Results tagged ‘ Lined Out ’
Jamie Moyer picks up a win in relief as he pitch six shut out innings in relief of Pedro Martinez after a rain delay.
Jamie Moyer picks up his eleventh win of the season after pitching six shut out innings for his first win in relief since pitching in relief for the Red Sox on May 15, 1996, as he took over for Pedro Martinez, who was taken out of the game after pitching only three innings because of a sixty-six minutes rain delay, as the Phils defeat the D-backs, 5-1.
The D-backs took the lead in the first as their lead-off man, Stephen Drew, hits a 3-2 changeup into right field for his eleventh home run of the season, giving the D-backs a 1-0 lead. After Ryan Roberts followed with a single, Pedro Martinez buckled down, and then got the next eight batters out, starting with a double play ball, 1-6-3, off of the bat of Gerardo Parra, wiping out Roberts at second base. The Phillies, meantime, blew opportunities to score runs in the first two innings against D-backs’ starter Jon Garland. Then in the bottom of the third, the rains came down in buckets, delaying the ballgame for sixty-six minutes. When play resumed, the Phillies’ offense went to work. With a man on base, and with two men out, Jayson Werth tied the ballgame up at one-all with an RBI double, knocking in Chase Utley, who had earlier been hit by the pitch. Then two batters later, the Phils took the lead on a Pedro Feliz RBI single, scoring Werth, making it 2-1 Phils, while sending Raul Ibanez, who had earlier been intentionally walked, over to third, before Feliz would move on up to second on D-backs’ left fielder’s Roberts throwing error. Carlos Ruiz then made it 3-1 Phils as he hits an RBI single to right, scoring Ibanez. But, Feliz, who was following Ibanez, was tagged out at the plate, 9-2, for the inning’s final out. In the top of the fourth, the Phils sent out Jamie Moyer in relief of Martinez. After giving up a single to Garland, Moyer would proceed to get out the next eleven batters before giving up another hit. In the meantime, the Phils would add to their lead. In the fifth, the Phils made it 4-1 as, with one out, Werth hits a solo home run, his career high twenty-fifth home run of the year. The Phils then made it 5-1 in the sixth as Carlos Ruiz started the inning off by hitting a solo home run, his sixth home run of the year. That, and later singles to Moyer, his second hit of the night, and to Shane Victorino, with one man out, would lead to Garland’s exit, and his replacement by Daniel Schlereth. Schlereth proceeded to throw a wild pitch that would move Moyer up to third and Victorino up to second base. After Utley is walked to load the bases, Schlereth is able to get out of the inning by first striking out Ryan Howard, and then getting Werth to ground out, 5-3. In the seventh, Moyer would give up his second hit of the night, a two-out single to Miguel Montero. But he then gets out the next seven batters, ending the game as Parra lined out to Werth for the final out, recording the win.
Pedro Martinez received a no-decision, as he pitched only three innings, being taken out after the rain delay, as he gave up only a run on two hits, as he struck out three. Jamie Moyer picked up the win in relief, as he went six strong innings, giving up just two hits, while striking out five. His record is now 11-9 with a 5.22 ERA. Jon Garland took the lost as he pitched five and a third innings, giving up five runs on eleven hits, a hit batter and two walks, as he struck out three. His record is now 6-11 with a 4.42 ERA. David Schlereth, Leo Rosales and Jon Rauch combined for three and two-thirds shut out innings, giving up just one hit (Rauch) and two walks (Schlereth and Rosales with a walk each), while they struck out three (one batter for each pitcher).
The Phils had twelve hits in the game, with Carlos Ruiz leading the way with three hits, one of which was a solo home run, scoring two RBIs, as he raised his batting average to .235. He was followed by Shane Victorino, Jayson Werth, and, of all people, Jamie Moyer, with two hits each, with Werth’s two hits being a double and a solo home run, also knocking in two RBIs. Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Pedro Feliz each followed with a hit, with Feliz knocking in the final Phils’ run. Although scoring several runs last night, the Phils are still having problems scoring runners in scoring position, as they left the bases loaded in both the first and sixth innings.
The Phils (67-49, 1st National League East) continue their short home stand tonight with the Diamondbacks (54-66, 4th National League West) with a night game. 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 new ace Cliff Lee (10-9 (3-0), 2.86 (1.13)), who is coming off a strong start against the Cubs on August 13, as he pitched eight innings, giving up only one run on six hits and three walks, while he struck out eight, in the Phils’ 6-1 win. He will try to make it four straight wins since joining the Phils from the Indians, while giving the Phils a series win at home. The D-backs will try to counter with Dan Haren (12-7, 2.50), who is coming off a win against the Dodgers on August 14, where he went eight innings, giving up a run on six hits and two walks, while striking out eight, in the D-backs’ 4-1 win. He will be trying to see if he can derail the Lee’ Express. The Phils will be trying to give Lee some more run support while Lee will be seeing if he can continue his dominance of National League hitters.
