June 2009

The Phillies ends Interleague Play with a series win, as they defeat the Blue Jays, 5-4.

The Phillies end Interleague Play on a high note as they leave Toronto with a series win and a two-game winning streak, as they defeat the Blue Jays, 5-4. The win, the 252nd in Jamie Moyer’s long career, pushes him into 43rd place on the all-time wins list, going past Hall of Famer Bob Gibson. But it was not easy.

The Blue Jays took a quick lead in the first as, with one man out, Aaron Hill hits a solo home run, his eighteenth home run of the season, making it 1-0 Blue Jays. Toronto increased their lead in the second, as, with one man on, and two men out, Jose Bautista hits a two-run home run, his second home run of the year, knocking in Lyle Overbay, who had just walked, to give the Blue Jays a 3-0 lead. In the third, the Phils made it 3-1 Blue Jays, as, with runners on second and third, and with one man out, Ryan Howard hits an RBI ground out, 3-unassisted, scoring Shane Victorino, who had earlier singled, moved over to second on Jayson Werth’s walk, and then went to third when Chase Utley struck out, but the ball got passed Blue Jays’s catcher Raul Chavez for a passed ball, while sending Werth, who had earlier walked, and had moved up to second on the pass ball, would go on to third base. It then became a 4-1 Blue Jays’ lead as Hill hits a lead-off home run, his ninteenth home run of the year, and his second of the game. Later in the inning, the Blue Jays threathen to add more runs to their lead, as they had two men on base, Scott Rolen via a double, and Adam Lind via a walk, with only one out. But Phils’ starter Jamie Moyer would get out of the jam by striking out first Alex Rios, and then Overbay, with both man swinging. The Phils would then take over the lead in the fourth. The Phils would load the bases on a Pedro Feliz single, a Chris Coste walk, which would move Feliz up to second base, and then a bunt single by Eric Bruntlett, which moved both Feliz and Coste up a base, with nobody out. Carlos Ruiz then hits a grounder to Blue Jays’ third baseman, Rolen, which could have been a doubleplay ball, if the play wasn’t broken up by Bruntlett’s slide, knocking down Blue Jays’ second baseman, Hill. The play instead becomes a force out, 5-4, allowing Feliz to score from third, making the score 4-2 Blue Jays, while Coste would move to third, and Ruiz would be safe first, with only one out. Victorino then followed with a sacrifice fly for the inning’s second out, scoring Coste from third, making it a 4-3 Blue Jays’ lead. Two batters later, with two men on, and still two men out, Utley hits a two-run triple, knocking in Ruiz, who had gone to second on Werth’s single, and Werth, who had just singled, to give the Phils’ a 5-4 lead. That would be the score until the ninth, as Moyer would handle the Blue Jays for the fourth-fifth innings, Chan Ho Park would shut them down for two innings, and Ryan Madson would keep the Blue Jays in check in the eighth inning. In the ninth, the Phils would hand the ball over to Brad Lidge, back from the 15-games disabled list, to record the save. At first, he ran into trouble, as he allowed two men on base, a single to Chavez and a walk to Marco Scutaro, moving John McDonald, who was pinch running for Chavez, to second base with the tying run. After getting Hill to pop out to Utley, with the Infield Fly Rule in effect, for the first out, Lidge would pick McDonald off of second base. After missing McDonald, he threw the ball to Feliz, who would eventually tag McDonald out, 1-5-6-5, for the inning’s second out, killing the threat as the batter, Vernon Wells, then proceeded to ground out 6-3, for the final out.

Jamie Moyer won the game, pitching five innings, giving up four runs on five hits and two walks, while striking four. His record for the year is now 6-6, the Phils’ first six game winner, with an ERA of 6.05. Chan Ho Park recorded his fourth hold as he pitched two scoreless innings, striking out a batter. Ryan Madson recorded his fourteenth hold of the season, as he gave up only a hit and a walk. Brad Lidge recorded his fourteenth save of the year, as he gave up only a hit and a walk. Brian Tallet got the lost, as he pitched six inning, giving up five runs, only four of which were earned, on eight hits and six walks, while striking out six. His record is now 5-5 with a 4.47 ERA. Brandon League, Jeremy Accardo and Jason Frasor combined for three shut out innings, giving up only two hits (League (1), Frasor (1)) and three walks (Accardo (2)  Frasor (1)) between them, while they stuck out only three batters (League (2), Accardo (1)).

The Phillies collected ten hits in the game, with Chase Utley leading the team with two hits, a double and a triple, knocking in two runs, as he raised his average to .302. Shane Victornio, Jayson Werth, Ryan Howard, Pedro Feliz, Chris Coste, Eric Bruntlett, Carlos Ruiz and Matt Stairs got the other eight Phils’ hits, all singles, with Stairs’ being a pinch hit single. Besides Utley’s two RBIs, Howard, Victorino and Ruiz each knocked in a run, with Victorino’s being a sacrifice fly. With Interleague Play now behind them, as well as a series win, the Phils will resume playing fellow National League teams, as they hope to increase their lead in the NL East.

The Phillies (39-34, 1st) have the day off today. They will resume play tomorrow night with their first visit to Atlanta as they face the Braves, hoping to continue their road winning ways as they at the moment stand at .500 for the present road trip. They are presently leading the Mets by two and a half games, as they were swept this weekend by the Yankees.

