Results tagged ‘ American League East ’

The Phillies are shut out by Lester, tying the series between the Phils and the BoSox.

Jamie Moyer was only able to go five innings as he threw a lot of pitches tonight, 106 in fact, as the Phillies fall to the Red Sox, 3-0. The Red Sox would score the first runs of the game when Moyer threw a two-run home run to Coco Crisp, his sixth home run of the season, scoring Jason Varitek, who has earlier walked, to make it 2-0 BoSox. In the sixth, the Red Sox would increase their lead as Ryan Madson, who was pitching in relief of Moyer, would give up a RBI double to Julio Lugo, scoring Crisp, who has earlier singled, giving the Red Sox a 3-0 lead. That would be how the game would end, as Jon Lester, Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon would combine to seven hit the Phils, with Papelbon pitching a 1-2-3 ninth to record his twentieth save of the year.

Jamie Moyer would take the lost as he struggles to pitch five innings, giving up only two runs on four hits, and walking five, one of whom would later score. His record is now 7-4 with a 4.09 ERA. Ryan Madson would pitch an inning, giving up an earned run on two hits. Rudy Seanez would go an inning, giving up no runs on no hits, while Clay Condrey would also pitch an inning, giving up no runs on one hit. Jon Lester would get the win, going seven shut out innings as he six hit the Phillies. Hideki Okajima would pitch an inning in relief, giving up no runs on one hit. Jonathan Papelbon would pitch a 1-2-3 ninth, as he records his twentieth save of the year.

The Phillies (42-31) will conclude their three games series with the World Champion Red Sox (45-29, 1st American League East) tomorrow afternoon at Citizens Bank Park for a Business Person’s Special. The game will start at 1:05 pm Eastern. The Phillies’ starter will be Kyle Kendrick (6-2, 3.43), who is coming off a victory against the Cardinals on June 13, where he would pitch seven innings, giving up two runs, only one of which was earned, on eight hits, in the Phillies’ 20-2 rout. He will be trying to improve his record while trying to help the Phillies win their first series since their sweep of the Braves. The Red Sox will counter with rookie Justin Masterson (3-1, 2.90), who is coming off his first major league lost as he was defeated by the Reds on June 13, where he would go six and two-thirds inning, giving up three earned runs on four hits, in the BoSox’s 3-1 lost. He will be trying to avoid getting his second major league lost while trying to see if he can keep the Phillies’ batters off-balanced.

The Phillies are presently leading the Marlins by two and a half games, although they are presently losing their game with the Mariners. The presently third place Mets are now trailing the Phils by six games, although they are presently trailing the Angels. The Braves, thanks to their lost to the Rangers, are still six and half games behind and in fourth place, The Phillies are presently hoping that the Marlins and the Mets will both lose their games so that the standings will remain the same before they get ready for tomorrow afternoon’s game.

Still playing the best: Phillies-Red Sox, Game 2.

The Phillies (42-30) continue their three games series with the World Champion Red Sox (44-29, 1st American League East) with another night game at Citizens Bank Park. Tonight’s game will start at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phillies will send to the mound Jamie Moyer (7-3, 4.12), who is coming off a win against the Marlins on June 12, where he pitched eight strong shut out innings, giving up only two hits, in the Phils’ 3-0 win. Moyer has won five of his last six starts, with the Phils winning his other start. In those six starts he would go a combined forty innings, giving up only fourteen earned runs on thirty-four hits, including four quality starts. Lifetime against the Red Sox he is 6-11 in 20 starts, while Manny Ramirez has been a major thorn in his side, as ‘Big Papi’ has hit ten career home runs off of him. Jamie will be trying to improve his record, while trying to keep Manny and the rest of the BoSox offense from taking him downtown. He will be opposed by Jon Lester (5-3, 3.43), who is coming off of a victory over the Baltimore Orioles on June 12, when he pitched seven innings, giving up only two earned runs on seven hits, in the Red Sox’s 9-2 win. Lester has won his last two starts, where he would give up only three earned on fifteen hits as he pitched a total of thirteen and a third innings. He will be looking to improve his record, while trying to quiet down the Phillies’ bats.

The Phillies will be trying to continue showing that they can stand up with the best that the American League have to offe. The offense will be trying to continue the outburst which they’d shown to a national audience last night, while hoping that Jamie will have better luck pitching against a team that seems to have his number before giving it over to the National League’s best bullpen.