The Phillies make it four wins in a row as they rout the Reds, 22-1, increasing their lead to two games in the East.
The Phils tie a franchise record by scoring ten runs in the first inning while in route to a 22-1 rout of the Reds, one of the most lop-sided scores in the team’s long history. The Phils’ lead in the National League East is now at two games over the Marlins, as they lose to the Giants.
After Phils’ starter Cole Hamels had an easy first inning, the Phils’ batters went to work on Reds’ starter Johnny Cueto. After Jimmy Rollins worked a walk, Shane Victorino gave the Phils a quick 2-0 lead as he belt Cueto’s ninth pitch into the right field seats for a two-run home run, his sixth home run of the season, scoring Rollins in front of him. After Chase Utley is called out on strike for the first out of the inning, and Ryan Howard then lined out to the third baseman, 5-unassisted, Jayson Werth continued the inning with a single. The next batter, Greg Dobbs, made it 4-0 Phils as he hits a two-run shot of his own, also to right field, his fifth home run of the year, knocking in Werth. After Pedro Feliz was hit by the pitch and then Carlos Ruiz was walked, moving Feliz up to second base, Hamels helped his own cause by hitting a two-run double, scoring both Feliz and Ruiz, giving the Phils a 6-0 lead, as the Phils batted around. Rollins, up for the second time in the inning, hits an RBI double of his own, scoring Hamels, and making it 7-0 Phils. After Victorino was walked, Reds’ manager Dusty Baker had seen enough, as he came to the mound and took out Cueto, replacing him with Daniel Ray Herrera. Utley quickly greeted Herrera with a three-run shot to right center field, his nineteenth home run of the season, knocking in both Rollins and Victorino, giving the Phils a 10-0 lead, tying the Phillies’ franchise record for the most runs scored in the first inning, which had been done three previous times, with the most recent one occurring on June 2, 2002, against the Expos. The inning finally ended with Howard being called out on strikes for the inning’s final out.
The Reds would get onto the scoreboard in the second as Jonny Gomes hits a lead-off home run, his fifth home run of the year, making it a 10-1 Phils’ lead. But that would be it for the Reds, as Hamels kept them quiet during the seven innings that he would pitch, going after them, as he gave up only three hits, while walking none and striking out only two batters. Meanwhile, the Phils just kept on scoring. They would make it 11-1 in their half of the second as, with two men on, and one out, Ruiz hits an RBI single, knocking in Dobbs, who had earlier singled, and had gone to second on Feliz’s single, while seconding Feliz up to second base. The Phils increased their lead to 12-1 in the third as, with runners on the corners, and one man out, Werth hits a sacrifice fly for the inning’s second out, knocking in Victorino, who had earlier hit a ground-rule double, and had gone to third, when Howard hit in a force play, 3-6, as Utley, who had just walked, was wiped out at second base, while Howard was safe at first. The Phils then proceeded to really pile it on in the fourth. With two men out, Hamels got on base with a single. Rollins followed with a walk, sending Hamels on to second base. Victorino then followed with an RBI double, knocking in Hamels, giving the Phils a 13-1 lead, while sending Rollins up to third. Utley then hits an RBI infield single as he beats out Reds’ third baseman Edwin Encarnacion’s throw to first, which allowed Rollins to score, making it a 14-1 Phils’ lead, while Victornio stopped at third. Utley is then replaced at first base by pinch runner Eric Bruntlett, giving Utley some rest. Howard then followed with an RBI single to right, which scored Victorino, making it a 13-1 Phils’ lead, before it became 14-1 as Bruntlett would score on Reds’ right fielder Jay Bruce’s fielding error, which also allowed Howard to move to second, before he is in turn replaced by pinch runner John Mayberry, Jr., so that he can also get some rest.