Phils are finally Happ-y after crushing the Blue Jay as J.A. Happ pitches both his first career shut out and complete game in a 10-0 win.

After a closed club-house meeting after Friday night’s embarrassing lost, the Philles would proceed to unload their Interleague Play frustrations on the Blue Jays with a 10-run outburst while Happ would pitch both his first career complete game and first career shut out as he threw less than 100 pitches in the process, as the Phillies crush the Blue Jays, 10-0.

The Phils took a quick 2-0 lead in the first as, with one man on, and nobody out, Jayson Werth hits a two-run home run, his fourteenth home run of the year, scoring Shane Victorino, who had earlier walked. Four batters later, with a runner on first, and two men out, Pedro Feliz hits a two-run home run of his own, his fourth home run of the year, knocking in Ryan Howard, who had earlier singled, making it a 4-0 Phils’ lead. The Phils would make it 5-0 in the fourth, as, with one man on, and two men out, Carlos Ruiz hits an RBI double, knocking in Chris Coste, who had earlier singled. The Phils then put the game away for good in the fifth, as, with two men on, and nobody out, Howard hits an RBI double, knocking in Werth, who had earlier doubled, giving the Phils a 6-0 lead, while sending Chase Utley, who had earlier walked, over to third. Three batters later, with the bases loaded, after John Mayberry, Jr., is hit by the pitch, sending Howard on to second, and now with one man out, Coste hits an RBI single, scoring Utley, making it a 7-0 Phils’ lead, while moving both Howard and Mayberry up a base. Eric Bruntlett then followed with a sacrifice fly to center for the inning’s second out, scoring Howard, giving the Phils a 9-0 lead. Ruiz would make it 10-0 Phils with an RBI single, scoring Mayberry from second, while sending Coste up to second base. The Phils would score their final run in the sixth, as Werth hits a lead-off home run, his fifteenth home run of the season, his second home run of the game and his eighth career home run against the Blue Jays, making it 10-0 Phils. The Phils threathen to score more runs in both the seventh and eighth innings, but would be turned away by the Blue Jays’ bullpen. Meanwhile, Phils’ starter J.A. Happ would have his way with the Blue Jays’ batters, throwing strikes, and staying out of trouble thanks to a pair of doubleplays, before mowing the Blue Jays’ down, 1-2-3, in the ninth, thus pitching both his first career shut out and first career complete game, and doing with less than 100 pitches.

J.A. Happ got the win as he pitched a complete game shut out, giving up just five hits, as he struck out four. His record is now 5-0 with a 3.00 ERA. Brad Mills took the lost, as he pitched only four innings, plus three batters, giving up eight runs on eight hits and two walks, while striking out seven. His record is now 0-1 with an ERA of 14.09. Shawn Camp pitched an inning in relief, giving up a run on two hits and a hit batter. B.J. Ryan then followed, also pitching an inning, as he also gave up a run on two hits. Brandon League, Dirk Hayhurst and Jesse Carlson then combined to keep the Phils off the scoreboard during the last three innings, giving up just two hits (League (1), Hayhurst (1)) and two walks (Hayhurst), while striking out two (Hayhurst (1), Carlson (1)).

The Phillies recorded fourteen hits in the games, with Jayson Werth leading the way with four of them, including a double and two home runs, as he knocked in three runs, while raising his batting average up to .269. Ryan Howard followed with three hits. Pedro Feliz, Chris Coste and Carlos Ruiz were next with two hits a piece, with Shane Victorino having the Phils’ other hit. Besides Werth’s three RBIs, Feliz and Ruiz would both knock in two runs, while Howard, Coste and Eric Bruntlett would each knock in a run, with Bruntlett’s being by sacrifice fly. The Phillies came out smoking yesterday, taking out their Interleague Play frustrations. Hopefully they will have something left for today’s ballgame.

The Phillies (38-34, 1st National League East) will play their final Interleague Play game with the Blue Jays (41-35, 3rd-T American League East). The game will be played at the Rogers Centre and will start at 1:07 pm Eastern. The Phils starter will be Jamie Moyer (5-6, 5.97), who is coming off a win against the Rays on June 23, when he went six innings, giving up a run on five hits and three walks, while striking out four, in the Phils’ 10-1 win. He will be trying to even his record, while giving the Phils a chance to win their second Interleague Play series on the road. He will be opposed by Brian Tallet (5-4, 4.36), who is coming off a win against the Reds on June 23, as he pitched six shut out innings, giving up just three hits and one walk, while striking out seven, in the Blue Jays’ 7-5 win. He will be trying for his sixth win of the season, while trying to help the Blue Jays win the series. The Phils will be trying to even things up on their road trip, before going to Atlanta to meet the Braves, while trying to increase their lead over the Mets.

The Phillies lose another interleague play game as Antonio Bastardo leaves the game with an injury, as they fall to the Rays, 10-4.

After an explosive start, the Phils watch the game slip out of their hands, and see another pitcher go down, as they lose to the Rays, 10-4, their first road series lost in a while.

