If you search "Cole Hamels" on this absurd piece of Internet real estate I created in the summer of 2008 — a mere four months before the Phillies became World Fucking Champions by the way (Coincidence? I think not!) — you'll find a ton of posts mentioning the man. Hell, there's 64 of them tagged with his name alone.
In those archives, you'll find me both praising and bashing Cole Hamels throughout. Truthfully, I've been slow to blindly hand out praise for Hamels, scarred from years and years of can't-miss Phillies pitching prospects that, wouldn't you know it, missed, but quick to give him credit when he pitched well. Seriously, I've run the gamut on the guy, from asking why his teammates hate him and never score runs the way they do for Jamie Moyer despite Cole being about 8 million times better than the old man to declaring he's no ace just yet before what turned out to be an historic playoff run.
I've crowned him king, and told him he won me over (how could he not?) after pitching the Phillies to the title and winning both NLCS and World Series MVP honors. I officially declared him an ace and vowed to never say another bad word about him.
Then 2009 happened, and it was back to the drawing board. As Cole struggled through the worst season of his life and did a complete 180 in the playoffs, I broke my vow, going so far as to say Cole Hamels blows and even ridiculously harshly titling a post Cole Hamels Fucking Sucks after blowing up against the Yankees in the World Series.
It's been quite the love-hate relationship between Cole and me, and by that I mean I've loved him and hated him while he has consistently gone through his life without knowing I even exist. Last season, there was far more good out of Hamels than bad, and the harsh criticisms of him subsided around these parts. But I'm not sure I ever properly acknowledged his maturation and the admiration I've gained by watching him these past few years. You can blame that on Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay stealing away a very large portion of my attention.
Now I think is the perfect time to make my amends with Hamels, fresh off one of his most impressive outings of his entire career. In case you were stuck in a cave, you know Hamels did something he rarely does last night, pitching a complete game in a 4-1 victory over the Nationals — a complete game in which he surrendered just five hits and one run on a solo homer to Mike Morse while striking 6, including Jayson Werth in the 9th. Oh, and he got the offense going with a two-out triple in the third and scoring the game's first run when Jimmy Rollins singled him home. Hamels later added a single to finish 2-for-4 on the night in addition to his tremendous pitching performance. It was quite a night for him.
Anyway, back to making amends. The more I watch Cole Hamels, these past two season especially, learning from the likes of Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt, I see the guy we've really been waiting for. The reason I and countless others in Philadelphia have been so hard on Hamels is because we've seen the potential this guy has to be great. He showed it as a rookie and kept getting better. But he never really nailed down this ace thing until that incredible 2008 playoff run. And as wonderful and magical as that was, something neither Cole or any Phillies fan alive would trade for the world, it expedited everyone's expectations.
Coming off that performance, everyone expected Hamels to take Major League Baseball by storm and become a perennial all-star, if not Cy Young candidate. What we forgot was he was still in his professional baseball infancy, forgot that he was coming off his shortest offseason ever, forgot that with success and expectations comes even more pressure. And Hamels didn't meet our expectations or his own in 2009, angering all parties involved. His immaturity really showed, and it looked like he lost all the confidence he had so much of the year before.
But instead of bitching and moaning and pouting about it, no matter what we thought, Hamels used it as fuel to focus even further on his craft. Working alongside Lee and Halladay and Oswalt no doubt has helped, and last year Hamels really started to tap that potential on a whole new level. So far this season, he's taken yet another step. After last night's outstanding outing, Hamels is now 4-1 on the season. He has a 2.66 ERA, good for 10th in he National League. His 40 strikeouts place him 7th in the league, and his 1.01 WHIP has him at 6th in NL. All those numbers are better than teammates Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt. So far this season, Hamels has been the second best pitcher on the National League's best team, trailing on Roy Halladay statistically. He may have pitched like shit in the game I was at, but he's really been coming into his own early on this season. Truthfully, it really started last year.
Hamels tasted the ultimate success in 2008 and hit rock bottom in 2009. Now, at 27 years old and in his 6th Major League season, Cole Hamels is the pitcher we were told he'd become. On his ascent, I was pretty harsh on him, as were so many of us here in Philadelphia. Consider this me making amends for that.
And oh by the way, Jayson Werth showed a ton of class last night in his first at-bat, tipping his cap to the real fans that gave him a standing ovation and a chorus of cheers — (very classy by Cole as well, not even toeing the rubber until Werth got his props from the crowd).
For those of you in attendance who booed, I'll refer you to my friend Chase Utley.
Normally, I'm 100 percent in favor of booing if you want to boo — if a player is playing badly, not showing maximum effort, if a guy says something bad about the team or the players or the fans, if the opposition is particularly hated or does something that is an affront to the city, if the team is lacking energy or effort, etc. But to boo Jayson Werth in his return to Philadelphia after all that guy did for this franchise, well, you're the reason Philadelphia fans get a bad rap. And you're an idiot. And an asshole.
Sure, Werth left Philadelphia for an enormous contract in Washington — an astronomical raise for a guy who had never had a huge contract in his career. Who in their right mind would turn down that kind of money? (And don't say Cliff Lee. Sure, Cliff took fewer dollars to come back to Philadelphia, but he's still making $100 million over 5 years, whereas Werth was making far, far less during his time in Philadelphia than he is now in Washington.) It was his one chance at a big payday, given that he was almost out of baseball before signing with the Phillies and is now in his 30s. So he left instead returning for a hometown discount, and wasn't all that pleased when he found out his expensive friend Cliff Lee was making his return to the Phillies. Fine. I get that.
But Jayson Werth never said anything bad about his teammates or the fans that adored him for four seasons as a Phillie. In fact, he embraced them. Fully. And he played his ass off for us. He turned himself from an injury-proned platoon player into an all-star. He stole two bases off Billy Wagner to ignite this streak of playoff appearances. He was an integral part of the World Fucking Champions. He busted his ass every day, truly bringing damn near everything to the table: speed, defense, a rocket arm, power, protection. Jayson Werth did a whole hell of a lot for the Phillies, and without him, this franchise isn't in the position it's in right now as one of the elite in baseball.
Those of you who don't realize that and can't appreciate that enough to just not fucking boo for one at-bat, well, you are retarded. And I mean that in the most negative way possible. Boo him his second time up, boo him when he takes the field, boo him for the rest of his career if it makes you happy. I wouldn't harbor any ill will toward you for that. But to boo him at that moment was classless. And stupid. And you're the reason Philadelphia fans have the reputation they do. You're also probably the ones who complain about that reputation the loudest. Congrats for that.
Sometimes you get the recognition you deserve. Sunday night was Philadelphia at its finest. Last night, those who booed Werth during his first at-bat only gave the haters more fuel for the fire.
P.S. Jimmy loves him some leadoff. Rollins looked a whole hell of a lot more like his old MVP-ish self last night at the top of the order, going 2-for-4 with a run, an RBI, a triple and a steal. Probably best to leave him there even though he's the most frustrating leadoff hitter in the history of ever, because when Jimmy hits, the Phillies win. Simple as that.
P.P.S. Zoo With Roy'sSag-O-Meter worked perfectly, as Raul broke out of his 0-for-80 billion slump with a rocket ground rule double to center. Way to go, Raul. ZWR is a genius!
The basis of my argument was that if you really want the Phillies to sustain their recent success, if you really want them to continue to bring in the best talent and keep their own stars, then you should be OK with the team increasing ticket prices slightly to continue to expand the payroll — so they can sign guys like Jayson Werth and Cliff Lee.
Well guess what … the Phillies are increasing ticket prices for next season. Is this the first step toward re-signing Jayson Werth or even the outside chance of reacquiring Cliff Lee? No one knows for sure, but with the Yankees rumored to be uninterested in Werth and some saying Werth may be back in red pinstripes, perhaps this is the first step in keeping the much-needed righthanded power Werth supplies.
I sure hope so. If the Phillies put that money toward making the team better, ideally by re-signing Werth, then I'm all for it. Winning doesn't come cheap, no matter how much we'd like it to.