The score would stay 16-1, as Hamels, and then Tyler Walker kept the Reds under control, while the Reds’ bullpen would keep the Phils off of the board until the bottom of the eighth inning. With one man out, pinch hitter Matt Stairs would get on base with a walk. Rollins would follow with a single, sending Stairs up to second base. Victorino followed with a single, scoring Stairs, making it a 17-1 Phils’ lead, while moving Rollins up to second base. Bruntlett followed him with an RBI double, knocking in Rollins, giving the Phils an 18-1 lead, while Victorino would stop at third. Mayberry then walked, loading the bases. Werth would then clear the bases with a grand slam home run, his seventeenth home run of the year, sending home Victorino, Bruntlett and Mayberry before him, as he gave the Phils a 22-1 lead, the team’s highest runs total since the 26 runs that they would score against the Mets on June 11, 1985, and the fifth highest runs total in franchise’s history, as well as being the highest numbers of runs that they would score at Citizens Bank Park. This would be the final score as Scott Eyre, coming off of the 15-days disabled list, would pitch a scoreless ninth.
Cole Hamels got the win, as he pitched the team’s fifth straight quality start, and the fourth for the present home stand, as he went seven innings, giving up just one run on three hits, while he struck out two. His record is now 5-5 with an ERA of 4.70. Tyler Walker pitched a 1-2-3 inning, striking out a batter. Scott Eyre pitched a scoreless inning, giving up just two hits, as he struck out two. Johnny Cueto lasted only two-thirds of an inning, giving up nine runs on five hits and three walks, while striking out only one batter. His record is now 8-5 with a 3.45 ERA. Daniel Ray Herrera pitched two and a thirds innings of relief, giving up three runs on five hits and a walk, as he struck out two. Nick Masset pitched an inning, giving up four runs, three of which were earned, on four hits and a walk, as he struck out one. Carlos Fisher and Josh Roenicke would combine for three scoreless innings, giving up only three hits (Fisher (2), Roenicke (1)), while they each struck out two batters. Paul Janish, normally a position player, pitched an inning, giving up six runs on four hits and two walks, while striking out a batter.
The Phils had twenty-one hits in the game, the most hits that they have had in one game so far this year. Shane Victorino and Greg Dobbs leads the team with four hits each, followed by Jimmy Rollins with three hits. Chase Utley, Jayson Werth, and Cole Hamels come next with two hits a piece. Ryan Howard, Pedro Feliz, Carlos Ruiz and Eric Bruntlett have the other four Phils’ hits. The Phils had ten extra-base hits in the game (2B (6), HR (4)) as Victorino was a triple short of hitting the cycle. Werth knocked in the most runs with five, thanks to his grand slam home run and his earlier sac fly. Victorino and Utley followed with four RBIs each, followed by Dobbs and Hamels with two RBIs a pieces, then by Rollins, Howard, Ruiz and Bruntlett with one RBI each. All of the Phils’ starters had a hit in last night’s game, with each man who had batted in the first, except for Howard, getting a hit that inning. The Phils ended up leaving only six men on base, as they have now won four straight games at home, after coming home from a 3-6 road trip.
The Phillies (43-37, 1st National League East) continued their so far successful home stand with a night game against the Reds (40-41, 4- T National League Central). The game will start at 7:05 pm and will be played at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies will send to the mound J.A. Happ (5-0, 2.96), presently their best starter this season, as he comes off a no-decision against the Braves on July 2, where he pitched seven strong innings, giving up only two runs on seven hits and two walks, as he struck out five, in the Phils’ 5-2 lost. He will be going for his sixth win of the year, and planning to pitch the fifth straight quality start on the home stand. The Reds will counter with Aaron Harang (5-8, 3.86), who is coming off a no-decision against the D-backs on July 3, where he went seven innings, giving up two runs on four hits and three walks, while striking out eighth, in the Reds’ 3-2 win. He will be trying to break a personal four-games losing streak, while hoping that the Phils’ bats will not be as potent as they were last night. The Phils will be shooting for their fifth straight win at home, while trying to take care of business while increasing their lead over the rest of the Eastern Division.
The Phillies’ bats help to ease the return of Rodrigo Lopez to the Majors as the Phils routs the Mets, 7-2, regaining sole control of first place in the NL East.
The Phillies’ offense scored seen runs in the first three innings, helping to ease Rodrigo Lopez’s return to the major leagues as he pitched six shut out innings against the Mets as the Phils defeat their main rival in the East, 7-2. The win puts them in sole control of first place, a full game ahead of the Marlins who had lost to the Pirates.
