Gamenight: Phillies (42-36) At Athletics (42-34)
Posted by Tim Malcolm, Wed, June 25, 2008 09:36 PM | Comments: 255
Posts
Please, please, please.
The Phillies have now lost six straight games and turn to Kyle Kendrick to get them back on track. He didn’t pitch well his last time out against Boston, but he’s normally good for 6 IP and 3 ER, you know, a Kendrickian start.
Sad thing is the Phils may not get the three runs to match it. Smith is a rookie hurler and hasn’t been too bad this season. Small preview tonight: My friends made a dynamite Thai bouillabaisse.
But I have to note that Charlie Manuel is breaking out a completely new lineup, the lineup he should’ve had out there for a while now. Jayson Werth leads off; Chase Utley is at the two-hole; Jimmy Rollins is hitting third; Pat Burrell and Ryan Howard (DH) swap power positions; Shane Victorino is in the seven-hole to provide speed for Chris Coste and nine-hole hitter Eric Bruntlett.
Phillies: Kyle Kendrick (6-3) 5.06 ERA
Athletics: Greg Smith (4-5) 3.51 ERA
Gametime: 10:05 p.m. EST
Weather: 62, sunny
Lineup: Werth, Utley, Rollins, Burrell, Howard, Feliz, Victorino, Coste, Bruntlett
MLB TV
MLB Gameday Audio
MLB Gameday
Your gamenight beer: Tonight we need something hearty and strong. Go with Stovepipe Porter by Otter Creek. It’s hard as hell but fills you up. This team needs to fill up with offense. Weird transition? Sure. Eat some ribs with this.
Go Phillies!
Posts: 0 Chris C.
One hell of a beer for hopefully a hell of a lineup. At first I felt desperation when I saw the change, but hopefully this is just a shake up and they start acting like a first place team.
Posted: 09:43 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
i like this lineup…i like to see the lefties seperated…could be a little bette but this is a good change
Posted: 09:58 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 danny
Is this line up for real?! FUCK YEAH!
Posted: 09:59 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 NEPA
I’ve avoided this site, along with everything else sports, for about 3 or 4 days now because i end up getting very depressed and pissed just thinking about this team. But I’m now back and just praying for a win tonight. Florida already got smoked so that eases the tension a little, but at this time of the year I am solely focused on the Phillies. I love the lineup tonight. I’m not sure how 2-3 Utley Rollins combo will work but it obviosuly can’t hurt.
Posted: 10:02 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 NEPA
And I’m not sure who else feels the same but I’d much rather get like 5 or 6, nice RISP runs/2 out RBI’s/timely hits and a W than see them score like 20 runs like theyve done twice this year. We know they can break out for huge games then go rigth back into famine mode. I just want some nice key hits tonight, thats all I ask.
Posted: 10:05 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 danny
Welcome to reality, if only for a night, Charlie. Rollins is not a leadoff hitter.
Posted: 10:11 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 danny
God nobody on this team can move runners over.
Posted: 10:13 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
They manufacture a run! YEAH!
Posted: 10:17 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 NEPA
Well 1 run is definitely a start. Is it just or did Werth look like he was running in slow motion on the sac fly? I think I just wanted to see him score and expected him not to.
Posted: 10:18 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
if pat cant do it nobody can!ha
Posted: 10:18 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
Of course Howard strikes out. I know people say “well as long as he drives in 120, blah blah,” but these are the runs he needs to drive home.
Posted: 10:21 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
Tim, he has been the only one driving them in lately…His BA with RISP is ridiculous.
Posted: 10:23 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
Loudest umpire in the WORLD in there tonight.
Posted: 10:23 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
Does anyone have mlb.tv? I’m watching the game at my gfs and she doesn’t have cable. :(
Posted: 10:24 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
Phil, that’s true, but I’m staying in the situation: First inning with two outs and a guy on second? Gotta get the single.
Posted: 10:24 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
I meant I’m watching it on mlb gameday which blows. I want to watch the actual game.
Posted: 10:25 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 bmizzle
Yea, does anyone have an mlb username and password that they would be willing to lend a phillies fan stuck in new york?
Posted: 10:25 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
I don’t know Tim. He’s hitting over .333 with RISP and 2 outs or somethign like that. That’s 1 out of every 3 times he comes to the plate and there’s a man on 2nd with 2 outs he manufactures a run. He can’t do it everytime he comes to the plate. I gotta give the guy credit. He’s been contributing a lot lately. A lot more than anyone on this team.
Posted: 10:26 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
Camera shows a fat guy with a goatee and mullet in a road Phils jersey.
A’s announcer: “John Kruk is here tonight.”
Haha. Not bad.
Posted: 10:27 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 NEPA
HAHA, Tim I noticed the loud umpire immediately. I did a double take to make sure he wasn’t repping a bullhorn.
Posted: 10:28 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
Phil, you’re right. It’s .340 with 2 out and RISP. I’ll give it to him — he’s been solid in that situation. Maybe I’m being too hard on him there.
Posted: 10:30 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
no howard needs to do more…he needs to hit more…he needs to start rallies not end them…put the ball in play and things will happen. AND kendrick seems to struggle when he get two strikes. he tries to make a perfect pitch. he lacks that out pitch but needs to stop trying to pin place stuff with 2 strikes
Posted: 10:31 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
He has the worst BA on the team next to Ruiz(probably) but he gets hits when it matters. He’s clutch as fuck.
