Results tagged ‘ Forced Outs ’
2010 National League Divisional Series, Game # 2: The Phils pounce on several Reds mistakes to take a 2-0 lead in the series as they come from behind to win, 7-4.
The Phils’ offense capitalize on several Reds miscues while the bullpen shut down the Reds’ offense as the Phils come from behind to win, 7-4. The victory gives the Phils a 2-0 lead in the divisional series.
The Reds took the lead right at the start of the game as Brandon Phillips hits a lead-off home run, his first home run of the post-season, as the Reds take a 1-0 lead. The Reds added to their lead in the second as, with two men on, and with one man out, Laynce Nix, who was earlier safe at first on a Chase Utley throwing error, then moved up to second on Roy Oswalt’s wild pitch, scored on Utley’s second throwing error of the inning, as he threw away the ball as he attempted to double up Ryan Hanigan at first, after forcing out Drew Stubbs, who had earlier walked, at second base, 6-4, giving the Reds a 2-0 lead, while Hanigan, who was safe at first, went to second on the errant throw. The Reds then made it a 3-0 lead in the fourth as Jay Bruce hits a lead-off home run, his first home run of the post-season. The Reds then made it a 4-0 lead in the fifth as, with a runner on third, and with one man out, Joey Votto hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Phillips, who had earlier doubled, then went to third on Paul Janish’s sacrifice bunt. The Phils then began their comeback, while the bullpen shut down the Reds’ offense for the next four innings. In their half of the fifth, they cut the Reds’ lead in half as, with the bases loaded, and with two men out, Utley hits a two-run single, knocking in Dom Brown, who was earlier safe at first on a 6-4 force out as Raul Ibanez, who had earlier singled, is wiped out at second base for the inning’s first out, reached second on Phillip’s fielding error of Shane Victorino’s grounder, then stopped at third on Scott Rolen’s fielding error of Placido Polanco’s grounder, and Victorino, who was safe at first on Phillip’s error, then reached second on Rolen’s error of Polanco’s grounder, making it a 4-2 Reds’ lead, while Polanco, who was safe at first on Rolen’s error, stopped at third. The Phils then made it a 4-3 Reds’ lead in the sixth as, once again with the bases loaded, this time via a walk to Jayson Werth, Carlos Ruiz being hit by a pitch, sending Werth up to second base, and pinch hitter Ben Francisco also being hit by a pitch, moving up a base both Werth and Ruiz, and with two men out, Victorino forces in a run with a walk, forcing in Werth, while Ruiz and Francisco both moved up a base. The Phils then took the lead in the seventh as, with two men on, and with one man out, Jimmy Rollins reached base on a Bruce fielding error as he missed the ball in the right field lights (or among the rally towels), allowing Utley, who had got on base earlier as he was hit by the pitch (although it is possible that he might not had been hit by the ball) and was then safe at second on Rolen’s force out attempt on Werth’s grounder (he might have been out, but it is inconclusive), followed by Werth, who was safe at first on a force out attempt, thanks to Phillips’ missed catch error of the throw back into the infield, giving the Phils a 5-4 lead, while Rollins would stop at second base. Two batters latter, with a runner on third, as Rollins’ went to third on Ibanez’s single, Ruiz hits an RBI grounder, as he hit into a 6-4 force out, wiping out Ibanez at second for the inning’s second out, while Rollins scores, making it a 6-4 Phils’ lead. The Phils would add an insurance run in the eighth as, with two men on and with one man out, Werth hits an RBI single, knocking in Utley, who had earlier singled, then stole second base, giving the Phils a 7-4 lead, while sending Ryan Howard, who had just been intentionally walked, would move up to second. That would be the final score as Brad Lidge threw a scoreless ninth, getting his first save of the post-season, as he gets Chris Heisey to end the game by grounding out, 5-3.
Roy Oswalt gets a no-decision as he pitches five innings, giving up four runs, only three of which were earned, on five hits and a walk, while striking out five. J.C. Romero and Chad Durbin combine for a scoreless inning, giving up a walk between them. Jose Contreras gets the win as he pitches a 1-2-3 inning, striking out a batter. His record is now 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA. Ryan Madson get his first hold of the post-season as he pitches a scoreless inning, giving up a hit, while he strikeouts a batter. Brad Lidge receives his first save of the post-season as he pitches a scoreless inning, giving up a walk. Bronson Arroyo also receives a no-decision as he pitches five and a third inning, giving up three runs, only one of which was earned, on four hits and three walks. Arthur Rhodes collects his first hold of the post-season as he pitches a third of an inning, hitting a batter, while striking out one. Logan Ondrusek also collects his first hold of the post-season as he pitches a third of an inning, also hitting a batter and walking a batter. Aroldis Chapman records his first blown save of the post-season before getting the lost as he pitches two-thirds of an inning, giving up three unearned runs on two hits and a hit batter, while striking out a batter. His record is now 0-1 with a 0.00 ERA. Nick Masset pitches an inning and a third, giving up a run on two hits and two walks.
The Phils had eight hits in the game, with Chase Utley, Jayson Werth and Raul Ibanez all leading the team with two hits each, all singles, with Utley knocking in two runs, while Werth knocked in a run. Ryan Howard and pinch hitter Mike Sweeney had the other two Phils’ hits, both singles. Shane Victorino and Carlos Ruiz both had an RBI, Victorino’s via a bases loaded walk and Ruiz’s via a force out. The other two Phils’ runs came in on a pair of errors on the same play. The Phils’ offense took advantage, once again, of another team’s mistakes.