So just do this already, Ruben. You just accounted for Werth's salary with the ticket increase. Go make this ball club better and get back to the World Series.
Through six innings of baseball, I was growing increasingly annoyed at Roy Halladay. The man who had given up just 30 walks in 33 starts during the regular season walked the leadoff batter Andres Torres, a player who has not hit whatsoever in these playoffs. It was the first time Halladay had walked the leadoff batter of a game all season long. What a horrible time to finally do it. Of course that asshole scored, and Roy never quite looked right.
He managed to go just 6 innings, an anomaly for the man who led the majors in innings pitched, having to throw well over a hundred pitches and fighting his command all night. He walked two batters, something he rarely ever does. He was missing his spots left and right, especially in the strike zone, resulting in six hits and some really, really poor pitches. It was so uncharacteristic of Roy. He's made a habit of hitting Carlos Ruiz's glove with such regularity that seeing Curbball having to reach and move his glove on almost every pitch was startling. Doc just didn't look good, and I was really disappointed.
Then this morning I find out the guy was pitching with a freakin pulled groin, an injury he sustained in the second inning, and still managed to gut it out and get the win, keeping the Phils alive while staring down the competition.
It wasn't perfect game Roy Halladay or no-hitter Roy Halladay. It was tough, fearless, badass Roy Halladay. He managed to ever-so-slightly outduel Tim Lincecum, the way Lincecum had slightly outpitched Halladay in game 1. And finally, it was the Phillies who took advantage of the mistakes the Giants made, and not vice versa.
Down 1-0 after two and the first six batters looking helpless against Lincecum, Raul Ibanez finally decided to join the series by leading off the third with a bloop single to right. Ruiz followed by getting hit by a pitch, and suddenly the Phillies had life. And then for what feels like the first time this series, the Phils caught a break. With two on and no out, Roy Halladay went to the plate with the sole objective of advancing the runners on a bunt. Halladay, pulled groin and all, tried to lay one down. It bounced off the plate and never went out in front of it, but Buster Posey quickly snatched it, fired to third … and the morbidly obese Pablo Sandoval couldn't find the bag, reaching around with his foot but finding nothing but dirt, as Raul Ibanez slid in safely, with Ruiz following to second. Halladay, seeing that the ball hit the plate, never moved. He assumed it was foul because, well, it was. But home plate umpire Jeff Nelson called it fair. Sandoval, after failing to get the out at third, did throw out Halladay at first, but the sacrifice was successful, job accomplished. Even if he did get some help from the umpire. It turned out to be the foul sacrifice bunt that helped save the season.
That was the first break, and the second came right afterward. Shane Victorino hit a grounder right to Aubrey Huff at first, but Huff misplayed it so badly that it bounced off his hand, then his knee and ricocheted into the outfield, allowing Raul and Ruiz to score, and allowing Shane to end up on second, 2-1 Phils. Polanco followed with an RBI single, and suddenly the Phillies had a two-run cushion. When Utley followed with another single to put runners on first and third with one out, it looked like the Phils were going to bust it open. But then LIncecum struck out Howard, and Werth flied out. Another run would have been nice, but still, the damage had been done. The Phils finally capitalized on a good break and two huge San Francisco mistakes.
Of course, this wouldn't be an NLCS game without Cody Fucking Ross driving in a run, which he did in the 4th to make it a 3-2 game, following up Pat Burrell's one-out double with a double of his own to plate the former Phillie. The good news is that was it for the Giants. Pitching four-plus innings with a pulled groin, Halladay surrendered just one run, two overall. He got through six innings on one leg, leaving with a one-run lead.
This time, facing elimination, the bullpen did what it could not the night before. Jose Contreras, who has done his job and done it well all postseason, and J.C. Romero worked through a scoreless 7th, with Contreras giving up a hit in his two-thirds and Romero retiring his only batter. Then it was on to how Charlie Manuel would like to draw it up, the Phils leading heading into the 8th for Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge.
Madson was literally perfect in the 8th, striking out all three batters he faced. Then the Phils added an insurance run on an opposite-field laser home run by Jayson Werth, a guy who already had a huge play earlier in the game when he threw out Cody Fucking Ross, who was trying to tag up and get to third.
Then Lidge came in and had a perfect night, punctuated by striking out Travis Ishikawa to end the game and force a game 6 back in Philadelphia.
Now the Phils come back home with their two other aces slated to start, both of them looking to redeem themselves after being tagged with losses. Oswalt was brilliant in game 2, picking up the win, but then lost game 4 in relief. Hamels was slightly off but really just got no runs support, nothing new for Cole, in game 3. Now it's time for both of them to make sure neither loses two in a row.
It may have come one game too late, but Doc did his job. He got the Phils to their second win of the series. Got them to a game 6. And he did it all on basically one leg. It wasn't pretty, but it sure as shit was effective. Hopefully the pulled gROYn game will ignite this team and propel the Phils to six more victories.
This is what Roy Halladay came to Philadelphia to do. It's why after 12 years of dominating the AL East yet never once tasting the joys and suffering of playoff baseball as the ace of the Toronto Blue Jays he waived his no-trade clause to head to the City of Brotherly love.
He began his journey right there in Nationals Park, in the nation's capital, by picking up a win against the Washington in his very first start as Phillie, very first start as a member of the National league. On that night, he went seven innings, surrendering just one run on six hits while striking out 9. Twenty wins later, Roy Halladay clinched the National League East and the best record in the National League period for the Phillies on the same mound he began his Phillies career, pitching a masterful gem — another complete-game shutout, his MLB-leading 9th complete game and MLB-leading fourth shutout.
It was the kind of start that should put to rest any ridiculous arguments that Roy Halladay should not start game 1 in the NLDS for the Phils. With the chance to finally get to the postseason, Halladay pitched perhaps his best game yet — a complete-game two-hitter in which he faced just one more than the minimum, struck out six and had the type of movement and command that made him all but impossible to hit. It may not go down in history the way his perfect game did, but I bet this one was even sweeter for Roy. He wanted the postseason so badly, you could feel it with every pitch. He wasn't going to let the Nationals have any hope. He wasn't going to rely on Atlanta losing (which is good, because the Braves won). And he wasn't going to hand this one over to anyone else.
When he blew that final perfect pitch by Danny Espinosa, you could sense the relief and the joy in Roy Halladay's face. For most of these Phillies, winning the division has become routine, an expected outcome of their hard work. Cause for celebration, sure, but a more reserved one than came in 2007. That was evident in Carlos Ruiz's initial reaction going out to congratulate Halladay. He went in for the high-five. Roy didn't want to slap hands, Roy wanted a hug. This was all new to him, a feeling he's never felt, something he really, truly was ecstatic to have happen.
After 12 seasons in Toronto, can you blame him? This was a day he probably never thought would come before landing in Philadelphia.
It was the fourth straight year the Phillies have won the National League East, a truly remarkable feat. While they were the favorites, it was hardly an easy road. Every everyday starter with the exceptions of Jayson Werth and Raul Ibanez spent time on the DL. The offense went dormant for long stretches of time. And the Braves held first place for most of the season. But the one constant was that starting pitching, and no one was more consistent, more dominant, more important than Roy Halladay.
Last night, he picked up his MLB-leading 21st win, and with it, most likely the Cy Young. It may be a four-peat for the Phils, but this is a first for Halladay. A first for Mike Sweeney and Brian Schneider. And boy do they deserve it, just like Raul Ibanez and Roy Oswalt deserve a World Series title.
There's still a long way to go for that to happen. Jimmy Rollins needs to get healthy. And the cards have to fall right. But right now, it's looking pretty good. The offense is starting to roll. The pitching has been brilliant. And the Phillies will have the home field advantage for as long as they are playing.
That was all decided last night, when Roy Halladay pitched his team, pitched himself into the postseason. Of course, he had a helping hand from the red-hot Jayson Werth, who drove in four of the eight runs with a long solo home run, a two-run double and an RBI single. Placido Polanco and Carlos Ruiz each had three hits as well, Raul had two and Chase drove in two runs and scored two more.
