reCAP: Philadelphia Phillies vs. Boston Red Sox

5/29/13

It was a beautiful night in Boston and Cliff Lee was pitching for the Phillies. Lee stepped on the mound in the final game of this two game series. In the first game, the Red Sox absolutely slaughtered the Phillies 9-3. Erik Kratz and Domonic Brown hit homeruns that scored all of the Phillies runs last game. Tyler Cloyd had a horrendous game that he would like to forget about. The Phillies relied on Lee to be the stopper in last night’s game. They expected him to pitch deep into the game since most of the bullpen was unavailable. Ryan Dempster took the mound for the Red Sox. This year Dempster has been a Dumpster for the Red Sox. I expect the Phillies to score a handful of runs against him. Who are we kidding, it’s the Phillies. They don’t score many runs even when it’s against the crappiest pitchers in baseball like Alfredo Aceves. Will Lee go the distance or will the Red Sox continue their offensive barrage?

There were not a lot of runs scored. Michael Young broke out of his 0-21 slump and hit a solo homerun to start the game and made it a 1-0 Phillies lead. Dustin Pedroia put the Red Sox on the board with an RBI single that scored Jacoby Ellsbury. There was no scoring until the seventh inning when Kratz chopped an RBI single to left field that scored John Mayberry Jr. Brown threaded the needle with a solo homerun in the ninth inning that made it a final score of 3-1.

Cliff Lee pitched masterfully yet again. He was pitching quickly and was in a rhythm. He threw a lot of strikes, mixed his pitches and changed the batters eyesight on where the pitches were thrown. Although Lee threw 95 pitches through eight innings, I felt he could have gone all nine innings. If the game were played in Philadelphia, he would have pitched the ninth. Since it was in Boston, former Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon pitched the ninth inning. Papelbon came out in a smattering of boos when he was introduced to Red Sox Nation. I don’t understand why he was booed because he gave the Red Sox a World Series Championship in 2007. Nonetheless, Papelbon pitched a clean ninth inning to get his 10^th save of the season.

Ryan Dempster pitched well, but I think the Phillies hitters made Dempster pitch well. Dempster had seven three-ball counts, but only walked three hitters. Through seven innings, he allowed six hits and struck out four batters. Junichi Tazawa gave up the homerun to Brown that put the nail in the coffin. When Tazawa throws a lot of fast pitches, eventually someone is going to knock one out of the park.

Overall, the Phillies won the game in their fashion. They pitched well and scored just enough to win. I thought the Phillies plate discipline was typical. They swung early in the count, but the thing I did like was that they worked a lot of three-ball counts and walked a few times. Even working a count can get the starting pitcher out of the game quicker so the bullpen can be used earlier in the game. I thought the Sox would have scored another run on a ball that was hit by David Ortiz. He hit a ball to dead centerfield that was at the warning track at the 420 sign. In many ballparks, that ball would have been a homerun. Kratz and Ben Revere had decent nights as they were the only Phillies to get more than one hit in the game. Revere has been hitting better since he was benched for a few games in the middle of this month. Revere has a batting average of .342 since May 19. Domonic Brown has had a solid month of May. He clubbed his eighth homerun this month and has 11 for the year.

With Kyle Kendrick taking the mound tonight for the Phillies, do you expect them to win? Sound off and stay tuned until next time...

reCAP: Philadelphia Phillies vs. Miami Marlins

5/23/13

After a relieving 7-3 victory over the Marlins, the Phillies went back to work for the final game of this three game series. Tyler Cloyd pitched a spectacle of a game, and the offense backed up his solid performance. Jose Fernandez showed that he could be a future ace for the Marlins as he stymied the Phillies to only one run in his five innings of limited work. Cliff Lee took the mound for the Phillies last night. He’s having a better year than he had last year if you want to focus on the wins/loss column. Kevin Slowey started for the Marlins and just like every other pitcher on the Marlins, he’s had a rough beginning to the season. Chase Utley will not be in the lineup for the second straight game. He will be getting an MRI on his ailing hip today. Hopefully he is not placed on the 15-Day disabled list because the Phillies are living in the training room with four other players on the disabled list. Also, Utley is an important player for the Phillies. Will Slowey slow down the Phillies bats (pun intended) or will the bats wake up again?

There’s not a lot to say about this game offensively. Delmon Young hit another solo homerun to put the Phillies on the board in the fourth inning. Domonic Brown hit an RBI triple that scored Delmon Young in the sixth and Freddy Galvis laced an RBI single into left that scored Brown. That was all the scoring and the Phillies won 3-0.

Cliff Lee pitched a magnificent game. He pitched a complete game three hit shutout. He had it all last night. He only got into a jam once in the second inning. The Marlins loaded the bases with no outs and this shouldn’t come as a surprise, but the Marlins got no runs. That was the only time the Marlins threatened to score a run.