The Phils (2-0) have the day off today, before meeting the Reds (0-2) on Sunday in Cincinnati for the third game of the best of five divisional series, looking for a sweep.
The Phils rewards Blanton’s good performance with a win as they defeat the Padres, 3-1.
The presently punchless Phils got enough hits to reward another recent good performance by Joe Blanton with a win, as they defeat the Padres, 3-1.
The Phils took the lead in the fifth as, with one man on, and with one man out, Shane Victorino hits an RBI single, knocking in Jayson Werth, who was earlier hit by the pitch, then moved up to second on Raul Ibanez’s ground out, 4-3, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead. The Padres tied the game up at one-all in their half of the fifth as, with runners on the corners, and with two men out, Jon Garland hits an RBI single, scoring Chris Denorfia, who was safe at first on a force out, 6-4, as Chase Headley, who had earlier walked, was wiped out at second for the inning’s second out, and then went to third on Nick Hundley’s single, while sending Hundley, who had just singled, up to second base. The Padres then tried to take the lead as Hundley tried to score on David Eckstein’s single to center, but was nailed at home, 8-2, by a strong throw by Victorino which beat Hundley to the plate, as Brian Schneider applied the tag for the final out of the inning. The Phils regain the lead in the seventh as, with a man on, and with one out, Victorino hits an RBI triple, knocking in Werth, who had earlier walked, giving the Phils a 2-1 lead. Two batters later, now with runners on the corners, as Carlos Ruiz is intentionally walked, and with still one man out, pinch hitter Mike Sweeney hits a grounder to shortstop Miguel Tejada, who threw to second to attempt a doubleplay, but Ruiz’s slide into second baseman Eckstein hard enough to slow down the throw to first, allowing Sweeney to beat the throw to first, while Victorino would cross home plate, giving the Phils a 3-1 lead. That would be the final score as the Phils’ bullpen would pitch three 1-2-3 innings, with Brad Lidge recording his eighteenth save, as he ended the game by getting Headley to fly out to left.
Joe Blanton gets the win as he pitches six innings, giving up a run on six hits and a walk, while he strikes out three. His record is now 6-6 with a 5.15 ERA. Jose Contreras collects his tenth hold of the year as he pitches a 1-2-3 inning, striking out a batter. Ryan Madson picks up his eighth hold of the season as he also pitches a 1-2-3 inning, striking out a batter. Brad Lidge collects his eighteenth save of the year as he pitches a 1-2-3 inning, striking out one. Jon Garland took the lost as he pitches six and a third innings, giving up three runs on three hits, three walks and a hit batter, while striking out two. His record is now 13-9 with a 3.29 ERA. Joe Thatcher, Luke Gregerson, Edward Mujica and Ernesto Frieri combine for two and two-thirds scoreless innings, giving up just one walk (Thatcher), while striking out three (Gregerson (1), Frieri (2)) between them.
The Phils had only three hits in the game, with Shane Victorino leading the team with two hits, a single and a triple, as he knocked in two runs. Jimmy Rollins had the only other Phil hit, a single. Mike Sweeney had the other Phil RBI as he hit into a force out. The Phils’ bats were otherwise silent, which will have to change before things really gets bad for the team.
The Phils (72-57, 2nd East) will conclude their three-game series with the Padres (76-52, 1st West) with an afternoon game. The game will be played at PETCO Park and will start at 4:05 pm Eastern (1:05 pm Pacific). The Phils will send to the mound Cole Hamels (7-10, 3.47), who is coming off a no-decision against the Astros on August 24, as he went seven innings, giving up two runs on five hits and a walk, as he struck out eight, in the Phils’ 4-2 extra-innings lost. In his last three starts, his record is 0-2 with a no-decision, as he pitched twenty innings, giving up eight runs on seventeen hits and four walks, while striking out twenty-one batters. He will be going for his first win in over two months, while hoping the bats will score more than one run for him. The Padres will counter with Clayton Richard (12-5, 3.55), as he is coming off a win against the D-backs on August 24, as he pitched six scoreless innings, giving up just three hits and five walks, while striking out eight, in the Padres’ 5-0 win. In his last three starts, his record is 3-0 as he pitched eighteen and two-thirds innings, giving up three runs on sixteen hits and nine walks, while striking out eleven. Richard will try to end the Phils’ present winning streak. The Phils will be trying to sweep the series before going on to Los Angeles.
You ever have one of those days…? The Phils are crushed by the Dodgers, 15-9.
The Phils’ pitching staff is beaten up by the Dodgers’ bats, despite the offense supplying some runs, as the Phils lose to the Dodgers, 15-9.
