should be ready to pitch for the Phils by early August or late July. Either way he is a low risk investment. If he doesn't pan out the Phils can simply release him with no harm to the cap. On the other hand if he does pan out he could become their number 3 starter and a capable leader down the stretch. Plus just think how great it would be if Pedro comes back an Ace and throws it in the Mets faces that they gave up on him too soon. So the Phils have nothing to lose by signing him. Okay all that said, since the Phils are off tonight it's time for the next 5 of our top 25 most dramatic Phils wins, No.s 10-6.
10. September 23, 2005 Red Alert Phillies 11 - Reds 10.
This is the last of those 2005 miracle games, just 1 of 16 wins during a 16-7 stretch run by the Phils that comes up just short. On the this night the Phils are looking for their 3rd win in a row to pull within a game of the wildcard leading Houston Astros. Early on it appears all will go as planned. Doubles by Chase Utley, Kenny Lofton, and "the Bat" Pat Burrell in the top of the 1st, gives the Phils an early 3-0 cushion. Later in the 5th Utley adds a solo homer followed by a 2 run blast by Ryan Howard for a 6-1 advantage. Then the always volatile Vicente Padilla loses the strike zone and nearly the lead in the bottom of the 5th, as Cincinnati cuts the lead to 6-5. Over the next 2 innings the Reds bash 4 homers, 3 solo shots and a 2 run homer by Jason Larue to run out to a 10-6 lead and the suddenly its gone from the night the Phils got back in the race to perhaps the night they fell out of it. Still the Phils aren't ready to quit yet as Rheal Cormier gets out of a jam in the 8th inning to keep it to 10-6 heading into 9th. So there's a fleeting chance the Phils can still pull this thing out and sometimes that's all you need. With 2 on and nobody out Utley jacks a 3 run homer, his 3rd hit and 3rd, 4th and 5th RBIs on the night, to cut it to 10-9. After Bobby Abreu and Burrell both strike out its up to Ryan Howard to keep the game alive and he does with a walk. Next up David Bell. Not exactly the quintessential power hitter, and so far a disappointment in 3 years as the Phils 3rd baseman, Bell is the last guy you'd expect to deliver here. Thus logically, he slugs a 2 run homer to put the Phils up 11-10 and Billy Wagner finishes off the stunned Reds in the bottom of the inning.
9. June 16, 1998 Comeback Kids Phillies 8- Pirates 7.
The 1998 Phillies were an exciting young bunch to watch which probably should have gone further than they did. Unfortunately, then idiot GM Ed Wade simply refused to give his team the pieces they needed to make a playoff push. Nevertheless the team was not without some shining moments, particularly this night. For the most part this game looked like it would be a forgettable blowout win for Pittsburgh. Thanks to 3 run homers by Al Martin in the 2nd inning and Aramis Ramirez in the 5th inning Pittsburgh takes a 7-1 lead into the 9th inning. There is no reason to believe the young Phils can mount a comeback. Young players aren't supposed to have the resolve to still believe they can win from 6 runs down in the 9th inning. The young guys however, show surprising fight and poise on this night. First Bobby Abreu triples to cut it to 7-2. Then an error allows 2 more runs to score and cuts it to 7-4. Next Doug Glanville slaps a sac fly to cut it to 7-5. Then Kevin Sefcik nearly hits into a game ending double play, but Tony Womack can't get off a throw to first for the final out. Kevin Jordan follows with a walk to bring Mike Lieberthal, pinch hitting on what is supposed to be his night off, to the plate representing the winning run. Minutes later Lieberthal sends Rich Loiselle's 2-2 offering just over the fence in left-field for a shocking 8-7 victory. To this day 11 years later it remains the greatest 9th inning comeback in Phils history.
8. May 15, 1989 I Can't Believe It Phillies 3 - Giants 2.
This was a truly unique game in a season that was unique for the Phils for all the wrong reasons. Mike Schmidt retired early in the season, and the Phils never recovered posting just 67 wins against 95 losses. Schmidt actually started in this game but went 0 for 5 and then played just 7 more games before announcing his retirement. If nothing else he'll always have this night to take away from his final days in the majors. How crazy was this game? Both starting pitchers, Don Carman for the Phils, and Scott Garrelts for San Francisco, tossed 9 scoreless innings and neither got the win. There was still no score as the game dragged into the 10th, 11th and finally the 12th inning. There in the top of the 12th, "the Thrill" Will Clark and Kevin Mitchell slugged back to back homers and at last the Giants seemed to have secured a 2-0 win. Not so fast. Accordingly Von Hayes led off the bottom of the 12th with a strikeout, but Dickie Thon and Steve Lake collected back to back singles to bring the tying run to the plate with only one out. Steve Jeltz got the first crack at perhaps extending the Phils night but he popped up weakly for out number 2. So it was up to Bob Dernier to hopefully keep the game alive. After all with 0 homeruns on the season there was no way he could possibly win it was there? After Dernier worked the count to 1-1 the impossible happened. Take it away Harry. "Here's the 1-1 pitch to Dernier, line drive base hit left field, going all the way back to the corner, it bounces through Mitchell! Thon scores! Lake scores! And here comes Dernier! The throw to the plate is not in time! I can't believe it!
7. October 11, 1980 NLCS Game 4 Charlie Hustlin' Phillies 5 - Astros 3
In the playoffs for the 4th time in 5 years the Phils are still looking to win their first playoff series in their pathetic 98 year history. Coming in they've lost 3 straight NLCS but this time its going to be different. No this time it has to be different because Phils fans just can't withstand more heartbreak. Steve Carlton rolls to victory in game 1 but the Phils drop the next 2 in extra innings. So on this night they have to win to keep their season alive . Fortunately, Carlton is back on the mound again and surely if anyone cany deny Houston the pennant at least for one night it's Lefty. However, Carlton is touched up for 2 runs on 4 hits in just 5 innings. Meanwhile Vern Ruhle throws 7 scoreless innings and comes out for the 8th with a 2-0 lead. So the dream looks dead again for the Phils but they're not ready to give up. Greg Gross leads off the top of the 8th with a pinch single. Then Lonnie Smith singles and "Charlie Hustle", Pete Rose singles to score Gross. Next Mike Schmidt singles to score Smith, tying the game at 2. Bake Mcbride then strikes out so its up to Manny Trillo to get the Phils the lead. He cracks a flyball to right field but it's caught for out number 2 and Schmidt is caught well off first for an easy double play. Somehow Rose is still able to streak home with the go ahead run just ahead of the final out and the Phils have their 3-2 lead. As usual Houston does not go away in the 9th as Terry Puhl slaps an RBI single off Warren Brusstar to force extra innings again. The Phils come right back in the top of the 10th. Pete Rose slaps another single and "the Bull" Greg Luzinski hits a 2 out double, but Rose, trying to score from 1st looks like he'll be out by a mile. Of course he's not going to slide. Instead he runs headlong into catcher Bruce Bochy and Bochy drops the ball as Rose crosses the plate safely. Trillo follows with another double to score Luzinski and the Phils have a 5-3 lead heading into the bottom of the 10th. There Tug Mcgraw has a rare 1-2-3 inning to put away Houston and the dream lives on for another day.
6. August 30, 2007 Met Misery Phillies 11 - Mets 10.
They haven't been to the playoffs in 15 years and just 3 days ago there were no signs this 2007 team would be able to end the drought. Now however, after winning the first 3 games of this 4 game series with the Mets they've pulled within 2 games of first in the NL East. If they can win tonight and finish the 4 game sweep they'll pull within 1 game. Early on it looks like they'll do so easily with 3 homers in the first 3 innings(2 run shots by Ryan Howard, and "the Bat", Pat Burrell, and a solo shot by Aaron Rowand) giving them a 5-0 cushion. Kyle Lohse can't get through the 4 inning though, as NY cuts the lead to 5-3 and then ties it with 2 out in the 5th on a sac fly by Shawn Green. The Phils come right back in the bottom of the inning with 3 straight RBI singles by Carlos Ruiz, "the Flyin Hawaiian", Shane Victorino, and Jimmy Rollins to push ahead 8-5. The lead stands up until the Phils bullpen implodes in the 8th inning ,allowing 5 runs for a 10-8 Met lead. Billy Wagner who was the Phils closer just 2 years ago, before leaving for NY and saying the Phils didn't have it what takes to be a playoff team, oops. His words come back to haunt him on this night. First "the Met killer", Burrell slams a solo homer with one out in the 8th to cut the lead to 10-9. Then in the 9th Jayson Werth leads off with a single, steals 2nd and 3rd and scores on a single by Tad Iguchi. Now Iguchi steals 2nd prompting Wagner to intentionally walk JRoll. So it's up to Chase Utley to get the winning hit. After a long at bat Utley sends Wagner's 3-2 offering up the line in right field and Iguchi scampers home with the winning run just ahead of Green's throw from right, setting off a wild celebration. Initially the stunned Mets seem unfazed as they run back up to a 7 game lead by Sep 12, but then the Phils go into New York and sweep them again and it's all down hill from there. By Sept 28 the Phils are in 1st and 2 days later in the final game of the season Jamie Moyer completes "the miracle on broad street" allowing just 1 run in 5 strong innings to lead the Phils to a 6-1 division clinching win over the Nationals.
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10. September 23, 2005 Red Alert Phillies 11 - Reds 10.