The Phillies took a quick lead in the first as, with two men on, and one out, Ryan Howard hits a two-run double, scoring Greg Dobbs, who had earlier singled and had gone to second on Chase Utley’s single, and Utley, who had just singled, giving the Phils a 2-0 lead. Two batters later, with two men out, the Phils made it 3-0 as Matt Stairs followed with a double, knocking in Howard. It then became 4-0 Phils as Pedro Feliz hits an RBI single, scoring Stairs. The Rays would come back in their half of the first, as, with one man on and two outs, Carlos Pena hits an RBI double, knocking in Pat Burrell, who had earlier doubled, making it a 4-1 Phils’ lead. Ben Zobrist then made it a 4-3 Phils’ lead as he hits a two-run home run, his sixteenth home run of the season, scoring Pena. The Rays would tie the game up at four-all in the second, as Willy Aybar hits a lead-off home run, his sixth home run of the season. Four batters later, with runners on the corners, and one man out, the Rays took the lead as Carl Crawford hits an RBI double, scoring Gabe Kapler, who had earlier doubled and had gone to third on Dioner Navarro’s single, giving the Rays a 5-4 lead, while sending Navarro, who had just singled, over to third base. One batter later, Burrell would hit into an RBI ground out, 4-3, for the inning’s second out, scoring Navarro from third to make it 6-4 Rays, while sending Crawford on to third. In the fourth, the Rays tried to add to their lead, with two men on, Kapler and Crawford via walks, and two men out, as the Phillies took their starter Antonio Bastardo out of the game because of a strained left shoulder. The Phils replaced him with Chad Durbin, who then proceeded to end the threat by striking out Burrell. The Phils then threathen to score in the sixth, as they had runners on the corners, Stairs on third, after getting on base by being hit by the pitch, and then going to third on Feliz’s infield single and a throwing error by Rays’ shortstop Jason Bartlett, after originally being unable to handle the ball, with one man out, as Eric Bruntlett hits a fly ball to center field, which would’ve been deep enough to score Stairs, and make it a 6-5 Rays’  lead. But, in a baserunning blunder, Feliz had run up to second base, and was thus doubled up when Rays’ centerfielder B.J. Upton’s throw beat him back to first, 8-3, before Stairs could cross the plate, denying the Phils a run, and leaving the score at 6-4 Rays. The Rays then proceeded to bust the game open in their half of the sixth as, with the bases loaded via a Crawford double, later going to third on a Durbin wild pitch, and then walks to both Burrell and Zobrist, and two men out, Bartlett hits an RBI single, scoring Crawford, making it 7-4 Rays, while both Burrell and Zobrist moved up a base, leaving them loaded. Aybar then followed with a two-run single, scoring both Burrell and Zobrist, giving the Rays a 9-4 lead, and sending Bartlett to third, before Aybar is thrown out trying to go to second, 8-4, ending the inning. The Rays made it 10-4 in the seventh as, with runners on the corners and one man out, Crawford hits into a RBI force out, scoring Upton, who had earlier tripled, as Gabe Gross, who had earlier walked, was thrown out at second, 4-6, for the inning’s second out. That would end up being the final score, as the Phils’ offensive would be unable to mount any attack during the last two innings.

Antonio Bastardo took the lost, pitching only three and two-thirds innings because of an injury to his left shoulder, as he gave up six runs on seven hits and three walks, while striking out two. His record is now 2-3 with an ERA of 6.75. Chad Durbin pitched two innings of relief, giving up three runs on three hits and three walks, while striking out three. Tyler Walker pitched a third of an inning, giving up two hits. Jack Taschner pitched an inning, giving up a run on two hits and a walk, while striking out one. Ryan Madson also pitched an inning, giving up a hit and a walk, while striking out one. Andy Sonnanstine got the win, as he pitched five and one third innings, giving up four runs on six hits and a walk, and striking out seven. His record is now 6-7 with a 6.61 ERA. Grant Balfour pitched one and two-thirds innings, recording his ten hold of the year, as he give up a hit, while he struck out two. Randy Choate pitched an inning, striking out a batter. Dan Wheeler also pitched an inning, giving up a hit.

The Phils had eight hits in the game, with Greg Dobbs and Pedro Feliz both leading the team with two hits a piece. Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Matt Stairs and John Mayberry, Jr. had the other four hits, as the Phils got shut down after such a promising start in the first inning. Howard knocked in two of the Phils’ runs, while Stairs and Feliz both knocked in a run.

The Phillies (37-33, 1st National League East) will conclude Interleague Play this weekend with a three-games series against the Blue Jays (40-34, 3rd American League East). The game will start at 7:07 pm Eastern time, and will be played in Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Phils starter will be their ace Cole Hamels (4-3. 4.24), who is coming off a lost to the Orioles on June 21, as he went eight strong innings, giving up just two runs on nine hits, as he struck out ten, in the Phils’ 2-1 lost. In a previous start against the Blue Jays, on June 16, he pitched a no-decision, as he went six innings, also giving up just two runs, on seven hits and two walks, as he struck out two, in the Phils’ 8-3 lost. He will be trying for his fifth win of the year, while trying to start the series on a very positive note for the Phils. He will be opposed by Ricky Romero (4-3, 3.59), who is coming off a win against the Nationals on June 21, as he pitched seven strong innings, giving up only two runs on eight hits and three walks, while striking out six, in the Blue Jays’ 9-4 win. In a previous start against the Phils, also on June 16, he also received a no-decision as he pitched seven strong innings, giving up three runs on six hits and two walks, while striking out nine, in the Blue Jays’ 8-3 win. He will also be looking for his fifth win of the season, while trying to continue the Phils’ Interleague Play woes.

The Phils are unable to support Joe Blanton’s stellar performance before being blown away in the 8th inning, as they lose to the Rays, 7-1.