The Dodgers took a quick 1-0 lead in the first as, with one man on, and with one man out, Andre Ethier hits an RBI single, scoring Scott Podsednik, who had earlier singled, and had moved up to second on Ryan Theriot’s ground out, 6-3. The Dodgers added to their lead in the third as, with one man on, and with one man out, Ethier hits an RBI double, scoring Theriot, who had just singled, to give the Dodgers a 2-0 lead. Three batters later, with runners on the corners, and now with two men out, Jay Gibbons hits an RBI single, scoring Ethier, who had moved up to second base on James Loney’s walk, then went to third when Casey Blake’s hit a grounder to third, for a 5-4 force out at second of Loney for the inning’s second out, giving the Dodgers a 3-0 lead, while sending Blake, who was safe at first on the force out, to third. The Dodgers then increased their lead in the fourth as, with the bases loaded, via a single to Brad Ausmus, who then moved up to second as Jimmy Rollins made a miss catch error on a throw from Phils’ starter Kyle Kendrick on a ball hit by Dodgers’ starter Vicente Padilla, who was then safe on first on the error, and a single by Podsednik, which sent Ausmus to third, and Padilla to second, and with nobody out, Theriot hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Ausmus, to give the Dodgers a 4-0 lead, while moving Padilla to third base after the catch. After Kendrick is replaced by Antonio Bastardo, he is greeted by Ethier with an RBI single, scoring Padilla, giving the Dodgers a 5-0 lead, while sending Podsednik up to second base. The next batter, Loney, gave the Dodgers a 6-0 lead with an RBI single, scoring Podsednik, while moving Ethier to second base. Blake then followed with an RBI single, knocking in Ethier, giving the Dodgers a 7-0 lead, while sending Loney to third base. The Phils tried to make a come back in their half of the fourth as, with the bases loaded, via a single to Placido Polanco and walks to Raul Ibanez and Jayson Werth, and with one man out, Dom Brown hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Polanco, making it a 7-1 Dodgers’ lead. The Phils then made it a 7-2 Dodgers’ lead in the fifth as, with runners on the corners, and with one man out, Polanco hits an RBI ground out, 5-3, knocking in Wilson Valdez, who had earlier singled, and had gone to third on Rollins’ single, while moving Rollins up to second base. The next batter, Ross Gload, then followed with a two-run home run, his fifth home run of the year, knocking in Rollins, cutting the Dodgers’ lead to 7-4. The Dodgers would get a run back in the sixth as, with two men on, and with nobody out, Loney hits an RBI double, scoring Theriot, who had earlier singled, and then stole second base, giving the Dodgers an 8-4 lead, while sending Ethier, who had just walked, to third base. The Dodgers then made it a 9-4 lead as, with runners on second and third, and with still nobody out, Blake hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Ethier. The Dodgers then took an 11-4 lead as Gibbons hits a two-run home run, his first home run of the season, knocking in Loney. The Phils then made it an 11-5 Dodgers’ lead as, with one man out, Brown hits a solo home run, his first career home run. The Dodgers then added to their lead in the seventh as, with the bases loaded again, via a single by Theriot, a single by Ethier, sending Theriot to second base, a force out by Loney, 1-6, forcing out Ethier at second, while Theriot went to third and Loney would beat the throw to first, and a walk to Blake, moving Loney up to second base, and with two men out, pinch hitter Matt Kemp hits a two-run single, scoring both Theriot and Loney, giving the Dodgers a 13-5 lead, while moving Blake up to third. The Phils would make it a 13-7 Dodgers’ lead as, with a runner on base, and with two men out, Gload hits a two-run home run, his sixth home run of the year and his second home run of the night, knocking in pinch hitter Greg Dobbs, who had just singled. The Dodgers then made it 15-7 in the ninth as, with a runner on base, and with one man out, Blake hits a two-run home run, his twelfth home run of the year, knocking in Ethier, who was earlier hit by the pitch. The Phils then cut the Dodgers’ lead down to 15-9 as, with the bases loaded, via Gload reaching base on a force out, 4-6, wiping out Rollins, who had earlier singled, at second base, a Raul Ibanez single, sending Gload to second, and a Werth walk, moving both runners up a base, and with two men out, Brown hits a two-run double, scoring both Gload and Ibanez, while sending Werth on to third. But that would be it as pinch hitter Cole Hamels flied out to left, ending the game.
Kyle Kendrick took the lost as he pitches just three and a third innings, giving up six runs, five of which were earned, on eight hits and two walks, while striking out one. His record is now 7-5 with a 4.60 ERA. Antonio Bastardo pitches two-thirds of an inning, giving up a run on three hits, while striking out a batter. David Herndon pitches two innings, giving up four runs on three hits and a walk, while striking out a batter. Danys Baez pitches an inning, giving up two runs on three hits and a walk. Jose Contreras pitches a scoreless inning, giving up just one walk, while striking out two. J.C. Romero pitches a third of an inning, giving up two runs on a hit and a walk, striking out a batter. Chad Durbin pitches two-thirds of an inning, striking out both men whom he would face. Vicente Padilla gets the win as he pitches five innings, giving up four runs on six hits and two walks, while striking out two. His record is now 6-3 with a 3.32 ERA. Ronald Belisario pitches an inning, giving up a run on one hit. Carlos Monasterios pitches one and two-thirds innings, giving up two runs on four hits, while striking out two. George Sherrill pitches an inning, giving up two runs on two hits. Octavio Dotel pitches a third of an inning, giving up a hit and a walk.
