Jays v. Phillies: The All Lefty Weekend

It’ll be a surplus of southpaws this weekend at the Rogers Centre; three games and all the starting pitchers will be lefties. Left hands haven’t seen this much work since the inception of porn on the internet.

The Blue Jays will send Romero, Mills and Tallest to the hill, while the Phillies will counter with Hamels, Happ and Moyer.

Since there will be all left-handed starting pitchers this weekend, that means Kevin Millar will likely start most, if not all, three games at first base. Cito has maintained his strategy to play Millar against lefties, but is that really the best option anymore?

This season Millar’s splits are better than Overlay’s, but if you look at Millar’s numbers in the month of June they are atrocious:

Millar: .205 AVG, 5 RBI, 1 HR, .618 OPS

Compare those with Lyle Overlay’s stats this month, and it should be a no-brainer for Cito to play Overbuy at first base. (Overbay: .288 AVG, 18 RBI, 4 HR, 1.008 OPS)

Cito prefers to think with his heart instead of his brain sometimes, and this is a perfect example. For some reason he has it ingrained in his managerial mind that Millar hits left-handed pitching better than Overbuy. It’s time for Cito Gaston to throw those preconceived notions out the window.

Now while that may statistically be true this season, shouldn’t you continue to ride a player who’s on a hot streak? Lyle’s numbers in June are far too impressive to warrant him being benched in this series.

I’ll be liveblogging Sunday’s finale over at The Score which features Brian Tallet against Jamie Moyer, so stop by on Sunday afternoon for what looks to be a great game.

 

Toronto Blue Jays’ Defensive Gems

 

Is it any surprise that the Toronto Blue Jays are the best defensive team in the majors this season?

Thanks to those defensive gems that were put on display last night, hitters are lucky if they can even sneak a hit by the Blue Jays’ infielders.

Last week, Marco Scutaro stunned the Philadelphia Phillies with an intuitive play by stealing second base on a walk. This time, he left the Reds dumbfounded by throwing out Johnny Gomes from his back.

As you can see from the photo above, Scoots was flat out on his back and yet somehow managed to lean over and make the one-hop throw to Lyle Overbay in time to get Gomes. That play alone should get Scutaro into the All Star Game.

Earlier in the game, Aaron Hill flashed some leather and made an incredible leaping play to throw out another Red at first base.

Although I didn’t see it, I heard that Scott Rolen robbed Hairston once again with a diving grab along the third base line and followed it up with a throw from his knees.

For an opposing hitter, the only way to be guaranteed that the Blue Jays’ infielders won’t somehow make the out is to hit it at least 10 feet above their heads.

And even then, there’s nothing saying that Scott Rolen won’t pick up Marco Scutaro, put him on his shoulders, and launch him in the air to track down the ball.

 

Jimmy Rollins, Milton Bradley Latest of Many All-Stars Benched This Year

Midseason Report: Philadelphia Phillies

“We’ll be fine. We’re the defending champs, and we’re not defending champs for no reason. At the end of the day, I’m walking out of this place, and we’re still in first place. That’s how you’ve got to look at it.” Confidence or complacency? Waltzing or wavering? Champs, or chumps? The answer should tell us who’s going to be celebrating in October.

We Need To Talk, Phillies: A Message From Citizens Bank Park (Satire)

Hey, guys.  It’s me, Citizens Bank.  I was hoping we could have a little chat.

You’ve been spending a lot of time in other parks lately.  No, no—don’t deny it.  It’s all over the news, don’t embarrass yourself by lying about it.  It just makes this all the more painful.

Now, you know I don’t care if you want to play in other stadiums.  In fact, I’ve come to expect it.  Away games are part of any team’s schedule.  But… but do you have to like it so much?

“What do I mean?”  Do you have to ask?!

Nobody else has less than 15 losses on the road.  You guys are 24-10!  You can’t tell me you’re not enjoying it out there, frolicking around on the elderly confines of Dodger Stadium, or slicing and dicing the Marlins in front of their own fans.

Remember when Jamie Moyer got his 250th career win?  I don’t, because it happened in Washington.  Washington!

You must be saving your best stuff for when I’m not around, because 13-22 is no way to treat a stadium. 

Do I even matter to you anymore?  Because 22 gut-wrenching losses are telling me otherwise.

I’ve got Kentucky Blue Grass!  Do you know how much that costs?  Probably a lot!  It sounds very fancy!

So, while you take off again to impress another away crowd with your on-the-road skill, I’m left to pick up the pieces.  We used to make quite a team, remember? 