This is the last of those 2005 miracle games, just 1 of 16 wins during a 16-7 stretch run by the Phils that comes up just short. On the this night the Phils are looking for their 3rd win in a row to pull within a game of the wildcard leading Houston Astros. Early on it appears all will go as planned. Doubles by Chase Utley, Kenny Lofton, and "the Bat" Pat Burrell in the top of the 1st, gives the Phils an early 3-0 cushion. Later in the 5th Utley adds a solo homer followed by a 2 run blast by Ryan Howard for a 6-1 advantage. Then the always volatile Vicente Padilla loses the strike zone and nearly the lead in the bottom of the 5th, as Cincinnati cuts the lead to 6-5. Over the next 2 innings the Reds bash 4 homers, 3 solo shots and a 2 run homer by Jason Larue to run out to a 10-6 lead and the suddenly its gone from the night the Phils got back in the race to perhaps the night they fell out of it. Still the Phils aren't ready to quit yet as Rheal Cormier gets out of a jam in the 8th inning to keep it to 10-6 heading into 9th. So there's a fleeting chance the Phils can still pull this thing out and sometimes that's all you need. With 2 on and nobody out Utley jacks a 3 run homer, his 3rd hit and 3rd, 4th and 5th RBIs on the night, to cut it to 10-9. After Bobby Abreu and Burrell both strike out its up to Ryan Howard to keep the game alive and he does with a walk. Next up David Bell. Not exactly the quintessential power hitter, and so far a disappointment in 3 years as the Phils 3rd baseman, Bell is the last guy you'd expect to deliver here. Thus logically, he slugs a 2 run homer to put the Phils up 11-10 and Billy Wagner finishes off the stunned Reds in the bottom of the inning.
9. June 16, 1998 Comeback Kids Phillies 8- Pirates 7.
The 1998 Phillies were an exciting young bunch to watch which probably should have gone further than they did. Unfortunately, then idiot GM Ed Wade simply refused to give his team the pieces they needed to make a playoff push. Nevertheless the team was not without some shining moments, particularly this night. For the most part this game looked like it would be a forgettable blowout win for Pittsburgh. Thanks to 3 run homers by Al Martin in the 2nd inning and Aramis Ramirez in the 5th inning Pittsburgh takes a 7-1 lead into the 9th inning. There is no reason to believe the young Phils can mount a comeback. Young players aren't supposed to have the resolve to still believe they can win from 6 runs down in the 9th inning. The young guys however, show surprising fight and poise on this night. First Bobby Abreu triples to cut it to 7-2. Then an error allows 2 more runs to score and cuts it to 7-4. Next Doug Glanville slaps a sac fly to cut it to 7-5. Then Kevin Sefcik nearly hits into a game ending double play, but Tony Womack can't get off a throw to first for the final out. Kevin Jordan follows with a walk to bring Mike Lieberthal, pinch hitting on what is supposed to be his night off, to the plate representing the winning run. Minutes later Lieberthal sends Rich Loiselle's 2-2 offering just over the fence in left-field for a shocking 8-7 victory. To this day 11 years later it remains the greatest 9th inning comeback in Phils history.
8. May 15, 1989 I Can't Believe It Phillies 3 - Giants 2.
This was a truly unique game in a season that was unique for the Phils for all the wrong reasons. Mike Schmidt retired early in the season, and the Phils never recovered posting just 67 wins against 95 losses. Schmidt actually started in this game but went 0 for 5 and then played just 7 more games before announcing his retirement. If nothing else he'll always have this night to take away from his final days in the majors. How crazy was this game? Both starting pitchers, Don Carman for the Phils, and Scott Garrelts for San Francisco, tossed 9 scoreless innings and neither got the win. There was still no score as the game dragged into the 10th, 11th and finally the 12th inning. There in the top of the 12th, "the Thrill" Will Clark and Kevin Mitchell slugged back to back homers and at last the Giants seemed to have secured a 2-0 win. Not so fast. Accordingly Von Hayes led off the bottom of the 12th with a strikeout, but Dickie Thon and Steve Lake collected back to back singles to bring the tying run to the plate with only one out. Steve Jeltz got the first crack at perhaps extending the Phils night but he popped up weakly for out number 2. So it was up to Bob Dernier to hopefully keep the game alive. After all with 0 homeruns on the season there was no way he could possibly win it was there? After Dernier worked the count to 1-1 the impossible happened. Take it away Harry. "Here's the 1-1 pitch to Dernier, line drive base hit left field, going all the way back to the corner, it bounces through Mitchell! Thon scores! Lake scores! And here comes Dernier! The throw to the plate is not in time! I can't believe it!
7. October 11, 1980 NLCS Game 4 Charlie Hustlin' Phillies 5 - Astros 3
In the playoffs for the 4th time in 5 years the Phils are still looking to win their first playoff series in their pathetic 98 year history. Coming in they've lost 3 straight NLCS but this time its going to be different. No this time it has to be different because Phils fans just can't withstand more heartbreak. Steve Carlton rolls to victory in game 1 but the Phils drop the next 2 in extra innings. So on this night they have to win to keep their season alive . Fortunately, Carlton is back on the mound again and surely if anyone cany deny Houston the pennant at least for one night it's Lefty. However, Carlton is touched up for 2 runs on 4 hits in just 5 innings. Meanwhile Vern Ruhle throws 7 scoreless innings and comes out for the 8th with a 2-0 lead. So the dream looks dead again for the Phils but they're not ready to give up. Greg Gross leads off the top of the 8th with a pinch single. Then Lonnie Smith singles and "Charlie Hustle", Pete Rose singles to score Gross. Next Mike Schmidt singles to score Smith, tying the game at 2. Bake Mcbride then strikes out so its up to Manny Trillo to get the Phils the lead. He cracks a flyball to right field but it's caught for out number 2 and Schmidt is caught well off first for an easy double play. Somehow Rose is still able to streak home with the go ahead run just ahead of the final out and the Phils have their 3-2 lead. As usual Houston does not go away in the 9th as Terry Puhl slaps an RBI single off Warren Brusstar to force extra innings again. The Phils come right back in the top of the 10th. Pete Rose slaps another single and "the Bull" Greg Luzinski hits a 2 out double, but Rose, trying to score from 1st looks like he'll be out by a mile. Of course he's not going to slide. Instead he runs headlong into catcher Bruce Bochy and Bochy drops the ball as Rose crosses the plate safely. Trillo follows with another double to score Luzinski and the Phils have a 5-3 lead heading into the bottom of the 10th. There Tug Mcgraw has a rare 1-2-3 inning to put away Houston and the dream lives on for another day.
6. August 30, 2007 Met Misery Phillies 11 - Mets 10.
They haven't been to the playoffs in 15 years and just 3 days ago there were no signs this 2007 team would be able to end the drought. Now however, after winning the first 3 games of this 4 game series with the Mets they've pulled within 2 games of first in the NL East. If they can win tonight and finish the 4 game sweep they'll pull within 1 game. Early on it looks like they'll do so easily with 3 homers in the first 3 innings(2 run shots by Ryan Howard, and "the Bat", Pat Burrell, and a solo shot by Aaron Rowand) giving them a 5-0 cushion. Kyle Lohse can't get through the 4 inning though, as NY cuts the lead to 5-3 and then ties it with 2 out in the 5th on a sac fly by Shawn Green. The Phils come right back in the bottom of the inning with 3 straight RBI singles by Carlos Ruiz, "the Flyin Hawaiian", Shane Victorino, and Jimmy Rollins to push ahead 8-5. The lead stands up until the Phils bullpen implodes in the 8th inning ,allowing 5 runs for a 10-8 Met lead. Billy Wagner who was the Phils closer just 2 years ago, before leaving for NY and saying the Phils didn't have it what takes to be a playoff team, oops. His words come back to haunt him on this night. First "the Met killer", Burrell slams a solo homer with one out in the 8th to cut the lead to 10-9. Then in the 9th Jayson Werth leads off with a single, steals 2nd and 3rd and scores on a single by Tad Iguchi. Now Iguchi steals 2nd prompting Wagner to intentionally walk JRoll. So it's up to Chase Utley to get the winning hit. After a long at bat Utley sends Wagner's 3-2 offering up the line in right field and Iguchi scampers home with the winning run just ahead of Green's throw from right, setting off a wild celebration. Initially the stunned Mets seem unfazed as they run back up to a 7 game lead by Sep 12, but then the Phils go into New York and sweep them again and it's all down hill from there. By Sept 28 the Phils are in 1st and 2 days later in the final game of the season Jamie Moyer completes "the miracle on broad street" allowing just 1 run in 5 strong innings to lead the Phils to a 6-1 division clinching win over the Nationals.
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FLYERS NEWS
It's official the Flyers will play in this upcoming season's New Year's classic, the NHL's annual outdoor game since 2006. This time the Flyers will go take on the Boston Bruins at Fenway Park. It should be a fun game to watch.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The MLB All-Star game was tonight and the American league won yet again for the 12th year in a row to claim home field advantage in the world series for the 6th straight time. Early things looked good for the NL. The "Flyin Hawaiian", Shane Victorino singled and scored 1 of 3 runs for the NL in the bottom of the 3rd for a 3-2 lead. Later the Minnesota Twin's Joe Mauer tied it up at 3 with a double in the 5th inning. The game was still tied at 3 heading into the 8th inning and appeared destined for another extra inning affair, before Curtis Granderson tripled and scored in the 8th inning for a 4-3 lead. Ryan Howard had a chance in the bottom of the inning with runners on 2nd and 3rd and 2 out to be a hero in front of his hometown but he struck out to end the NL's last threat. Other Phils participating in the game were Raul Ibanez, who started in the left field and went 0 for 2, Chase Utley who started at 2nd, and played solid defense, but also went 0 for 2, and finally Jayson Werth who replaced Victorino in center and went 0 for 1, but great running catch late in the game to keep the AL from extending their lead.