The Phils had fourteen hits in the game, with Ross Gload leading the team with three hits, a single and two two-run home runs, knocking in four runs. He was followed by Jimmy Rollins, Dom Brown and Wilson Valdez who each had two hits, with Rollins and Valdez’s hits being singles, with both man scoring a run, while Brown’s hits were a double and a solo home run, his first in the major, as he knocks in four runs, one via a sacrifice fly. Placido Polanco, Raul Ibanez, Jayson Werth, pinch hitter Greg Dobbs and pinch hitter Mike Sweeney had the other five Phils’ hit, all singles, with Polanco knocking in a run. The Phils’ offense was unable to catch up as the bullpen was unable to stop the previously slumping Dodgers.
The Phils (62-50, 2nd NL East) will continue their series with the Dodgers (59-54, 3rd NL West) with a night game tonight. The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park, and will start at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phils will send to the mound Roy Oswalt (0-1 (6-13), 4.38 (3.50)), who is coming off a no-decision against the Marlins on August 5, as he pitched six and a third innings, giving up two runs on three hits and four walks, while striking out five, in the Phils’ 5-4 win. In his last three starts, his record is 0-2 with a no-decision, as he pitched, seventeen and a third innings, giving up thirteen runs, twelve of which were earned, on nineteen hits and seven walks, while striking out twelve. He will be trying to impress the home crowd while trying one again for his first win as a Phil. The Dodgers will counter with Chad Billingsley (9-6, 3.82), who is coming off a lost to the Padres on August 5, as he pitched six innings, giving up three runs on seven hits and three walks, while striking out four, in the Dodgers’ 5-0 lost. In his last three starts, his record is 1-1 with a no-decision, as he had pitched eighteen and two-thirds innings, giving up three runs on twelve hits and seven walks, while striking out thirteen. He will be trying for his tenth win of the year. The Phils will be trying to rebound from the thumping that the Dodgers gave them last night, to even up the series.
Ruiz’s extra-innings blast push the Phils past the fish as they sweep the Marlins, 5-4.
A blast by Carlos Ruiz in the top of the tenth, after the Phils should had lost it in the bottom half of a real weird ninth because of an ump’s bad call, leads the Phils to an extra-innings win, and a sweep of the free falling Marlins, 5-4.
The game for the first five innings was a pitchers’ duel between Phils’ starter Roy Oswalt and Marlins’ starter Chris Volstad, with both man getting out of bases loaded jams, Volstad in the top of the first, Oswalt in the bottom of the second. The Phils took the lead in the sixth as, with two men on, and with two outs, Carlos Ruiz hits a two-run double, knocking in Raul Ibanez, who had earlier singled, then moved up to second on Dom Brown’s single, and Brown, who had just singled, to give the Phils a 2-0 lead. The Marlins then cut the Phils’ lead in the seventh as, with two men on base, and with one man out, pinch hitter Donnie Murphy hits a pinch hit ground-rule double, knocking in Wes Helms, who had earlier singled, and was safe on second when Ronnie Paulino sacrifice bunted into a force out at third, forcing out Mike Stanton, 1-5, to make it a 2-1 Phils’ lead, while Paulino, who was safe at first on the fail sacrifice bunt attempt, stopped at third. Two batters later, after Paulino is replaced at third by pinch runner Brett Hayes and Hanley Ramirez is intentionally walked to load the bases, the Marlins tied the game at two-all as Logan Morrison walks, forcing in Hayes with the tying run, while moving both Murphy and Ramirez up a base. The Marlins then took a 4-2 lead as Gaby Sanchez hits a two-run single, scoring both Murphy and Ramirez. The Phils then come back in the ninth. They begin the inning with Placido Polanco reaching base on a throwing error by Ramirez. Ross Gload then follows with a single, sending Polanco to second. The next batter, Raul Ibanez, then follows with a double, scoring Polanco, making it a 4-3 Marlins’ lead, while sending Gload to third base, with nobody out. Jayson Werth then tie the game at four-all with an RBI single, knocking in Gload, while sending Ibanez to third. Then the inning starts to get weird. Brown hits a sharp grounder to first, which is caught by Sanchez, who then throws home, catching Ibanez, who was trying to score from third on contact. Ibanez is then run back to third, before being tagged out for the inning’s first out, 3-2-5, while Werth would be safe at second, and Brown at first. Then, with Ruiz batting, Werth is picked off second, before being tagged out, 1-4, for the inning’s second out. Then, with the count 0-2 on Ruiz, the Marlins pitch out, before throwing out Brown on a steal attempt, 2-4, for the inning’s final out, as the Phils run themselves out of an inning. In the bottom of the ninth, the Marlins tries to win the game as their lead-off man, Ramirez, gets on base by being hit by the pitch, then steals second as Morrison strikes out swinging, putting him in scoring position with one out. The next batter, Sanchez, then hits a grounder down the third base line that is declared a foul ball by the third base umpire, while instant reply shows that it had actually been fair, denying the Marlins the chance of a walk-off win, as Sanchez then strikes out swinging for the second out. After Dan Uggla is intentionally walked, Cody Ross ends the inning by also striking out, swinging. In the tenth, the Phils regain the lead as Ruiz hits a lead-off home run, his fifth home run of the year, giving the Phils a 5-4 lead. That would end up being the final score, as Brad Lidge collects his twelfth save of the season by getting Emilio Bonifacio to end the game by flying out to right.