But it was Halladay's moment more than anyone's. He was awesome. He's been awesome all year long. And last night was, without a doubt in my mind, the best Halladay yet for Roy. It took him 13 years, but he's finally made it to true October baseball.
If Charlie Manuel doesn't win National League Manager of the Year, given all this team endured to get to the most wins in the Manuel era and clinch the best record in the league with five games to play, then something is terribly wrong with the world.
The Phillies entered Monday's series with the Atlanta Braves three games up in a division that Atlanta had led most of the season. It was, without question, the most important series of the year to date. With a sweep, the Braves could pull back dead even with the Phillies to all but ensure the final series of the season, down in Atlanta, would determine the whole thing. A series win for either team would put the heat on the other. And a sweep by the Phils would all but bury the Braves, making the division title a moot point and forcing the Atlant to hang on for dear life in the Wild Card race.
Well, the Phillies took the first two games behind a brilliant performance by Cole Hamels and some clutch hitting in in game 1 and Roy Halladay picking up his 20th win of the season with some help from Jayson Werth and Raul Ibanez in game 2. A win last night would be the final nail in the coffin for Atlanta, and Roy Oswalt was determined to bring his hammer out to the mound with him.
That is exactly what he did, pitching perhaps his best game since coming to Philadelphia, which is saying something considering just how dominant he has been. Oswalt went 7 innings last night, giving up just one hit and no runs while striking out eight Atlanta Braves. He made Derek Lee look like a lost little boy. Ditto Rick Ankiel. And all the rest of the Braves. He could sense the importance of this game, knowing full well he had the chance to complete the sweep and annihilate the Braves, and he wasn't about to let down after watching his fellow aces, Cole and Doc, get the job done.
Oswalt sure did his part. But Atlanta, sensing the desperation, kept pace. Tommy Hanson matched Oswalt nearly pitch for pitch, giving up just two hits in six innings and working out of some jams created by some control issues (he walked 3). He combined with Peter Moylan and Craig Kimbrel to equal Oswalt's seven innings of shutout ball. The Braves would not go quietly into the night. So the Phillies decided they'd just have to put them away kicking and screaming.
Ryan Madson came in for the 8th and continued to completely dominate in September, pitching a scoreless inning. And for the second straight night, Jayson Werth and Raul Ibanez decided to play hero after Ryan Howard grounded into a double play to erase Chase Utley, who was hit by a pitch. Werth walked on a great at-bat to get on, and Raul, who is more than showing he has plenty left in the tank, went with a pitch on the outside corner, ripped it down the leftfield line, just landing on said line, scoring Werth from first, who was off on contact with two outs.
RAAAAAAUUUUUUUUULLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Then Brad Lidge came in and nailed down yet another save, getting three weak pop flies to bury the Braves. Suddenly, when it really is getting to crunch time, Lidge and Madson are back in World Fucking Champions form.
The Braves had a golden opportunity to get back in this and still make a push for the division. The Phillies had the chance to really begin to pull away and assert themselves. For all those years, this was where the Braves would step on the throats and take the division, like they did time and time again in the '90s and early in the 21st century. But the script has flipped. The Braves aren't the top dog anymore. That title belongs to the Phillies, winners of the NL East three years running, National Champions two years running. And with an emphatic sweep of the Braves to extend their winning streak to 10 games and lengthen their lead in the division to six games with just nine more to play, their magic number to clinch is now down to four.
The Phillies displayed a championship mentality, even without their emotional leader, Jimmy Rollins, stepping foot on the diamond. Trotting out the best three-headed monster in all of baseball, the Phillies surrendered just four runs in three games to Atlanta, showing any team that gets the unfortunate task of facing the Phillies in the postseason what they're up against. Cole Hamels went 8 innings, giving up just one run. Roy Halladay pitched 7 innings of three-run ball, legitimately a bad outing for him, the type of outing 99 percent of pitchers in baseball would kill to have. Oswalt blanked the Braves in 7 innings of work. And their tremendous efforts did not go unrewarded, as Brad Lidge picked up three saves with little trouble, and Ryan Madson shut the door in the 8th on Tuesday and Wednesday.
This sweep was a statement to the Braves, to the rest of the National League. To the Yankees and Rays and Twins. To all of baseball, in fact. These Phillies aren't content with winning one World Series and going to two straight. They want to get back again, and they want another parade. In fact, with guys like Roy Halladay and Mike Sweeney, two established veterans who have never even sniffed a postseason, not to mention guys like Roy Oswalt and Raul Ibanez, who have come oh so close but remain ringless, this 2010 version of the Phillies may be hungrier than any to come before it. And deeper. And more talented.
Right now, the Phillies have no flaws. They run 8 deep in the lineup, with or without Rollins, as Wilson Valdez has proven invaluable. Shane, Chase, Ryan, Werth and Raul are all on fire in September. Placido and Ruiz have been huge all season. Jimmy will be back at one point or another, and Valdez has been tremendous in the utility role. Add a potent bench that includes Sweeney, Ross Gload, Ben Francisco, Dom Brown, Brian Schneider, et al, and you have an offense that is as frightening as any in the game. And defensively, this team rarely makes mistakes, with Gold-Glove caliber players all over the place.
Then you look at the pitching, and you have to be terrified. Halladay, Hamels and Oswalt, probably the only three starters this team will need. Joe Blanton coming back to form if needed. And a rejuvenated bullpen that looks as unhittable as ever, especially Chad Durbin, Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge.
There's still 9 more games to be played in the regular season. Still a lot that can happen between now and November. But with an MLB-best 92 wins, the most accomplished starting rotation in the game and a team that has proven itself time and time again the past few years, the Phillies are primed to make another push toward November.
I can't wait to see what this team has in store for us this time around.
A lot happened this weekend, especially football-wise (which I hope to get to today), but the highlight for Philadelphians, no matter how you slice it, was Jayson Werth's walkoff. While we were watching it on the TV and listening to Wheels and McCarthy, we all wondered what the call sounded like by Scott Franzke. here it is, and it's tremendous as always.
Some peoplemay wonderhow to survive the baseball season, while people like myself revel in it. Why do I love it so much? Because each and every night, you have the chance to see something you've never seen before, something exciting and excruciating and enthralling. And that's exactly what happened last night in Colorado.
The game began unspectacularly for the Phillies, with Joe Blanton pitching about as awful as a pitcher can pitch, surviving just 4 and a third innings where he was smacked around for 10 hits, 6 runs — 4 of them earned — three homers and two walks. The Phils fell behind 7-3, and given how anemic the bats have been most of the season, it looked as though that 7 spot would be enough for the Rockies.
Just when you think you have a grasp on what's about to happen, BAM!, the seventh inning rolls around and completely changes everything. Polanco doubles. Chase follows suit with an RBI single, and suddenly it's a three-run game again. Up comes the big man, with Chris Wheeler putting his soothsayer hat on, saying, "If Ryan can pop one here, we've got ourselves a game." Almost as if on cue, Joe Beimel throws a hanger, Ryan Howard turns on it and suddenly it's a one-run game.
But not for long. Not after Jayson Werth smoked one to left, making it back-to-back jacks. Just like that, the game was tied. And the Phils weren't done yet. Raul flied out, but Shane followed with a single. Brian Schneider made it two singles in a row, pulling one in the hole on the right side, allowing Shane to go first to third. And Benny Francisco made Charlie look like a genius for pinch-hitting him against a righty instead of forcing Colorado to bring in the lefty against Domonic Brown, making it three straight singles as he drove in Victorino to give the Phils an improbable 8-7 lead.
And they still weren't done. The Phils could smell blood. They could taste it. And they wanted to feed. Jimmy made it four singles in a row, though somehow Schneider didn't get a read on the ball despite it being literally right over his head, forcing Sam Perlozzo to hold him at third. No matter, Placido was up, a guy who always makes contact and more often than not gets the job done.