Monday, July 13, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The all-star game home run derby was tonight in St.Louis and the Phils own Ryan Howard, a former derby champ and St Louis native participated. He represented the Phils well reaching the 2nd round, but there he came up a couple dingers short of reaching the final, eventually won by Brewer's 1st baseman Prince Fielder with an impressive display. Tomorrow night the all-star game will take place and yes this time it counts again. So the NL will be looking to end a long winless draught and reclaim the home field advantage in the world series for the for the first time in a while.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils finished their series with the Pirates this afternoon. J.A Happ got the start and tossed a gem allowing just 1 run on 4 hits through 7 innings. Meanwhile, the Phils ripped off 5 runs right off the bat in the 1st inning and thanks to Happ they stood up for the rest of the day. The Phils got things started off with a bang in the bottom of the 1st as Ryan Howard sac flyed in a run and Pedro Feliz slammed a 2 out grand slam for a quick 5-0 lead. Pittsburgh didn't get on the board until the 6th inning on a double by Freddy Sanchez. Later in the top of the 9th Garret Jones tomahawked yet another homer to cut the lead to 5-2 but that would be as close as the Pirates would get as J.C Romero retired the side from there for the win and the sweep of the Pirates. So at the end of the first half of the season the Phils are 48-38 overall, 2nd best record in the NL, and 4 games up on the Marlins in the NL East, not too shabby if I may say so myself. I just can't get over how well J.A Happ has pitched so far this season after assuming Chan Ho Park's spot in the rotation. He's now 6-0 with a 2.90 ERA and 61 strikeouts. You just have to wonder though how much longer he can keep this up, but he shown no signs of distress on the mound at all, and as long as he stays healthy there is no reason he can't keep this up the rest of the season and beyond. Well that's it for now, see you in the 2nd half folks.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their series with the Pirates tonight. Cole Hamels got the start and although
he' s been struggling lately, there was still the feeling coming into this game that it would be easy pickings for Hollywood against the lowly Pirates. Instead, with some new, possibly ill-conceived mechanics on display, Hamels struggled yet again allowing 5 runs on 7 hits in just 6 innings. Meanwhile Ross Ohlendorf had the Phils looking confused through 5 scoreless innings and despite a 6th inning rally they trailed by 4 heading into the 9th inning. Fortunately at this point order was restored to the universe as the two teams showed why one is last in the NL Central and other is first in the NL East during a 9th inning rally for the ages. Early on everything went the way of the Pirates. In the top of the 1st Garret Jones slugged a solo homer and Delywn Young slammed a 2 run homer. Later in the top of the 2nd Andrew Mcutchen sent another 2 run homer to the seats and just like that in the blink of an eye Pittsburgh was ahead 5-0. From there Hamels settled down and finished his night with a few scoreless innings while the Phils finally got on the board in the bottom of the 6th, on a double by Raul Ibanez, a sac fly Greg Dobbs, and single by Paul Bako to cut the lead 5-3. Chad Durbin couldn't follow the scoring with a clean 7th inning though, and after a bases loaded walk and a fielder's choice the Phils found themselves down 7-3. Thanks to solid relief pitching from Scott Eyre and Tyler Walker the score stayed that way heading into the bottom of the 9th. With the team and the crowd flat, hope was not high for a comeback until Matt Stairs leadoff the inning with a thunderous solo homer that woke everyone up. Seemingly back from the dead the Phils suddenly shifted into high gear. Jimmy Rollins worked a walk and then stole second, Chase Utley singled a couple batters later to put runners on the corners and finally Ryan Howard clubbed a game tying 3 run homer. The crowd erupted in joy and after Raul Ibanez doubled off the wall in dead center just short of homer, Pittsburgh's doom was all but sealed. From there the Pirates decided to load the bases in hopes of an inning ending double play, but the move backfired when Bako dribbled a single to rightfield to score Ibanez for the 8-7 win. Speaking of Raul he actually returned to the Phils yesterday but was only available to pinch hit. To make room on the roster for him, the Phils designated Chris Coste for assignment and he was quickly snatched off waivers by the Houston Astros. While it is sad to see Coste go, it is not all that surprising, considering the Phils already had 2 other catchers in Bako and Carlos Ruiz. Also Charlie Manuel always seems to prefer catchers who are good defensively over those who are better with the bat and of the three catchers the Phils had until yesterday, Coste was probably the worst defensively. He may be gone but Coste will always be remembered as a key member of the 2007 miracle team and the 2008 world champs. One other thing with Coste gone, is that there is room now for John Mayberry Jr to stick with the Phils for rest of the season, unless they decide to call up top catcher prospect Lou Marson and go with three catchers again. After a slow start today Ibanez really came back right where he left off, with 2 doubles an RBI and 2 runs scored. Seriously, is he really that good or is the National league just that much weaker than the American league. I don't know what happened to Cole in the first couple of innings but he made the necessary adjustments and looked like himself again the rest of the way. I guess all pitchers eventually go through times like these where their stuff just stops working for a while, but I see no reason why he can't pitch the rest of the season like he did from the 3rd inning on. Anyway so the Phils move to 47-38 overall and now 4 games up in the NL East.
he' s been struggling lately, there was still the feeling coming into this game that it would be easy pickings for Hollywood against the lowly Pirates. Instead, with some new, possibly ill-conceived mechanics on display, Hamels struggled yet again allowing 5 runs on 7 hits in just 6 innings. Meanwhile Ross Ohlendorf had the Phils looking confused through 5 scoreless innings and despite a 6th inning rally they trailed by 4 heading into the 9th inning. Fortunately at this point order was restored to the universe as the two teams showed why one is last in the NL Central and other is first in the NL East during a 9th inning rally for the ages. Early on everything went the way of the Pirates. In the top of the 1st Garret Jones slugged a solo homer and Delywn Young slammed a 2 run homer. Later in the top of the 2nd Andrew Mcutchen sent another 2 run homer to the seats and just like that in the blink of an eye Pittsburgh was ahead 5-0. From there Hamels settled down and finished his night with a few scoreless innings while the Phils finally got on the board in the bottom of the 6th, on a double by Raul Ibanez, a sac fly Greg Dobbs, and single by Paul Bako to cut the lead 5-3. Chad Durbin couldn't follow the scoring with a clean 7th inning though, and after a bases loaded walk and a fielder's choice the Phils found themselves down 7-3. Thanks to solid relief pitching from Scott Eyre and Tyler Walker the score stayed that way heading into the bottom of the 9th. With the team and the crowd flat, hope was not high for a comeback until Matt Stairs leadoff the inning with a thunderous solo homer that woke everyone up. Seemingly back from the dead the Phils suddenly shifted into high gear. Jimmy Rollins worked a walk and then stole second, Chase Utley singled a couple batters later to put runners on the corners and finally Ryan Howard clubbed a game tying 3 run homer. The crowd erupted in joy and after Raul Ibanez doubled off the wall in dead center just short of homer, Pittsburgh's doom was all but sealed. From there the Pirates decided to load the bases in hopes of an inning ending double play, but the move backfired when Bako dribbled a single to rightfield to score Ibanez for the 8-7 win. Speaking of Raul he actually returned to the Phils yesterday but was only available to pinch hit. To make room on the roster for him, the Phils designated Chris Coste for assignment and he was quickly snatched off waivers by the Houston Astros. While it is sad to see Coste go, it is not all that surprising, considering the Phils already had 2 other catchers in Bako and Carlos Ruiz. Also Charlie Manuel always seems to prefer catchers who are good defensively over those who are better with the bat and of the three catchers the Phils had until yesterday, Coste was probably the worst defensively. He may be gone but Coste will always be remembered as a key member of the 2007 miracle team and the 2008 world champs. One other thing with Coste gone, is that there is room now for John Mayberry Jr to stick with the Phils for rest of the season, unless they decide to call up top catcher prospect Lou Marson and go with three catchers again. After a slow start today Ibanez really came back right where he left off, with 2 doubles an RBI and 2 runs scored. Seriously, is he really that good or is the National league just that much weaker than the American league. I don't know what happened to Cole in the first couple of innings but he made the necessary adjustments and looked like himself again the rest of the way. I guess all pitchers eventually go through times like these where their stuff just stops working for a while, but I see no reason why he can't pitch the rest of the season like he did from the 3rd inning on. Anyway so the Phils move to 47-38 overall and now 4 games up in the NL East.
Friday, July 10, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils welcomed the Pittsburgh Pirates to the Bank tonight to start a weekend series. Joe Blanton got the start tonight and was brilliant again, allowing just 1 run on 4 hits in 7 and 1/3rd innings. Meanwhile, the Phils only managed to score in the 3rd inning, but thanks to Blanton that was enough to win. The Pirates got things started with a bang as Garrett Jones absolutely destroyed a solo homer over the brick wall in center field with 2 outs in the top of the 1st. In the bottom of the 3rd, the Phils countered with their only runs on an error and a 2 run double by Jayson Werth, all with 2 outs. From there after Blanton cruised into the 8th inning, J.C Romero came in to finish off the 8th and Brad Lidge got the save in the 9th after allowing a 2 out solo homer. So the Phils hung on to win 3-2, their 3rd win in a row. Blanton can't possibly pitch any better than he is right now. This his 2nd start in a row in which he has gone into the 8th inning and he's now 6-4 overall. If there is a definite number 2 guy in the Phils rotation right now its Blanton. As it happens Werth was named to NL All Star team after all to replace Carlos Beltran. The addition of Werth thus gives the Phils 5 All-Stars, their first time with 5 All-Stars since 1995(Lenny Dykstra, Darren Daulton, Mickey Morandini, Tyler Green, and Heathcliff Slocumb). Also with Werth all 3 Phils starting outfielders are now on the All-Star team, making them the first team to send all 3 of their outfielders to the All-Star game since the 1995 Indians(Albert Belle, Manny Ramirez, and Kenny Lofton). By the way, the hitting coach on that 1995 Indians team was some guy named Charlie Manuel. Anyway so the Phils improve to 46-38 overall and now 3 games up in the NL East.