Roy Oswalt receives a no-decision as he pitches six innings and a third, giving up two runs on three hits and four walks, while striking out five. J.C. Romero pitches to three batters as he collects his third blown save, as he gives up two runs on a hit and two walks. Jose Contreras pitches two thirds of an inning, giving up a hit, as he strikes out two. Danys Baez pitches a scoreless inning, giving up a hit. Ryan Madson gets the win as he pitches a scoreless inning, giving up a walk and hitting a batter, while striking out the side. His record is now 4-1 with a 4.37 ERA. Brad Lidge records his twelfth save of the year as he pitches a scoreless inning, giving up a hit, while striking out two. Chris Volstad also receives a no-decision, as he pitches five and two-thirds innings, giving up two runs on eight hits and three walks, while striking out two. Jose Veras pitches an inning and a third, giving up two hits, while striking out two. Clay Hensley collects his eighteenth hold as he pitches a scoreless inning, walking a batter, while striking out a batter. Leo Nunez blew his sixth save attempt of the year as he pitches an inning, giving up two runs, only one of which was earned, on three hits. Will Ohman took the lost as he pitches an inning, giving up a run on one hit, while striking out two. His record is now 0-1 with a 3.27 ERA.
The Phils had fourteen hits, with Placido Polanco, Raul Ibanez and Carlos Ruiz all leading the team with three hits each, with Polanco’s hits being singles, as he scored a run, while Ibanez’s hits were two singles and a double, as he knocked in a run and Ruiz’s hits were two doubles and a solo home run, once again being a triple short of the cycle, as he knocks in three runs. They were followed by Jayson Werth, who had two hits, both singles, as he knocks in a run. Jimmy Rollins, Ross Gload and Dom Brown had the other three Phils’ hits, all singles, as both Gload and Brown scored a run. Newcomer Mike Sweeney went to the plate in the eighth as a pinch hitter, receiving a walk. The Phils’ offense outhit the Marlins, although it took a bit of luck in the late innings for them to leave Miami with a series sweep.
The Phils (60-48, 2nd) come home to start a home stand, playing a three-game weekend series with the fading Mets (54-54, 3rd). The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park and will start at 7:05 pm. The Phils will start the series with Joe Blanton (4-6, 5.86), who is coming off a no-decision against the Nationals on July 31, as he pitched six innings, giving up four runs on nine hits and a walk, while striking out eight, in the Phils’ 7-5 walk-off lost. In his last three starts, his record is 1-1 with a no-decision, as he pitched nineteen innings, giving up eleven runs, nine of which were earned, on twenty-two hits and five walks, while striking out thirteen. He will be trying to start off the home stand on a winning note, while trying to stop giving up first inning runs. The Mets will counter with Jon Niese (7-5, 3.78), who is coming off a lost to the D-backs on August 1, as he pitched only four and a third innings, giving up seven runs, six of which were earned, on seven hits and three walks, while striking out two, in the Mets’ 14-1 lost. In his last three starts, his record is 1-1 with a no-decision, as he pitched fifteen and a third innings, giving up eleven runs, ten of which were earned, on twenty hits and six walks, while striking out nine. He will be trying to keep the Mets afloat. The Phils will be trying to increase their home winning streak to twelve games and their recent winning streak to five games, while trying to help sink the Mets chances even more.
The Phils split two in D.C. as Lidge on Saturday gives up a three-run home run in the ninth in a 9-7 Walk-Off lost to the Nats before nailing down Sunday’s 6-4 win in extra-inning.
The Phils lose Saturday night’s game, 7-5, as Brad Lidge gives up a three-run home run after Carlos Ruiz had given them a one run lead in the top of the ninth, before he save the game on Sunday as the Phils’ defeat the Nationals in eleven innings, 6-4.
On Saturday, the Nationals took the lead in the first as, with two men on, and with two men out, Josh Willingham hits an RBI single, knocking in Nyjer Morgan, who had earlier singled, and had gone up to second on Ryan Zimmerman’s single, giving the Nats a 1-0 lead, while sending Zimmerman, who had earlier singled, on to third base. One batter later, with runners on the corners, the Nats made it a 2-0 lead as Roger Bernadina hits an RBI single, knocking in Zimmerman, while sending Willingham up to second base. The Nats then made it a 3-0 lead as Ivan Rodriguez hits an RBI single, scoring Willingham, while sending Bernadina on to third. The Phils would get a run back in the fourth as, with two men on, and with two men out, Wilson Valdez hits an RBI single, scoring Dom Brown, who was earlier safe on a force out, 4-6, wiping out Jayson Werth, who had earlier walked, and had moved up to second base on Carlos Ruiz’s single, cutting the Nats’ lead down to 3-1, while sending Ruiz, who had just singled, up to second base. The Phils cut the Nats’ lead down to 3-2 in the sixth as, with one man out, Ruiz hits a solo home run, his third home run of the season. The Nats added to their lead in their half of the sixth as, with runners on the corners, and with nobody out, Ian Desmond hits a sacrfiice fly, scoring Bernadina, who had earlier doubled, and had gone to third on Rodriguez’s single, making it a 4-2 Nats’ lead. The Phils would tie the game up at four-all in the seventh as, with one man on, and with one man out, Raul Ibanez hits a two-run home run, his tenth home run of the year, knocking in Placido Polanco, who had earlier walked. The Phils would take the lead in the ninth as, with a runner on third, and with two men out, Ruiz hits an RBI single, knocking in Werth, who had earlier walked, moved up to second on Ross Gload’s sacrifice bunt, 5-3, and then went to third on Brown’s ground out, 4-3, giving the Phils a 5-4 lead. Brad Lidge was then given the ball to save it. Sadly, he did not. He was greeted by Michael Moore with a single to center. After Morgan moves Moore up to second on a sacrifice bunt, 3-4, for the inning’s first out, Lidge walks Adam Kennedy to put two men on base. The next batter, Ryan Zimmerman, then hits a 2-1 fastball into center field for a three-run home run, his eighteenth home run of the year, for a 7-5 walk-off win.