The Phils’ bat waste a good effort by Joe Blanton, before watching the Rays bust the game wide open in the eighth inning, losing 7-1. The lost means that the Phils have now participated in another losing season of Interleague Play. GGGRRRR!!!!!

The Rays took the lead in the second as, with one man on, and one man out, Pat Burrell hits a two-run home run, his second home run of the season, scoring Carlos Pena, who had earlier singled, making it 2-0 Rays. The game would then become a pitchers’ duel between Phils’ starter Joe Blanton, who would end up giving up only six hits and two walks, as he struck out ten Rays in seven plus innings of work, and Rays’ starter Matt Garza, who was one hitting the Phils, striking out six batters (seven overall) by the seventh inning. In the seventh, the Phils cut the Rays lead to 2-1 as, with one man out, Jayson Werth hits a solo home run, his thirteenth home run of the season. The Rays would then break the game wide open in the bottom of the eighth inning. With the bases loaded, and two men out, Burrell hits a ball to Phils’ shortstop Jimmy Rollins which should had ended the inning, if he had thrown it over to first for the sure out. Instead, he threw over to second base, where it was beaten out by Ben Zobrist, who had earlier walked, allowing Carl Crawford, who had earlier singled, moved on to second when Pena was hit by the pitch, and then moved over to third on Zobrist’s walk, to score, while Pena, who had been hit by the pitch, and had moved up to second on Zobrist’s walk, to move to third, as the Rays increaded their lead to 3-1, as the bases remained loaded. The Rays would then make it a 5-1 game as Jason Bartlett hits a two-run single, knocking in both Pena and Zobrist, while sending Burrell, who had been safe at first on the fielder’s choice ground ball, to third base, putting runners on the corners. Gabe Gross then followed with a two-run double, scoring both Burrell and Bartlett, making it a 7-1 Rays’ lead. That would be the final score as the Phils went down in the ninth.

Joe Blanton took the lost in spite of pitching a very good game, as he went seven innings plus one batter, giving up only two runs on six hits and two walks, while striking out ten. His record is now 4-4, with an ERA of 5.06. J.C. Romero pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up three runs on one hit, a walk and a hit batter. Chan Ho Park pitched a third of an inning in relief, giving up a run on two hits. Matt Garza got the win as he pitched eight strong innings, giving up only a run on three hits, three walks and a hit batter, as he struck out seven. His record is now 5-5 with a 3.61 ERA. Randy Choate pitched a scoreless inning, giving up only a hit and a walk.

The Phils had only four hits in the game, with Jayson Werth leading the team with two hits, including a solo home run, accounting for the Phils only run, and one hit each by Matt Stairs and Greg Dobbs. The Phils’ batters were kept off-balanced for most of last night by Garza as they fail to support a good effort by Blanton,

The Phillies (37-32, 1st National League East) will conclude their interleague game series with the Rays (38-35, 4th American League East) tonight. The game will start at 7:08 pm Eastern and will be played at Tropicana Field. The Phils’ starter will be Rookie Antonio Bastardo (2-2, 5.21), who is coming off a lost against the Orioles on June 19, where he went seven innings, giving up four runs on five hits, as he struck out five, in the Phils’ 7-2 lost. He will be trying for his third win of the season, while trying to give the Phils the chance to win another road series. The Rays will counter with Andy Sonnanstine (5-7, 6.60), who is coming off a lost to the Mets on June 19, where he pitched six innings, giving up four runs on seven hits and two walks, while striking out five, in the Rays’ 5-3 lost. He will be trying to give the Rays a series win, while trying to improve his record. The Phillies will be trying for another road series win, only their second series win in Interleague Play.

The Phils continue their dominance on the road as they blast the Rays for an easy win, 10-1.

The Phils continue to show themselves to be the best road team in the major league after posting six quick runs in the first as they coast to an easy 10-1 victory over the 2008 American League Champions Rays. In the process, the Phils stopped a six games losing streak.

The Phils took an early lead in the first as, with two men on, and nobody out, Chase Utley hits a two-run double, scoring Jimmy Rollins, who had earlier reached base on a two-base throwing error by Rays’ third baseman Evan Langoria, and Shane Victorino, who had just walked, giving the Phils a 2-0 lead. It became 3-0 Phils as Ryan Howard hits an RBI double, scoring Utley. After Jayson Werth followed Howard with a single, sending him up to third base, putting runners on the corner, with still nobody out, and Pedro Feliz struck out swinging, for the Phils’ first out, John Mayberry made it 6-0 Phils with a three-run home run, his third home run of the season, scoring both Howard and Werth. The six-run outburst made things easier for Phils’ starter Jamie Moyer, who would proceed to have an easy game, giving up only five hits before finally being taken out of the game in the seventh. Before then, the Phils would add to their lead. In the top of the fourth, with two men on, and nobody out, Carlos Ruiz hits an RBI ground out, 6-3, for the Phils’ first out of the inning, while scoring Mayberry, who had reached first base on a missed catch error by Rays’ first baseman Carlos Pena, then moved up to second on Chris Coste’s single, before continuing on to third on Rays’ center field B.J. Upton’s fielding error, while Coste moved up to second, as the Phils increased their lead to 7-0. Two batters later, with Coste now on third with, two men out, thanks to a Rollins’ ground out, 4-3, Victorino would make it an 8-0 lead as he hits an RBI single, scoring Coste. Utley then gave the Phils a 10-0 lead as he hits a two-run home run, his sixteenth home run of the season, knocking in Victorino. The Rays would score a run in their half of the fourth as, with two men on, and two men out, Jason Bartlett hits an RBI single, knocking in Pena, who had earlier doubled, while sending Pat Burrell, who had earlier walked, over to second, making it a 10-1 Phils’ lead. But that would be all of the scoring that night, as the Rays’ bullpen stopped the Phils’ offense, while Tyler Walker and Sergio Escalona, recalled from the minors to take the place of Clay Condrey, who had been placed on the 15-games disabled list, took over for Moyer and threw three shut out innings at the Rays.