Thursday, July 09, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils completed their series with the Reds tonight. Jamie Moyer got the start and was okay allowing 6 runs on 8 hits in just 5 innings. So he needed the Phils bats to pick him up a little with some late runs and for the bullpen to be lights out the rest of way, in order to get the win in this one. Fortunately his teammates were up to the task on this night. It didn't look so good early as the Cincinnati wet up 3-0 in the top of the 2nd on a triple by Edwin Encarnacion and a sac fly by the pitcher Micah Owings. In the bottom of the 3rd Chase Utley reenergized the stadium and his teammates with a inside the park homerun, after hitting a line drive that took a crazy bounce off the wall in right field. Jayson Werth followed a couple batters later with an RBI double to cut it to 3-2 and the Phils were right back in it. In the top of 4th, Encarnacion quieted the crowd again with a solo shot to make it 4-2. In the bottom of the inning "the Flyin Hawaiian" Shane Victorino knotted it up at 4, with a single off the glove of Brandon Philips at short. Philips redeemed himself in the top of the 5th, crushing a 2 run homer to push the Reds ahead one last time, 6-4. In the bottom of the 5th, the wheels came loose for Cincinnati. Pedro Feliz blooped a 2 run single, Paul Bako beat out a double play with the bases loaded to allow a run to score, Jimmy Rollins slapped a 2 out RBI single, and finally Bako scored on a wild pitch to put the Phils ahead for good 8-6. Later in the bottom of the 6th, Jayson Werth obliterated a solo homer(his 7th homer in the last 12 games) to dead center to push the lead to an insurmountable 9-6. From there Chan Ho Park completed an impressive 3 scoreless and hitless innings(6th-8th), before Brad Lidge got the save in the 9th to clinch another home series win for the Phils, and their 6th win in their last 7 games. With his homer today Werth becomes 4th member of the Phils this season to reach 20 homers and 50 RBIs before the All-star break(Utley who also hit is 20th tonight, Ryan Howard, and Raul Ibanez are the other 3). This makes the Phils just the 2nd team in MLB history to produce four players with 20 homers and 50 RBIs before the all-star break after the 2000 Toronto Blue Jays(Carlos Delgado, Tony Batista, Raul Mondesi, and Jose Cruz Jr). Park is really turning into an important asset for the Phils. He just fits into any spot in the game to come in for 3 innings or more, one inning, or even one batter. The MLB All Star game is next week, and 3 Phils were named to the NL team last weekend actually,(Utley and Ibanez were voted in as starters by the fans, while Howard was selected as a reserve by NL manager Charlie Manuel). Joining those 3 will be Victorino who was announced the winner of the final chance fan vote today with a record 15 million votes to his name. Werth also has an outside chance of being added to the team to replace the injured Carlos Beltran who was voted in as the starting centerfielder. Anyway so the Phils improve to 45-38 overall and remain 2 games up in the NL East.
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their series with the Reds tonight. Rodrigo Lopez made his 2nd start for the Phils and was pretty sharp again allowing just 2 runs on 5 hits, before being forced to leave after the 5th inning with a muscle strain, which hopefully was only a minor tweak and nothing serious. Anyhow, while Lopez pitched well, the Phils could only get him one run and seemed destined to lose again, before tying it up in the 6th. So it would come down to some late heroics to decide this one, something the Phils haven't really displayed at home thus far this season. Cincinnati got it all started in the top of the 4th, as Lance Nix slapped a 2 run single. The Flyin Hawaiian, Shane Victorino, answered in the bottom of the inning, singling, stealing 2nd and scoring on a single by Ryan Howard. Later in the bottom of the 6th, Jayson Werth slammed a 2 out solo homer to knot it up at 2. From there after Ryan Madson pitched perfect 8th and 9th innings, the Phils finally put together another rally in the bottom of the 9th. Pedro Feliz led off with a single, Jimmy Rollins worked a walk to move Feliz to 2nd, and Victorino blooped a single to right field to score Feliz with the winning run to cap off the 3-2 Phils win. Madson looked to be back to his old unhittable self again in those two innings today which is a great sign for the Phils bullpen. Werth is tearing the cover off the ball right now, with now 6 homers in his last 11 games, which somewhat makes up for Raul Ibanez not being in the lineup. It was nice to see Victorino come through in the 9th. He was probably the Phils most clutch hitter late last season, so to see him get another clutch hit today, could be a sign of the good things to come for the Phils. Anyway so the Phils move to 44-38 now and still 2 games up in the NL East.
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their series with the Reds tonight and all I can say is what a difference a day makes. While the Phils racked up another 10 hits, they could only come up with 3 runs this time around, good enough for a 3-0 lead. However, J.A Happ couldn't make it hold up, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits in 7 innings. So it came down to a battle of the bullpens, and unfortunately the Phils came out on the wrong side of it. The Phils started fast, as Ryan Howard and Jayson Werth smashed back to back homers in the bottom of the 2nd and Chase Utley slapped an RBI double in the bottom of the 3rd. The Reds rallied back with 2 in the 4th on a 2 run homer by Brandon Phillips and 1 in the 6th on a solo homer by Philips. Then in the 9th with the score tied at 3, Joey Votto slapped a leadoff double off Brad Lidge and then scored the eventual winning run on a single by Ramon Hernandez. The Phils, totally flat since the 3rd inning, then failed to score in their half of the 9th and the Reds got the win 4-3. I am not sure what happened to Brad Lidge today, but he always seems to struggle a bit when he pitches with the score tied or the Phils behind, so I wouldn't worry too much. I don't understand how you can score 22 runs one night and then just 3 the next night. I mean they did have 10 hits, so perhaps it was just bad luck. You have to think though that they'll get on track tomorrow night. You can't really score 22 runs in the first game of a series and then lose it can you? Anyway the Phils actually got lucky as the Marlins also lost tonight, thus allowing the 43-38 Phils to remain 2 games up in the NL East.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers have successfully signed newly acquired defenseman Chris Pronger to a 7 year contract extension worth 34.45 million, that will keep him in Orange and Black through 2017, assuming he doesn't retire before then. Also after this season even though he'll be making 7 million per year, Pronger's contract will only count as 5 million towards the Flyers salary cap, leaving them ample room to sign other players when needed. So ultimately, this extension at least vindicates the deal Paul Holmgren made to get Pronger in the first place since having Pronger for 7 seasons is worth about as much as all the Players the Flyers traded for him.
Monday, July 06, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils welcomed the Cincinnati Reds to the Bank tonight in the first of a 3 game set. Looking to get back on track after some recent struggles, Cole Hamels got the start and went 7 strong innings while allowing just 1 run on 3 hits. However, his was not the impressive performance on the night, that goes to the Phils offense which racked up an unbelievable 22 runs and 21 hits. Johnny Cueto alone, who came into tonight top 5 among starters in the NL in ERA. and opponent's batting average, was beat up for 9 runs on 5 hits, all in the first inning, which he failed to get out of. Honestly Cincinnati never really had a chance. The Phils went up 10-0 in the first inning and the Reds never recovered. All told in the that inning, Shane Victorino and Greg Dobbs each slammed a 2 run homer, Hamels himself slapped a 2 run double, Jimmy Rollins doubled in Hamels, and finally Chase Utley crunched a 3 run homer. The Phils weren't even closed to finished though. After Johnny Gomes tomahawked a solo homer in the top of the 2nd to give the Reds their only run, a single by Carlos Ruiz in the bottom of the 2nd and a sac fly by Jason Werth in the bottom of the 3rd upped the lead to 12-1. In the 4th inning, a double by Victorino, singles by Utley and Ryan Howard, and an error produced 4 more runs and a 16-1 advantage. Finally in the 8th inning the Phils added 6 more runs, on a single by Victorino, a double by Eric Bruntlett and a grand slam by Werth for a 22-1 lead. Scott Eyre then retired the side in the 9th to end the 22-1 massacre, er victory. It was nice to see Cole Hamels pitch like Cole Hamels for a change. Of course it helps when you have a 10-0 lead just an inning into the game, but Hamels pitched well regardless, throwing 61 strikes to just 31 balls. Atfer the way played at home earlier this season it is hard to believe that they have now won 4 in a row at the Bank. Here's hoping they keep it going. Anyway so the Phils move to 43-37 overall and now back to 2 games up in the NL East.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils completed their series with the Mets this afternoon looking for the sweep. Joe Blanton got the start and was brilliant allowing just 4 hits over 7 and 1/3rd scoreless innings, just good enough to best Johan Santana who allowed 2 runs on 3 hits over 7 innings. Both runs came on solo homers, the first by Jimmy Rollins to leadoff the bottom of the 1st inning and the 2nd by Chase Utley with 2 out in the bottom of the 6th. The Phils didn't score again, but wouldn't have to. Chan Ho Park and J.C Romero combined to get the game to the 9th and there Brad Lidge struck out side impressively, to complete the shutout and series sweep of the Mets. Jimmy Rollins continues to be hot, after apparently tweaking his batting stance, as he compiled another 2 hits and an RBI. If it is possible Brad Lidge actually looked better today then he did yesterday. The Phils defense had as much to do with the shutout today as did their pitching. The Phils turned 3 double plays in crucial situations to get out jams. Ryan Howard turned an unassisted double play in the 4th inning with 1 on and 1 out, David Wright was doubled up with 1 out and the bases loaded in the 6th inning and Fernando Tatis bounced into a double play in the 8th inning with 2 on and 1 out. In other good news Raul Ibanez will start making rehab starts tomorrow and hopefully he'll be ready to go in a week or so. So anyway the Phils move to 42-37 overall, but remain just 1 game up in the NL East.