Joe Blanton receives a no-decision as he pitches six innings, giving up four runs on nine hits and a walk, while striking out eight. Jose Contreras and Ryan Madson together pitches two scoreless innings giving up a hit (Contreras) and a walk (Contreras), while striking out four Nats (Contreras (2), Madson (2)). Brad Lidge committed his fourth blown save of the year as he took the lost, as he pitches a third of an inning, giving up three runs on two hits and a walk. His record is 1-1 with a 5.57 ERA. Ross Detwiler also receives a no-decision as he pitches five and a third innings, giving up a run on five hits and three walks, while striking out three. Joel Peralta receives his third hold of the year as he pitches two-thirds of an inning, giving up a run on on one hit. Tyler Clippard commited his ninth blown save of the year as he pitches a third of an inning, giving up two runs on two hits and a walk. Doug Slaten and Miguel Batista combine for one and a third scoreless innings, giving up just two hits (Slaten (1), Batista (1)) and a walk (Batista), while striking out one (Slaten). Sean Burnett pitches an inning, giving up a run on a walk. Drew Storen gets the win as he pitches a third of an inning, giving up a hit. His record is 3-2 with a 2.61 ERA.
The Phils had eleven hits in the game, with Carlos Ruiz leading the team with three hits, two singles and a solo home run, knocking in two runs. He was followed by Jimmy Rollins and Jayson Werth who both had two hits, all singles. Placido Polanco, Raul Ibanez, pinch hitter Ross Gload and Wilson Valdez had the other four Phils’ hit, with Polanco, Gload and Wilson’s hits being singles, with Valdez knocking in a run, while Ibanez’s hit was a two-run home run.
In Sunday’s game, the Phils’ took the lead in the first as, with two men on, and with two men out, Ben Francisco hits an RBI single, scoring Werth, who had earlier doubled, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead, while sending Ryan Howard, who was earlier hit by the pitch, up to second base, before he was taken out of the game for a sprained ankle, as he went back to second base wrong. After Howard was replaced at second base by pinch runner Cody Ransom, the Phils took a 2-0 lead as Brown hits an RBI single, scoring Ransome, while sending Francisco to second base. The Nats’ tied the game up at two-all in the fourth as, with two men on, and with one man out, Zimmerman hits a two-run double, scoring Bernadina, who had earlier singled, and had gone to third on Desmond’s double, and Desmond, who had earlier doubled. The Nats took a 4-2 lead in the sixth as, with a man on base, and with one out, Adam Dunn hits a two-run home run, his twenthy-fifth home run of the season, scoring Desmond, who had earlier singled. The Phils got a run back in the seventh as, with a runner on first, and with no one out, Polanco hits an RBI double, scoring Rollins, who had earlier walked, cutting the Nats’ lead to 4-3. Three batters later, with runners on the corners, as Polanco went to third on a Gload pinch hit single, and with one man out, Francisco hits a grounder to third, that Zimmerman did not catch cleanly, before throwing to second base, 5-4, to force out Gload at second for the inning’s second out, but was unable to throw out Francisco, allowing Polanco to score the tying run, as the Phils tied the score 4-4 on the force out. The Phils would retake the lead in the eleventh as, with a runner on third, and with two men out, Polanco hits an RBI single, knocking in Valdez, who was safe at first on a bunt attempt, although replays showed that he was actually out, the Phils catching a break, moved up to second on pinch hitter Roy Oswalt’s sacrifice bunt, 3-4, and then went to third on Rollins’ fly out to center, giving the Phils a 5-4 lead. The Phil made it a 6-4 lead as Werth hits an RBI double, scoring Polanco. The Phils then handed the ball over to Lidge, who this time had a 1-2-3 inning, recording his eleventh save of the year.
Cole Hamels receives a no-decision as he pitches seven innings, giving up four runs on six hits, while striking out ten. J.C. Romero and Ryan Madson combine for two scoreless innings, giving up just one hit (Madson) and a walk (Romero) between them, while striking out two (one each). Jose Contreras gets the win as he pitches a scoreless inning, giving up a hit, while striking out one. His record is now 6-3 with a 3.65 ERA. Brad Lidge records his eleventh save as he pitches a 1-2-3 inning. John Lannan also receives a no-decision as he pitches five innings, giving up two runs on seven hits and a walk, while he strikes out three. Miguel Batista pitches an inning, plus two batters, giving up two runs on one hit and a walk. Joel Peralta receives his first blown save of the year as he pitches two innings, giving up a hit. Drew Doren pitches two 1-2-3 innings, striking out two batters. Collin Balester took the lost as he pitches an inning, giving up two runs on three hits and a walk, striking out a batter. His record is now 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA.
