Philadelphia Phillies: Dissecting the Dodgers

Last night the Phillies failed to dodge the ball on the first game in a four game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.  The Phightins lost 8-6 in a ball game that was not determined until the last out by Ryan Howard in the top of the 9th inning.  The Phils had two on base with Ryan Howard being the go ahead run at bat.  Howard grounded out into the overshift ending the comeback that the Phillies were waging.  Kyle Kendrick was removed from the game in 3 1/3 innings while accruing 7 earned runs on 9 hits within that time.  Kendrick failed to strikeout any batters, but managed to walk 3 while administering a homerun to the former Indian Casey Blake.  The Phils then replaced Kendrick with the newbie lefthander Les Walrond which pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings with Clay Condrey finishing the game by allowing 1 run over 2 innings.

The Phillies offense started off slow, but was able to accumulate 10 hits over 9 innings.  Chase Utley was in rare form by amassing 3 hits on 5 opportunities.  Jimmy Rollins was able to hit another triple against Lowe which is his 8th of the year.

Tonight Cole “hard luck” Hamels takes the mound with hopes and aspirations that his team with mount another offensive strike.  Cole has recently been diagnosed with the Johann Sanatana disease and is on a day to day regiment of lack of offense.  Hamels (3.35 ERA) is searching for his 10th win this year against LA’s southpaw Clayton Kershaw (3.71 ERA).  On a side note Brad Lidge says he is ready to begin closing again since his recent right shoulder tendinitis left over from the All Star game in which he was repeatedly abused due to the lengthy game and multiple warm-up sessions.

 

Philadelphia AB R H RBI BB SO LOB AVG Rollins, SS 5 1 2 1 0 0 2 .276 Victorino, CF 4 1 2 0 1 1 1 .289 Utley, 2B 5 0 3 2 0 1 2 .290 Howard, 1B 5 0 0 2 0 0 5 .237 Burrell, LF 3 0 0 0 1 0 2 .265 Werth, RF 4 1 1 0 0 3 2 .266 Dobbs, 3B 4 1 1 0 0 1 1 .307 Ruiz, C 3 1 0 0 1 1 1 .217 Kendrick, P 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .116   Walrond, P 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000   a-Jenkins, PH 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .244   Condrey, P 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000   b-Cervenak, M, PH 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .200 Totals 37 6 10 6 3 8 18     image from phillies.com

Philadelphia Phillies – Cleaning House In The East

The Philadelphia Phillies won last night completing their sweep of the Washington Nationals.  In addition to their victory the Phightins pushed the New York Mets of of their perch that they held temporarily for the Phillies.  Kyle Kendrick pitched 6 2/3 innings while allowing only 7 hits and 2 runs while striking out 4 on his 9th win of the season.  Kendrick also hit 2 batsmen which in turn had the opposition hit Victorino and Utley.  Both benches were warned by the homeplate umpire after Colome struck Chase Utley and began to approach homeplate as though to get into an altercation with Utley.  Lannan who was the starter for the Nationals tonight was responsible for Chase Utley’s broken hand last year at Citizen Bank Park.

The Phillies offense has remained strong through the series accrueing 31 hits over 3 games.  They were once again vibrant last night with 11 hits bringing the final score to 8-4.  The longball was administered last night by Jayson Werth and Jimmy “The MVP” Rollins.  Rollins was able to take advantge of a foul tip that was not contolled by the Nationals catcher and allow Kendrick to make his way onto base due to a throwing error.  This set-up Rollins for a 2 run blast out into the left field seats.  The Phillies’ Fans were out in droves through the series cheering on their team including the bunch known as the “Flying Hawaiians” on the day Victorino hit a homerun.

The Phils are headed off to St. Louis to face off the Cardinals and add to their current 5 game win streak.  Cole “The Ace” Hamels is looking to rebound from last games 9 run disaster inning against the Braves.  Hamels (3.27 ERA) takes the mound in search of his 10 win against the former Philly Kyle Lohse (3.68 ERA).