Sunday, July 05, 2009
Saturday, July 04, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their series with the Mets this afternoon. Jamie Moyer got the start and tossed a gem, allowing just 1 run on 5 hits in 6 and 1/3rd innings. Meanwhile, Jimmy Rollins stayed a hot with another hit and 2 RBIs to lead the Phils to an early 3-0 which like yesterday stood up the rest of the way. Jayson Werth got the Phils started with a sac fly in the bottom of the 1st. Then JRoll slapped a 2 run double in the bottom of the 4th for the 3-0 lead. In the top of 5th, Melvin Nieves, the pitcher, gave the Mets their only run of the day with an RBI single. Finally in the bottom of the 6th "the Flyin Hawaiian", Shane Victorino slapped a 2 out RBI single to put the Phils up 4-1 and put the Mets away for good. From there, the usual suspects, J.C Romero, Ryan Madson, and Brad Lidge closed it out, for Moyer's 7th win of the season. I don't want to jump the gun again, but I think this could be it this time, this could be the end of JRoll's slump. Of course only time will tell though. Today for the first time in a while Brad Lidge looked like the guy who was perfect last season, instead of the guy who blew 5 saves earlier this season and that's really a good sign for the Phils bullpen. Even more good news for Phils bullpen, is that Scott Eyre comes off the DL tomorrow so the Phils are starting to get healthy again at the right time. Anyway so the Phils move to 41-37 overall now and still 1 game up in the NL East, but now 3 games ahead of the Mets and the Braves.
Friday, July 03, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils returned to the Bank tonight to begin a long homestand, starting with a weekend series against the NY Mets. Out of the majors since 2007 thanks to injuries, Rodrigo Lopez, recently called up from AAA to replace Antonio Bastardo who is apparently on the DL now, got the start for the Phils tonight. Lopez put forth an inspiring performance, to say the least, allowing just 2 runs on 4 hits in 6 and 1/3rd innings. Meanwhile, the Phils beat up on old nemesis, Livan Hernandez, for 7 runs on 10 hits in just 3 innings. So the Phils enjoyed a rare night in which they took an overwhelming advantage early the in game and could simply sit on it, perfect for a Met game. While the Mets were struggling to figure out Lopez, the Phils jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead. Jimmy Rollins got the Phils going right of the bat, leading off the 1st inning with a double and scoring on a single by Chase Utley. Then after Ryan Howard walked to load the bases, Greg Dobbs singled a couple batters laters for 2 more runs and 3-0 lead. In the bottom of the 2nd, Utley sac flied in a run for a 4-0 lead. In the bottom of the 3rd, Jayson Werth slugged a solo homer and JRoll slapped a 2 out 2 run double for a 7-0 lead. The Mets finally got on the board in the 7th inning scoring a couple runs on back to back doubles by Nick Evans and Brian Schneider, but they were too little too late and did little but cut the final score to 7-2. What a pleasant surprise Lopez was. I really thought he was going to get lit up but he surprised me big time. If he can keep pitching like that he could be a long term option to replace Brett Myers in the rotation for the rest of the season. Ryan Madson actually had a 1-2-3 9th inning tonight and considering how he'd been kinda struggling lately, it was great to see. Also great to see was JRoll hitting and getting on base. The Phils really need him to keep that up if they want to start a winning streak on this homestand instead of another losing streak. So anyway the Phils move to 40-37 overall and now back to a game up over the Marlins in the and 2 over the Mets in the NL East.
Thursday, July 02, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils completed their series with the Braves tonight. J.A Happ got the start and tossed 7 good innings, allowing just 2 runs on 7 hits. Unfortunately, the Phils only scored 2 runs in that time as well. Ryan Madson then got unlucky in the 8th and allowed to take the lead and ultimately the win. Happ's one mistake on the night, gave the Braves the early 2-0 lead on a 2 run homer by Casey Kotchman. The Phils answered in the top of the 6th inning as a RBI double by Greg Dobbs and a fielder's choice tied it up at 2. It stayed that way until the bottom of the 8th. There, Madson got burned for an RBI double by Matt Diaz, and a 2 run homer by Garrett Anderson for a 5-2 Atlanta lead. The Phils then went down quietly in the 9th as Altanta completed the series sweep, the first time the Phils have been swept on the road all season, and that after they had gone unbeaten at Turner field last season. What happened to Ryan Madson tonight? He simply missed his spots. He's just not quite as precise and in control of his pitches right now as he is when he is at his best. The funny thing about the game tonight is that Jimmy Rollins actually had a couple hits tonight. Yeah imagine that, JRoll finally got untracked and the Phils lost anyway. They're just not getting enough production from the middle of the lineup without Raul Ibanez in there. They also don't seem to have the same will win Raul in there pushing them. Unfortunately, although he is eligible to come off the DL tomorrow, it is unlikely that he will at this point. So the Phils will have to figure out away out of this funk they're without him. So anyway with the loss they drop to 39-37 overall and now into a tie with the Marlins for first place in the NL East.
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their series with the Braves tonight looking to rebound from their tough 10 inning loss last night. Cole Hamels got the start and looked to be cruising through 2 and 1/3rd innings, but then wheels came loose completey, and he wound up allowing 7 runs on 9 hits in just 4 innings. Meanwhile the Phils scored just one run in that time on a sac fly by Greg Dobbs in the 4th inning and needless to say they lost badly 11-1 as Jair Jurrjens went 7 good innings, holding the Phils to just 1 run on 1 hit. In fact the Phils had exactly 2 hits all night long which is just awful, although I am not sure they were really trying all that much after they fell behind 9-1 so maybe that explains it. You know for a team that had been struggling to hit coming into this series, the Braves are certainly making it look easy against the Phils. They had 11 runs on 14 hits all together and everyone in the lineup contributed. Martin freaking Prado, had another 2 hits and 2 RBIs, Chipper Jones had 2 hits and 3 RBIs, Matt Diaz had 3 hits and 2 RBIs, including a homer, I mean the list just goes on and on. It just goes to show the heightened the level of intensity teams always play with when they're facing the world champions. The Phillies aren't the hunter anymore ,they're the hunted and when you get to that point everyone you play is going to give the best they've got. So to win the Phils have to play well night in and night out, they can't just coast through games playing at an average level and expect to figure out a way to win in the end like they did last season. Right now they're just coasting again and not surprisingly losing games. If they are ever going to get out of this funk they will have to raise their play to a high level and keep it there consistently night in and night out. What has happened to Cole Hamels? After tonight's shellacking he's now just 4-5 overall with a 4.98 ERA. Is this really same guy who won NLCS and world series MVP last season? He seems to have suddenly lost his velocity and forgotten how think his way through innings. He's just going up there throwing the same pitches over and over again instead of making adjustments throughout the game to keep batters fooled from start to finish. Hopefully this isn't a harbinger of the things to come this season for Hamels. Anyway so the Phils drop to 39-36 overall now and just .5 games up in the NL East.
FLYERS NEWS
The NHL free agent signing period is in full swing right now and so is the Flyer's offseason as they made 2 additions to the team today. First they finally found their backup goalie in former Flyer Brian ,Boosh!, Boucher who had been Evgeni Nabokov's backup in San Jose with the Sharks the last few seasons. He's been a pretty good backup too, with a 12-6 record, 2.18 GAA and .917 save percentage last season, all very good totals for a backup. Ultimately, he is good insurance in case Ray Emery turns out to be a bust, and a reliable backup if Emery plays well. Next the Flyers added 35 year old 14 year veteran defensive minded winger/center Ian Lapierrere who's been with the Colorado Avalanche the last few seasons. Basically he simply adds to the higher level of defensive grit the Flyers had already added with Chris Pronger. He's the type of with 600+ penalty minutes last season who is willing take on anybody and use his body to block shots on net. He's also reportedly a very good faceoff guy which is something else the Flyer's lacked last season. So you can pretty much rest assured that with Pronger and now this guy around, the front of net will be cleared out for whoever is in goal, Emery or Boucher, to make saves this season. The only negative for the Flyers today is that Mike Knuble signed with the Washington Capitals, which removes another 25 goals from the roster. Couple with Joffrey Lupul that 50 less goals the Flyers will have this season. Of course, is Danny Briere actually stays healthy this season he could make up most of that on his own and the improved the defensive toughness will help cover some of that as well. Still, it might be nice if the Flyers added one more scorer just in case.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils traveled to Atlanta tonight to begin a series with the Braves. Joe Blanton got the start and was decent allowing 3 runs on 8 hits in just 5 innings , just good enough to keep the Phils in the game until they could mount a late rally. The Phils took the early 1-0 lead in the top of the 3rd inning on an RBI double by Ryan Howard. Atlanta answered right back in the bottom of the inning as Gregor Blanco tripled and scored on a single by Edgar Prado. The Phils retook the lead in the top of the 5th on a solo homer by Chase Utley. Then Atlanta again answered back in the bottom of the inning, as a solo homer by Prado and a fielder's choice put them up 3-2. While the Phils bullpen began to shut Atlanta down from there, dramatic homers by John Mayberry Jr. and Pedro Feliz rallied the Phils back ahead 4-3 in the top of the 8th. Unfortunately, Ryan Madson couldn't hold the lead in the bottom of the inning, as Prado slapped a 2 out RBI double to knot it up at 4. Neither team scored in the 9th inning, but the Phils had a chance in 10th to retake the lead with one on and one out, but Jayson Werth was robbed of hit by a diving Chipper Jones on an inning ending double play. In the bottom of the inning the Braves got their chance against Chan Ho Park. Park started the inning with a strike out but it got away from him after that. Matt Diaz and Blanco each singled to put runners at the corners for you guessed it, Prado, who promtply singled himself to score Diaz for the 5-4 win. Coming into tonight, Prado had exactly 3 home runs and 9 RBIs all season. So the fact that he 4 hits and 4 RBIs tonight is ridiculous. I wouldn't expect him to keep that up for the rest of the series. Ryan Madson is killing me right now. How does he keep blowing leads like this. Is it just bad luck or he has slipped a little bit? Tonight it was a little bit of both, as after getting the first 2 batters out in the 8th, he walked Blanco and threw the ball away trying to pick him off first, allowing him to move up to second. Then what happens, the very next batter Prado doubles to tie the game. You just can't make mistakes like that, but you also don't expect the next guy up to double. Sometimes in baseball bad things happen to good people. Honestly, though the Phils have to stop making stupid mistakes like this. Anyway so the Phils drop to 39-35 overall now and just 1.5 games up in the NL East, but it's the Marlins who are 2nd now.