The Phillies are presently leading the second place Marlins by three games, while leading both the Braves and the Mets, who have earlier today fired Willie Randolph, by six and a half game. The Phillies will be looking to once again increase their lead against their divisional rivals.

The Phillies beat the best as they defeat the Red Sox, 8-2.

The Phillies, to prove that they are one of the best teams in the major leagues this year, have brought out the bats to easily defeat the World Champions Boston Red Sox, 8-2. The Phillies would score first in the bottom of the first as Jimmy Rollins would hit Bartolo Colon’s second pitch of the night out of the ballpark for his sixth home run of the season to give the Phillies a quick 1-0 lead. Three batters later, with a runner on second and one hit, Ryan Howard would hit a two-run home run, his eighteenth home run of the year, scoring Shane Victorino, who has earlier doubled, to make it a 3-0 Phillies’ lead. Two innings later, in the third, Howard would hit a solo shot for his nineteenth home run of the season to give the Phils a 3-0 lead. In the fifth, the Red Sox would cut the Phillies’ lead in half as Dustin Pedroia and J.D. Drew would hit back-to-back solo home runs off of Phillies’ starter Cole Hamels, for their sixth, and twelfth home run of the year, respectively, to make the score 4-2 Phils. But, that would turn out to be all of the damage that the Red Sox would be able to muster against Hamels during the seven innings and one batter that he would pitch tonight, as he would keep them generally quiet, as he gives up only seven hits. Then in the Phillies’ sixth, they would put the game away as they send nine men to the plate and score four runs. The inning would begin with Pedro Feliz getting a walk off of Mike Timlin, who was pitching in relief of Javier Lopez, who, in turn has pitched an inning in relief of Colon. Carlos Ruiz would follow with a single, moving Feliz to second. After Hamels sacrifice them both over to third and second respectively, Rollins would hit a two-run RBI single, scoring both Feliz and Ruiz, to make it 6-2 Phillies. Victorino would then follow with a single, sending Rollins over to third. Chase Utley would then hit a fielder’s choice ground ball, which would score Rollins from third, to give the Phillies a 7-2 lead. Howard would follow with a RBI triple, scoring Utley, making it 8-2 Phils. That would be how the game would end, as Chad Durbin would come in the eighth in relief of Hamels after Hamels has walked Drew to start the inning, and getting six of the seven batters that he would face, including a double play ground out off of the first man that he would face in the eighth. 

Cole Hamel would get the win, going seven innings plus a batter, giving up only two earned runs on seven hits. His record is now 7-4 with a reduced ERA of 3.23. Chad Durbin would pitch two innings of relief, giving up no runs on one hit. Bartolo Colon would take the lost, giving up four runs on six hits. His record is now 4-2 with a 4.09 ERA. Javier Lopez would pitch one inning in relief, giving up no runs on one hit. Mike Timlin would pitch two-thirds of an inning, giving up four earned runs on four hits. David Aardsma would pitch an inning and a third, giving up no runs on one hit. Hideki Okajima would then come in to pitch a scoreless, hitless inning.

The three games series between the Phillies (42-30) and the Red Sox (44-29, 1st American League East) will continue tomorrow night at Citizens Bank Park. The game will begin at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phillies’ starter will be Jamie Moyer (7-3, 4.12), who is coming off a win against the Marlins on June 12, where he would go eight inning, giving up no earned runs on two hits, in the Phillies’ 3-0 win. Moyer has won five of his last six starts, while the Phillies would win his other start. In those six starts, he has pitched a combined forty innings, giving up fourteen earned runs on thirty-four hits, including four quality starts. Lifetime against the Red Sox, he is 6-11 in twenty starts. Moyer will be trying to improve his lifetime record against the BoSox while trying to give the Phillies two wins in a row against the World Champs. The Red Sox will send to the mound Jon Lester (5-3, 3.43), who is coming off a victory against the Orioles on June 12, where he went seven innings, giving up two earned runs on seven hits, in the Red Sox’s 9-2 win. He has won his last two most starts. He will be trying to defeat the Phils, while hoping to quiet down the offense.

The Phillies’ offense woke up tonight, lead by Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard, who both had three hits. Between them, the Phillies’ sparkplug and the big man got two singles, a triple and three home runs, knocking in seven runs and scoring four. It would appear that JayRoll is starting to come out of his recent swoon while Howard is definately getting hot. If these two can get into a major groove at the same time, along with Victorino, Utley and Burrell, it will be almost impossible for the Phillies to get knocked out of first place.