Why, it wasn’t even a year ago we won it all.  That World Series trophy was ours, and the next thing I know, you’re out there gallivanting like All-Stars all over Citi Field.

I mean for god’s sake, Phillies.  That place is half my age.

My question is, why?  What is it about being somewhere else, anywhere else, that makes your luck change?

Is it the fans?  They can chant—well, let’s not make promises we know we can’t keep.  Philly fans are Philly fans, and they’re not going to be making any real personality adjustments anytime soon.

Is it Brad Lidge?  Is he hurting you?!

I guess we’ll be welcoming him back soon enough.  Some embarrassing blown saves have made him into that guy who shows up at the party and makes a big entrance, but nobody really cares that he came.  In fact, after he crashed the last party, everybody’s just hoping this time he doesn’t try to sing karaoke and pass out in the punch bowl.

Is it Harry Kalas?  The wounds must still be fresh, Phils, but you’ve got to see what’s right in front of you:  me.  I’m ready to take us to the top again, but we both have to contribute in order for this to work.

We used to have fun together, didn’t we?  Laughing as the Mets suffered the worst collapse in baseball history, splitting a rain-soaked Game Five into a two night affair… remember when the city of Philadelphia devoured itself alive? 

All because of us. 

All because of what we accomplished together.

Whatever it is, you need to get yourselves figured out, because I can’t go on like this.  That game against the Orioles last Sunday made me throw up in my mouth.  How many times did you guys pop out in key situations?  20?  30?  And that’s just Jimmy Rollins.

I am $458 million of brick and mortar; grass and funnel cake.  I was voted as having the  best ballpark food in baseball.  The fans are rowdy, ravenous lunatics fueled by an unwavering sense of loyalty.  Obviously, I’m giving all I’ve got.  I can’t really change a whole lot; I’m a building.  It’s on you guys to turn it around.

I need this.  We need this.  So, I’m asking, nay, pleading with you:

Please.  Make yourselves at home.

World Series Phlashback: 2008 – Game Five

After being swept out of the 2007 playoffs by the Colorado Rockies, the Phillies were determined to not repeat their failures in 2008. After clinching their second straight division title the Phillies dispatched of the hot Milwaukee Brewers and took out Manny Ramirez and the rejuvenated Los Angeles Dodgers. All that was left was a matchup with the Cinderella story from the American League, the Tampa Bay Rays.

For either team the 2008 Fall Classic was going to be the perfect ending to a wonderful season. Philadelphia though was looking to capture its first world championship in any sport in a quarter century.

We continue our next phlashback series with a look at Game Five of the 2008 World Series, which took place in Philadelphia.

It was a night that nobody in Philadelphia will forget. Well, actually it was two nights that will long live in Philadelphia history.

The Phillies were looking to clinch the second World Series title in franchise history, but the night had an ominous feel to it. Optimism took control though as the Phillies would be sending out Cole Hamels to finish things off.

Hamels, the NLCS MVP entered the possible clinching game with a 4-0 record in the playoffs that year and he had elevated his game to a new level. He had become money in the postseason by learning from the mistakes he had made in his 2007 postseason debut.

The young left-hander, the ace of the team, got off to a good start by retiring the first three batters of the game. The offense took it from there.

Jayson Werth drew a one-out walk to get the ball rolling on Rays Game One starter Scott Kazmir. After Chase Utley was hit by a pitch and Ryan Howard struck out swinging, Pat Burrell walked to load the bases. Shane Victorino then hit a shot down the left field line to bring in two runs on a single.

Up2-0 the Phillies loaded up the bases with two outs when Pedro Feliz hit a single to move the runners up. Carlos Ruiz couldn’t add to the damage, flying out to end the first inning.

The Rays finally got on the board in the fourth inning when third baseman Evan Longoria picked up his first hit of the series to score Carlos Pena, who had picked up his first series hit with a double. The Phillies would take a 2-1 lead into the fifth inning.

In the fifth inning the weather really started to turn bad, leaving fans, the teams, and even television broadcasters Joe Buck and Tim McCarver wondering why Commissioner Bud Selig had not already stopped play. Rain was falling and wrecking havoc on the field.

Jimmy Rollinsfailed to catch an easy pop fly at the start of the fifth inning because the weather was interfering that badly. If Rollins misses a pop fly you know the weather is creating unplayable conditions on the field. Hamels was able to get out of the inning without any damage. After the Phillies failed to score in the bottom half of the fifth the game proceeded, despite worsening weather conditions, to the sixth inning.