Monday, June 29, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils are off today as they travel to Atlanta to start a series with the Braves. Thus, it's time for the 3rd installment of our top 25 most dramatic phils victories, No.s 15-11.
15. October 19, 1980 World Series game 5 the dynamic Trillo Phillies 4 - Royals 3.
After 97 years of futility the 1st world title in franchise history is finally within reach. However, after winning the first 2 games of the world series at the vet, they've lost the last two on the road in Kansas City. Now after beating up on Marty Bystrom for 3 runs on 10 hits, the Royals are leading again 3-2 through 6 innings at old Kauffman stadium. While the Phils show no signs that they have another comeback left in them, Tug Mcgraw keeps them in the game, with scoreless frames in the 7th and 8th innings. Finally it's the top of 9th and the Phils are 3 outs from watching another title bid all but slip away. Fortunately, the indomitable will to win that got them here, finally kicks in as the Phils mount a rally against ultra tough Royal's closer Dan Quisenberry. Mike Schmidt who knocked in the Phils only runs to this point with a 2 run homer, leads off with a single. Del Unser then doubles down the line in right to score Schmidt with the tying run. Keith Moreland bunts Unser over to 3rd, to set up Gary Maddox "the secretary of defense", to knock in the go ahead run but he grounds out to 3rd, leaving Unser stranded with 2 outs. So its up to Manny Trillo, the NLCS MVP, to come through one more time. After falling behind in the count 0-2 he laces a single back up the middle, Unser walks home, and the Phils lead 4-3. Mcgraw finishes off a remarkable 3 inning effort with a scoreless 9th, but as usuall isn't easy as he loads the bases with the 2 outs before striking out Jose Cardenal to end it and just like that the Phils are one win away from their first world title.
14. October 6, 1993 NLCS game 1 Kim Dandy Phillies 4 - Braves 3
In the playoffs for the first time in 10 years, the Phils are pitted against the heavily favored Atlanta Braves, then the 2 time defending national league champs. It's the Phils though that look like the stronger team in this one. Curt Schilling is brilliant in his first postseason start striking out the first 5 batters he faces, as he allows just 2 runs on 7 hits while striking out 10 in 8 innings. Moreover, Pete Incaviglia's 4th inning homer and Steve Avery's wild pitch in 6th have the Phils ahead 3-2 heading into the 9th inning. Then Jim Fregosi decides to bring Kim Batiste into the game as a defensive replacement for Dave Hollins, oops. After Mitch Williams walks Bill Pecota to start the inning, Mark Lemke hits a sharp ground ball right at Batiste which should be an easy double play, except Batiste throws it into left field, allowing Pecota to go 3rd and then score a couple batters later on a fielder's choice. Fortunately for Batiste, Williams strikes out Ron Gant to end the inning with the game still tied. After the Phils fail to score in the bottom of the inning. Williams finds his away out of another jam in the top of the 10th. Almost right off the bat in the bottom of the inning, after John Kruk doubles off the wall in right Batiste gets a chance to redeem himself. He does, sending Greg Mcmicheal's 1-2 offering down the left field line for a game winning double. From goat to hero in a manner of minutes, Batiste is held aloft and carried off the field by his teammates.
13. September 23, 2008 NL East clincher - the double play. Phillies 4 - Nationals 3
Back on September 10 the Phils again found themselves behind the NY Mets in the standings, this time by 3.5 games. Once again NY choked away their lead and by this day the Phils lead the NL East by a game with 2 to play and with NY having lost again earlier in the day, they have their first opportunity to clinch their 2nd consecutive NL East title. They won't need another one. Just as he was a year earlier Jamie Moyer is called on to start and he does not disappoint going 6 strong innings while allowing just 1 run on 6 hits. Meanwhile, a 5th inning homer by Jayson Werth and a clutch 2 out RBI double by Pedro Feliz in the 8th inning pace the Phils to a 4-2 lead heading into the 9th. Brad Lidge comes in for the save looking to close out a perfect regular season. He strikes out Emilio Bonifacio to start the inning and then things get a little wild. Roger Bernardina singles, Ryan Langerhans walks and Anderson Hernandez singles to score Bernardina and cut the lead to 4-3. Then Cristian Guzman singles and suddenly the tying run is on 3rd and the go ahead run is on 2nd, with the Nationals most, er only feared hitter, Ryan Zimmerman coming to the plate. Zimmerman slaps a ground ball towards the hole, which looks like it might get through and put Washington ahead, but Jimmy Rollins makes a spectacular play to get to the ball and flip it to Chase Utley for one out and Utley relays perfectly to Ryan Howard at first for the second and final out and its on to the playoffs for the 2nd year in a row.
12. October 4, 1980 NL East Clincher - Schmidt bombs Expos Phillies 6 - Expos 4.
Neck and neck with Montreal all September the Phils had finally pulled a game ahead after a win the day before in the first game of this series and now they can put the Expos away for good with a win here. Larry Christenson tosses 6 solid innings, allowing just 2 runs on 6 hits but the Phils can manage just one run in those 6 innings on an RBI single by Pete Rose and still trail 2-1 late in the game. That is until "the Bull" Greg Luzinski slaps a 2 run double in the 7th inning for a 3-2 lead. Unfortunately Sparky Lyle can't hold the lead in the bottom of the inning and the Phils are behind again 4-3 until a clutch 2 out single by Bob Boone ties it at 4 in the 9th inning. Tug Mcgraw keeps Montreal off the board in the bottom of the inning and in the 10th after the Phils fail to score he keeps the game alive again. Finally in the top of the 11th with one on and one out Montreal manager Dick Williams makes the stupid decision to pitch to Mike Schmidt, when he can easily walk him. Micheal Jack makes him pay, crushing a 2 run homer to put the Phils up for good 6-4. Mcgraw quickly ends Montreal's playoff hopes with a 1-2-3 11th to complete an impressive 3 inning effort and for the Phils its on to the playoffs for the 4th time in 5 years.
11. April 24, 2009 Miami Miracle II Phillies 7 - Marlins 3.
Coming into this matchup the Phils are just in 3rd place in the NL East after a rough start to their season. The Fish however, have been on a tear and are in first place coming into this the first of a 3 game series. The two teams trade places after this night. For most of the night it looks the roll will continue for the Marlins. Dan Uggla crushes a 3 run homer off Brett Myers in the first inning and Josh Johnson throws 7 scoreless innings, allowing just 3 hits while striking out 8 as the Phils lineup shows no signs of life. The Phils stay in it though, just down 3-0 as Myers settles down and goes through 6 scoreless innings of his own. After Clay Condrey pitches a scoreless 8th inning the Phils are still only down 3-0 heading into 9th. There the Phils finally come to life. After Ryan Howard grounds out to start the inning, Jayson Werth doubles, Raul Ibanez works a walk, Matt Stairs singles to score Werth and cut the lead to 3-1 and finally Lou Marson walks to load the bases with one out for Eric Bruntlett. After all that Marlins' closer Matt Lidstrom seems to settle down and strikes out Bruntlett. So it looks like he' s going to get out of the jam and the Phils will come up short. Instead Jimmy Rollins works a walk to force in a run and cut it to 3-2. Next up the "Flyin Hawaiian" Shane Victorino. A few pitches later, Victorino does the unthinkable sending his first career grand slam into the seats in right and stunningly the Phils are ahead 6-3. Chase Utley then follows with a solo homer to cap off an incredible 7 run 9th inning and send a reeling Lindstrom to the showers. Final tallies, 7 runs, 5 hits, and yes yet another shellshocked Marlins' team. In fact the win propels the Phils to a series sweep and knocks Florida into a tailspin which sees them drop out of first and eventually down to 3rd. Meanwhile, the Phils finally string together some wins and climb up to first just a week and a half later.
10-6
15. October 19, 1980 World Series game 5 the dynamic Trillo Phillies 4 - Royals 3.
After 97 years of futility the 1st world title in franchise history is finally within reach. However, after winning the first 2 games of the world series at the vet, they've lost the last two on the road in Kansas City. Now after beating up on Marty Bystrom for 3 runs on 10 hits, the Royals are leading again 3-2 through 6 innings at old Kauffman stadium. While the Phils show no signs that they have another comeback left in them, Tug Mcgraw keeps them in the game, with scoreless frames in the 7th and 8th innings. Finally it's the top of 9th and the Phils are 3 outs from watching another title bid all but slip away. Fortunately, the indomitable will to win that got them here, finally kicks in as the Phils mount a rally against ultra tough Royal's closer Dan Quisenberry. Mike Schmidt who knocked in the Phils only runs to this point with a 2 run homer, leads off with a single. Del Unser then doubles down the line in right to score Schmidt with the tying run. Keith Moreland bunts Unser over to 3rd, to set up Gary Maddox "the secretary of defense", to knock in the go ahead run but he grounds out to 3rd, leaving Unser stranded with 2 outs. So its up to Manny Trillo, the NLCS MVP, to come through one more time. After falling behind in the count 0-2 he laces a single back up the middle, Unser walks home, and the Phils lead 4-3. Mcgraw finishes off a remarkable 3 inning effort with a scoreless 9th, but as usuall isn't easy as he loads the bases with the 2 outs before striking out Jose Cardenal to end it and just like that the Phils are one win away from their first world title.