With the win, the Phillies are presently three games ahead of the Marlins, as they won their games against the Mariners. The Braves are presently still six and a half games behind the Phils as they won their game with the Rockies, while the Mets are also still six and a half games behind the Phils after their victory over the Angels. The Phillies will once again be trying to increase their lead in the division.

Two disconnections between Utley and Gordon in the 10th leads to an extra-inning lost.

The Phillies lose to the Cardinals in ten innings, as Chase Utley and Tom Gordon were twice unable to connect on throws from the second baseman to the pitcher covering first to lose the ballgame, 7-6. The Phillies would score first in the top of the first as Ryan Howard would hit a RBI double, knocking in Jimmy Rollins, who has earlier singled, to take a 1-0 lead. Brett Myesr would quickly give it back in the bottom of the first, as he would give up a RBI double to Ryan Ludwick, scoring Skip Schumaker, who has earlier doubled, to tie the game at one apiece. Rick Ankiel would then follow him with a RBI double, scoring Schumaker, to make it 2-1 Cardinals. The Cardinals would then increase their lead in the third when Schumaker would hit a solo home run off of Myers, his fourth home run of the year, to make it 3-1 Cardinals. Four batters later, Troy Glaus would hit a two-run home run, his ninth home run of the season, scoring Aaron Miles, who has earlier singled, to make it 5-1 Cardinals. The two home runs would be the nineteenth and twientieth home run of the year that Myers has given up so far this year, leading the league in that category. More on that later. The Phillies would then strike back in the fifth, as, with the bases loaded, and one out, Howard would hit a two- run single, scoring Rollins, who has reached base earlier on a force out, and Jayson Werth, who has walked, to cut the Redbirds’ lead to 5-3. Tony LaRussa would then take out Cardinals’ starter Mitchell Boggs and replace him with reliever Kyle McClellan. Pat Burrell would greet McClellan with a RBI single, scoring Utley, who has earlier been hit by the pitch, making it 5-4 Cardinals. The Redbirds would get a run back in the sixth, when Howard committed a fielding error on a Chris Duncan ground ball, which would score Ankiel, who has earlier tripled, which made it 6-4 Cardinals. The Phils would tie it up in the eighth inning, when with two outs, Rollins would start things off by getting a triple. Werth and Utley would then walk to load the bases. Howard would then follow them with a walk, scoring Rollins, making it 6-5 Cardinals. Burrell would then follow him with another walk, scoring Werth, and tying the score at six all. In the ninth, the Phillies would get a chance to break the tie, when, with Eric Bruntlett, who was pinch running for Greg Dobbs, who has singled, on third and Shane Victorino on first, Rollins would hit a ground ball to first baseman Duncan. With Bruntlett moving on contact, Duncan would throw home, and catcher Yadier Molina, after catching the ball, would turn around and tag out Bruntlett for the second out, as he found some way to hold onto the baseball as he gets nailed hard around the shoulders by Bruntlett. Molina would then spend the next several minutes lying on the ground, with a dead man’s grip on the ball, before he is finally taken out of the game and then taken to the hospital to be checked on for any possible shoulder and neck injuries. The Phils would then load the bases, but would fail to get a clutch hit with the bases loaded for the fourth time today, as Utley flies out. In the tenth, Tom Gordon, pitching in relief of Chad Durbin, would get the first two Cardinals out. Ankiel would then hit a grounder to Utley for what should’ve been the third out of the inning. Instead, Utley would commit a throwing error as he did not lead Gordon to first base with the throw. Gordon then gives up a single to Glaus, moving Ankiel to second. Gordon would then get Duncan to hit a grounder to Utley, for what should’ve been the third out. But, uncannily, with Utley this time actually leading Gordon to first, it would be Gordon who would commit the error by not catching the thrown ball, thus allowing Ankiel to score the winning run and giving the Cardinals a 7-6 win in extra-innings. Gordon, showing his disgust at himself for the error, would slam his glove onto the ground, before picking it up and then heading towards the visitors’ dugout.

Brett Myers, inspite of pitching a bad game, would get a no-decision as he pitches six innings, giving up six earned runs on eight hits. Ryan Madson would pitch an inning, giving up no runs on no hits, as he struck out the side. J.C. Romero would also pitch a scoreless and hitless inning. Chad Durbin would pitch an inning, giving up no runs on one hit. Tom Gordon would take the tough lost, going two-thirds of an inning, giving up one unearned run on one hits, as two errors were committed behind him. His record is now 5-4 with an ERA of 5.06. Mitchell Boggs would go only four and one third innings, giving up four earned runs on six hits. Kyle McClellan would go one and two-thirds innings, giving up no runs on two hits. Chris Perez would pitch one and two-thirds innings, giving up two earned runs on one hit. Randy Flores would face only two batters, walking both. Russ Springer would pitch a third of an inning, getting a blown save, giving up no runs on no hits. Ryan Franklin would go one innings, giving up no runs on two hits. Anthony Reyes would get the win, going an inning, giving up no runs on no hits. His record is now 2-1 with an ERA of 4.91.