The Phils took a quick 1-0 lead in the first as, with two men on base, and nobody out, Chase Utley hits an RBI single, knocking in Jimmy Rollins, who had earlier doubled, and then went on to third on Shane Victorino’s single, while Victorino, who had earlier singled, would move on to third base. Three batters later, with the bases loaded, via a walk to Ryan Howard, which moved Utley up to second, and one out, Greg Dobbs hits a two-run single, scoring both Victorino and Utley, giving the Phils a 3-0 lead, while moving Howard up to second. The Phils would make it 4-0 in the second as, with a runner on third, and one out, Utley hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Victorino, who had earlier tripled. The Phils would bust the game open in the third as Jayson Werth started the inning off with a lead-off home run, his sixteenth home run of the year, giving the Phils a 5-0 lead. Five batters later, with runners on second and third, and two men out, Rollins hits a two-run double, knocking in Pedro Feliz, who had earlier singled, and had gone to third on Paul Bako’s double, and Bako, who had earlier doubled, making it a 7-0 Phils’ lead. That would be the last run to be scored by the Phils, as the Mets’ starter, Livan Hernandez, would be taking out in the fourth after loading up the bases, and the Mets’ bullpen would not give up a hit to the Phils until the eighth inning. In the meantime, the Phils’ starter, Rodrigo Lopez, making his first major league start since 2007, was having his way with the Mets, shutting them out for the first six innings, giving up only three hits and a walk before the seventh inning. In that inning, the Mets would finally get on the board as, with one man on, and one man out, Nick Evans hits an RBI double, knocking in Ryan Church, who had earlier doubled, making it a 7-1 Phils’ lead. The next batter, Brian Schneider hits an RBI ground-rule double, thanks to fan interference, scoring Evans from second base, cutting the Phils’ lead down to 7-2. Charlie Manuel then came out and replaced Lopez with Chan Ho Parks, as Lopez left to an obvation from the fans. Park proceeded to end the Mets’ threat with two straight strikeouts, before pitching a scoreless eighth inning. Ryan Madson then came in the ninth, pitching a 1-2-3 inning, helped by a catch of Schneider’s liner to left by John Mayberry, Jr. for the inning’s second out.
Rodrigo Lopez got the win, as he pitched six and a third innings, giving up just two runs on six hits and a walk, while he struck out four. His record is 1-0 with a 2.84 ERA. Chan Ho Park pitched one and two-thirds scoreless innings, giving up just a hit and a walk, while striking out two. Ryan Madson pitched a 1-2-3 ninth. Livan Hernandez took the lost, as he went three innings plus three batters, giving up all seven runs on ten hits and four walks, while only striking out two. His record is now 5-4 with a 4.56 ERA. Pat Misch, Bobby Parnell and Elmer Dessens pitched five scoreless innings, giving up only one hit (Dessens) and a walk (Misch), while striking out four batters (Misch (3), Parnell (1)) between them.
The Phils’ bats had eleven hits in the game, with Victorino leading the team with three hits, raising his batting average to .299. He was followed by Jimmy Rollins (who appears to be getting his grove back) and Chase Utley, with both men having two hits, as they both knocked in two runs. Jayson Werth, Greg Dobbs, Pedro Feliz and Paul Bako had the other four Phils’ hits, with Werth’s hit being a solo home run. Greg Dobbs knocked in the other two Phils’ runs. After being keep in check by the Braves’ pitching staff, the Phils’ bats erupted for ten hits and seven runs in the first four innings before they were finally stopped by the Mets’ bullpen. Hopefully they can do the same to tonight’s Mets’ starter.
The Phillies (40-37, 1st) continue their three-games series with the Mets (39-40, 3rd) today with an afternoon game. The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park and it will start at 4:05 pm and it will be nationally televised by Fox Sports. The Phils will send to the mound Jamie Moyer (6-6, 6.05) who is coming off a win against the Blue Jays on June 28, pitching five innings, giving up four runs on five hits and two walks, while striking out four, in the Phils’ 5-4 win, as he won his 252nd career victory in his long career. He will be trying to become the Phils’ first seven game winner. The Mets will oppose him with Fernando Nieve (3-1, 2.25), who is coming off a lost against the Brewers on June 28, as he pitched only three and one-thirds innings, giving up three runs on eleven hits and one walk, while striking out only one batter, in the Mets’ 4-2 lost. He will be trying to get back on the winning track. The Phils will be going for their first home series win against a team that is not named the Nationals, while doing so before a national audience.
Phillies continues their winning way on the road as they defeat the Padres, 5-3.
Back-to-back dingers from Chase Utley and Ryan Howard help to support a strong effort by ‘Kentucky Joe’ Blanton as the Phils defeated the Padres, 5-3.