 

Philadelphia	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Rollins, SS	4	2	2	3	1	0	1	.272
Victorino, CF	4	1	2	0	0	0	1	.289
Utley, 2B	3	1	1	0	1	1	2	.293
Howard, 1B	5	0	2	1	0	2	4	.239
Burrell, LF	3	0	1	1	2	0	2	.279
Seanez, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Durbin, C, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.167
Werth, RF-LF	5	1	1	1	0	3	4	.271
Bruntlett, 3B	5	1	1	0	0	1	2	.232
Ruiz, C	4	1	1	0	0	1	1	.217
Kendrick, P	3	1	0	0	0	2	0	.125
Condrey, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Jenkins, RF	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.242
Totals	36	8	11	6	4	10

image from phillies.com

Philadelphia Phillies – Swatting The Nats

Last night Brett Myers shut down the Washington Nationals to gain his 1st win since returning from the minor leagues.  Myers only allowed 1 run, 1 walk and 4 hits over 7 innings in which he also plunked Ronnie Belliard and Paul Lo Duca in the process.  Understandably the Nationals are the worst offensive team in the National League sporting a .241 team combined batting average.  Not to take away anything from Brett because he did perform well by hitting the outside/inside portions of the plate.  He also kept his adrenaline in check to be able to locate his fastballs for strikes unlike his last outing at Shea.  On another note Brad Lidge was able to enter the game and accrue his 25th save of the season in as many opportunities.

On the offensive front the team failed to raise their hit count into double digits against the Nationals pitcher whom was recently brought up from the minor leagues.  There were several balls that were launched onto the warning track, but not much was done to manufacture runs on the ground.  The Phillies won the game only by Chase Utley’s 2 run shot out into right field seats.  Pedro Feliz has been placed on the 15 day diabled list due to lower back inflamation.  Phillies Injury Listing

Tonight the Ole’ man will take the mound with his impressive 3.76 ERA.  Jamie Moyer is in search of his 10th win this year facing off the Nationals Tim Redding (3.98 ERA) which the Phillies have historically had issues with hitting against.

 

Philadelphia	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Rollins, SS	4	1	1	0	0	0	0	.270
Victorino, CF	4	0	1	0	0	1	1	.283
Utley, 2B	4	1	2	2	0	0	0	.290
Howard, 1B	4	0	1	0	0	1	1	.237
Burrell, LF	4	0	2	0	0	2	1	.279
Ruiz, C	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.211
Jenkins, RF	4	0	0	0	0	2	1	.237
Dobbs, 3B	3	0	0	0	0	1	2	.306
Bruntlett, 3B	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	.239
Coste, C	4	0	0	0	0	0	3	.285
Lidge, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Myers, P	3	0	0	0	0	2	0	.063
Romero, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Durbin, C, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.167
Werth, LF	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.272
Totals	35	2	8	2	0	9	9

image from phillies.com

State Of The Union – Myers, Happ, Utley, Eaton and Manny

     The Phillies starting pitcher turned bullpen help Adam Eaton was demoted yesterday to AAA Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.  This comes off of a 2 inning mess on Sunday against the Braves that he allowed 3 runs with 2 of them being longballs.  Eaton was recently demoted into the bullpen hoping he could at least fill a need for a right handed long reliever, but he was unable to come into a game and shut down the opponent.  He was pulled into Manuel’s office after the game and gracefully bowed out as Brett Myers had recently done.  Adam will be placed into the starting rotation at Lehigh Valley and according to Ruben Amaro Jr. he will be shuffled around the Phillies affiliate teams in order to stay localized in case he needs to be called up.

     J.A. Happ is being called up to the Phillies once again, but it has not yet been determined whether he will be placed into the starting rotation or as a reliever.  Brett Myers has a start tomorrow against the Washington Nationals which could determine if he is to remain in the starting rotation or be moved to the bullpen and replaced by Happ.

     The trade rumors surrounding Manny Ramirez coming to Philadelphia has been down played by the Phillies organization.  It has been documented that the Phillies and the Mets have both contacted Boston in regards to trading Manny for their respective ball clubs.  The Mets do not have what it takes in trades to be able to get Manny and they are not even sure if they are willing to take the chance on disrupting the club house.  Pat Gillick had stated that the Phillies currently do not have a position open for Manny considering that they currently have Pat Burrell in left field.  I would assume that Manny would at least remain in Boston for the rest of the year considering how much his salary commands from an organization.

     Chase Utley has been having some soreness in his right hip according to Ruben Amaro Jr. and David Montgomery.  However, Utley has down played the injury stating that his soreness has nothing to do with his issues surrounding the recent hitting slump.  I would not expect Chase to be placed on the D.L., but you may see him get pulled out of games if they have a comfortable lead in order to rest his hip and get Eric Bruntlett some playing time.