Kevin Slowey pitched a Kevin Slowey kind of game. He allows more hits than innings pitched and didn’t walk anyone. The only surprising thing is that he struck out six batters. I thought the Phillies should have scored more runs against Slowey. The leadoff hitter in the first three innings got on base for the Phillies, but they failed to drive the runner home all three times. Slowey had to leave the game early because he had a left lateral strain in his lower back. The bullpen failed yet again for the Marlins and guess who opened the little flood gate for the Phillies? Wade LeBlanc. You could pick anyone on that team to open a flood gate and they will open it for you in a jiffy.

Overall, the Phillies played Phillies like. They won with very little offense and excellent pitching, which is what this team was built to do this year. I thought they would have scored a few more runs in the first three innings when the leadoff hitter reached base. I’m giving Delmon Young a shoutout because I think he may have found his swing. He’s hit safely in four out of his last eight at bats. Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins both had multi-hit games last night. Howard did something that he rarely does and that is hit the ball towards the opposite part of the field. I loved that excuse-me-swing that he trickled down the third base line which seemed like the shortest hit double that I have ever seen. I thought Rollins would have had a third hit in his five at bats last night, but Marcel Ozuna robbed him of an extra base hit. After the game, reliever Phillippe Aumont got sent to the minors. The Phillies want him to get more work in and to improve on his command. He would not get too much work with the Phillies because he has been terrible in his most recent outings.

Can the Phillies build on this performance over the weekend when they invade DC to play the Washington Nationals? Sound off and stay tuned until next time…

reCAP: Philadelphia Phillies vs. Miami Marlins

5/22/13

A pathetic display of offense by the Phillies doomed them in the first game of this series against the Marlins. Cole Hamels pitched a magnificent game striking out 10 Marlins in six innings. Even Hamels was so angry after the 5-1 loss that he stormed out of the clubhouse and avoided talking to the media. Nothing has gone right for him this year. His record is 1-7, but for the most part, he has pitched well this season. His walks are too high for a Cole Hamels type season, and his ERA has ballooned to 4.45. Although his ERA looks bad, that’s mostly because he’s pitched in three games in which he allowed five or more runs. Tyler Cloyd got the nod on the hill last night. He got called up to start last night’s game because Carlos Ruiz got placed on the 15-Day disabled list due to a Grade 2 hamstring strain. Cloyd dazzled in his first start against the Diamondbacks, but can he do the same against the woeful Marlins? Humberto Quintero is the new backup catcher for the Phillies as they also placed Mike Adams on the 15-Day disabled list due to his recurring back spasms. Chase Utley was a late scratch from the lineup as he felt discomfort in his side. Freddy Galvis replaced Utley at second base and batted seventh in the lineup. Jose Fernandez started for the Marlins and he has had the Phillies number this year. He has yet to allow a run against the Phillies and has allowed only three hits in two games combined. Can the Phillies score against Fernandez or will Fernandez yet again keep them in check?

In this game, there was no clear answer to the question I asked. The Phillies did score against Fernandez, which was a Delmon Young solo homerun in the fourth inning yet Fernandez didn’t allow the Phillies to score anymore runs in the five innings he pitched. After Jordan Brown hit a sacrifice fly to tie the ballgame at one, Domonic Brown grounded into a fielder’s choice and the Phillies had the lead at 2-1 in the sixth inning. The Phillies pounced on the Marlins in the seventh inning. Ryan Howard, sore knee and all, laced a two-RBI single with the infield drawn in. Michael Young scored on an RBI groundout by Delmon Young. Brown got his second RBI in the game by lining a double into right field. Just like that it was a 6-1 game. Juan Pierre tacked on another run for the Marlins as he hit an RBI single into right field. Howard got his third RBI in the game as he ripped a single into right field to make it 7-2 in the eighth inning. Justin Ruggiano added another run for the Marlins in the ninth inning as he hit an RBI double. The Phillies won by a final score of 7-3.

Tyler Cloyd was impressive yet again for the Phillies. He pitched seven quality innings, allowed eight hits, two runs, two walks, and struck out five batters. Whenever he pitches, he has to rely on location. He doesn’t have power pitches that blow batters away. The hardest he threw last night was 88 miles per hour. He got into a few jams in this game, but kept his composure and went after the Marlins’ inferior hitters. Antonio Bastardo pitched a solid eighth inning. B.J. Rosenberg on the other hand did not pitch well in the ninth in a mop up role. It seemed like he lost a little velocity on his fastball. Last year Rosenberg’s fastball was in the mid-high 90’s. Now his fastball is in the low-mid 90’s.