The Padres took the lead in the second as, with runners on the corners, and nobody out, Kevin Kouzmanoff hits into a 6-4-3 double play, wiping out at second base Brian Giles, who had earlier singled, while scoring on the play Scott Hairston, who had earlier singled, and had gone to third on Giles’ single, giving San Diego a 1-0 lead. The Phils would tie the game up at one-all in the third as, with two men on, and nobody out, Shane Victorino hits an RBI single, scoring Phils’ starter Joe Blanton, who had earlier walked, and had gone to second on Jimmy Rollins’ single, while sending Rollins, who had just singled, over to third base. The Phils took the lead one batter later as Chase Utley hits an RBI single, scoring Rollins, while sending Victorino on to second, giving the Phils a 2-1 lead. The Phils made it 3-1 in the fifth as Chase Utley hits a lead-off home run, his twelfth home run of the year. One batter later, Ryan Howard would hit a solo home run of his own, his fifteenth home run of the year, making it a 4-1 Phils’ lead. The Padres would get a run back in the sixth as, with two men out, Adrian Gonzalez hits a solo home run, his twenty-first home run of the year, making it a 4-2 Phils’ lead. The next batter, Hairston, followed with a solo shot of his own, his eighth home run of the year, cutting the Phils’ lead down to 4-3. The Phils tacked on an insurance run in the eighth as, with a man on and two men out, Victorino hits an RBI double, knocking in pinch hitter Greg Dobbs, who had earlier doubled, and had gone to third on Rollins’ lined out to right, giving the Phils a 5-3 lead. That would end up being the final score, as the Phillies’ bullpen kept the Padres’ off the scoreboard in the final two innings, with Brad Lidge recording his fourth save in four straight games and his thirteenth save of the season.
Joe Blanton got the win as he pitched a strong seven innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk, while striking out five. His record is now 4-3 with a 5.86 ERA. Scott Eyre pitched an inning plus one batter, recording his tenth hold, as he gave up no runs on no hits and a walk, while striking out one. Brad Lidge pitched a scoreless ninth as he nailed down his thirteenth save of the year. Kevin Correia took the lost as he pitched only four and a third innings, giving up four runs on ten hits and three walks, while striking out five. His record is now 1-4 with a 5.37 ERA. Cla Meredith pitched two-thirds of an inning, getting out both men that he would face, with a strikeout. Joe Thatcher pitched two scoreless innings, striking out two. Luke Gregerson pitched an inning, giving up a run on two hits, as he struck out one. Greg Burke pitched a scoreless inning, striking out a batter.
The Phillies had a total of twelve hits in the game. Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Chase Utley and Raul Ibanez each led the way with two hits each, with one of Utley’s hits being a solo home run. Ryan Howard, Pedro Feliz, Carlos Ruiz and Greg Dobbs had the other four Phils’ hits, with Howard’s being a home run. Utley and Victorino each knocked in two runs, while Howard knocked in one. Half of the Phils’ hits were for extra-bases (2Bs (4), HRs (2)). The Phils left eleven men on base, which they will need to improve on if they expect to have a good road trip.
The Phillies (29-20, 1st) will continue their three-games series with the Padres (25-26, 3rd National League West), with a night game tonight at PETCO Park. The game will start at 10:05 pm Eastern. The Phillies’ starter will be rookie Antonio Bastardo (0-0, -.–), who is making his major league debut, taking the place, in the Phils’ starting rotation, of the injured Brett Myers. He will be going after his first major league win. The Padres will counter with their ace Jake Peavy (5-5, 3.67), who is coming off a win against the D-backs on May 27, as he went six and a third innings, giving up four runs on eight hits and a walk, while striking out five, in the Padres’ 8-5 win. He will be going for his sixth win of the season. The Phillies will be trying to give a lot of run support to Bastardo in his first start in the big leagues.
Wednesday: Phillies may have lost Brett Myers as he is taken out of the game while he loses to the fish, 6-2.
After giving up a two-run home run and a walk, losing pitcher Brett Myers is taken out of the game, which the Phils would lose, 6-2. It is later learned that he is having problem with his right hip, and he may be lost for the rest of the season, if he has to take surgery to fix it.
The Marlins took the lead in the fourth, in a pitchers’ duel, as, with one man out, Dan Uggla hits a solo home run, his ninth home run of the season, to give the fish a 1-0 lead. The Marlins increased their lead an inning later, as, with runners on the corners, and nobody out, Wes Helms hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Cody Ross, who had earlier singled and had gone to third on John Baker’s single, from third, making it 2-1 Marlins. The Phils cut the Marlins’ lead to 2-1 as, with one out, Carlos Ruiz hits a solo home run, his second home run of the year. In the sixth, with a runner on second, and no one out, Uggla hits an RBI double, scoring Chris Coghlan, who had earlier doubled, giving the Marlins a 3-1 lead. Three batters later, with a man on third and now two men on, Ross gave the fish a commanding 5-1 lead, as he hits a two-run home run, his seven home run of the season, knocking in Uggla from third. The Phils got a run back in the eighth as, with one man out, pinch hitter Matt Stairs hits a pinch hit home run, his third home run of the year, making it a 5-2 Marlins’ lead. The fish got that run back in the ninth as, with two men on, and one man out, Ronny Paulino hits an RBI single, plating Ross, who had earlier doubled, mking it 6-2 Marlins. In the ninth, a Phils’ rally that had two men on, with two out, ended when Jimmy Rollins lined out to center for the final out.