Only this time he didn't. Not at all. Polanco, in a rare instance of failure, had perhaps the single worst at-bat I've ever seen him have. He got ahead in the count 2-0, then got a fat fastball to crank. Somehow, he was late on a 91-mph fastball in a 2-0 count. The very next pitch, the exact same thing. In a hitter's count, looking to drive the ball, he got a fastball, and again he was late. Unbelievable. And to top it all off, Polanco, a player who rarely strikes out, chased an awful pitch down low and struck out. Terrible, terrible at-bat, and a wasted opportunity. It looked like Phils would squander yet another good chance to drive in runs, miss the opportunity to break the game open. Now it would take a two-out hit just to get any more runs home and give the bullpen some breathing room.
That's when the capper came. Chase wasn't about to make the same mistake Polanco had, essentially getting himself out. Utley worked ahead in the count, getting to 3-1. When ball three was called, I said, "I dare you come in middle in." Sure enough, Delcarmen came inside, and Chase made him pay.
So Taguchi sighting!
Grand slam. Nine-run inning. Phils turn a 7-3 deficit into a 12-7 lead in one half inning of baseball. Game, set, match.
Or so I thought. The normally reliable Chad Durbin — who has arguably been Philadelphia's most reliable bullpen pitcher all year — was not his usual self. He gave up a leadoff double, then a one-out single and another double, 12-8. Right then and there, I was calling for Charlie to get his ass out. Durbin didn't have it. It was clear. And J.C. Romero was available in the pen, with switch-hitting Dexter Fowler due up and the left-handed Carlos Gonzalez on deck. But Manuel, having already used David Herndon and Antonio Bastardo — and with Ryan Madson presumably unavailable after pitching in about 100 straight games — kept Durbin in. And it didn't go well.
Fowler singled in two more runs, 12-10 with Carlos Gonzalez and his NL-leading batting average and 93 RBIs stepping to the plate. I envisioned a two-run home run to tie it, ruining the joy I just had basked in following that huge inning. Apparently, so did Gonzalez, because the guy was swinging from his heels — and ultimately struck out. Durbin got Tulowitzki to end the threat, but the damage had been done. Just as a 7-3 lead for the Rockies turned into a 12-7 lead for the Phils in the blink of an eye, a 12-7 lead had turned into an uncomfortable 12-10 lead.
The Phils would score no more, and J.C. and Contreras made it interesting but got through unscathed in the 8th, meaning Brad Lidge time in the 9th in a two-run game at Coors Field — with the heart of the order coming up.
Things couldn't have started much worse. Lidge did his job and got Fowler to roll one over to first base. But Ryan Howard booted the ball, and Fowler was safe. Gonzalez followed with a single to the right side, allowing Fowler to get to third with Troy Tulowitzki up and no one out. Tulo hit one toward second, allowing Fowler to score to make it a one-run game, and it looked like at the very least he had done his job and gotten the tying run to second. Except Utley, who had already played hero once before with his grand slam and six RBIs, made a tremendous play, and somehow managed to get Gonazalez at second, keeping the tying run out of scoring position.
Of course, that all became a moot point when Lidge walked Todd Helton, putting Tulowitzki on second as the tying run, AND putting the winning run on base. It was all just a little too much to take. Lidge was struggling with his fastball control again, and this had the makings of it blowing up in his face. But then suddenly, he threw perfect, unhittable slider after perfect, unhittable slider, striking out Clint Barmes and getting Ryan Spilborghs to ground out to end the game.
Whew! What a wild one. And something you'll only see in baseball.
The best news of all for the Phillies — well, besides getting the win to go along with a Braves' loss — was that the bats came alive, especially for the big boys. Ryan Howard crushed the two-run homer that brought the Phils within one. Chase Utley was 2-for-4 in the game with two runs scored, six RBIs and that game-winning grand slam. And Jayson Werth collected three hits, scoring three runs and driving in himself with his solo home run that tied the game.
Every Phillies starter besides Joe Blanton had at least one hit, with Placido, Raul and Shane each getting two. Ben Francisco got an RBI pinch-hit. Mike Sweeney got a pinch-hit RBI when he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. And the Phils exploded for 12 runs on 15 hits.
It was a rocky game, but it was a win. The type of win that just may awaken these bats for good. After all, it is September, and the Phillies aren't interested in their two-game Wild Card lead. They're looking ahead of them, not behind them. And after last night's loss to the Mets, the Braves are only two games in front.
If that doesn't make you love baseball, nothing will.
Don't turn around, or you might get picked off second. Or caught stealing third. Or fumble around the base and get picked off third.
Three games at home against the terrible Astros. Three losses. Three terrible base-running errors. Unreal.
On Wednesday, it was Jayson Werth. With the Phillies up by a run in the 6th inning, Jayson Werth was on second base, in scoring position as a potentially huge insurance run. Then, he gets picked off second … by the catcher … on an intentional fucking walk. That ended the inning, the controversial tag/no tag, in the base path/out of the base path call ensued, and the Phillies lost by a run.
Inexcusable.
Then on Tuesday, with the Phillies trailing by a run in the 7th inning, Jimmy Rollins and Placido Polanco got back-to-back walks with one out. Rollins was the tying run firmly planted in scoring position on second base. In the 7th inning. With just one out. With Chase Utely up and Ryan Howard on deck. So what does Jimmy do? He stupidly attempts to steal third, getting picked off. That means now it would take a two-out hit to tie the game, with Polanco now on second. Instead, Chase flew out, and Howard was left on deck. And of course, the Phillies lost again.
It was incredibly stupid for a number of reasons. One, Rollins was already in scoring position as the tying run, meaning even if Utley got out, Howard would have a chance to drive him in — you know, your team's best two hitters and RBI men over the past five years, albeit two guys who are struggling after missing so much time. Second, Utley rarely grounds into double plays, so trying to take that out of the equation is pointless. Third, you're down a god damn run. You don't try to steal third when you're losing and you represent the tying run.
Yeah, he did crush that home run to tie it, but that doesn't make the base-running play any less stupid. And the Phils lost anyway, in 16 long, absurd innings that saw Ryan Howard ejected, Raul Ibanez put at first and Roy Oswalt shagging a fly ball in left against his old team, and all the circumstances that led to it:
Then last night, again with the Phillies down a run, Ben Francisco gets picked off third. It was just too much to take. Sitting on third as the tying run with two outs in the 7th and Jimmy Rollins at the plate, one of the few players that actually has made a habit of getting hits with runners in scoring position this year, Ben Francisco was clumsily going back to third after a pitch, looking at second and completely losing sight of the bag despite not being far away from it at all. He fumbled around with his foot trying to find the bag, which Humberto Quintero noticed, so he fired. As Francisco tried to get his foot back down on the bag, he stumbled on Chris Johnson's foot and was tagged out before he could get back on the base. Un-fucking-believable.
"Hey Ben, we are both fucking idiots …"
Naturally, the Phillies lost by a run yet again, failing to capitalize on another Braves' loss yet again.
Listen, the Phillies didn't necessarily lose any of these three horrific games against the Astros because of these plays, but they certainly were huge. The Phillies aren't hitting. Not one bit. And that sucks. And is pretty pathetic. But with the middle of the order — Utley and Howard — just returning from the DL, their rustiness and frankly horrendous hitting since returning is unsurprising. Add in the fact that this team has struggled offensively throughout much of the season, and these things happen. Even against the shitty Astros. It may be ill-timed, but these hitting slumps happen.
What can't happen, ever, especially in the middle of a death race for the playoffs, is ridiculously dumb baseball. And that's exactly what's happened with the Phillies in the first three games of a four-game set, at home, against the Astros. These three ridiculous base-running blunders highlight that fact.
I'm sorry, but that just can not happen. Can't. It's absurd. Inexcusable. Embarrassing.
Now the Phils are once again tied with San Francisco in the Wild Card, and they're still 2.5 games behind Atlanta in the division despite Atlanta doing everything in its power to hand the NL East over to the Phils.
These guys better wake the hell up, and they better start this afternoon against Houston. Getting swept by the Astros is not an option. Not in late August. Not with so much at stake. Then again, it's pretty likely, considering the Phils have their fifth starter in the being of Kyle Kendrick going up against the lefthanded Wandy Rodriguez.