Fernandez was not the guy that the Phillies saw the last two times. His pitches were more up in the zone than down. In the past two games that Fernandez has faced the Phillies, he didn’t allow a run and left three hitters on base in total. Last night, the Phillies doubled that number by having five hits and walked once against him. Fernandez only pitched five innings because he is on an innings limit and pitch count. Duane Below, Ryan Webb, and Wade LeBlanc opened the flood gates for the Phillies as they allowed a combined six runs. It also didn’t help that the Marlins had some terrible fielding miscues in the seventh that had the Phillies getting all the breaks.

Overall, the Phillies played the way any good team would beat the Marlins. They hit a homerun and manufactured runs. They had solid pitching to back up that solid offensive display against a crappy team. I hope Utley isn’t out for too long. He may be in a slump now, but if that oblique injury places him on the disabled list, the Phillies will miss his presence in the field. It was nice to see Howard back in the lineup after having a wonky knee for the past few days. Say what you want about him striking out, but the guy has been solid in the field. Whenever he hits a homerun, you love him. If not and he strikes out three times in a game, you hate him. I’m proud of Ben Revere. He’s had an extremely slow start this year. Now he’s becoming the Revere we saw in spring training as he sprays singles all over the field. He was so close to hitting his first homerun of his major league career last night. If he was in Citizens Bank Park last night, he could have hit a homerun. Cloyd has pitched well so far, but I want to see how he pitches against a good team with a legit offense. I’m not sold on him yet as a good pitcher.

What do the Phillies have to do to win this series against the Marlins? Sound off and stay tuned tonight as Cliff Lee takes the mound for the Phillies. Kevin Slowey will be on the hill for the Marlins.

reCAP: Cleveland Indians vs. Philadelphia Phillies

5/15/13

It was a beautiful day for baseball. There were blue skies and the sun was shining. Could the Phillies shine as bright as the weather was today? They won the first of this two game series against the Indians. They won 6-2 and it was due to good pitching and a solid offensive performance by John Mayberry Jr. and Domonic Brown. The Indians changed their starting lineup. Instead of having Michael Bourn and Michael Brantley in center and left field, Drew Stubbs moved from right field to centerfield. Ryan Raburn replaced Brantley in left. Nick Swisher, who played first base last game, played in right field. Mark Reynolds played third base last game and played first base today. Mike Aviles played today and started at third base. Chase Utley was back in the Phillies lineup after having the last game off. Mike Adams was still unavailable for the Phillies and may have suffered a setback with his back injury. He will have an MRI on Thursday to see if this back injury will put him on the 15-Day disabled list. Cole Hamels started for the Phillies and Corey Kluber started for the Indians. Were the Phillies going to lay an egg like they usually do when Hamels takes the mound or would they give Hamels some run support, which sounds like a foreign idea this year?

The Indians demolished the Phillies. Reynolds started the scoring by lining a two run double in the third inning that dropped just short of the left field wall. Jimmy Rollins put the Phillies on the board in the home half of the third inning by lining an RBI single into right field that scored Mayberry Jr. In the next inning, Aviles hit a solo homerun into left that just cleared the fence to make it a 3-1 game. Swisher hit a two run homerun in the fifth inning to make it 5-1. In the home half of the fifth inning, Rollins was up at the plate again and he lined a double into right field that scored two runs to make it 5-3. The Phillies stopped scoring until the ninth inning. The Indians continued their scoring barrage. Asdrubal Cabrera hit a two run single into center that made it 7-3. Jason Kipnis put the icing on the cake as he launched a three run homerun into right centerfield to make it a 10-3 game. The Phillies got a garbage run at the end of the game when Carlos Ruiz hit an RBI double into right field that scored Delmon Young. The Phillies lost 10-4.

Cole Hamels had an abysmal game. His location was off all game. The Indians got into his head with having a patient approach at the plate and fouling off a lot of pitches. This was one of his shortest outings since the beginning of the season. Hamels pitched five innings, allowed six hits, five runs, walked two, and struck out four batters. He hasn’t had this bad of a box score since the home opening series against the Kansas City Royals. The bullpen wasn’t any better. The Phillies have decent late inning relievers, but poor middle inning relievers. Chad Durbin, Jeremy Horst, and Raul Valdes are terrible relievers. Those three relievers combined allowed the other five runs. Phillippe Aumont on the other hand, has gotten better throughout the season and had a clean seventh inning.

Corey Kluber pitched a strong game. He made the Phillies hitters look silly. He pitched six quality innings, allowed six hits, three runs, and struck out five batters. Other then Matt Albers allowing the fourth run in the ninth inning, the Indians bullpen had a solid game.