Brett Myers took the lost, as he pitched five and two-thirds innings, before being taken out of the game with an injury, giving up five runs on seven hits and a walk, while he struck out three. His record is now 4-3 with a 4.66 ERA. Later, it was announced that Myers was removed from the game because of problems with his right hip. At the moment, Myers is going to have himself check out to determine if he will need surgery to fix. If so, his season may be over. Clay Condrey followed with two and a third scoreless innings, giving up just a hit, while striking out two. Jack Taschner pitched an inning, giving up a run on two hits and a walk, as he struck out one. Burke Badenhop received the victory as he pitched five innings, giving up a run on five hits and a walk, while striking out three. His record is now 3-2 with a 4.97 ERA. Dan Meyer pitched an inning and a third of scoreless ball, as he struck out one. Kiko Calero pitched two-thirds of an inning, striking out two. Leo Nunez pitched an inning, giving up a run on one hit and a walk, as he struck out one. Matt Lindstrom pitched a scoreless ninth, giving up two hits and a walk.
The Phils had eight hits in the game. Ryan Howard led the team with two hits, raising his batting average to .263, with one of the hits being a double. Chase Utley, Jayson Werth, Pedro Feliz, Carlos Ruiz, Brett Myers and Matt Stairs had the other four hits, with Ruiz and Stairs hits being solo home runs, bringing in the Phils’ only runs. The Phils will regroup tonight, hoping to take advantage of the hapless Nationals.
The Phillies (25-2o, 2nd) will start a three-games weekend series tonight with the Nationals (13-33, 5th) at Citizens Bank Park. The game will start at 7:05 pm Easten. The Phils’ starter will be J.A. Happ (2-0, 2.60), who is coming off a no-decision as he pitched an excellent game on May 23 against the Yankees, going six innings, giving up two runs on four hits, while striking out four, in the Phils’ 5-4 lost. He will be going for his first win of the season as a starter. The Nationals will counter with Ross Detwiler (0-0, 2.45), who is coming off a no-decision against the Orioles on May 23, where he pitched six innings, giving up a runs on one hit and four walks, as he struck out four, in the Nationals’ 2-1 lost. He is still looking for his first win. The Phils will be trying to make it five wins in a row against the Nats as they try to establish dominance at home.
Opening Night falls flat for the world champs as they lose to the Braves, 4-1.
First, the answer to last week’s trivia question, which no one even attempted to answer. First, the question: Name the first ex-Phil to be elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame? And the answer is: Nap Lajoie is the first ex-Phil to be elected into the Baseball Hal of Fame, as he was elected as a member of the 1937 class, receiving 168 votes or 83.58% of the vote in the second Hall of Fame election, being that year’s highest vote getter. Nap was a member of the Phils for four years, 1896-1900. A new weekly trivia question will be asked at the bottom of this post.
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The 2009 regular season started last night as the 2008 World Champions Philadelphia Phillies faced one of their oldest rivals, the Atlanta Braves, in a night game at Citizens Bank Park, which included the raising of the 2008 banner and fireworks, as the Phils wore their special opening night uniforms with gold trim and the 2008 World Series patch.