Let's hope the good Kyle shows up. And the bats. The Phils really need it.
In my haste to get a post out this morning, I completely forgot to mention yet another boneheaded play by Jayson Werth on the base paths last night.
With the Phillies up 2-1 in the bottom of the 6th, Werth doubled with one out. Raul Ibanez followed by striking out. With the most clutch catcher in the world stepping to the plate, the Astros wisely decided to intentionally walk Ruiz to get to weak-hitting Wilson Valdez. Nothing exciting could possibly happen on an intentional walk, right? Wrong. Because as Ruiz was trotting down to first after intentional ball four, Houston catcher Humberto Quintero noticed Jayson Werth had wandered off the bag at second and was lackadaisically heading back with his head down. Quintero fired to second and picked off Werth to end the inning. It was the second time in two and half weeks that Werth was picked off second, and this one was even worse.
For starters, it was a one-run game at the time, meaning a hit by Valdez would have been huge, especially considering the Phils wound up losing by a run. Secondly, he got picked off AFTER AN INTENTIONAL WALK! The pitcher didn't even pick him off, the catcher did, after receiving intentional ball four. Unbelievable.
How many times has this guy been picked off in a big situation, especially second? Remember, this isn't exactly new for Jayson. He got picked off second in Game 3 of the 2008 World Series as well.
The question is, how the hell does he let this happen? How can the same guy who I witnessed steal home live and in-person get picked off second numerous times?
How does a guy who stole and 2nd and 3rd in 2007 off Billy Wagner to help propel the Phillies to their first NL East title in forever get picked off second? How does an otherwise heads-up, smart baserunner get picked off second? How does he continue to let this happen?
Because he's an idiot, that's why. Wake the hell up, Jayson. You're in the middle of a god damn playoff chase for fuck's sake. Stop getting picked off second. And start hitting some home runs too while you're at it. You idiot.
And note to the Phillies: Perhaps you should take a page out of Houston's playbook and, you know, intentionally walk a guy every now and then. Like, say, Carlos Lee in the 8th inning. Especially considering some guy named Chris Johnson who was 0-for-3 at the time was batting behind him. I don't know, call me crazy, but I'd rather make a nobody named Chris Johnson beat me than an established veteran RBI machine in Carlos Lee — a Carlos Lee who has actually resembled his former self since the all-star break.
Then again, I tend to advocate playing smart baseball, something Jayson Werth (and Ryan Howard for that matter — just flip the damn thing to Chase!) and the Phillies werent' all that interested in last night. Idiots.
Also, way to pop up that sacrifice attempt in the 9th, Wilson. They should have pinch-hit with Oswalt. We all know he'd get that bunt down.
Don't look now, but your Philadelphia Phillies are suddenly looking every bit like the team we've come to expect over these past few years. The team that has won three straight NL East titles, gone to two straight World Series. The team that became World Fucking Champions.
Great pitching. Clutch hits. Tremendous defense. Explosive innings. Comebacks. Lockdown bullpen. Dramatic finishes. It's all been there since the calendar flipped to August. Since the 8th month of the year began, the Phillies have gone 12-3. They've won every series thus far, including this series with San Francisco that concludes tonight no matter what happens in that game. They've overtaken the Giants for the Wild Card lead, and somehow, despite losing Chase and Jimmy and Howard and Polanco and Victorino and Ruiz — only five all-stars and six starters, including the entire infield — all for extended periods of time, the Phillies are just 2.5 games out of first place. Essentially, they and they alone can determine who finishes first as long as they can stay within three games of the Braves come September. That series in Citizens Bank Park Sept. 20-22 is looming large.
The Braves have to be feeling the pressure. Everyone in the National League has to. The Phillies have been severely banged up all season long, and yet the rest of the league couldn't pull away from them. Now they're getting healthy just in time for the home stretch, with Ryan Howard's return right around the corner. You're getting the feeling that these guys can just taste it, and they're hungry for more. They don't want to rest on their laurels, use the injuries as an excuse. No, they want to get back to the postseason, get back to the World Series. Try to win this whole thing again. Right now, they're beginning to look like a team that's capable of exactly that.
Last night was yet another example. They fell behind early as Joe Blanton surrendered a solo home run to lead off the game, continuing his first-inning struggles. But from there, Blanton settled down, pitched 6 and a third innings of two-run ball, struck out 7.
Between that first and last batter Blanton faced, the Phillies turned a 1-0 deficit into a 5-1 and eventually 5-2 lead, led by the man at the top, the guy who when he's going right at the plate, the Phillies don't lose. Jimmy Rollins hasn't had the kind of year he's capable of. He's been hurt, and frankly, he hasn't hit. But much like this team is turning it on when it matters most, so is Rollins. The guy loves the limelight, lives for it. Sometimes, it's annoying and cocky and a little overboard. But it's what makes Jimmy so great. He lives for the big moments, loves the pressure, and more times than not, he comes through.
With the Phils trailing 1-0 in the 3rd, Rollins led off with a triple, putting a runner on third with no one out. Two batters later, Chase Utley did exactly what an unselfish, smart baseball player should do — he pulled the ball on the ground to the 2nd baseman, who was playing back, allowing Rollins to score easily.
An inning later, Rollins came through again, making the Giants pay dearly for an error to give the Phils extra life. Though it was Carlos Ruiz — the most clutch hitter all season for the Phillies — who got things going first. Jayson Werth led off with a single. After Shane grounded out, Ross Gload hit a grounder to second, an easy play for Mike Fontenot to record the 2nd out. Only Fontenot booted the ball, putting runners on first and second with one out and Curbball at the dish. Ruiz continued to come up big, smoking a single in the hole between third and short, giving the Phils the lead. This coming after Carlos had already tripled — yeah, I said tripled — in the second. The man is a hitting machine.
And suddenly, so is Rollins again. Because two batters later, Rollins dropped the head on an inside pitch, sending it out to right, 5-2 Phils, game essentially over.
From there, the Phillies cruised. Raul Ibanez hit an RBI triple to plate Chase. Yeah, the Phillies had three triples on the night, including one from lead-foot Raul Ibanez and another from the catcher. I can't make this stuff up. Jayson Werth doubled to score Ibanez. And after Chad Durbin and Ryan Madson — two guys who have suddenly made the weak bullpen look unhittable — pitched flawlessly in relief, Domonic Brown put the exclamation point on the game with a pinch-hit bomb. And I mean bomb.
As in upper deck bomb. Dom absolutely murdered that baseball, something I envision him making a habit of in the very near future. I mean, seriously, damn. Ball go far.
It was a total team effort yet again, though Rollins was the unquestioned star. Jimmy was 3-for-5 with two runs, three RBIs and just a double short of the cycle. Chase got two hits in his second game back, with a swinging bunt base hit giving him the confidence to smoke an RBI double later on. Raul hit a triple and scored a run. Werth was 2-for-4 with a run and RBI. Curbball, same thing, including his surprising triple. Even the guys who didn't get a hit contributed. Ross Gload made a great diving stop. Polanco played flawless third base. And Shane didn't have any "uh-ohs" in centerfield.
For the second straight night, the Phils fell behind a good ball club with great pitching and came back to not only beat them, but destroy them, putting up 9 and 8 runs in the first two games against one of the best pitching staffs — bullpen included — in all of baseball. They go to Barry Zito. And Matt Cain. Might as well get to Jonathan Sanchez tonight.
The way they're going right now, there's a good possibility of that. And more may be in store.
By the good graces of the TV scheduling gods, last night's game was on ESPN and actually not blacked out, due I'm sure to PHL 17 broadcasting the home-town feed last night. Seeing as I can't stand hearing Tom McCarthy's voice, I chose to watch ESPN. Plus, I like hearing what the national broadcasters think about the Phillies and hear what they have to say. After watching last night, I think it's safe to say Aaron Boone, Chris Singleton and Karl Ravech like this Phillies ball club.