Okay, what is up with Brett Myers? He has given up twenty home runs up to this point in the season, and most of them has been on balls which, for lack of a better word, has been wrapped up neatly on a silver platter to the batters to be hit out of the park. Even worst, he can’t seem to get out of the first inning without giving up a run. Myers needs to get whatever mental problems he presently has out of his blasted mind and do it before his next start if he doesn’t want to find his *** getting removed from the starting rotation. If it means that he has to finally listen to the pitching coach, then he better do so!!!! He’s a grown up and a professional ball player. He therefore needs to act like one!!!! (Yes, I’m poed with Myers’ pitching. How can you tell?) 

In spite of losing this afternoon’s game, the Phillies (41-30) will come home with a winning (5-4) road trip despite of losing their last two series. They will be coming back home to start a three games series with the World Champions Red Sox (44-26, 1st American League East). The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park tomorrow night at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phillies’ starter will be Cole Hamels (6-4, 3.27), who is coming off a no-decision against the Marlins on June 11, where he would pitch eight innings, giving up only two earned runs on three hits while striking out thirteen, in the Phils’ 6-2 lost. This will be his first start against the BoSox, as he plans to start off the home stand with a win for the Phillies. His opponent for the Red Sox will be Bartolo Colon (4-1, 3.41), who is coming off a win against the Baltimore Orioles on June 11, where he would pitch five innings, giving up only one earned run on five hits, in the Red Sox’s 6-3 win. Lifetime against the Phillies, he is 1-1 with a 4.00 ERA in four starts. This will be his first start at Citizens Bank Park. He will be trying to defeat the Phils to help the Red Sox increase their lead in the American League East

The first place Phillies are now leading the Marlins by three games as they were able to defeat the Rays. The Phillies are leading the Braves by six games as they prepare to play the Angels tonight. The Mets are now six and a half games behind the Phils as they won the second half of a double header with the Rangers which they split. As the Phillies prepare for their home series with the Red Sox, the Marlins will face the Seattle Mariners in Seattle and the Mets will face the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in Anaheim. The Phillies will try to win the series against the World Champs.

Rain, Blue Jays’ Bullpen defeats the Phils.

Two rain delays, and the Blue Jays’ excellent use of their bullpen, help to defeat the Phils’ in the final game of their three games interleague play series, 6-5. The lost put the Phillies in a tie for second place with the New York Mets, both teams now a full game behind the Florida Marlins, as the Mets would win their game with the New York Yankees. The Phils start the game off by taking a quick 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first, as Ryan Howard hits a two-run home run, his tenth home run of the year, off of Blue Jays’ starter, Shaun Marcum, scoring Jimmy Rollins, who has gotten on base earlier with a single, while Phils’ starter Kyle Kendrick pitched a 1-2-3 first inning on twelve pitches. The two teams would then go through a rain delay which would last over two hours before resuming play. When it does, both starters would be remove by their teams, with the Phils using Chad Durbin in place of Kendrick, while the Blue Jays would counter with Shawn Camp. Both teams are then kept off the scoreboard until the bottom of the fourth inning, when the Phils’ score their third run of the ballgame on a RBI single by Carlos Ruiz, scoring Geoff Jenkins, who has also singled. But the Phils would then miss an opportunity to break the game wide open, as, with the bases loaded and two outs, Camp would get out of the inning by getting Jayson Werth to fly out. Then things would go from bad to worst, as Durbin, with two on and two outs, would give up a pitch hit, three-runs home run to Lyle Overbay, his second home run of the year, scoring Rod Barajas, who has earlier doubled, the Blue Jays’ first hit of the game, and Marco Scutaro, who has walked, tying the game at 3-3. In the bottom of the fourth, the Phils would threaten to retake the lead, as they loaded up the bases again, this time with one out, against Blue Jays’ reliever Brian Tallet. Tallet is replaced by Jason Frasor, who is able to end the Phils’ threat by getting Pedro Feliz to pop up and Ruiz to ground out. In the top of the fifth, the Blue Jays’ would take the lead, as they score three runs off of Rudy Seanez. The first two runs are knocked in on a RBI double by Shannon Stewart, scoring Aaron Hills, who has also doubled, and Matt Stairs, who has just been intenionally walked, giving the Blue Jays a 5-3 lead. Barajas would then single in Stewart, making it 6-3 Blue Jays. The Phils would get a run back in the bottom of the sixth, as Chase Utley doubles in Rollins, who has gotten on base earlier with a walk. After Howard walks, the game is once again delayed by rain. After play resumes again, the Blue Jays would replace Jesse Carlson, who has just replaced Frasor, with Cy Young award winner Ray Halladay, to face Pat Burrell. Halladay would end the threat by getting Burrell to pop up, leaving the score, 6-4 Blue Jays. The Phils would threathen for one last time in the ninth, when, with two outs, Pat Burrell would hit his tenth home run of the year, a solo shot off of B.J. Ryan, making it a 6-5 ballgame. Chris Coste would then double, putting the tying run in scoring position, as Eric Bruntlett comes up to pitch hit. Unfortunately, after fouling off several pitches, Ryan would get Bruntlett to strike out swinging, ending the ballgame, as he records his ninth save.