14. October 6, 1993 NLCS game 1 Kim Dandy Phillies 4 - Braves 3
In the playoffs for the first time in 10 years, the Phils are pitted against the heavily favored Atlanta Braves, then the 2 time defending national league champs. It's the Phils though that look like the stronger team in this one. Curt Schilling is brilliant in his first postseason start striking out the first 5 batters he faces, as he allows just 2 runs on 7 hits while striking out 10 in 8 innings. Moreover, Pete Incaviglia's 4th inning homer and Steve Avery's wild pitch in 6th have the Phils ahead 3-2 heading into the 9th inning. Then Jim Fregosi decides to bring Kim Batiste into the game as a defensive replacement for Dave Hollins, oops. After Mitch Williams walks Bill Pecota to start the inning, Mark Lemke hits a sharp ground ball right at Batiste which should be an easy double play, except Batiste throws it into left field, allowing Pecota to go 3rd and then score a couple batters later on a fielder's choice. Fortunately for Batiste, Williams strikes out Ron Gant to end the inning with the game still tied. After the Phils fail to score in the bottom of the inning. Williams finds his away out of another jam in the top of the 10th. Almost right off the bat in the bottom of the inning, after John Kruk doubles off the wall in right Batiste gets a chance to redeem himself. He does, sending Greg Mcmicheal's 1-2 offering down the left field line for a game winning double. From goat to hero in a manner of minutes, Batiste is held aloft and carried off the field by his teammates.
13. September 23, 2008 NL East clincher - the double play. Phillies 4 - Nationals 3
Back on September 10 the Phils again found themselves behind the NY Mets in the standings, this time by 3.5 games. Once again NY choked away their lead and by this day the Phils lead the NL East by a game with 2 to play and with NY having lost again earlier in the day, they have their first opportunity to clinch their 2nd consecutive NL East title. They won't need another one. Just as he was a year earlier Jamie Moyer is called on to start and he does not disappoint going 6 strong innings while allowing just 1 run on 6 hits. Meanwhile, a 5th inning homer by Jayson Werth and a clutch 2 out RBI double by Pedro Feliz in the 8th inning pace the Phils to a 4-2 lead heading into the 9th. Brad Lidge comes in for the save looking to close out a perfect regular season. He strikes out Emilio Bonifacio to start the inning and then things get a little wild. Roger Bernardina singles, Ryan Langerhans walks and Anderson Hernandez singles to score Bernardina and cut the lead to 4-3. Then Cristian Guzman singles and suddenly the tying run is on 3rd and the go ahead run is on 2nd, with the Nationals most, er only feared hitter, Ryan Zimmerman coming to the plate. Zimmerman slaps a ground ball towards the hole, which looks like it might get through and put Washington ahead, but Jimmy Rollins makes a spectacular play to get to the ball and flip it to Chase Utley for one out and Utley relays perfectly to Ryan Howard at first for the second and final out and its on to the playoffs for the 2nd year in a row.
12. October 4, 1980 NL East Clincher - Schmidt bombs Expos Phillies 6 - Expos 4.
Neck and neck with Montreal all September the Phils had finally pulled a game ahead after a win the day before in the first game of this series and now they can put the Expos away for good with a win here. Larry Christenson tosses 6 solid innings, allowing just 2 runs on 6 hits but the Phils can manage just one run in those 6 innings on an RBI single by Pete Rose and still trail 2-1 late in the game. That is until "the Bull" Greg Luzinski slaps a 2 run double in the 7th inning for a 3-2 lead. Unfortunately Sparky Lyle can't hold the lead in the bottom of the inning and the Phils are behind again 4-3 until a clutch 2 out single by Bob Boone ties it at 4 in the 9th inning. Tug Mcgraw keeps Montreal off the board in the bottom of the inning and in the 10th after the Phils fail to score he keeps the game alive again. Finally in the top of the 11th with one on and one out Montreal manager Dick Williams makes the stupid decision to pitch to Mike Schmidt, when he can easily walk him. Micheal Jack makes him pay, crushing a 2 run homer to put the Phils up for good 6-4. Mcgraw quickly ends Montreal's playoff hopes with a 1-2-3 11th to complete an impressive 3 inning effort and for the Phils its on to the playoffs for the 4th time in 5 years.
11. April 24, 2009 Miami Miracle II Phillies 7 - Marlins 3.
Coming into this matchup the Phils are just in 3rd place in the NL East after a rough start to their season. The Fish however, have been on a tear and are in first place coming into this the first of a 3 game series. The two teams trade places after this night. For most of the night it looks the roll will continue for the Marlins. Dan Uggla crushes a 3 run homer off Brett Myers in the first inning and Josh Johnson throws 7 scoreless innings, allowing just 3 hits while striking out 8 as the Phils lineup shows no signs of life. The Phils stay in it though, just down 3-0 as Myers settles down and goes through 6 scoreless innings of his own. After Clay Condrey pitches a scoreless 8th inning the Phils are still only down 3-0 heading into 9th. There the Phils finally come to life. After Ryan Howard grounds out to start the inning, Jayson Werth doubles, Raul Ibanez works a walk, Matt Stairs singles to score Werth and cut the lead to 3-1 and finally Lou Marson walks to load the bases with one out for Eric Bruntlett. After all that Marlins' closer Matt Lidstrom seems to settle down and strikes out Bruntlett. So it looks like he' s going to get out of the jam and the Phils will come up short. Instead Jimmy Rollins works a walk to force in a run and cut it to 3-2. Next up the "Flyin Hawaiian" Shane Victorino. A few pitches later, Victorino does the unthinkable sending his first career grand slam into the seats in right and stunningly the Phils are ahead 6-3. Chase Utley then follows with a solo homer to cap off an incredible 7 run 9th inning and send a reeling Lindstrom to the showers. Final tallies, 7 runs, 5 hits, and yes yet another shellshocked Marlins' team. In fact the win propels the Phils to a series sweep and knocks Florida into a tailspin which sees them drop out of first and eventually down to 3rd. Meanwhile, the Phils finally string together some wins and climb up to first just a week and a half later.
10-6
Sunday, June 28, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils finished their series with the Bluejays this afternoon looking to win two in a row for the first time in a while. Jamie Moyer got the start and was good enough scattering 4 runs on 5 hits over 5 solid innings to earn his 252nd career victory, which moves him ahead of the great Bob Gibson on the all-time wins list. Moyer can thank the bullpen and timely hitting for this one. The bullpen went 4 scoreless in relief of Moyer and the Phils surged ahead for good in the top of the 4th, just in time to qualify Moyer for the win. Early on however, things didn't look quite as good. Aaron Hill homered in the bottom of the 1st, Jose Bautista homered in the bottom of the 2nd, and Hill homered again in the bottom of the 3rd, to put Toronto ahead 4-1 heading into the 4th inning. There with a little luck and one big hit the Phils pushed ahead. First a perfect drag bunt by Eric Bruntlett loaded the bases with no one out for Carlos Ruiz. Ruiz hit a sharp ground ball a few pitches later, which Scott Rolen stupidly threw to second instead of home,allowing Pedro Feliz to score, and after a perfect takeout slide by Bruntlett, ruining any chance for a double play. Next the "Flyin Hawaiian" Shane Victorino hit a sac fly to cut it to 4-3. Finally, Chase Utley cleared the bases with a triple to put the Phils up 5-4. From there, after Moyer got out of a jam in the 5th, the Phils bullpen took over. Chan Ho Park rolled through 6th and 7th innings, Ryan Madson tossed a scoreless 8th, and Brad Lidge got the save in the 9th, but only after allowing the first to batters to reach base. Still, it was good to see him looking like last year's Lidge for a change. It also was nice to see the Phils take not just the game today, but the series from the Jays. Now if only they could do that at home. Anyway, so it looks the like the Phils bullpen will be just fine after all if it can just get healthy. Hopefully, now that interleague play is over, the Phils lineup will go back to normal, although it won't really be the same again until Raul Ibanez comes back from the DL. Finally, as for the rotation, I would say the Phils appear to have 4 solid starters right now, in Cole Hamels, Joe Blanton, J.A Happ, and Jamie Moyer. However, Antonio Bastardo hasn't looked at all major league ready his last few times out. He looked good before, but really all he was doing was throwing fastball after fastball and batters just weren't hitting them. That's pretty much still all he is doing, except they're hitting them now. It might be time to bring someone else up from AAA in his place and I would say at most he'll get maybe one more start. Anyway so with the win the Phils move to 39-34 overall and now back up to 2.5 games up in the NL East.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers are preparing to start playing summer league games, specifically there usual stop in Orlando in about a week. Besides Mo Speights, and 1st round pick Jrue Holiday, the Sixers have also added ex Temple star Dionte Christmas to their summer league roster. Christmas whom many thought would go in the 2nd round of the draft because of his outstanding outside shooting and scoring touch(he torched Tennessee for 40 points and about 6 threes early last season in a upset win for the Owls), went undrafted. However, thanks his ability to hit threes and score at will at times, he could easily make the team, in fact if they'd had a 2nd round pick the Sixers might have taken him. Plus Sixers fans always love to cheer on local products, so he'd be hit with the wachovia center faithful right off the bat. So anyway get ready to hear the phrase its Christmas in July on highlights shows in the next week or so.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their series with the Blue Jays this afternoon and what a difference a day makes. J.A Happ got the start and was brilliant, allowing just 5 hits in the first complete game shutout of his career. Perhaps even more impressive is that he didn't allow a single walk in the game, and threw just 100 pitches. So he was rolling big time and so were the Phils, as they beat up on Toronto starter Brad Mills for 8 runs on 8 hits and eventually finished with 10 runs on 14 hits overall. They jumped out early with 4 runs in the 1st on 2 run homers by Jayson Werth and Pedro Feliz. They then added 1 in the 4th, on a double by Carlos Ruiz, 4 in the 5th on singles by Werth, Ruiz and Ryan Howard, and a sac fly by Eric Bruntlett, and finally 1 in the 6th on a solo homer by Werth to cap off the 10-0 win. Yeah Werth had about as good a day as Happ, with 4 hits, 3 runs scored, and 3 RBIs, to singlehandedly account for over half the Phils offense. I really didn't see this coming from Happ, although he really hasn't had a bad start since replacing Chan Ho Park in the rotation and I would say he's pretty much earned himself a spot in the rotation for the rest of the season and actually he has better numbers than anyone else in the rotation right now, at 5-0 with an ERA of 3.00. Seriously, how did Chan Ho Park beat out Happ for the 5th spot in the rotation during spring training anyway. I don't know if this win will carry over in to tomorrow for the Phils, but I don't see why not with the veteran Jamie Moyer on the mound. It just depends on whether or not the Phils can keep hitting for once. Anyway with the win the Phils move to 38-34 overall and back up to 1.5 games up in the NL East, as the Mets, Marlins, and yes, Braves all lost again today.