The Phils had twelve hits in the game, with Placido Polanco leading the team with three hits, two singles and a double, knocking in two runs. Jayson Werth, Ben Francisco and Wilson Valdez follow with two hits each, with Werth’s hits being doubles, knocking in a run, while Francisco’s hits were a single and a double, knocking in two runs, and Valdez’s hits were both singles. Dom Brown, Cole Hamels and pinch hitter Ross Gload had the other three Phils’ hits, all singles, with Brown knocking in a run. The Phils’ offense, while scoring runs, haven’t busted open a game on the road since the All-Star break. They’re due for a few, although they might not be able to do it for a while with Ryan Howard being day-to-day because of his ankle injury.
The Phils (57-48, 2nd NL East), now two and a half games behind the Braves in the East (if not for Lidge’s blown save on Saturday, they could be a game and a half behind the Braves, as Atlanta lost two of three to the Reds in Cincinnati during the weekend) have the day off today, before they go to face the Marlins for three in Miami, starting tomorrow night. Who would have thought that with all of the problems the Phils have had this year, they would still be within striking distance of the Braves in the East? I’m sure most people wouldn’t, including a lot of my fellow Phillies fans. This means that either this team is very resiliant, or the Braves aren’t as strong as everyone have been thinking they were during the last two months.
The Phils end the first half on a high note with a sweep of the 1st place Reds.
The Phils end the first half of the regular season on a high note as they sweep the 1st place Reds behind the six-hit pitching of Cole Hamels, as they defeat the Reds, 1-0.
The Phils took the lead in the third as, with a runner on second, and with two men out, Jimmy Rollins hits an RBI single, scoring Carlos Ruiz, who was safe on second on a ground-rule double, thanks to fan interference as a fan in the left center field seats touched the ball while it was still in play, which was confirmed when the umpires reviewed the call, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead. The Reds tried to come back in the fourth, as they loaded the bases, via a single to Paul Janish and walks to Joey Votto and Scott Rolen, and with nobody out, when Jonny Gomes hit into a force out, 5-2, wiping out Janish at home as Ruiz touches the plate for the inning’s first out, while both Votto and Rolen would move up a base, and Gomes would be safe at first. The Phils then got out of the inning as Jay Bruce lined out to Phils’ starter Cole Hamels, who would catch the ball before it could hit the ground, then throw over to second for a 1-6 doubleplay, doubling up Votto, to end the inning, with the Phils still in the lead. The Phils then tried to increase their lead in their half of the fourth, as they loaded the bases via a ground-rule double for Jayson Werth, as another fan interfered with a ball in play, this time preventing what could have been either a triple or an inside-the-park home run, depending on how the ball would’ve hit the wall in center field, by catching it, a call that was once again confirmed by a review by the umpires, Ryan Howard being hit by the pitch, and a walk to Ruiz, moving both Werth and Howard up a base, and with two men out. Reds starter Matt Maloney would turn the Phils’ away by getting Wilson Valdez to hit into a force out at third, 6-5, wiping out Howard for the inning’s final out. Neither team would make another serious threat during the game as both starters would keep the bats under control. The game would end as a Phils win as the Reds would go down 1-2-3 in the ninth as J.C. Romero would strike out Bruce swinging for the inning’s first out, then Brad Lidge would record his sixth save of the season by first striking out Drew Stubbs swinging and then getting pitch hitter Miguel Cairo to pop out to right for the game’s final out.
Cole Hamels gets the win as he pitches seven and two-thirds strong innings, giving up six scattered hits and three walks, while striking out three. His record is now 7-7 with a 3.78 ERA. Jose Contreras collects his seventh hold of the year as he pitches a third of an innings, walking a batter. J.C. Romero also pitches a third of an inning, striking out the only man that he would face, collecting his fourth hold of the season. Brad Lidge collects his sixth save of the year as he pitches two-thirds of an inning, getting out both men that he would face, striking out one. Matt Maloney took the lost, as he pitches six innings, giving up a run on four hits and a walk, while striking out one. His record is now 0-2 with a 3.09 ERA. Nick Masset and Arthur Rhodes pitches for two shut out innings, giving up just one walk (Masset) and a hit batter (Rhodes) between them, while striking out three (Masset).
The Phils had just four hits in the game, with Jimmy Rollins leading the team with two hits, both singles, as he knocked in the only run of the game, for the second game in a row. Carlos Ruiz and Jayson Werth had the other two Phils’ hits, both ground-rule doubles, thanks to fan interference in both cases, with the second one, on Werth’s hit, being the more costly, as it might have ended up being either a triple or an inside-the-park home run, based on where the ball might have hit the wall and with Reds’ center fielder Drew Stubbs being positioned almost against the wall in center, that ball would have been going places, but, since the fan caught it, we may never know. Guys, let the ball alone unless you are quite sure it will be leaving the ballpark. You may never know what might be the results.
The Phils (47-40, 3rd NL East) will be off for the next three days (except for Ryan Howard and Roy Halladay, who will both be at the All-Star Game), trying to recharge their batteries before they start the second half with a four-game set against the Cubs (39-50, 4th NL Central) in Chicago at Wrigley Field.