Jamie Moyer got the win as he pitched six strong innings, only giving up a run on five hits and three walks, while striking out four, recording career victory no. 251. His record is now 5-6 with an ERA of 5.97. Tyler Walker and Sergio Escalona combined for three shut out innings, giving up only three hits (Walker), while striking out one (Walker). David Price took the lost, as he got roughed up for all ten runs, only five of which were earned, on seven hits and two walks, while striking out only two, in four and a third innings of work. His record is now 1-2 with a 4.45 ERA. Winston Abreu and Lance Cormier then came in for four and two-thirds scoreless innings, giving up only three hits (Abreu (2), Cormier (1)) and a walk (Abreu), while striking out five batters between them (Abreu (3), Cormier (2)).

The Phils had ten hits in the game, with Chase Utley leading the way with three hits, including a double and a home run, knocking in four runs, as he raised his batting average to .303. He was followed by Shane Victorino, who had two hits, knocking in a run, as he raisied his average to .308. Ryan Howard, Jayson Werth, John Mayberry Jr., Chris Coste and Carlos Ruiz had the other five Phillies’ hits, with Mayberry’s hit being a three-run home run, and Howard’s hit a one-run double. Besides Utley’s four RBIs, Mayberry’s three, and Victorino and Howard’s one RBI each, Ruiz knocked in the other RBI, as the Phils’ bats finally knocked in some runs, as they took advantage of some sloppy fielding by the Rays.

The Phillies (37-31, 1st National League East) continue their three-games Interleague Play series with the Rays (37-35, 4th American League East). The game will be played at Tropicana Field, at 7:08 pm Eastern. The Phils will send to the mound Joe Blanton (4-3, 5.28), who is coming off his third straight no-decision, this one against the Blue Jays on June 18, as he pitched five and one-third innings, giving up four runs on nine hits and a walk, while he struck out two, in the Phils’ 8-7 lost. He will once again try for his fourth straight win and his fifth win of the season, while trying to eat up the innings to help give the bullpen a much needed rest. The Rays will counter with Matt Garza (4-5, 3.83), who is coming off a lost against the Rockies on June 18, as he pitched five innings, giving up four runs on five hits and two walks, as he struck out five, in the Blue Jays’ 4-3 lost. He will be trying to even up his record while hoping to avoid getting creamed by the Phils’ potent road warrior offense. The Phillies will be looking for another road win, while at the same time go back to increasing their lead over the Mets.

The Phillies leave home with a bad taste in their mouths after being swept by the Orioles, 2-1.

The Phils are swept for the second straight home series as they lose their third game in a row to the last place Orioles in a pitchers’ duel, losing 2-1. They will leave Philliy having been involved in one of the worst home stands in the club’s history, having won only one game in a nine-game home stand.

The Phillies took a quick 1-0 lead in the second as Greg Dobbs hits a lead-off home run, his fourth home run of the year. The game then developed into a pitchers’ duel between Phils’ ace Cole Hamels, who would eventually strike out ten Orioles in his eight innings of work, and the Orioles’ Jeremy Guthrie, who would only give up three hits to the Phils during his seven innings of work. The Orioles were finally able to tie the game up at one-all in the sixth as, with a runner on third and two men out, Adam Jones hits an RBI single, scoring Brian Roberts, who had earlier doubled, and then stole third. The Orioles then took the lead in the eighth as, with one man on, and one out, Roberts hits an RBI single, bringing home Robert Antonio, who had earlier doubled, and had gone to third on pinch hitter Oscar Salazar’s ground out, 4-3, for the inning’s first out. That would be the final score as the Phils went down 1-2-3 in the ninth.

Cole Hamels took the lost in spite of pitching eight strong innings, giving up only two runs on nine hits, as he struck out ten. His record is now 4-3 with a 4.24 ERA. Chan Ho Park pitched a 1-2-3 inning. Jeremy Guthrie got the win as he pitched seven strong innings, giving up only a run on three hits and two walks, while striking out four. His record is now 5-7 with an ERA of 5.09. Jim Johnson pitched a scoreless inning as he recorded his eleventh hold, giving up only one hit. George Sherrill recorded his fifteenth save as he pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

The Phils would get only four hits in the game, with Shane Victorino getting two of them. Greg Dobbs and Matt Stairs got the other two hits, with Dobbs knocking in the team’s only run with his solo home run. The Phils will now try to regroup, hoping that they can return to winning once they are back on the road.

The Phillies (36-31, 1st National League East) have the day off today. They will resume play tomorrow in Tampa Bay, as they continue their involvement in Interleague Play, trying to both end their six-game slide and their inability to do well in Interleague Play.

The Phils are swept at home as they lose a see-saw battle with the Blue Jays, 8-7.