Philadelphia Phillies – Fishing Trip

 

     Last night the ageless Jamie Moyer accrued his 9th win of the season by stringing up the fish.  The Florida Marlins were once again perplexed by Jamie Moyer in which he allowed 4 hits, 2 runs, 1 walk with 3 strikeouts over 6 innings.  Brad Lidge was able to come in last night and toss the anchor over to solidify the Phillies on top of the N.L. East with his 21st consecutive save.

     Ryan Howard picked up where he left off prior to the All Star break by crushing the 2nd pitch of the 2nd inning out of Dolphin Stadium.  Also, Geoff Jenkins was able to connect to a homerun ball that exited in the deepest part of the stadium in center field.  The Phillies offense as a whole looked as the though the 4 day lay-off help to right their ship.  The Phillies strung up 8 hits in their 4-2 win against the Marlins.  Some other offensive notables were Chase Utley going 2-3 and Geoff jenkins hitting 2 out of 3 against the Righty Ricky Nolasco.

     The Phillies were able chum up the Marlins which places them alone ontop of the N.L. East with the Mets succumbing to the Reds ending their 10 game winning streak.  Jimmy Williams the Phillies bench coach received the win last night since Charlie Manuel was ejected after disagreeing with a call which led to Shane Victorino getting plugged at the plate while showing a bunt.

     Tonight the Phillies sinker ball pitcher Kyle Kendrick (4.47 ERA) takes the mound also in search of his 9th win against the Marlins Scott Olsen (3.77 ERA).

 

Philadelphia AB R H RBI BB SO LOB AVG Rollins, SS 5 1 1 0 0 1 1 .273 Victorino, CF 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 .276 Utley, 2B 3 0 2 1 0 0 0 .294 Howard, 1B 3 1 1 1 1 1 2 .234 Burrell, LF 4 1 1 0 0 1 4 .274   Bruntlett, LF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .232 Jenkins, RF 3 1 2 2 0 0 0 .243   b-Werth, PH-RF 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .270 Feliz, 3B 4 0 0 0 0 4 1 .266 Ruiz, C 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .203 Moyer, P 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 .129   a-Taguchi, PH 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .209   Durbin, C, P 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167   Romero, P 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000   c-Dobbs, PH 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .319   Lidge, P 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Totals 35 4 8 4 1 10 13     Image from phillies.com

Philadelphia Phillies – Ace Of Base Dealing

     Yesterday the Philadelphia Phillies were able to solidify their dominance in the N.L. East by clinching the #1 position prior to the All Star break.  Cole Hamels the Phillies’ ace was able to deal it to Brandon Webb and the Arizona Diamondbacks.  Hamels administered 8 strikeouts, 1 walk while allowing 11 hits and 2 runs over 7 innings.  Ryan Madson received the win while Brad Lidge chopped off the snake’s head with 2 strikeouts in the 9th inning.

     Pat Burrell once again displayed his clutch hitting prowess by smashing an 8th inning 3 run homerun into left center field.  Even though Pat did not mention it I’m sure it was meant to get Clint Hurdle’s attention since he was not selected for the All Star team.  Pedro “soft hands” Feliz followed up Burrell’s at bat with a longball of his own screaming underneath the radar into the left field seats.  Feliz also went 3 for 4 while at the plate and accrued  runs for the Phightins.  Some other notables are Jimmy Rollins going 2 for 3 with 1 RBI and Cole Hamels hitting as double into right center allowing Feliz to score from 1st base.

     The homerun derby will be televised at 8pm atlantic time on ESPN with the All Star game being viewed at 8pm of the Fox network.  Be sure to root for Chase Utley at Yankee Stadium’s short right field porch.