Throughout the entire night, Boone and Singleton especially were talking about how hard the Phillies play, singling out Ibanez, a 38-year-old guy, busting his ass for a triple late in the game because that's the atmosphere this team has set. You hustle, you take the extra base, you play as hard as you can. And they were discussing how this team is just starting to sense it, to feel it, and you get the sense the entire league knows it. Their respect for the Phillies emanated through the screen.
And then Boone, who I've really enjoyed listening to in the few games I've heard him broadcast, said something that is truly frightening and quite intuitive at the same time. He said that, considering the Phillies have done this well this far given all the injuries, that this might be the best Phillies team yet if they were to make to postseason play. He went on to talk about how even without all the superstars, they've held pace, and now they're all getting healthy at the right time. Then you throw in a rotation of Halladay, Hamels and Oswalt — a top three that blows the rotations of the past two World Series years out of the water (Hamels, Myers, Moyer in 2008 and Lee, Hamels, Martinez in 2009) — along with a bullpen that's suddenly looking like its 2008 form and the potential is scary.
Boone makes one hell of a point. And if you take it a step further, with so many bench players playing pivotal roles this season, getting tons of at-bats and playing time due to the injuries, their bench is better than it's ever been under Charlie Manuel too. Think about it — you have this potent lineup, one in which you have Rollins, Polanco, Utley, Howard (when he's back), Werth, Ibanez, Victorino and Ruiz — with Carlos arguably being the most dangerous hitter of them all this season. With Ruiz raking, there isn't a single weak spot in that lineup. Then you have incredible bats off the bench in the form of Mike Sweeney and Ross Gload, both guys who have hit the piss out of the ball. Not to mention Ben Francisco and Domonic Brown as a righty and lefty off the bench to play outfield, and Wilson Valdez to play anywhere defensively, and have virtually no drop-off whatsoever. And then there's the veteran presence of Brian Schneider to relieve Ruiz here and there, not to mention another lefthanded bat.
You can't name a more complete offense than that. And when you're trotting out the likes of Hamels, Halladay and Oswalt, it puts even more pressure on the opposing pitchers. Because you know those three guys aren't going to give up much. Now with the bullpen finally rounding into form, especially Durbin, Madson and Lidge, the late innings aren't as scary anymore. Especially when the offense is punishing the opposition's bullpen the way it has of late.
As ridiculous as it may sound, this Phillies team, as Boone said, just may be the best one yet. Only time will tell, but the fact that this discussion is even being made is remarkable, considering the past two years the Phils have gone to the World Series, won one of them and have faced so many challenges and injuries this year. I can't wait to find out. Because this team is giving us all a familiar feeling, the feeling that they want to have another parade.
Jonathan Broxton does. Yeah, he sure does. Now he can add this to his memory bank.
Yes ladies and gentlemen, Jonathan Broxton is still haunted by the ghost of Matt Stairs, and by the looks of things, he always will be. First, it was Stairs hitting the hardest ball in the history of the universe that turned a sure loss to tie up the NLCS out in Los Angeles into a dramatic, improbable victory to take a commanding 3-1 series lead en route to becoming World Fucking Champions — and becoming a god here in Philadelphia. Then, Broxton shit his pants again in the NLCS last year when he saw Stairs come to plate, walking him on four pitches, eventually leading to Jimmy's exhilarating walk-off double. And last night, even with Matt Stairs now residing in San Diego, about as far away from Philadelphia as a MLB team can get (though very close to the Dodgers), you just know Broxton had Matt Stairs on his mind. And the result was the same.
With the Phillies trailing 3-1 in the second inning, my roommate and I headed to McCrossen's Tavern to meet Adam EatShit for some beers and food near his new home. Before we could blink, Joe Blanton, Chad Durbin, J.C. Romero and Jose Contreras blew up for six runs, and the Phils trailed 9-2 heading into the bottom of the 8th. Surely, this game was over. At least we were enjoying good food and good beer.
Turns out, that wasn't all we were about to enjoy. In came Ronald Belisario to begin the bottom of the 8th, the hard-throwing righty whose pitches dart every which way. Adam said how good this guy looked against the Phils last year, how hard he throws and the movement. I saw Polanco step in the box and said, "Polanco will definitely get a hit off this guy." Almost as if on cue, Polanco ripped a two-strike pitch up the middle for a single. From there, I wasn't so confident, expecting Belisario to get out of it with minimal damage.
But a funny thing happened. The newest first baseman in town, veteran Mike Sweeney, followed Polanco's lead by singling up the middle. Then Jayson Werth made it three straight singles, driving in Polanco and Sweeney after they had advanced on a wild pitch. Suddenly, this game didn't look quite as over as it seemed. Still though, the Dodgers were up 5 with just six more outs needed. Belisario would not be able to get any of those required outs, allowing Werth to advance to second on a balk, and surrendering a double to Ben Francisco to plate Werth, 9-5. Now things were really starting to get interesting.
Belisario got pulled for Kenley Jansen, essentially the same type of pitcher as Belisario, but one who had not given up any earned runs in his 7 innings of big league work. He quickly got Carlos Ruiz to ground out, but did surrender an RBI single to Wilson Valdez to make it a 9-6 game before getting pulled. Suddenly it was a three-run game, well within reach. And as George Sherrill came in, the camera panned to Broxton. I said, "I want to see that guy come in the game," precisely because of his history against the Phils.
Sherrill got Dom Brown to fly out, but then walked Jimmy Rollins, bringing the tying run to the plate in the form of Raul Ibanez. Suddenly my focus shifted from wanting to see Broxton enter the game to envisioning Raul replicate his at-bat against Sherrill in game 1 of last year's NLCS, when he hit a three-run home run off Sherrill to give the Phils an 8-4 lead in the 8th.
Instead Raul grounded out on the first pitch, and my hopes went up in flames when I saw Danys Baez come into the game. There was no doubt in mind, Baez was going to give some of those hard-earned runs right back. It's what he does. He's terrible and I hate him. There was no possible way he was going to not screw this up and piss me off.
Except he didn't. In fact, Danys Baez pitched a 1-2-3 9th inning. I swear to god. It really happened. I know, I couldn't believe it either. And that set the stage we were all hoping for — Jonathan Broxton, with visions of Matt Stairs in his head, entering the game in a save situation. Against most teams, that's a frightening proposition. Broxton is a flame-throwing, lockdown closer on most nights, the type of pitcher most teams are loathe to see on the mound. But not the Phillies. Not after two Octobers of making Broxton their bitch. No, the Phillies aren't scared of Broxton the way some teams are. It's the complete opposite, in fact: Broxton is scared of the Phillies.
How else can you explain him hitting Placido to start things off? And how else do you explain him walking Mike Sweeney immediately after that? And by the way, what a hell of an at-bat by Sweeney. We keep hearing about how much of a professional hitter he is, and man, that was the epitome of a professional at-bat. He worked a full count on one of the hardest throwers alive, fouling off three 96-plus mph fastballs on the black before taking his base on balls. It was really an awesome at-bat.
After that, the wheels didn't just come off, they rolled past the car and caused a pile-up. Broxton followed up the HBP to Polanco and walk to Sweeney with yet another walk to Werth, loading the bases for Ben Francisco — a guy who had doubled to score a run his last at-bat.
Well this time, Francisco didn't put quite the same swing on the ball, hitting a grounder right to third baseman Casey Blake, a sure out and potential double-play ball off the bat. But what should have been wasn't, as Blake lifted his glove too early, and ball went right through his legs and into leftfield, scoring Polanco and Sweeney, 9-8. At that point, everyone in the bar, everyone in Philadelphia, hell, everyone in Los Angeles knew the Phillies were going to win. And they wasted no time, as Curbball absolutely smoked a double to the gap, easily scoring Werth and Francisco to win the game. The bar exploded in sheer joy. I'm not one that enjoys watching games in public places (besides actually being there), preferring to watch them at home, so much so that I'll never go to a bar or party to watch a playoff game, but I have to say, it was pretty cool being in McCrossen's and hearing the reaction. What a rally. What a comeback.