Kyle Kendrick, the Phils’ starter, would only go one inning because of the two hours plus rain delay, facing only three hitters as he gives up no runs on no hits. Chad Durbin would go four innings, giving up three earned runs on two hits, one of which was a pitch hit home run. Rudy Seanez, the Phils’ losing pitcher, would go one inning, giving up three earned runs on three hits. His record is now 2-3, while his ERA rises up to 2.89. J.C. Romero would pitch one inning, giving up no runs on no hits. Clay Condrey would also go an inning, giving up no runs on one hit. Brad Lidge would pitch one inning, giving up no runs on no hits. Blue Jays’s starter, Shaun Marcum, like Kendrick, would only go one inning because of the long rain delay, giving up two earned runs on two hits, one of which was Ryan Howard’s home run. Shawn Camp would then pitch three innings, giving up an earned run on four hits. Brian Tallet would only go a third of an inning, giving up no runs on three hits. Jason Frasor, the Blue Jays’ winning pitcher, would go an inning and a third, giving up an earned run on no hits. Jesse Carlson would face just two batters, giving up no runs on a hit and a walk. Roy Halladay would pitch two and one-thirds innings, giving up no runs on one hits. B.J. Ryan would go an inning, giving up one earned run on two hits, as he records his ninth save of the years.

The Phils’ offense, although out hitting the Blue Jays’ thirteen hits to six, would twice leave the bases loaded, once with less than two men outs, whereby one hit at either time could’ve help them put the game out of reach. Instead, momentum shifted over to the Blue Jays, who would get to both Durbin and Seanez for their six runs in the fifth and sixth innings, thus ballooning both relievers ERAs in the process.

With the lost of their Interleague play series with the Blue Jays (23-23, 4th American League East), the Phillies (24-21) split their six games home stand, 3-3. They will now travel to Washington, D.C. to start a two cities, seven games, road trip to Washington and Houston. Their first game will be played tonight in D.C. in the Nationals’ (19-26) new ballpark, Nationals Park. The game will start at 7:10 pm Eastern. The Phils’ starting pitcher will be Brett Myers (2-4, 5.91), who is coming off of his worst outing of the season, as he would go only four and one-thirds innings against the Braves on May 14, giving up eight runs, six of which were earned, on nine hits, in the Phils’ 8-6 lost. He will be looking to regain his stuff as he faces the Nationals for the 28th time in his long career. In his 27 previous starts against them, including when the Nationals were the Montreal Expos, he is 7-7 lifetime, with a 4.91 ERA. The Nationals will oppose him with Tim Reddings (5-3. 3.55), who is coming off a win against the Mets on May 14, where he pitched six solid innings, giving up only an earned run on two hits, in the Nationals’ 5-3 victory. He will be trying for his sixth win of the season.

In spite of the lost, the Phillies are still trailing the Marlins by a game, as the fish lost their game to the Kansas City Royals, 9-3. The Phils are once again in a technical tie for second place with the New York Mets, .004 percentage points behind them, as the Mets once again defeated the New York Yankees, 11-2. They are a game ahead of the Braves, who have beaten the Oakland Athletics, 5-2. While the Phils play the last place Nationals tonight, the Marlins, the Mets and the Braves will all have the day off, giving the Phils a chance to gain a half game on the Marlins with a victory tonight, if Myers can get his act together and if the offense can get a hit when its needed.