Sadly, during the game itself, all of the fireworks were on the Atlanta Braves’ side as they torched Phils’ starter Brett Myers for four runs, via three home runs, in the first two innings. Things looked very promising for Myers as he easily got out the first two batters that he faced, via a fly out to center and a 6-3 ground out. Then Chipper Jones, with the count 3-2, hit a single to left, getting the first hit of the 2009 season. The next batter, Brian McCann then hit a 2-0 pitch into deep right field for a two-run home run, the first home run of the new season, as the Braves took a quick 2-0 lead. In the second, the Braves added to their lead as Jeff Francoeur hit his first home run of the year, a rocket into the left field seats, making it 3-0 Atlanta. One batter later, Jordan Schafer, in his first major league at-bat, made it 4-0 Braves as he slugged a 3-1 fastball into center field. Myers would settle down after that, giving up only five more hits as he pitched a total of six innings. While the Braves were raining on Myers’ parade, Derek Lowe was expertly handcuffing the Phils, giving up only two hits in his eight strong innings of work, a one-out ground-rule double to Carlos Ruiz in the third inning, the first Phillies’ hit of the season, who was then left stranded on second, and a two-out single to Jimmy Rollins in the sixth, who was then left on first as Jayson Werth lined out right to Lowe to end the inning. The Phils would finally score a run in the ninth inning, getting it off of reliever Mike Gonzalez. Pinch hitter Eric Bruntlett started the inning off with a pinch hit double. Rollins then flied out to right, sending Bruntlett over to third with one out. The next batter, Werth, then singled sharply to left, scoring Bruntlett, collecting the first Phillies RBI of the season, making it a 4-1 Braves’ lead. Chase Utley followed with a walk, sending Werth over to second, and bringing up the tying run to the plate in the person of Ryan Howard. Howard, who had been given a steady diet of off-speed pitches all night by Lowe, saw five straight sliders from Gonzalez, working the count full. Thus, Howard was caught off-guard when pitch no. six from Gonzalez was a fast ball, the first one he had seen all night, which was sent right down the pike, for a call third strike. Howard was followed by Raul Ibanez, who, like Howard, was looking for his first hit of the year, and seeing if he could help his new team out early in the season. Sadly, it was not to be, as he struck out, swinging, on a 3-2 fastball, ending the ballgame as a 4-1 Braves’ victory.
Brett Myers, in his six innings of work, gave up four runs on eight hits, including three home runs, and a walk while striking out six. His regular season record is now 0-1 with a 6.00 ERA. Jack Taschner, pitching in his first official game as a Phil, pitched a 1-2-3 inning as he struck out a batter. Scott Eyre followed him for two-thirds of an inning, recording a strikeout. Chad Durbin then pitched the final third of an inning, striking out the only batter he would face. Brad Lidge pitched the ninth for the Phils, pitching a 1-2-3 inning, including a strikeout. Derek Lowe pitched eight strong innings for the Braves, staying out of trouble all night, as he gave up only two hits to the Phils as he struck out four. His record is now 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA. Mike Gonzalez pitched an inning, giving up a run on two hits and a walk, while getting two very important strike outs to end the game.
At this point, Eric Bruntlett is leading the team in batting with a 1.000 batting average, as he went 1 for 1 with a double. Carlos Ruiz follows at .333, as he went 1 for 3 on the night with a ground-rule double. Jimmy Rollins and Jayson Werth follow with both men going 1 for 4 for a .250 batting average, with Werth having the Phils’, at the moment, only RBI of the season.
The short series will continued tomorrow night at Citizens Bank Park. The game will start at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phillies will send to the mound their ageless wonder Jamie Moyer, who record is presently 0-0 with a -.– ERA. The Braves will counter with Jair Jurrjens, who’s record is also 0-0 with a -.– ERA.
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Now, here is this week’s trivia question: Name the first ten Phillies’ Opening Day Pitchers? You all know where to find the answer. The answer will be posted on Thursday.
2008 World Series: Game 5.5: The Phillies are the 2008 World Champions of the Baseball World.
The Phillies have won the 2008 World Series, winning the series four games to one, as they would outscore the Rays in the final three and a half innings of this past Monday’s suspended game five, 4-3. As play resumed, Rays’ manager Joe Maddon would decide to leave Grant Balfour in the game. Pinch hitter Geoff Jenkins would be the first batter to face him in the Phillies’ half of the sixth, and he would greet him with a hard hit double to center. Jimmy Rollins would follow with an excellent sacrifice bunt, that would go 5-3 for the inning’s first out, as he would move Jenkins over to third base. Then, with the Rays’ infield pulled in to prevent a run, Jayson Werth would hit a pop up into shallow center field. Ray’s second baseman Akinori Iwamura would be unable to make an over-the-shoulder basket catch of the ball, as it would drop in for a RBI single, scoring Jenkins, and giving the Phillies a 3-2 lead. Balfour is then taken out of the ballgame by Maddon and is replaced on the mound by J.P. Howell. Howell would then end the inning by first getting Utley to strike out swinging for the inning’s second out, and after Werth would steal second, he would get Ryan Howard to pop out to third for the final out of the inning. Charlie Manuel would then put out in place of Cole Hamels, who is now