Chooch was the unquestionable hero of the game, going 3-for-5 with a run and 3 RBIs, of course highlighted by plating the game-tying and game-winning runs with his walkoff double to more than make up for his throwing error. But the star, as anyone watching knows, was this youngster, who had started his hexing in the 8th and carried it over all the way to the finish. It sure seemed to work. The Phanatic taught him well. It's just a shame he's so young, because if he was a little older, he'd definitely be getting laid by some ladies that love the Phils. Regardless, he'll be the most popular kid in his class come September.
Almost as popular as Matt Stairs. Somewhere in San Diego, you know Stairs was watching with a big smile on his face, knowing that Broxton was thinking about him, trying not to pee his pants.
What I'm trying to say is, in that insanely bright, ridiculously prevalent sun yesterday, it was hot. All sorts of hot. But not as hot I'm sure every Mets fan was on Friday.
I watched the Phillies take a 1-0 lead in the first inning Friday night and then proceeded to shower and head up north to see the old parents and, most importantly, my dog. When I got in my car, I tuned in to Franzke and L.A., and grew incredibly disgusted when Joe Blanton gave up runs in consecutive innings — the 3rd and 4th. So disgusted that I thought if I kept subjecting myself to listening to Joe Blanton surrender runs, I was going to go on a road rage tear the likes of which the world has never seen, killing millions before ultimately dying in my own fiery wreck. I decided perhaps it would be best if I switched on over to some music to try and remain calm and, you know, alive during my drive.
How this calms me down, I have no idea, but it does. Maybe it's because Queens of the Stone Age is unleashing on the anger I want to bestow upon the world when Blanton sucks balls. Though to be fair, he didn't give up a single run after that, actually finishing with a tremendous line of 7 innings pitched, 2 runs, 4 strikeouts and no walks. Not bad. But I couldn't take that chance, not with my crazy hands at the wheel.
Anyway, to make a long story short, I ended up at Paul lil' Jon Runyan's house with silver fox during the 8th inning, just in time to witness Bobby Parnell completely and utterly implode along with Pedro Feliciano. It was glorious. Three straight singles to start things off — first by Sweeney, then Werth and finally Ben Francisco — tied the game at 2. Then Curbball followed up by continuing his torrid pace, making it a fourth single in a row for the Phils, plating Werth, 3-2 Phils.
That was all she wrote for Parnell, the hard-throwing righty that Mets fans actually think might be good some day. Luckily, that day was not Friday. In came Pedro Feliciano to quell the Phils, but the hits just kept on coming. Wilson Valdez laid a bunt that Feliciano couldn't make the play on, making it five straight singles, this one to load the bases. Ross Gload followed with a bases-loaded walk, 4-2 Phils. The Jimmy Rollins made it 5-2 with an RBI single. Feliciano did get Raul Ibanez out on strikes, but that was it for him. Another pitching change did little to dampen the fire. Polanco got sac fly to score Vadez, 6-2, and Sweeney followed with an RBI single, 7-2. Six runs in the innings, and suddenly the Phils turned a 2-1 deficit in the 8th into a 7-2 lead in the 9th, needing just three outs to secure yet another victory.
Of course, nothing is that easy for the Phillies in 2010, especially when the game gets put in the hands of that bullpen. Danys Baez relieved Chad Durbin to start the 9th, got two of the first three hitters out before Jeff Francoeur singled. The Mets had two runners on and two outs, down by five runs. I hate Baez as much as the next guy, but with a five-run lead and a little wiggle room, I would have left him in, saved some of the more vital guys' arms. Charlie felt otherwise, bringing J.C. Romero, and Romero, who all the sudden can't get anyone out or throw a strike, tossed up a meatball to Mike Hessman. Hessman destroyed it for a three-run homer, turning a five-run lead into a save situation.
And of course, Charlie brought his closer in. Luckily, Lidge didn't do anything horrifying this time around, striking out Jesus Felicano looking to end the game. It would have been devastating to watch the Mets' bullpen implode and pretty much hand the Phils a victory only to have the Phillies' bullpen do the exact same thing. It almost happened, but as they say, almost only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades, which allowed us to laugh at this guy instead of joining him with a pained face.
There's not a whole lot better than watching Mets fans as their team melts down right before their very eyes, especially in Philadelphia.
However, it was the Mets fans doing the laughing on Saturday. This was your classic pitching duel, Mets ace Johan Santana and Phillies World Fucking Champions hero Cole Hamels plain dealing. Unfortunately for the Phillies, it was Santana who came out on top, 1-0. Not that it was Hamels' fault. Not at all.
Cole pitched 7 innings of nearly flawless baseball, striking out 11 Mets while surrendering just six scattered hits. Unfortunately, one of those six hits was an unexpected opposite-field home run by Jeff Francoeur in the 7th, which gave the Mets the lone run of the game. And that's a shame, because Cole really was breezing, his fastball electric and his changeup unhittable. He deserved better. He deserved to win. Only problem was, so did Johan Santana.
As I'm sure you're all well aware of, the Mets have never had a pitcher throw a no-hitter. Not once. And they still don't. But through 5 and two-thirds on Saturday night, Santana held the Phillies without a hit. And in actuality, he should have taken that no-hit bid into the 7th because he started the 6th by striking out Cole Hamels, then getting Jimmy Rollins to ground out to short, and then striking out Raul Ibanez … who reached on said strikeout when the ball bounced away from Henry Blanco for a wild pitch. So instead of a no-hitter through 6th, Santana had to face another Phils batter in the inning. And with another chance, Placido Polanco broke up the no-htter with a single up the middle. Johan got out of it from there, but it was evident that that hit gave the Phils the confidence that had been lacking all game.
Francoeur homered the 7th, meaning the Phils trailed in the bottom half. But things finally began to look up. Santana gave up a leadoff double to Jayson Werth, suddenly looking mortal. Now all the Phils needed was to get him over to get a hit. That's when things went a little haywire. Ben Francisco, who probably hasn't been asked to bunt since high school, showed bunt on the first pitch, pulled it back and fell behind 0-1 when it was called a strike. I didn't like having Ben bunt at all, now he was down 0-1. To his credit, Francisco tried to hit the ball the other way, but fouled it off. Now he had two strikes and just needed to make contact. He did, but it was to the left side, a grounder to short. Off the bat, I thought, "Oh well, we'll still have a runner on second with one out." Except that's not what happened. Not at all.
Why? Because Jayson Werth made his second boneheaded base-running blunder in three games. Just two nights after getting picked off 2nd at a crucial moment in Florida, Werth took off for third on a ground ball hit to his right (the left side) right to shortstop. All Jose Reyes had to do was lob the ball the third to get him out. Which is what he did. Unbelievable. I like Jayson Werth. I think he's a great player. I would for the Phillies to re-sign him, even though that seems like a remote possibility. However, if he's going to be doing shit like this, well, he needs a swift kick in the ass. I don't know what the hell is the matter with this guy, but he needs to wake up. Honestly, this is the same Jayson Werth that has been a tremendous base-runner for the Phillies, the guy who stole second and third off Billy Wagner to spark the Phils into the postseason. Now he's getting picked off second and trying to get to third on grounders to short? What the hell? Wake the fuck up, Jayson! You're killing me with that shit.
Here's another thing that bothered me in that inning, though I understand the logic. Ruiz followed Francisco's fielder choice by popping out for out No. 2, and Valdez got a bunt single to keep the inning alive, runners on second and first with two outs in the 7th, the Phils trailing 1-0 to a pitcher that is dealing. With the pitcher spot up, naturally he went to a pinch-hitter, unlike that one time, and with the lefthanded Santana on the hill, he preferred a righty. Fine, I get that. The only problem is the only righty he had on the bench was John Mayberry, a younger guy with an extremely long swing and a grand total of one at-bat on the season. A guy that really had just about no chance to get a hit off Santana and his filthy changeup.