The Phils are unable to avoid being swept at home as the tired bullpen is unable to stop the Blue Jays as the Phils lose a see-saw battle with Toronto, 8-7.

The Blue Jays took a quick 2-0 lead in the second as, with one man on, and two men outs, Raul Chavez hits a two-run home run, his second home run of the year, scoring Adam Lind, who had earlier singled. The Phils would get a run back in their half of the second, as Jayson Werth hits a lead-off home run, his twelfth home run of the year, cutting Toronto’s early lead down to 2-1. In the third, the Blue Jays would increase their lead, as, with one man on, and one man out, Vernon Wells hits an RBI double, scoring Marco Scutaro, who had earlier walked, and then stole second, to make it 3-1 Blue Jays. The Phils would make it 3-2 Blue Jays in their half of the second as with the bases loaded, and with one man out, Werth would hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Shane Victorino, who had reached first on a force out, 5-4, as Jimmy Rollins, who had earlier walked, was wiped out at second base, had moved to second on Chase Utley’s walk, and had then moved up to third on Ryan Howard’s single. The Phils took the lead in the fourth as, with a man on, and two men outs, Rollins hits a two-run home run, knocking in Phils’ starter Joe Blanton, who had earlier walked, to give the Phillies a 4-3 lead. The Phils increased their lead to 5-3 in the fifth as, with two men out, John Mayberry, Jr. hits a solo home run, his second home run of the year. Toronto would get a run back in the sixth as Lind lead-off the inning with a solo home run, his fourteenth home run of the season, cutting the Phils’ lead down to 5-4. The Blue Jays tied the game up at five-all in the seventh as, with a runner on second, and one man out, Lind hits an RBI single, scoring Scott Rolen, who had earlier doubled. The Blue Jays took the lead in the eighth as, with two men on, and nobody out, Wells hits an RBI single, scoring Scutaro, who had reached base with a single, and had moved up to second on Pedro Feliz’s error of an Aaron Hill grounder, giving the Blue Jays a 6-5 lead, while sending Hill on to second. One batter later, the Blue Jays increased their lead to 7-5 as Rolen hits an RBI double, scoring Hill, while sending Wells on to third base. The Phils got one of the runs back in their half of the eighth as pinch hitter Greg Dobbs, with one man out, hits a solo pinch hit home run, his third home run of the year, cutting the Blue Jays’ lead to 7-6. Three batters later, with a runner on second, and with two outs, Victorino hits an RBI single, scoring Rollins, who had earlier doubled, tying the game up at seven-all. The Blue Jays would take the lead for good in the ninth, as, with one swing of the bat, Rod Barajas hits a lead-off pinch hit home run, his sixth home run of the season, making it 8-7 Toronto, which ended up being the final score as the Phils could get nothing together in their half of the ninth.

Joe Blanton received a no-decision as he pitched five and a third innings, giving up four runs on nine hits and a walk, while striking out two. Chan Ho Park pitched an inning, recording his second hold, as he gave up just a run on a hit and a walk, while striking out three. J.C. Romero recorded his first blown save of the season, as he gave up no runs on two hits and a walk, while striking out three. Clay Condrey got hurt as he pitched to five batters, getting none of them out, as he gave up two runs on three hits and a walk. Tyler Walker pitched a scoreless inning, giving up only a walk. Ryan Madson took the lost as he gave up a run on one hit and a walk, while striking out a batter. His record is now 2-2 with a 2.36 ERA. Brad Mills also received a no-decision as the rookie only lasted three and two-thirds innings, giving up four runs on six hits and four walks, while striking out two. Shawn Camp pitched a third of an inning, giving up a hit. Dirk Hayhurst pitched an inning, giving up a run on one hit and a walk. Jayson Carlson also pitched an inning, striking out the side. Brandon League pitched an inning and a third, giving up two runs on two hits, as he struck out three. Jason Frasor recorded his second blown save of the season before receiving the win, as he went a third of an inning, giving up a hit. His record is now 5-0 with a 1.88 ERA. B.J. Ryan recorded his second hold of the season as he pitched one-third of an inning, giving up a walk, while striking out a batter. Jeremy Accardo recorded his first save of the year, as he pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up just a hit.

The Phillies had twelve hits in the game, with Jimmy Rollins leading the team with three hits, including a double and a home run, knocking in two runs and scoring two, as he raised his average up to .225. Shane Victorino and John Mayberry, Jr., both followed with two hits apiece. Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Jayson Werth, Pedro Feliz and Greg Dobbs had the other five Phils’ hits, with Werth and Dobbs’ hits being home runs, along with one of Mayberry’s two hits. Besides Rollins’ two RBIs, Werth also knocked in two runs, while Mayberry, Dobbs and Victorino each knocked in a run. The Phillies’ offense, with Raul Ibanez out for at least fourteen more days, will have to find ways to score runs so that they can give the pitching staff a chance to win some easy games.

The Phillies (36-28, 1st National League East) with conclude their home stand with a three-game weekend series with the lowly Orioles (29-37, 5th American League East) in some more interleague play. The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park and will begin at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phillies will start Antonio Bastardo (2-1, 5.25), who is coming off a bad start against the Red Sox on June 13, where he only pitched an inning, thanks to the rain delay, giving up five runs, only four of which were earned, on three hits and three walks, while striking out only one, in the Phils’ 11-6 lost. He will be trying to rebound from that bad performance before the home crowd. The Orioles will counter with Rich Hill (2-1, 5.81), who is coming off a no-decision against the Braves on June 13, where he only pitched four innings, giving up four runs on five hits and three walks, while striking out one, in the Orioles’ 8-4 win. He will be trying for his third win of the season. The Phillies will be trying to take their interleague play and losing at home woes out on the Orioles while trying to see about adding some distance between themselves and the rest of the NL East, especially the hurting Mets.