Overall, this kind of game didn’t surprise me. The Phillies usually have these kinds of games when they score a lot of runs one game, and score very little runs the next. I feel badly for Hamels because he should have a few more wins than what his record currently states. He’s 1-6 this year and leads the National League in losses and walks. There’s talk that he could be pitching hurt. I don’t think that’s the case because his velocity did not dip significantly a la Roy Halladay. Could it be a mechanical problem he’s dealing with? I think so. He didn’t have a high leg kick when he winds up and he short armed his pitches to the plate. Any tiny thing such as the release point, arm slot, or leg kick can mess up a pitchers’ rhythm. Maybe this is what Hamels is dealing with right now. He did have some shoulder soreness during the offseason and downplayed the severity of the injury. Could he be pitching hurt? We don’t know. Maybe he hates pitching against American League teams. Then again, Hamels is a terrible pitcher when he pitches in day games. He’s a better night game pitcher in his career. I do have to say that it was nice to see Rollins have a big day at the plate as he drove in three of the four Phillies runs. Now stop swinging at the first pitch and popping up. Wait for your pitch to come.

Will the Phillies be prepared to take on the Reds this weekend? Sound off and stay tuned until next time…

reCAP: Cleveland Indians vs. Philadelphia Phillies

5/15/13

The Phillies came back home last night and were coming off a successful road trip. They played the San Francisco Giants in a three game series and had a four game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Phillies won four out of seven games against those two teams. They were riding a two game winning streak going into last night’s game against the Indians. The Indians have had to reshuffle their starting rotation because they had to play a doubleheader against the New York Yankees two days ago. Could their players feel tired after having to play two games in one day? The last time the Phillies played the Indians, they got shellacked by the Indians as they outscored the Phillies 20-2 in the two game series. This was when Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher did not play for the Indians. This time, both Bourn and Swisher played. Mike Adams was not available in the bullpen for the Phillies because of back spasms. Chase Utley was not in the lineup for the Phillies as he got a night off. Kevin Frandsen took his spot at second base. Jonathan Pettibone started for the Phillies. So far, he’s pitching very well in his rookie season against inferior hitting teams. This game against the Indians would be a good test to see where he’s at in his development as a major league pitcher. The Indians have one of the best offenses in the AL right now and is a patient hitting team. Scott Kazmir took the mound for the Indians. The last time the Phillies saw him was in the 2008 World Series. This is a comeback season for Kazmir as he has not pitched in the major leagues since 2011. Would Pettibone have the same success against a tougher offense or will this be the game he starts having growing pains as a rookie?

The Phillies hit two solo homeruns. Kevin Frandsen hit the first solo homerun of the game to make the Phillies have a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Michael Brantley hit a two RBI single up the middle to make the Indians have a 2-1 lead in the second inning. John Mayberry Jr. had a big two RBI double in the fourth inning in which the Phillies retook the lead 3-2. Domonic Brown added a solo homerun to the scoreboard to make it a 4-2 Phillies lead. The Phillies tacked on two more runs in the eighth inning as Mayberry Jr. hit an RBI single into centerfield and Freddy Galvis hit an RBI single into left field, but got thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double. The Phillies won 6-2.

Pettibone is making a strong case not to get sent down to the minors once John Lannan comes off the 15-Day disabled list. He pitched 6 2/3 solid innings. He allowed four hits, two runs, walked two, struck out three batters, and hit two batters. I liked his poise when he was in a bases loaded jam in the third inning and got out of the jam. He didn’t let his emotions get the best of him and throw mistake pitches. This can define how ready a rookie is to pitch in the big leagues. As much as I wanted Pettibone to finish the seventh inning because he didn’t throw over 100 pitches in the game, he was leaving balls over the plate in his last inning of work. I was surprised at how Charlie Manuel managed his bullpen. He did what Tony LaRussa would do with his bullpens when he managed the St. Louis Cardinals. He would put in pitchers in certain matchups. That is what Charlie did with Antonio Bastardo, Justin De Fratus, and Jeremy Horst. Jonathan Papelbon had an easy six pitch ninth inning, but didn’t record a save since the Phillies decided to score those two runs in the eighth inning.

Kazmir didn’t have his best night. He pitched five plus innings, allowed six hits, four runs, two walks, and struck out three batters. The bullpen wasn’t any better for the Indians as Bryan Shaw allowed the two runs in the eighth inning that made this game out of reach.

Overall, the Phillies offense showed up against a solid team. While the Indians are most notably a patient hitting team, I saw what was wrong with their approach at the plate from the fourth inning to the end of the game. They were swinging early in the count and getting themselves out. They were pressing and wanted to get that big hit to get their team back in the game. Pettibone is on a good ride right now and I hope he continues to pitch how he’s been pitching right now. He’s been throwing balls down in the strike zone and making the hitters hit the ball on the ground.

Can the Phillies extend their winning streak from three games to four? Sound off and stay tuned later today when the Phillies conclude their two game series against the Indians. Cole Hamels gets the nod for the Phillies while Corey Kluber takes the mound for the Indians.