Hamels recorded the first two outs without much trouble, but Rays center fielder B.J. Upton would not go down as easily. Upton hit a single to the shortstop position and Rollins could not cleanly make a play due to the weather.

Upton then stole second base, seeming to be unaffected by the soggy base paths, on the first pitch to Pena. Upton would then score on a single by Pena. The Upton run tied the game at two runs. Pena advanced to second base on a passed ball, but Hamels was able to retire Longoria to end the inning.

It was between the half innings that Selig made the decision to suspend the game until playing conditions would allow for the resumption of the game. Little did people know that they were about to witness history.

For the first time in baseball history the World Series game would be suspended and would not resume until two days later, as the day after the suspension saw snow and rain in the Philadelphia area.

When the game finally resumed two nights later, it picked up where it left off. With the game tied at two the Phillies would have four turns to bat to the Rays’ three. Optimism had returned.

Geoff Jenkinsof all people would lead off, acting as a pinch hitter for Hamels. Jenkins rocked a 3-2 pitch to deep left center field, but the ball stayed in the park. Jenkins reached second base and got the Citizens Bank Crowd rocking. Rollins put down a fine sacrifice bunt to move Jenkins into scoring position and Werth’s single up the middle brought Jenkins home and put the Phillies on top 3-2.

Rays right fielder Rocco Baldelli silenced the fans in the top of the seventh inning with a solo home run to left field off Phillies reliever Ryan Madson. Madson had usually been used in the eighth innings of games to set up for closer Brad Lidge, but manager Charlie Manuelwanted to go with the matchups.

It was in the seventh inning that the signature defensive play occurred. After Baldelli’s home run had tied the game, shortstop Jason Bartlett hit a single to left field and advanced to second base on a sacrifice bunt. Akinori Iwamura hit a single up the middle that was fielded by Utley.

Making a play for the out at first was impossible, but Bartlett attempted to go home rather than hold at third base. The run would have given the Rays the lead but Utley faked Bartlett out and threw home to Ruiz. Ruiz made the terrific tag to keep the game tied. It may have been the turning point of the game.

Pat Burrell, the longtime fan favorite in Philadelphia, entered the seventh inning still looking for his first hit of the World Series. He got it at the perfect time, leading off the bottom of the seventh inning with a hit to the deepest part of the park.

Burrell’s leadoff-double to deep center field set up the Phillies to regain the lead once more. Eric Bruntlettwas sent in to pinch run for the slow footed Burrell. Bruntlett moved to third base on a ground out by Victorino. Then came third baseman Pedro Feliz.

Feliz wasted little time, smacking the second pitch he saw from Rays reliever Chad Bradford right up the middle and into center field. Bruntlett came home to give the Phillies the critical late inning lead at 4-3.

J.C. Romero entered the game for the Phillies in the eighth inning and got his three batters faced out, thanks to a double play. After not scoring in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Phillies did what they had done all season long; hand the game over to closer Brad Lidge.

Lidge had entered the game 47-for-47 in save opportunities during the 2008 season, including the playoffs. All he had to do was record one more save.

Evan Longoria popped out to second base. Catcher Dioner Navarro hit a single to right field to give the Rays a chance to tie the game. Speedy Fernando Perez was sent in as a pinch runner, and Ben Zobrist was used as a pinch hitter for Baldelli. Perez stole second base with one out and the nerves started to really kick in for Phillies fans.

Would this be Lidge’s first blown save?

Zobrist lined out to Bruntlett in left field. Down to their final out Rays manager Joe Maddon used Eric Hinske, who had already hit a home run in Philadelphia as a pinch hitter, in place of shortstop Jason Bartlett. Hinske quickly fell in the hole at 0-2.

On the 0-2 pitch Lidge did what he does best; strike out the batter with a nasty slider.

With the swing and a miss from Hinske the Phillies had clinched their second World Series title in franchise history. The players rushed the field and piled on Lidge and Ruiz.

For the Phillies a feeling of relief poured all over Philadelphia. The Phillies brought the city its first championship in the major sports since the Sixers did it in 1983. This was the first championship for the Phillies since 1980.

For the Rays a magical season had ended abruptly. Bitter feelings filled the Rays as they could point to a number of instances where games could have gone differently, but ultimately they went down in defeat, as most Cinderella stories do.

It remains to be seen where these teams will go from here.

At this point in the season the Phillies are clinging to the NL East race and battling injuries poor offense at times.