Interleague play continues this weekend.

The Phillies (24-19) will continue their Interleague play weekend series with the Toronto Blue Jays (21-23, 4th American League East) with two more games at Citizens Bank Park. The first game will be played tonight at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phils’ starter for tonight’s game will be Adam Eaton (0-1, 5.40), who is still looking for his first win. He pitched well in his last start against the Giants on May 11, getting a no-decision as he went five innings, giving up two earned runs on five hits in a heartbreaker 4-3 Phillies lost. Eaton will do his best to add another quality start which he hopes will this time translate into a win, especially with the way the Phils’ offense has been hitting the ball lately. His opponent will be A.J. Burnett (3-4, 4.94), the first right handed starter that the Phils have faced in a week. Burnett is coming off a lost to the Cleveland Indians on May 12 in the first game of a doubleheader. In that game, he would go seven and two-thirds innings, giving up three earned runs on five hits in the Blue Jays’ 3-0 lost. He had also lost his previous start against the Tampa Bay Rays on May 6, where he went six innings, giving up five earned runs on nine hits in the Blue Jays’ 5-4 lost. He will be looking to even his record.

The final game of Interleague play and of the six games home stand will be played this Sunday afternoon, starting at 1:35 pm Eastern at Citizens Bank Park. The Phils will be sending Kyle Kendrick to the mound, who is coming off of a win against the Braves on May 13, in spite of giving up three runs to the Braves in the first inning. Kendrick would eventually go six innings, giving up only three earned runs on six hits. He will be looking for his fourth win of the year. His opponent will be Shaun Marcum (4-2, 2.22), who is coming off of a no-decision against the Indians also on May 12, as he pitched the second game of the doubleheader, which the Blue Jays won 3-0. He would go eight innings, giving up no runs on two hits while being involved in a pitcher’s duel with Indians’ starter Cliff Lee. Marcum has won his two previous starts, on May 7 against the Tampa Bay Rays (6-2) and May 2 against the Chicago White Sox (2-0). In those two games he would pitch a combined total of fifteen and one-third innings, giving up two earned runs on six hits. He’ll be looking to get his fifth win of the year at the Phils’ expense.

The Phillies are once again tied for first place in the National League East, .003 percentage points behind the Marlins who lost a close game last night against the Kansas City Royals. The Phils hope that when they go to Washington, D.C. on Monday to face the Nationals for the first of three games in their new ballpark, Nationals Park, that they will either still be tied for first or be in first place by themselves. The Marlins will continue their three games interleague series against the Royals tonight and tomorrow afternoon. The Phils and Marlins are both presently a game and a half ahead of the New York Mets, who have just defeated the New York Yankees, and two games ahead of Atlanta, who will be playing the Oakland Athletics for two more games. 

Moyer pitches well while the offense leads the Phils back into a first place tie with Florida.

The Phillies offense, led by Jayson Werth’s three homers, resulting in eight RBIs, hits the Phils back into a first place tie with the Florida Marlin as they defeat the visiting Blue Jays, 10-3. Jamie Moyer would pitch six and two-thirds innings, staying in control for most of the game, as he picks up his third win of the season. Werth would start the Phils’ scoring off in the second inning as he hits a three-run home run, his seventh of the season, off of Blue Jays’ losing pitcher David Purcey, scoring Ryan Howard and Pat Burrell, who have both gotten on base with a walk, making it 3-0 Phils. The Phillies would increase their lead in the third as Howard knocks in Jimmy Rollins, who has earlier singled, with a RBI single, making it 4-0 Phils. Werth would then break the game wide open with a grand slam home run, his seventh home run of the season, scoring Chase Utley, who has singled, Howard, and Burrell, who has been walked for the second time that night, giving the Phils an 8-0 lead. The Blue Jays would get two runs back in the top of the fourth, as Alex Rios gets a RBI double off of Moyer, knocking in Aaron Hill, who has earlier singled, making it 8-1 Phils. Rios would then come home on a RBI single by Scott Rolen, making the score 8-2 Phillies. The Phils would get one of those runs back in the fifth inning on Jayson Werth’s third home run of the night, as he hits a solo shot off of Jesse Litsch, who was pitching in relief of Pucey, his ninth home run of the year, giving the Phils a 9-2 lead. The last Phils run would come in the six on a RBI double by Shane Victorino, scoring Rollins, who has also doubled, making it 10-2 Phils. Moyer would give up a run in the top of the seventh on a RBI single to Marco Scutaro, scoring Lyle Overbay, who has earlier singled, with two out. Chad Durbin would then come in to relieve Moyer, with runners on first and third, and two outs, before he got Hill to pop out to Chris Coste in foul territory, ending the threat. Clay Condrey would then come in to pitch the ninth, ending the game in spite of a last minute threat by the Blue Jays.