A hundred times out of a hundred, I'd feel more comfortable with Ross Gload against Santana than Mayberry. But Charlie stuck to the right-lefty match-up, and naturally, Mayberry weakly flew out to center, threat over. I just don't like the fact that the Phils were relying on a guy that hadn't even played for them, hadn't even been in the big leagues really at all this season in a spot like that. Against Johan freakin Santana. Like I said, I'd have gone with Gload, who actually does pretty good against lefties.
Though Gload would get his chance. To start the 8th, Johan gave up back-to-back singles to Rollins and Raul before getting Polanco to ground into a fielder's choice. That was it for Johan, leaving after 7 and a third with runners on 1st and 2nd. In came K-Rod, that raving douche. Mike Sweeney greeted him with a hard liner … right to first baseman Ike Davis, two down. But then K-Rod walked Werth to load the bases, and up came Gload. I liked our chances here, however, Rodriguez won a tough battle, getting Gload to ground out harmlessly to 2nd.
That was all she wrote, as Ruiz struck out to lead off the 9th, then Dobbs continued to not get hits, blooping out to second, and Dom Brown went down on strikes to end the game. Annoying. Cole pitched brilliantly, but it wasn't enough. Sometimes you're going to lose a game like that to a pitcher like Santana. It's just annoying that it was the Phils with runners in scoring position in the 7th and 8th, yet the Mets were the ones who found a way to score a run.
That meant the Phils would need to win on Sunday to take the series against the pathetic Mets. The good news? Roy Halladay was on the mound. The bad news? So was R.A. Dickey.
In case you forgot, R.A. Dickey owned the Phillies back in May, kicking off the three-game series in which the Phils would get swept and not score a single run by striking out 7 Phillies over 6 innings and combing with Raul Valdez for the shutout. Not good.
However, Dickey hasn't been the same pitcher of late as he was early on. Teams are starting to figure out his knuckleball and crushing his fastball. With the Phillies playing confident ball of late and Halladay on the mound, I fully anticipated witnessing a Phils victory.
I got there fairly early, meeting my dad, cousin and grandfather in our seats in the 7th row on the third base line. The sun was beating down right on us, and I was sweating my balls off from the moment I sat down until the time the game ended. It was not a pretty sight. Not at all. And neither was the start of the start of the game.
Jose Reyes led the game off by doubling to right off Halladay — though nearly getting hosed by Domonic Brown at second. That guy can throw a baseball. Then Angel freakin Pagan singled to score Reyes, stole second, watched as Halladay got Carlos Beltran to pop out, and then stole third. What the fuck, Roy? When Pagan stole second, Halladay didn't look over. And when he stole third, he didn't even look back at him at all. Terrible. Halladay did get David Wright out on strikes, but Ike Davis singled in Pagan to make it 2-0 Mets. Before you could blink, Halladay had given up as many runs in the first inning as he has been averaging per nine innings. Unreal.
And that first inning would set the stage for the pattern of the day. Roy would have no problems taking care of Carlos Beltran and David Wright, New York's three and four hitters, but he also wouldn't be able to get Jose Reyes or Angel Pagan out, the Mets' one and two hitters.
Though after that rocky first, Roy would settle down, and after a slow start, the Phils got going against Dickey. It all began in the 2nd when Werth hit was looked to be an extremely high pop-up to center. From my seat, I could see the ball jump off his bat, but it looked way too high to be a home run. Carlos Beltran thought so too.
But the ball kept carrying and carrying and carrying, landing over the fence as Beltran face-planted into the wall. The scoreless streak against Dickey was not more, and Halladay did manage to get Reyes and Pagan out in the third, as well as Beltran, going grounder, strikeout, strikeout to set the Mets down in order. That's when the Phils exploded.
In the 3rd, Rollins got things going with a one-out double. Then Polanco reached on an error by Reyes, and Gload made it hurt by driving in Jimmy with an RBI single to left. The play was a lot closer than you'd expect. Fernando Martinez threw a seed to home, and Rollins, with his bad foot, isn't running like himself. However, Jimmy made a great slide and tied up the game. Then Raul pulverized one to straightaway center, crushing it right off the ivy of the brick wall, 5-2 Phils.
Ibanez may have been horrendous in the first half, but he's been downright indispensable here in the second half. Without him, the Phils would be cooked. But ever since Chase and Ryan and Shane have been hurt, Raul and Ruiz have been carrying this offense. Yesterday was more of the same for Ibanez.
And the Phils weren't done. Werth followed up his solo homer with a double, and two batters later, Brian Schneider drove him in, 6-2 Phils. With Halladay on the mound and cruising after that tough first inning, that looked like it would be more than enough for the win. Dickey had already been chased, meaning the Mets had to rely on the bullpen that had blown it Friday for the remainder of the game, while Halladay was beginning to get in a zone. Even Jimmy Rollins leaving the bases loaded in that 3rd inning to end it couldn't dampen the mood.
Roy struck out Wright and Davis to begin the 4th, then got Martinez to ground out, 10 straight Mets out, three straight perfect innings. Halladay was turning it on, and this one was over. That's the feeling you got. Even when he gave up a leadoff single to star the 5th, didn't matter. He got Ruben Tejada to ground into a double play, then struck out Luiz Castillo. The man was dealing.
That is, until the dynamic duo came up again. For the second time in the game, Reyes led off an inning with a double, again ripping one to right in the 6th. Angel Pagan followed with an RBI single to plate Reyes and got to second as Brown fumbled the ball in right. Halladay just couldn't get Reyes and Pagan out. But he still had no trouble retiring the middle of the order, striking out Beltran and Wright yet again, then getting Davis to ground out.
Meanwhile, the Phils' offense stalled against the Mets' long relievers, failing to get another run. Now a 6-3 game, things weren't as comfortable as they once seemed. And it was still hot. Real hot. Something was off. And that something was Roy Halladay.
Suddenly, the cruise control was off. In the 7th, he gave up a leadoff single to Martinez, followed by a double to put runners on 2nd and 3rd with no outs. Tejada drove Martinez in by grounding out to Rollins. Then some guy named Chris Carter, and I'm not talking about the wide receiver, smoked a double off Roy to make it a one-run ball game. Unreal. Then Roy walked Reyes, and up came Pagan. I was terrified, but I should have known better. Even without his best outing, Halladay wasn't going to go down like that. He got Pagan to fly out, then whiffed Beltran yet again, keeping the Phils ahead 6-5 with just six more outs needed.
Sadly, the Phils couldn't muster up anything. Now the game was turned over to Madson and Lidge, a great thing in 2008, but a terrifying proposition in 2010. Thankfully, Madson set the Mets down in order in the 8th. That was a nice change of pace.
Of course, some insurance runs sure would be nice with the game most certainly being turned over to Lidge in the 9th. Wilson Valdez got a one-out single, but then was erased on a fielder's choice ground out by Greg Dobbs, who still can't hit. Then this happened, I swear to god. Greg Dobbs took off on a pitch and got caught stealing. Now, I don't know what happened. I'm not a coach, I'm not in the clubhouse, I don't know the signs. But I have to think that Jimmy Rollins missed a hit-and-run sign, right? I mean, that's the only explanation. Because Rollins didn't swing, and Dobbs ran. So it had to be a missed sign, right? If not, if Greg Dobbs, one of the slowest base-runners on the team, was stealing on his own, he should be fucking cut today. That's just insanity. Truth be told, he should be cut anyway, because the asshole can't hit or field, and now he's getting caught stealing. Ridiculous. I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt there and say Jimmy missed a sign. It's the only thing that will allow my head not to explode.
Instead of any insurance, Dobbs got caught stealing to end the inning. Now it was a Lidge time, and Brad promptly gave up a leadoff single to Thole, couldn't throw a first-pitch strike to save his life and had me wanting to kill myself. But then he got Tejada and Carter to ground out, and Reyes to fly out to end the game. The Bridge to Lidge looked to be back for one game. Man, I hate that saying, the bridge to Lidge. But hey, the Phils won, they're still right there and I lost about 35 pounds of sweat.
And Roy won a game in which he surrendered 5 runs, making up for one of the 8,000 times he's given up 2 or less and somehow lost or got a no decision. Baseball makes no sense sometimes.
