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.
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