 

Philadelphia	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Rollins, SS	3	0	2	1	0	0	0	.274
Victorino, CF	4	0	1	0	0	2	4	.279
Utley, 2B	4	1	1	0	0	1	4	.291
Howard, 1B	4	1	1	0	0	1	1	.234
Burrell, LF	4	1	1	3	0	0	0	.275
Lidge, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Jenkins, RF	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	.237
Werth, RF	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.271
Feliz, 3B	4	2	3	1	0	1	0	.270
Coste, C	3	0	1	0	0	1	2	.279
1-Ruiz, PR-C	1	1	0	0	0	1	0	.202
Hamels, P	2	0	1	1	0	0	0	.277
a-Dobbs, PH	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	.322
Madson, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
b-Bruntlett, PH-LF	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.232
Totals	35	6	11	6	0	7	12

Image from phillies.com

Philadelphia Phillies – Eaton Alive

     Last night Adam Eaton who was 5-0 and a 3.29 ERA against the Mets was pulled after 2-2/3 innings.  Eaton gave away 8 runs off of 10 hits in his short outing yesterday in the Phillies’ 3rd loss to the Mets.  There were some heroics in the game with Chase Utley (25), Pat Burrell (22), Ryan Howard (24) and Geoff Jenkins (7) all belting homeruns.  R.J. Swindle celebrated his 25th birthday last night by pitching 3 innings in relief for Clay Condrey and the fallen Adam Eaton.  Swindle administered 3 strikeouts, 1 walk, 2 runs on 4 hits with one of those hits being a solo wake-up call by David Wright.

     Tonight the Phillies try to shake-off their failed home campaign against the Mets.  The Phightins face-off against the St. Louis Cardinals in a 3 game homestand.  The Phillies ace, Cole Hamels (3.22 ERA) takes the mound tonight against Joel Pineiro (4.52 ERA) in search of his 10th win of 2008 season.

 

Philadelphia	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Rollins, SS	5	1	2	0	0	1	0	.272
Victorino, CF	5	2	2	1	0	0	1	.270
Utley, 2B	3	1	1	1	0	1	1	.294
Bruntlett, 2B	1	1	0	0	1	0	1	.234
Howard, 1B	4	1	2	2	1	1	2	.226
Burrell, LF	5	1	1	1	0	2	4	.277
Dobbs, 3B	4	0	1	0	0	2	2	.322
c-Feliz, PH	1	0	1	1	0	0	0	.264
Werth, RF	3	1	1	0	2	1	2	.277
Coste, C	4	0	0	0	0	3	6	.292
Eaton, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.179
Condrey, P	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.000
a-Taguchi, PH	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.200
Swindle, P	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
b-Jenkins, PH	1	1	1	2	0	0	0	.237
Romero, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Totals	39	9	12	8	4	13	19

Image from phillies.com

     Brett Myers pitched last night against the Louisville Bats accruing his first win since his reassignment with the Iron Pigs.  Myers allowed 3 runs (2 ER) with 7 hits,  3 walks and 7 strikeouts over 7-1/3 innings.

Philadelphia Phillies – Atlanta Not So Brave

    

     The Philadelphia Phillies brought down the tee-pee in the Atlanta Braves series last night.  The Phillies defeated the Braves in a 4-1 victory while displaying their prowess in their division by sweeping the Braves both times they met this year in Atlanta.  Cole Hamels showed his ace status by pitching 8-2/3 innings while allowing 5 hits, 1 run, 2 walks and administering 7 strikeouts.  The Phillies offense also showed up for the 3rd consecutive day placing 8 hits on the board with 3 of those hits being homeruns from Chase Utley (24), Ryan Howard (22) and Pedro Feliz (10).  Some other notables are Pat Burrell going 2-4 and Pedro Feliz 3-4 while both of these players are breaking through a hitting slump.  The Phillies are hoping for the reversal of the overall offensive slump that they accrued after sweeping the Braves the 1st time.  Sweeping them the 2nd time around should place them back on track to dominating the N.L. Eastern Division once again.

     Tonight starts the 4 game series with the Phillies hosting the Mets at Citizen Bank Park.  J.A. Happ the rookie sensation will pitch tonight away from his normal home at Coca Cola Park and the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.  Happ (3.54 ERA) which had started for 1 game last year against the Mets is hoping that his new bag of tricks will help defeat his rival Johann Santana (3.01 ERA) which he faces on the mound tonight.  J.A. Happ has proven himself at the AAA level with 3.54 ERA, 38 BB, 104 strikeouts over 101.2 innings pitched.  You can check out more J.A. Happ stats as well as Kris Benson and Brett Myers here.