The Rays picked up Burrell in the offseason and are battling their own injury problems. The Rays find themselves in fourth place in a tough AL East but are by no means out of the picture.

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Click here for my original recap.

Brad Lidge Officially Activated

Mental Errors Hurt Phillies in Loss to Rays

As well as the Phillies have played on the road, last night came as a bit of a shock. What had been a pitcher’s duel for seven innings ended up looking like a rout because of a pair of crucial misjudgments during the game.

The first mental letdown occurred in the top of the fourth inning. After Pat Burrell‘s two-run homer gave Tampa Bay a 2-0 lead, Rays starting pitcher Matt Garza worked himself into a bit of a jam in the fourth inning. After Garza walked Shane Victorino, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard to start the inning, the Phillies looked prime to tie the game or take the lead.

But Jayson Werth inexplicably swung at the first pitch he saw, grounding into a deflating double play. Not only do I not comprehend any logic that compels a batter to swing on a first pitch in any situation, but I will likely go to my grave wondering why you swing at a first pitch after the three batters in front of you walked.

The second lapse came in the eighth inning from the usually defensively-sound Jimmy Rollins. Rollins has never taken his poor game from the batter’s box to the field but last night he may have. Rollins was 0-for-4 on the night but his biggest gaffe came with two outs in the eighth inning.

With the bases loaded Chan Ho Park was trying to keep the Phillies within one run, down 2-1. With Burrell at the plate for the Rays the Phillies could get an easy out at first to end the threat. When Rollins fielded the ground ball up the middle he tossed the ball to Utley for a force at second, despite having plenty of time to get the slow-footed Burrell at first. The close play went to the runner, a run scored to make it 3-1, and inning continued.

The Rays took full advantage of the extra out. A bloop base hit scored two more runs and before the dreadful inning was over the Rays had a 7-1 lead.

Instead of being down by one run with some of the best hitters coming up against a shaky closing situation for the Rays, the Phillies would have to score six times just to keep the game alive.

The mental errors took away from a terrific game from starter Joe Blanton. Blanton made one mistake to Burrell, which resulted in a two-run home run. But in seven innings Blanton sprinkled six base hits, struck out ten batters, and walked just two.

The Rays closed the game without another run from the Phillies. With the loss the Phillies’ lead in the NL East was trimmed to 1.5 games as the Mets won last night.

For the series finale, the Phillies will send Antonio Bastardo to oppose Andy Sonnanstine of the Rays.

Philidelphia Phillies: Strengths and Weaknesses Going Into The Break

Looking toward the MLB All-Star Break is also a time to reflect on a team. A time to ovserve where they have done well, need improvement and what needs to be done to improve their play during the second half of the season.

For the defending champion Philadelphia Phillies, a few things come to mind.

Let’s start with some strengths.

Road Record

First off, the Phillies have been dominant on the road. They have the best road record in the league at 24-9. What more can you say?

Offense

Raul Ibanez. Ryan Howard. Chase Utley. The top names of the Phils’ offense thus far and have lead the way for the Phillies in most of their games. The offense has been explosive all season.

The Phils have put up 100 total home runs (third in NL), 616 total hits, and are fifth in the Majors and first in the National League with 366 runs scored.

Ibanez, even though currently injured, has been a great addition to the Phillies squad, putting up 22 home runs and 52 RBI. Howard and Utley have combined for 36 homers.

The Phils offense has been fantastic by creating opportunities to lead, while giving them a chance to come from behind and win games if needed.

Defense

The Phillies fielding has been great. Only 27 errors so far, everyone on the team contributes on defense.

Whether it be the catchers, who have caught players stealing 19 times so far this season or the fielders, who have put up a .990 fielding percentage. the Phillies defense has been strong thus far.

Weaknesses

Pitching

The Phillies pitching has been the talk of every sports analyst for the past few years. It has struggled. Plain and Simple.

The average ERA for the Phils is 4.73. With closer Brad Lidge and starter Brett Myers gone from injuries, other players have had to step up. Phillies star Pitcher Cole Hamels as put up tons of strikeouts, but the only stat that matters is in the win column, and Hamels only has four out of his thirteen starts.

J.A. Happ has stepped up and played well going 4-0 with a 3.47 ERA. Regardless, the bullpen will need to do better if they want to defend their championship

Home Record

If the Phillies road record is strength, surely their home record is a weakness. The Phils are one of the worst teams at home, with a record of 13-22.

The only team worse? The Nationals.