Jamie Moyer gets the victory as he pitched six and two-thirds innings, giving up three earned runs on seven hits. His season record is now 3-3 with an ERA of 4.89. The victory also makes his career record against the Blue Jays 14-8. Chad Durbin pitched one and a third innings of relief, giving up no runs on no hits, while Clay Condrey would pitched the ninth inning, giving up no runs on two hits. Blue Jays’ starter David Purcey took the lose, going only three innings, giving up eight earned runs on five hits, two of them being two of Jayson Werth’s three home runs. His record is now 0-1 as his ERA balloons to 11.05. Jesse Litsch would also pitch three innings, as he gives up two earned runs on five hits, all but one of them being extra-base hits. Brian Tallet would pitch the last two innings, giving up no runs on no hits.

Jayson Werth would be the 18th player (20th overall) in franchise history to hit three home runs in a game, with the last one to do it being Ryan Howard back on September 3, 2006 against the Braves in the first game of a twin-bill. His eight RBIs would also tie a franchise record, being the fifth Phil to do it, tying Kitty Bransfield, Gavvy Cravath, Willie “Puddin’ Head” Jones and Mike Schmidt. Meanwhile, Ryan Howard would hit in his eighth straight game, while getting at least one RBI in seventh straight games.

David Purcey would be the last left handed starter the Phils will face for a while. In facing five straight lefties, the Phils have banged up all five, winning three of the games, losing one, and having a no-decision in the fifth, although later losing the game. The Phils will now face five straight right handers, starting with tonight’s game at Citizens Bank Park, which will start at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phils’ starter will be Adam Eaton (0-1, 5.40), who is still looking for his first win of the season. His last start was a no-decision against the Giants on May 11. In that game, he would go five innings, giving up two earned runs on five hits, in the Phils’ tough 4-3 lost. Career-wise, Eaton is 6-6 against the Blue Jays with a 2.91 ERA. The Blue Jays (21-23, 4th American League East) will be sending to the mound A.J. Burnett (3-4, 4.94), who is coming off of a lost as he went seven and two-thirds innings, giving up three earned runs on five hits, in the Blue Jays’ 3-0 lost to the Cleveland Indians in the first game of a doubleheader on May 12. His previous start was also a lost, as he pitched six innings, giving up five earned runs on nine hit, in the Blue Jays’ 5-4 lost to the Tampa Bay Rays on May 6. He will be trying to improve his record. The Phils hope that they will now do to righties what they have just recently done to lefties. 

The Phils’ (24-19) win puts them back in a first place tie with the Florida Marlins, who lost their interleague game with the Royals. Both teams are presently two games ahead of the Mets, whose game with the Yankees last night was postponed because of rain, and the Braves, who came from behind to defeat the Athletics. The Phils hope to be able to stay in a tie for first place or be in first place all by themselves after tonight’s ball game.

Interleague play starts as 1993 World Series opponent comes to town.

Interleague play starts tonight as the second place Phillies (23-19) begins the final three games series of their present six games home stand as they face the Toronto Blue Jays (21-22, 4th American League East). The game, unless rained out, will start at 7:05 pm Eastern in Citizens Bank Park. The Phils’ starting pitcher will be Jamie Moyer (2-3, 5.02), who is coming off of a bad outing where he got torched by the Giants on May 10, giving up six earned runs on nine hits while pitching only four innings, as he took the lost in the Phils’ 8-2 defeat. Moyer and the Phils hope that he will be able to redeem himself and even up his record with a win tonight. The Blue Jays will be opposing him with David Purcey (0-0, 2.08), who will be making only his second major league start after being called up from Triple-A Syracuse. In his previous start on April 18 against the Detroit Tigers, he would receive a no-decision as he goes four and a third innings, giving up one earned run on two hits, while walking seven in the Blue Jays’ 8-4 lost. He will be looking to gain his first major league win. With Pucey, the Phils will have faced five straight left handed starters, so far defeating two, losing to one and having a no-decision with the fifth.

Last year in 15 games against American League teams, the Phillies went 8-7, one of the few National League teams to actually end up with a winning record. In fact, the Phils faced the Blue Jays in interleague play last season, going 2-1.