 

Philadelphia	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Rollins, SS	3	0	1	0	1	0	0	.276
Victorino, CF	4	0	0	0	0	0	2	.265
Utley, 2B	4	1	1	1	0	1	1	.300
Howard, 1B	4	1	1	1	0	1	1	.219
Burrell, LF	4	1	2	0	0	1	0	.278
Werth, LF	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.268
Jenkins, RF	4	0	0	0	0	2	2	.239
Feliz, 3B	4	1	3	2	0	0	0	.267
Ruiz, C	4	0	0	0	0	1	3	.208
Hamels, P	3	0	0	0	0	2	2	.279
Gordon, P	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Totals	34	4	8	4	1	8	11

Image from phillies.com

Philadelphia Phillies – High Noon In The Lonestar State

    

 The Philadelphia Phillies won last night while hornswaggling the Texas Rangers in a 8-6 showdown.  The Phillies were able to match bat for bat against the Rangers that lead the majors in runs and RBI’s.  Also, Cole Hamels pitched his 8th win of the year while Brad Lidge was able to close the door on 19/19 saves.  Chase Utley and Ryan Howard smoked the longball out of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, TX.  This ties Chase Utley (23 HR) with Dan Uggla (23 HR) from the Florida Marlins with the most homeruns in the majors in 2008.  This surpasses last year’s 22 HR produced by Utley and we are only 82 games into the season.

     The Phillies pull  ahead in the N.L. standings with the eastern division all losing in yesterday’s games.  The Florida Marlins fall back to 2 games behind the Phightins with losing Dan Uggla to an ankle sprain.  The Braves and the Mets fall back to 4 games with the Mets losing the last 2 games during their subway series with the Yankees.  The Washington Nationals bring up the rear of the division with being an inflated 12 games in the defecit.

     The Phils are still trying to determine what they will do with Brett Myers and his starting rotation position.  They have considered moving Chad Durbin into the rotation and placing Myers in the bullpen.  There is always the option of J.A. Happ or Kris Benson that is pitching for the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs today in a rehab assignment.  They may even consider to move to a temporary 4 man rotation until a determination can be made.  With those decisions looming veteran Jamie Moyer (4.09 ERA) takes the mound against the Rangers Eric Hurley (4.24 ERA) in the series finale and the end of interleague play for the year.

 

Philadelphia	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Rollins, SS	5	0	1	1	0	0	3	.264
Victorino, CF	5	1	1	0	0	2	2	.275
Utley, 2B	5	1	3	2	0	0	2	.298
Burrell, LF	3	1	0	0	1	1	1	.270
Bruntlett, LF	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	.239
Howard, 1B	3	2	1	2	1	1	1	.215
Dobbs, DH	4	1	1	0	0	0	1	.330
Feliz, 3B	4	1	1	0	0	0	1	.264
Werth, RF	3	0	1	2	1	0	0	.263
Coste, C	3	1	1	0	0	1	1	.314
Totals	36	8	10	7	3	5	13

Image from phillies.com

Philadelphia Phillies – Win Self Epic Battle

     Tonight the Phillies broke the 6 game losing streak with a shut out win of 4-0 against the Oakland Athletics.  The Phils were able to get back into their groove with accruing 11 hits over 9 innings and manufacturing run support for Kyle Kendrick’s 7th win of 2008.  Kyle pitched 8 innings while only allowing 4 hits and no earned runs with 1 walk.  J.C. Romero came in to seal the deal in the 9th while striking out 1 and allowing 1 walk.  The most important offensive break out tonight was from Chase Utley who went 4-5 at the plate.  Chase almost went the cycle with 2 singles, 1 double, and a triple.  Some other offensive notables were Pedro Feliz going 2-5 with an RBI triple and Chris Coste hitting 2-3.  Even though the Phightins stranded 11 runners on base they are showing signs of good base running and advancing the runners at the plate.

     With the win tonight the Phillies pull ahead to 2 games in the lead in the N.L. East.  The Florida Marlins’ were the only team in the eastern division to fall tonight with their loss to Tampa Bay.  The Phillies look ahead to gain some ground in their division before the All Star break.

     Tonight Adam Eaton (4.94 ERA) takes the mound in search of his 3rd win against Rich Harden (2.44 ERA) of the Athletics.  Adam has been able to keep his game ERA under 5.0 since May 28th.  If the Phillies offense shows up again tonight we should be ready to take on the Texas Rangers in the upcoming 3 game series.