in line to be the game’s winning pitching, Ryan Madson. Madson would proceed to strike out Dioner Navarro looking for the inning’s first out. But then he would give up a solo home run to Rocco Baldelli to left, tying the game up at three apiece, and thus denying Hamels his chance to make World Series history by winning all five of his starts. Jason Bartlett would then follow with a single. The next batter, Howell, would sacrifice the runner over to second, 1-4, for the inning’s second out, as he put a runner in scoring position. Madson is then replaced by J.C. Romero. Iwamura would then hit a ground ball towards second base, that Utley would be able to grab, but would then have no play to make at first, as Iwamura would get an infield single. But, Utley would then throw a strike towards home plate as he would see Bartlett trying to score from second on the play. His throw would beat Bartlett to home plate and then Carlos Ruiz would tag out a sliding Bartlett to keep the game tied at three all. In the Phillies’ half of the seventh, Pat Burrell would start the inning off with a double to left center field. As he would be replaced on second base by pinch runner Eric Bruntlett, the Rays would replace Howell on the mound with Chad Bradford. Shane Victorino would then hit the ball to the right side of the infield, after being unable to put down a bunt, for the inning’s first out, 4-3, while Bruntlett would move on over to third base. This move would once again force the Rays to bring in their infield. Pedro Feliz would take advantage of this move as he would hit a RBI single to center, scoring Bruntlett and giving the Phillies’ a 4-3 lead. Ruiz would then follow Feliz by hitting into a force out, 4-6, wiping out Feliz at second for the second out. Romero would then bat for himself and proceed to hit into a force out, 4-6, for the inning’s final out. Romero would then stay in to pitch the eighth. Chris Crawford would start the inning off with a single. B.J. Upton would then hit into a 6-4-3 double play, doubling up Crawford at second base, putting no one on base with two men out. Romero would then end the inning by getting Carlos Pena to fly out to left for the final out. In the Phillies’ eighth, the Rays would send out David Price to keep the game close. Prince would proceed to get Rollins to fly out to left for the inning’s first out and then would strike out Werth for out number two. Utley would then get on base with a walk. After Utley would steal second, Howard would end the inning by striking out. In the Rays’ ninth, the Phillies would hand the ball over to Brad Lidge to end the game. Lidge would get Evan Longorio to pop out to Utley for the first out of the inning. Navarro would then get on base with a single. Navarro would be replaced at first by pinch runner Fernando Perez, while pinch hitter Ben Zobrist would come to the plate. After Perez would steal second base, Lidge would get Zobrist out as he lines out directly to the right fielder for the second out of the inning. Maddon would then send out pinch hitter Eric Hinske to try and take the lead with one swing of the bat. Instead, Lidge would strike Hinske out for the game’s final out, as he would record his forty-eighth straight save in forty-eight attempts and his seventh save of the post-season, and lead to the start of a celebration among the Phillies, as they would win their second World Championship in the team’s 126 years of existance.
Cole Hamels would get a no-decision, as he would pitch six strong innings, giving up two earned runs on five hits and a walk, while striking out three. Ryan Madson would pitch two-thrids of an inning, giving up an earned run on two hits, while striking out one. J.C. Romero would get the win as he pitches a scoreless inning and a third, giving up only two hits. His series’ record is now 2-0 with an 0.00 ERA. Brad Lidge would record his second save of the series, pitching a scoreless inning, as he would give up just a hit, while striking out one, as he records his forty-eighth straight save, and his seventh in the post-season. Scott Kazmir would also get a no-decision, as he would go only four innings plus two batters, giving up two earned runs on four hits, six walks and a hit batsman, while striking out five. Grant Balfour would pitch an inning and a third, giving up an earned run on two hits. J.P. Howell would get the lost as he would pitch two-thirds of an inning plus one batter, giving up an earned run on one hit, while striking out one. His series’ record is now 0-2 with an ERA of 7.71. Chad Bradford would pitch a scoreless inning, giving up only one hit. David Price would also pitch a scoreless inning, giving up just a walk, while striking out two.
During the celebration, which would include Bud Selig giving David Montgomery, Pat Gillick and Charlie Manuel the World Series Trophy, Cole Hamels would be announced as being the 2008 World Series MVP. It would later be announced that the city of Philadelphia plans to hold its World Series parade on Friday. And it would appear that the parade wouldl be shown on at least one of the local networks. I can’t wait. 
Now that the Phillies have won the series, I would like to first apologize for the number of times that I’ve shown a lack faith in the guys actually being able to get into the World Series. Next, I would like to laugh in the face of the so-called experts who during the post-season have never given the Phillies the chance to win the Series, including FOX. Ha-HA, in your face, experts. Lastly, I would like to congratulate the Tampa Bay Rays for doing as well as they did this season to get into the World Series as well. I am sure that they’ll be back in the series at some point during the next few years.
Next stop, the victory parade. I love a parade, etc. etc.
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