FLYERS NEWS
On day 2 of the NHL draft the Flyers actually made some picks although nothing significant. In the 3rd round they took goalie Adam Morrison and defenseman Simon Bertillson. In the 5th round they took goalie Nicola Riopel. In the 6th round they took center Dave Labrecque and left wing Eric Wellwood. Finally in the 7th round they took defenseman Oliver Lauridsen. Ultimately, none of these guys will be joining Flyers anytime soon if at all. In fact they're all 20 years of age or younger and will probably need at least 3 years to develop. Probably the best of all the picks would be the defenseman Bertillson who scored 31 points including 9 goals in 30 games with his Swedish team Brynas. God only knows about the rest of these guys.
Friday, June 26, 2009
FLYERS NEWS
The the first day or round 1 of the NHL draft was tonight. However, the Flyers did make any picks tonight because they traded away their first round pick(number 21) along with their 1st round pick in the 2010 draft, forward Joffrey Lupul, and defenseman Luca Sbisa to the Anaheim Ducks for future hall of fame defenseman Chris Pronger and young forward Ryan Dingle who will probably play in the AHL next season. Although he is now just one of the best defenseman in the NHL, rather than the best, Pronger is exactly what the Flyers needed, a tough as nails defenseman not afraid to intimidate others. He is the blue line leader the Flyers have lacked since Derian Hatcher's was felled by career ending injuries. Sure, they had to get rid of a lot to get him, but Lupul an average 25 goal scorer, was being grossly overpaid at 4 years for $4.5 million and thus was expendable and getting rid of him frees up the cap space the Flyers needed to sign a backup goalie and to re-sign Mike Knuble. Also both of the picks the Flyers gave up were late first rounders and in the NHL especially, late first rounders are always hit or miss and often take years develop before they can assume a role on the team. In fact Anaheim didn't even use that 21st pick they got from the Flyers tonight, instead trading it to Columbus. So ultimately all the Flyers really gave up for Pronger was Sbisa. Out of all the young defenseman on the Flyers he probably had the potential to become the most talented, but it would have taken him at least a couple more years to harness that talent. Also Sbisa was never going to have the same 6-6 221 lb size and the intimidation ability of Pronger. Therefore, while some would say the Flyers gave up too much for Pronger, I think it may have been worth it. The only problem is that Pronger has only a year left on his current contract so if the Flyers want to keep him for a few years at least, they'll have sign him to a new deal, but it sounds like that won't be a problem. At any rate this clearly shows the Flyers are committed to winning a cup now rather than a few years from now because at 34 years old Pronger probably can only help them get to the cup for another 3-5 years. So let's leave it at this. If the win a cup in next 3-5 years, than this arguably the best trade they have ever made. Otherwise it is a huge bust. At any rate though with Ray Emery and now Pronger in tow the Flyers will at least be a fun team to watch next season.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils traveled to Toronto tonight to begin a series with the Blue Jays. After getting demolished by the Tampa Bay Rays last night , they were hoping to bounce back tonight. Instead, it was only more of the same. Even Cole Hamels, who got the start tonight, couldn't save the Phils as he allowed 4 runs on 8 hits in just 4 and 2/3rd's innings of work. Meanwhile Ricky Romero sparkled for Toronto no-hitting the Phils for 6 innings, before losing it in the 7th. In all he tossed 7 shutout innings, allowing just 2 hits. Thus, by the time the Phils finally scored a run in this one, it was the top of the 9th and too late mount any sort of comeback. All of the Toronto runs off Hamels, came in the 4th and 5th innings. In the 4th, Alex Rios singled in a run for a 1-0 lead, and in the 5th a 2 run double by Aaron Hill and a sac fly by Scott Rolen pushed it to 4-0. Later Toronto added 2 in the 8th on a single by Raul Chavez and a bases loaded walk issued to Hill to push the lead to 6-0. Finally as mentioned the Phils scored in the 9th on a sac fly by Jason Werth, but it was too late and they fell 6-1. So the Phils lose their 3rd in a row on the road for the first time all season. It really was just another terrible night for the Phils. They had exactly 3 hits all night long, 2 by Chase Utely, and one by Werth and everyone else, Ryan Howard(finally back at 1st) Pedro Feliz, Carlos Ruiz, Shane Victorino, etc; went hitless. Hamels had his worst start of the season thus far and he's now just 4-4 overall with an oddly high 4.44 ERA. Brad Lidge did get finally back into a game again tonight, but he threw a wild pitch and gave up those 2 runs in the 8th inning. They just don't look like the same Phillies team that won the world series with now. I don't know maybe it is just that they're stuck in interleague play, which is alway they're worst time of the year. Simply put they stink against american league teams, year in and year out. Especially against the AL East, which who they have been playing this year. So hopefully that's all that is going on with them right now, and as soon this series is over and they go back to playing NL teams they'll be fine. In the mean time, despite the loss they remain 1st in the NL East at just 37-34 overall, since the Mets(0.5 back), Marlins(1 back), and Braves(4 back) all lost tonight as well, thank God.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phillies completed their series with the Rays tonight and it wasn't pretty. Antonio Bastardo got the start and was touched up for 6 runs on 7 hits in just 3 and 2/3rd's innings. So maybe he's just not ready to be a part of the Phils rotation after all. Meanwhile the Phils put up 4 quick runs in the 1st inning, then um didn't score again the rest of night. Seriously it was like the whole team fell asleep. They made fielding mistakes(Jayson Werth badly misplayed line drive off the wall in right), base-running mistakes(Pedro Feliz got caught way off first on an obvious fly out with just one out at the time) and just a lot of really stupid mistakes. Suffice it to say they didn't play like world champions tonight. Doubles by Ryan Howard and Matt Stairs, and a single by Pedro Feliz put the Phils up 4-0 in the 1st inning, but it was all down hill from there. Tampa came right back with 3 runs in the 1st inning on a double by Carlos Pena and 2 run homer by Ben Zobrist. They scored 3 more in the 2nd inning on a solo homer by Willy Aybar, a double by Carl Crawford, and a fielder's choice. So before you knew it Tampa was ahead 6-4 and they never looked back. With 3 in the 6th on singles by Jason Bartlett, and Aybar, and 1 in the 7th on a fielder's choice, Tampa went on to win easily 10-4. Frankly I am disgusted with the way the Phils played tonight. Champions aren't supposed to play like this. Where's the heart? Where's the hustle? Wherever it is they better find it, because now after dropping to just 37-33 overall they lead the NL East by just a half a game.
SIXERS NEWS
The NBA draft was tonight and with 17th pick of the 1st round, their only pick in the draft, the Sixers selected UCLA point guard Jrue Holiday. Holiday was projected as a top 10 pick so I guess the fact that the Sixers got him can be considered a steal. The problem is that Holiday is a bit of a project. He has the potential to become a very good point guard in the NBA in a couple years and probably will be, but he's not ready to step in as the Sixer's point guard right now. Which means the Sixers either must be confident they can bring back Andre Miller for at least couple more years or they really don't plan on putting together a contender for a couple more years. Honestly, Thad Young and Mo Speights probably won't be good enough to elevate the Sixers into contention for a couple years anyway so perhaps getting Holiday was a smart pick. I just wish the Sixers were a little more committed to winning now instead of a couple years from now. Realistically though, with the Magic adding Vince Carter, and the Cavs adding Shaq, the Sixers probably weren't going to be able to get much farther this season or even next season, than they did last season. So ultimately, I guess I would say getting Holiday was a nice pick for the Sixers. In fact if the Sixers can bring back Miller then it would be the perfect learning situation for Holiday and maybe he could end up being a very good pick. Make no mistake is a very good player. At a big physical height of 6-3, with a wingspan of 6-7 he is a very good defender capable of wreaking havoc in the lane and he's also a good athlete and good ball handler. Also other than his one college season at UCLA, he has played point guard his entire life, so unlike Lou Williams he really is a pure point guard. The only problem with the Holiday is that he needs to work on his shooting. Once he gets that done though he could be a star. So who knows maybe the Sixers really are better after this draft.
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