The Phillies woes at home continue as they lose another series, falling to the Blue Jays, 7-1.

The Phils lose yet another series at home as they get spanked by the Blue Jays, losing 7-1. Also, they lose Raul Ibanez for a while as he is placed on the disabled list for fifteen days with a groin pull. Ugh. No more bad news, please!!!!

The Blue Jays took a quick 1-0 lead in the first as, with one man on and nobody out, Aaron Hill hits an RBI double, scoring Marco Scutaro, who had earlier singled. The Blue Jays made it 2-0 as, with two men on, and still nobody out, Scott Rolen hits an RBI single, scoring Hill, and sending Vernon Wells, who had just walked, over to second base. Two batters later, with runners on second and third, via a double steal by Wells and Rolen, and with one man out, Alex Rios hits an RBI ground out, 6-3, for the inning’s second out, while Wells scored from third, making it a 3-0 Blue Jays’ lead. The Blue Jays increased their lead to 4-0 in the second as Rod Barajas hits a lead-off home run, his fifth home run of the year. The Phils would get a run back in the fourth as, with two outs, Jayson Werth hits a solo home run, his eleventh home run of the year, making it 4-1 Toronto. That would be the score until the seventh when, with a runner on first, and nobody out, Hill hits a two-run home run, his fifteenth home run of the season, knocking in Scutaro, who had earlier singled, making it a 6-1 Blue Jays’ lead. Two batters later, with one man out, Rolen would hit a home run of his own, his fourth home run of the year, making it 7-1 Blue Jays. That would be the final score as the Phils could not put together any offense last night.

Jamie Moyer took the lost as he went six innings plus two batters, giving up six runs on ten hits and two walks, while striking out six. His record is now 4-6 with a 6.35 ERA. Chad Durbin pitched an inning, giving up a run on one hit, while striking out a batter. Jack Taschner and Tyler Walker would combine for two scoreless innings, giving up only one hit (Walker) and a walk (Taschner), while striking out three (Taschner (1), Walker (2)). Scott Richmond got the win as he pitched eight innings, giving up only one run on five hits and a walk, as he struck out eleven Phils. His record is now 5-3 with a 3.58 ERA. B.J. Ryan pitched a third of an inning, giving up a hit and two walks. Brandon League pitched two-thirds of an inning, getting out both men that he would face, while recording a strike out.

The Phils had only six hits in the game. Shane Victorino led the team with two hits, with Ryan Howard, Jayson Werth, Pedro Feliz and Chris Coste getting the other four, with Werth’s hit, a solo home run, knocking in the Phils’ only run.

The Phillies (36-27, 1st National League East) will continue their Interleague Play three-games series with the Blue Jays (36-31, 3rd American League East). The game is being played right now at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies’ starter is Joe Blanton (4-3, 5.17), who is coming off a no-decision against the Red Sox on June 12, where he went seven innings, giving up just two runs on five hits and two walks, as he struck out seven, in the Phils’ 5-2 extra-innings lost. He will be trying to get his fifth win, while trying to also end the Phils’ present two-games losing streak. He will be opposed by rookie Brad Mills (0-0, -.–), who is making his major league debut. He hopes to impress the Blue Jays, while hoping that he can take advantage of the Phils present home problems. The Phils hope to end their present slide, while waiting for the lowly Orioles to come to town this weekend.

The Phillies play with fire once too many times as the bullpen is unable to hold the lead as the Phils lose to the Blue Jays in extra-innings, 8-3.

The Phils’ pitching staff played with fire once too many times as Ryan Madson blew a save opportunity with a bases loaded walk in the ninth, before Clay Condrey is bombed for five runs in the tenth as the Phils lose to the Blue Jays, 8-3, as the World Champs are still unable to win victories at home.