Injuries

The Phils have been plagued with injuries this season. Howard has missed a few due to sickness, Lidge is on the 15-Day DL, though hopefully, he should return within the week. Ibanez is also on the 15-Day DL, and is aiming for an early July return.

A few other players, including Scott Eyre and Clay Condrey and Hamels have also been battling injuries.

How To Improve

So what do the Phillies need to do to improve? Simply?

Play better at home and stay out of injury trouble.

That being said, the Phils are first in the NL East with a 1.5 game lead over the Mets, and are currently the fifth best team in the league.

Look for the Phils to defend their title honorably this season if they can keep up the strengths and improve on their weaknesses.

 

Macho Row Phlashback: 2008 World Series – Game Four

After being swept out of the 2007 playoffs by the Colorado Rockies, the Phillies were determined to not repeat their failures in 2008. After clinching their second straight division title the Phillies dispatched of the hot Milwaukee Brewers and took out Manny Ramirez and the rejuvenated Los Angeles Dodgers. All that was left was a match-up with the Cinderella story from the American League, the Tampa Bay Rays.

For either team the 2008 Fall Classic was going to be the perfect ending to a wonderful season. Philadelphia though was looking to capture their first world championship in any sport in a quarter century.

We continue our next phlashback series with a look at game four of the 2008 World Series, which took place in Philadelphia.

After the Phillies pulled out a nail biter in game three to take a two-to-one series lead against the Tampa Bay Rays, the offense made sure that game four would hardly be in doubt. The Phillies sent their unsung hero, a mid-season acquisition, Joe Blanton to face the Rays batters. Blanton had pitched well in his first two post-season appearances, setting the Phillies up for an NLDS clincher and helping the Phillies build a 3-1 in the NLCS. Blanton sure did help the Phillies grab a commanding 3-1 lead on this night.

Blanton retired the first three batters for the Rays on 13 pitches. Jimmy Rollins and the rest of the offense got in gear and put the home team on the scoreboard first.

Rollins hit a lead off double to right field and moved to third base on a sac fly by Jason Werth. Chase Utley walked, setting up a controversial play for Ryan Howard. Howard grounded to Rays third baseman Evan Longoria who applied a tag on Rollins as he tried to not get caught in a run down. Howard was safe and Utley moved to second, and despite replays clearly showing that Longoria had made the tag for an out, Rollins was called safe, loading the bases for Pat Burrell. After a protest from manager Rays Joe Maddon failed to overturn the call, Burrell took ball four on a 3-1 count. Rollins came home and the Phillies were up 1-0 on a disputed run.

The Phillies took the 1-0 lead into the third inning, where they would extend the lead to 2-0. A single by Pedro Feliz scored Utley, who was safe on an error to lead off the inning. A Carl Crawford home run put the Rays on the board in the fourth inning, and cut the lead to 2-1. In the bottom of the fourth inning though, the Phillies took a firm hold on the game.

Rollins lead the bottom of the fourth inning off by reaching first base on an error. Werth walked to follow up Rollins and Utley struck out swinging. Howard stepped to the plate looking for a good pitch, and he nailed one. On a 2-1 pitch from Rays pitcher Andy Sonnanstine, Howard gave the Phillies a 5-1 lead with a three run home run to the opposite field.

Eric Hinske hit a two-out solo home run in the fifth inning off of Blanton to cut the lead for the Phillies to 5-2.

In the bottom of the fifth inning though, after Feliz and Carlos Ruiz recorded two quick outs Blanton came to the plate. Never known as an offensive threat, who would have though that Blanton would hit his first career home run in the majors? Probably nobody. But he did.

Blanton became the first pitcher since Ken Holtzman, of the Oakland A’s in 1974, to hit a home run in the World Series. Blanton’s majestic shot gave the Phillies a 6-2 lead and may have deflated the Rays to the point where a comeback was impossible.

The Phillies had struck the Rays but to their credit Tampa Bay had come back every time. After Blanton’s shot though there was little fight from Tampa Bay for the remainder of the game.

The Phillies offense put four more runs on the scoreboard in the eighth inning with a pair of two run home runs from Werth and Howard. For Howard it was his second home run of the game, and third of the series.

The game had turned into a laugher and Phillies fans were fantasizing about a championship, which we all thought would come a day later. The Phillies won the game 10-2 and took a 3-1 lead in the series. While the emotions of the Phillies and their fans could not be hindered, the playing surface at Citizens Bank Park could.

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Click here for my original game recap.

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