Posted: 10:31 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
chris m Howard can’t start rallies. That’s not a power hitters role. I said that about Kendrick earlier in another thread. He needs to go back to AAA and work on an out pitch.
Posted: 10:32 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
tim your right… iknow you cant be contraversial on your website but the guys hitting under .220…cool that hes doing well with RISP but just imagine if he was at .270 which is not too much to ask. instead of his normal out he could get on and score some more runs
Posted: 10:33 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
haward is clutch?? he gets his rbi’s in the 1st innings and in blowouts the majority of the time…when has he had a GW hit???he is NOT clutch…common phil that i ridiculous…and hes a power hitter but that doesnt mean he cant start rallys. maybe thats this teams problem. too many power hitters that cant start rallys
Posted: 10:36 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
It’s weird because I’ve seen probably 88-92 percent of the Phils at bats this season, and it seems to me Howard doesn’t get it done with men on base. But his stats say he does it more than most. You can maybe chalk it up to the fact 34 percent isn’t quite great, but in baseball it is.
Posted: 10:38 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
Oh, and this ump kind of stinks.
Posted: 10:38 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
sry phil but i really cant remember too many times howard has come through in a late close game… i dont remember any this year, but he could of done it once or so but not really
Posted: 10:39 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 NEPA
Yea, agreed. Howard has not been clutch this year. Maybe its the ton of strikeouts in big spots, but it all overshadows the somewhat clutch hits he has had. I’m not sure how that .340 stat exists, but I just can’t remember much but dissapointment from him this year.
Posted: 10:39 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
tim where could i find his BA late and close bc i know they keep track of that somewhere
Posted: 10:40 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Mark T
I don’t know how I feel about Rollins batting 3rd though. In my mind, 3rd is for your teams best all around hitter, and that’s (usually) not him. He can really be an enigma.
Posted: 10:41 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
Um, he was horrible the 4 weeks and then was great 2 weeks than horrible a week and than has been really cluch lately. I don’t know how you guys don’t see it. Maybe because you expect him to be hitting a homer in these clutch situations. Look at last night. Man on 2nd down by 2 runs. Bam single. You are all blind.
Posted: 10:42 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Mark T
…and still on pace to strike out 219 times this year.
Posted: 10:44 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
here it is:
Close and Late 52 7 7 1 0 3 8 10 1 25 1 0 .135 .286 .327 .613
fucking terrible!!!
.135 avg in 52 AB’s with 25 K’s in that position…NOT clutch
Posted: 10:44 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 NEPA
I don’t disagree with you on maybe were blind to it. On pace for the most K’s in the history of the game tends to do that sometimes.
Posted: 10:45 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Geoff
NICE one chase!
Posted: 10:45 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
phil maybe your blind bc the numbers dont lie….
8 of his rbi’s are late and close!!!!!
Posted: 10:45 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Geoff
i dont think i need to see jenkins or so taguchi out there again. i cant deal with those guys anymore. those guys totally suck man. totally worthless.
at least feliz can play defense, other ways hed be worthless too.
Posted: 10:47 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
I don’t know, the past 2 weeks Howard has been getting a ton of clutch hits. See Braves game in Atlanta game 3 against Cards game 1 against BoSox and a few other scattered singles in the past 6 game losing streak to score a run. He’s gotten about 20 RBI’s in the past 2 weeks, and we’ve lost most of those games in the past 2 weeks meaning he was getting RBI’s in situations where we’re behind. I guess when you get RBI’s when you’re down that’s not clutch?
Posted: 10:48 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Mark T
BS call…tag was never made! Apparently there’s some weird force rule I don’t know about, or I need new glasses.
Posted: 10:48 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Geoff
note: fire the third base coach. he makes the wrong decision like all the time.
Posted: 10:48 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 NEPA
Damn, great play there. Tough in between hop and a strong throw. At least it was a nice timely hit. Pray Kendrick doesn’t blow up.
Posted: 10:49 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
And why does it matter if you’re getting RBI’s late in the game? If you’re down by 1 in the 9th inning and you have 2 outs and a man on 2nd and 3rd and you hit a single I guess that’s not clutch because it’s late in the game? I’m not saying Howard has done that, but by your standards an RBI that comes late isn’t clutch.
Posted: 10:50 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 NEPA
I like the third base coach sending him. Make the RF make a great throw, we gotta be proactive in a streak like this, not sit back and rely on getting a second hit with RISP. That would be asking for too much.
Posted: 10:52 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 chris m
phil there were the stats…7th inning and later in close game he strikouts half the time and hits .135 and has 8 rbi’s all season in that position…BTW cards game one we won by 18 runs so i dont consider any of those rbi’s clutch
Posted: 10:52 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Mark T
I think what he’s saying is that 8 RBIs in that situation is not enough to label him as a great clutch performer on the season.
Posted: 10:52 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
Right move to send him. Good throw. Was he tagged? Tough one.
Posted: 10:54 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 0 Phil
Okay, well what about when there’s no score? 1st inning home runs? Tie games in the 4th inning? That’s not clutch?
Posted: 10:54 PM on June 25, 2008
Posts: 1650 Tim Malcolm
Looks like I’ll have to check out that Phillies’ Statue of Liberty when I’m in Manhattan this weekend.
Posted: 10:55 PM on June 25, 2008