The Phils took a quick 1-0 lead in the first as, with a runner on second, and nobody out, Chase Utley hits an RBI single, knocking in Jimmy Rollins, who had earlier doubled, beating the throw to the plate from the center fielder, which allowed Utley to move up to second base. In the fourth, the Blue Jays would tie the score at one-all as, with one out, Adam Lind hits a solo home run, his thirteenth home run of the season. Two batters later, the Blue Jays would take the lead as, with a runner on first and still one man out, Kevin Millar hits an RBI double, scoring Alex Rios, who had earlier singled, making it 2-1 Blue Jays. The Phils would retake the lead in their half of the sixth, after their ace, Cole Hamels, had pitched himself out of a bases loaded, nobody out, jam in the top half of the inning. With a man on second and nobody out, Jayson Werth hits a two-run home run, his tenth home run of the year, knocking in Utley, who had earlier walked and then stole second, giving the Phils a 3-2 lead. That would remain the lead as both Chad Durbin and J.C. Romero held off the Blue Jays, with the latter pitching himself out of a three-walks, bases loaded jam in the eighth, thanks to some confusion on the Blue Jays part as Rios did not tag third base and score on a long fly out to left by Marco Scutaro for the inning’s second out. But, in the ninth, with Ryan Madson pitching for the save, the Blue Jays would once again load the bases, via a single to Vernon Wells, a single to ex-Phil Scott Rolen, which would send Wells over to third, beating the throw, allowing Rolen to move up to second, and an intentional walk to Lind. After Madson strikes out Rios for the inning’s first out, he walks Lyle Overbay, forcing in Wells from third, tying up the score at three-all. Madson would then get out of the inning by getting Rod Barajas to pop out to Rollins under the infield fly rule for the second out, and then striking out pinch hitter John McDonald. After the Phils go down 1-2-3 in their half of the ninth, everything would fall apart in the tenth. After Clay Condrey retires the lead-off batter with a ground out, 6-3, he gives up a single to Aaron Hill. Wells followed him with a single, sending Hill on to second base. Rolen then followed with an RBI single, scoring Hill, and giving the Blue Jays a 4-3 lead, while sending Wells to second. Lind was then walked, loading up the bases once again, as Wells and Rolen both moved up a base. Rios then in turn walked, scoring Wells, while moving both Rolen and Lind up a base, leaving the loaded, as the Blue Jays increased their lead to 5-3. That would be all for Condrey, as he was replaced by Rookie Tyler Walker. Walker then gave up a sacrifice fly to Overbay, the second out of the inning, as Rolen crossed the plate, making it a 6-3 Blue Jays’ lead, while Lind would move up to third, putting runners on the corners. Barajas then followed with a two-run double, scoring both Lind and Rios, making it an 8-3 Blue Jays’ lead. Walker would then end the inning by getting Scott Downs to ground out, 6-3. That would end up being the final score as the Phils could not put together a rally in their half of the tenth.

Cole Hamels received a no-decision as he pitched six innings, giving up two runs on seven hits and two walks, as he struck out six, while getting himself out of a few jams. Chad Durbin pitched a scoreless inning as he collected his fifth hold, as he walked only one, while striking out two. J.C. Romero also pitched a scoreless frame as he recorded his third hold, giving up three walks before pitching out of trouble. Ryan Madson blew his second save of the season, as he gave up a run on two hits and two walks, while striking out two. Clay Condrey took the lost as he got hit around for five runs on three hits and two walks, in only a third of an inning of work. His record now is 4-2 with an ERA of 3.44. Tyler Walker pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up no runs on a hit. Ricky Romero also got a no-decision as he pitched seven innings, giving up three runs on six hits and two walks, while striking out nine. Shawn Camp pitched a third of an inning, getting out the man he would face. B.J. Ryan also pitched a third of an inning, giving up a hit and a walk. Jason Frasor pitched a third of an inning, taking care of the only man he would face. Scott Downs got the win as he pitched a scoreless inning, striking out a batter. His record is now 1-0 with a 1.98 ERA. Jesse Carlson pitched a scoreless tenth, giving up just one hit. 

The Phils only had eight hits in the game, with Chase Utley leading the attack with three hits, raising his batting average to .313. Jimmy Rollins followed with two hits, while Jayson Werth, Ryan Howard and Shane Victorino collected the other three hits. Utley knocked in one of the Phils’ run, while Werth would knock in the other two with his two-run home run. The Phils are still trying to figure out how to win more games at home, while also wondering how to restart their offense, so that it would be more consistent as starting pitching is starting to get better.

The Phillies (36-26, 1st National League East) continue their Interleague Play three-games set with the Blue Jays (35-31, 3rd-T American League East). The game will be played tonight at Citizens Bank Park, depending on the weather. The game is to start at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phils’ starter will be the veteran Jamie Moyer (4-5, 6.11), who is coming off a good start against the Mets on June 11, where he received a no-decision as he pitched six innings, giving up just three runs on eight hits, as he struck out three, in the Phils’ 6-3 extra-inning win. He will be trying to even his record, while recording victory no. 251 in his long career. The Blue Jays will counter with Scott Richmond (4-3, 3.90), who had previously pitched on June 12 in relief against the Marlins, going three and two-thirds innings, giving up a run on two hits and two walks, while striking out three, in the Blue Jays’ 7-3 lost. He will be trying to pitch a good start against the World Champs, while the Phils’ bats will be trying to crush him.

Preview: Phillies v. Blue Jays – 7:05 pm Eastern.

The 2008 World Champions Philadelphia Phillies (36-25, 1st National League East) will continue their Interleague Play home stand with a three game series with the Toronto Blue Jays (34-31, 3rd-T American League East). The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park and will start at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phils will send to the mound their ace Cole Hamels (4-2, 4.64), who is coming off a piss-poor start against the New York Mets on June 10, where he received a no-decision as he pitched only five innings, giving up four runs on eleven hits and two walks, while striking out only one batter, in the Phils’ 5-4 extra-innings win. He will be going for his fifth win of the season and his fifth victory in a row as a starter. The Blue Jays will send to the mound Ricky Romero (3-3, 3.71), who is coming off a lost to the Texas Rangers on June 11, as he pitched six and a third innings, giving up a run on five hits and two walks, while striking out six, in the Blue Jays’ 1-0 lost. He will be trying for his fourth win of the season.

The Phillies will be looking to start winning more games at home, as well as improve on their Interleague Play record. They also hope to increase their four games lead over the Mets, who will be meeting the lowly Baltimore Orioles at Baltimore, starting tonight.

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