The Phils look to win the series against their former World Series foe, while hoping that the Marlins will do not so well as they face the Kansas City Royals, and either regain the lead in the National League East, or tie for first with the fish. The Phils also hope that they can gain some ground on both the Mets and the Braves as they respectively face the New York Yankees and the Oakland Athletics.

Edit: It has just been announced that the Mets-Yankees game has been postponed due to rain, while the Royals have taken an early 2-0 lead over the Marlins in the first inning.

Hamels gets first career shutout as the Phils defeat the Braves.

Cole Hamels pitchs his first career shut out as he holds the Chipper Jones-less Atlanta Braves to four hits in the Phils’ 5-0 victory. The victory leaves the Phillies a full game behind the Florida Marlins, whose game with the Reds in Cincinnati was postponed because of rain. The Phils would score their first run in the second inning against losing Braves’ starter Chuck James as Pedro Feliz hit a solo home run, his sixth home run of the year, making it 1-0 Phils. The Phils would increase their lead in the third with Ryan Howard hitting his ninth home run of the season, making a 2-0 Phillies lead. The Phils would make it 3-0 as Feliz knocks in his second RBI of the night, singling in Pat Burrell, who has gotten on base earlier with a walk. The Phils would then make it 5-0 in the fourth as Shane Victorino hits his first home run of the season, knocking in Jimmy Rollins, who has earlier walked. That would be all the runs that Hamels would actually need as he gives up just three singles to Omar Infante, Gregor Blanco and Jeff Francoeur and a double to Brian McCann. The Braves would attempt to rally twice, both times late in the game, first with McCann on second with two outs in the seventh, and then with runners on first and second with two outs in the eighth, after giving up walks to Greg Norton and Yunel Escobar, but Hamels would pitch himself out of both situations, with a fly out (seventh), and a ground out (eighth). In the ninth, after giving up a single to Francoeur, Hamels would get Mark Teixeira to hit into a double play, on a fantastic play by Rollins. Hamels would then get McCann to end the game by striking out swinging, his sixth strike out of the night.

Cole Hamels gets the win, throwing 120 pitches overall as he goes all nine inning, giving up no earned runs on four hits, striking out six and walking two. With his first career complete game shut out, Hamels record improves to 5-3 while his ERA drops to 2.89. Braves’ starter Chuck James took the lost, going only four innings, as he is beaten up by Phillies’ hitters for five earned runs on six hits. His record drops to 2-3 while his ERA rises to 8.22. Jorge Campillo would pitch three innings of relief, giving up no runs on five hits. Chris Resop would pitch an inning, giving up no runs on one hit.

The Phillies offense had twelve hits over all, with Rollins, Jayson Werth, Feliz and even Hamels, as each went 2-4 on the night. In fact, all but one of the Phils’ starting nine would get at least one hit in the game, as Chase Utley took the collar, going 0 for 3 with a walk. Meanwhile, Ryan Howard appears to be getting his swing back, as he has now hit safely in seven straight games, during which time he has hit a double, a triple and three home runs.

With the win, the Phils win the series 2-1, while teeing off on all three of Atlanta’s starting left handers, although Tom Glavine would survive long enough to win one of the games for Atlanta. The second place Phillies are now a full game behind the first place Marlins, who will now meet the Kansas City Royals in Miami for three games. They are a game and half ahead of the third place Mets, who will be facing the New York Yankees for three games in Yankees Stadium. The fourth place Braves now trail the Phils by two games as they face the Oakland Athletics for a three games series in Atlanta.

The Phillies (23-19) will begin their first Interleague series tonight against the Toronto Blue Jays (21-22, 4th American League East) for the first of three games at Citizens Bank Park. The game starts at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phils starter will be Jamie Moyer (2-3, 5.02), who is coming off of his worst outing of the season, as he got rocked by the Giants on May 10, giving up six earned runs on nine hits while going only four innings, in the Phils’ 8-2 lost. He will be looking to both redeem himself and evening his record. The Blue Jays will most likely counter with David Purcey (0-0, 2.08), who would be making his first start since April 18, when he started against the Detroit Tigers, after being called up from Triple-A Syracuse. In that game, he would get a no-decision, as he goes four and one-third innings, giving up an earned run on two hits, in the Blue Jays’ 8-4 lost. He will be looking for his first major league win.

The Phillies will be looking to stay pace with the Marlins, if not regain first place, as they look to win yet another series at home.

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