Kyle Kendrick pitches his first complete game start of his career as the bats come alive to crush the Pirates, 12-4.
Kyle Kendrick throws his first complete game start of his career as the Phils’ offense scored early and often, as the Phils finally defeat the Bucos, 12-4.
The Phils took a quick 1-0 lead in the first as, with one man on, and with nobody out, Shane Victorino hits an RBI triple, scoring Jimmy Rollins, who had earlier singled. The Phils added to their lead as, with Victorino still on third, and now with one man out, Ryan Howard hits an RBI single, knocking in Victorino, giving the Phils a 2-0 lead. The Pirates would cut the Phils’ lead to 2-1 as, with one man out, Pedro Alvarez hits a solo home run, his first major league home run of his career. The Phils then busted the game wide open in the third. With the based loaded, via a walk to Rollins, a Victorino infield single, moving Rollins up to second, and a throwing error by shortstop Bobby Crosby on a force attempt of a Jayson Werth grounder, as Victorino beats the throw to second, while Rollins reached third, and Werth was safe at first, and with nobody out, Howard hits a two-run single, scoring both Rollins and Victorino, giving the Phils a 4-1 lead, while sending Werth over to third. The Phils then made it 5-1 one batter later, as Ben Francisco hits into an RBI force out, 5-4, as Werth scores from third while Howard was wiped out at second for the inning’s first out, before Francisco beats the throw to first. Two batters later, with two men on base, as Wilson Valdez reaches base with a single, sending Francisco up to second, and with still one man out, Cody Ransom, who the Phils have just called up, hits an RBI single, scoring Francisco, giving the Phils a 6-1 lead, while sending Valdez up to second base. The Phils then made it 7-1 as, with two men on base, and still with one man out, Dane Sardinha hits an RBI double, knocking in Valdez, while sending Ransom to third. The Phils added to their lead in the fourth as, with a runner on base, and with nobody out, Jayson Werth hits an RBI double, knocking in Victorino, who had earlier singled, making it an 8-1 Phils’ lead. The Phils made it 10-1 in the fifth as, with one man on, and with two men out, Jimmy Rollins hits a two-run home run, scoring Ransom, who had earlier singled. The Pirates got a run back as Ryan Church hits a solo home run, his third home run of the season, making it a 10-2 Phils’ lead. The Phils made it 11-2 in the sixth as, with two outs, Francisco hits a solo home run, his first home run of the year. The Phils added their final run in the seventh as, with one man on, and with two men out, Rollins hits an RBI double, knocking in Kyle Kendrick, who had earlier doubled, making it a 12-2 Phils’ lead. The Pirates made it 12-3 in the eighth as, with a runner on third and with two men out, pinch hitter Ronny Cedeno hits an RBI double, scoring Delwyn Young, who had earlier reached base on a Ransom fielding error, moved to second on a Jose Tabata’s ground out, 1-3, and went to third on a Neil Walker’s ground out, 3-unassisted. In the ninth, the Pirates made it a 12-4 Phils’ lead as, with runners on the corner, and with two men out, Young hits an RBI single, scoring Alvarez, who had earlier singled, moved up to second on Church’s single, and then went to third on Crosby’s force out, 6-4, wiping out Church at second base, while sending Crosby, who was safe on the force out, over to second. The game was then ended as Tabata hits into a force out, 1-5, wiping out Crosby at third for the game’s final out.
Kyle Kendrick gets the win as he pitches a complete game, his first career complete game, as he gives up four runs, three of which were earned, on ten hits and two walks, as he strikes out four. His record is now 5-3 with a 4.70 ERA. Paul Maholm takes the lost as he goes only three innings, plus two batters, as he gives up eight runs, seven of which were earned, on ten hits and two walks, while striking out just one Phil. His record is now 5-7 with a 4.50 ERA. Justin Thomas pitches three innings, giving up three runs on three hits, while striking out one. Brendan Donnelly pitches an inning, giving up a run on two hits. D.J. Carrasco and Javier Lopez combined for two scoreless innings, giving up no hits, while striking out two (Carrasco).
The Phils errupted for fifteen hits in the game, with both Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino leading the team with three hits, with Rollins’ hits being a triple short of the cycle, as he had a single, a double and a two-run home run, knocking in three runs, while scoring three runs, while Victorino’s hits were two singles and a triple, as he scored three runs, while knocking in one run. Ryan Howard and Cody Ransom followed with two hits apiece, with Howard’s hits being two singles, knocking in three runs, while Ransom’s hits were also singles, knocking in a run. Jayson Werth, Ben Francisco, Wilson Valdez, Dane Sardinha and Kyle Kendrick had the other five Phils’ hits, with Werth, Sardinha and Kendrick’s hits being doubles, with Werth and Sardinha both knocking in a run, while Valdez’s hit was a single and Francisco’s hit being a solo home run. Just when it looks like the Phils were feeling sorry for themselves, the bats wake up. Question is, how long will they stay awake, as the Phils face both the Reds and the Braves after today’s game.
The Phils (42-37, 3rd NL East) will conclude their four-game series with the Pirates (29-52, 6th NL Central) with an afternoon game, already in progress, with the Phils leading 4-2 in the top of the fifth.
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