Gameday: Phillies (34-20) at Nationals (22-31)
Posted by Michael Baumann, Tue, May 31, 2011 05:53 PM | Comments: 20
2011 Gameday, Posts
Philadelphia Phillies (34-20) at Washington Nationals (22-31)
Cliff Lee, LHP (4-4, 3.50 ERA) vs. Jason Marquis (5-2, 4.26 ERA)
Time: 7:05 pm, Nationals Park
Weather: Mostly Cloudy, 96
TV: CSN
Twitter: Phillies Nation
So, since it’s no longer Memorial Day weekend, I guess we don’t have to feel unpatriotic about the Phillies beating teams from New York and Washington anymore. Considering tonight’s pitching matchup, we should expect more of the same.
Cliff Lee might be only .500, but a deeper look into his season shows him to be as effective a pitcher as he’s ever been. Lee is second among NL starters in K/9, second in K/BB ratio, and fourth in both FIP and xFIP. He’s averaging not only more than a strikeout per inning, but 10.4 strikeouts per nine innings, combined with excellent control. Incidentally, the top three starting pitchers in the NL in K/BB ratio are Roy Halladay, Lee, and Cole Hamels, in that order.Noting the small sample size caveat, Lee has had success against most current Nationals. Ivan Rodriguez has a career .375 average against him with five walks in 37 plate appearances, but no other Nationals player has more than two career hits against the Phillies’ top lefty. Meanwhile, Nationals starter Jason Marquis has been shelled by Chase Utley, who has a career .464 batting average against the man once called “Gamechanger,” while Raul Ibanez, who is somehow inexplicably among the leaders in All-Star voting, has pegged Marquis for seven hits in 20 at-bats, four of them for extra bases. Not that this means much–I just thought you might find it interesting.
PHILLIES LINEUP:
Rollins SS, Polanco 3B, Utley 2B, Howard 1B, Ibanez LF, Ruiz C, Brown LF, Mayberry CF, Lee P
Your Gameday Beer – Jim Beam Bourbon
This morning, I went with a friend of mine to serve as a witness as he applied for a marriage license. He’s in his mid-20s, but he’ll be the first of the group of guys I’ve been friends with since high school to tie the knot, and it was a heady occasion. With that in mind, I’m not sure beer’s going to cut it tonight–this may call for something stronger.– by Michael
GO PHILLIES
Posts: 0 Sse01
Kendrick pitching Saturday :-p
Posted: 07:20 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 0 Jeff
god lee s u c k s. what a wasted contract. best rotation in baseball history. yea right. braves were much better. lee throws to many strikes. he s u c k s. 5-0 against the werthless nats. they s u c k…..werth s u c k s
Posted: 07:55 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 0 bacardipr05
Wow Jeff i was about to turn the game on you serious 5-0…
Posted: 07:58 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 137 sse01
That was a bolt, at least we have something positive tonight.
Posted: 08:17 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 865 The Original Chuck P
Love me some Dom Brown!!
Posted: 08:18 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 2042 Tracey
FINALLY, the Phillies start showing some offense!
Posted: 08:19 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 137 sse01
Back to back jacks, back to back games.
Posted: 08:19 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 865 The Original Chuck P
Back to back HR in back to back games in the home run payoff inning… What are the odds?
Posted: 08:20 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 3570 Lefty
This thing is far from over.
Tonight’s beer Jim Beam – I heartily approve!
Posted: 08:35 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 2042 Tracey
ugh…
Posted: 08:45 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 865 The Original Chuck P
Love me some Dom Brown!!!
Smell it??
Posted: 09:01 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 2042 Tracey
It says a lot about the Phils that other teams get nervous about a hit, even when they have a 4-run lead. I wish the Phillies fans knew what the opposing managers do.
Posted: 09:01 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 865 The Original Chuck P
Come on Gload… Find a gap, score a run, put some pressure on this pen.
Posted: 09:03 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 865 The Original Chuck P
Wow… Catcher interference chases the starter. First time I’ve seen that.
Clippard is a hard thrower… The kind of pitcher Jimmy likes.
Posted: 09:06 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 865 The Original Chuck P
Shameless plug… Check out baseball junkies- best baseball movies (non comedy) and a discussion about Jo Jo Reyes’ futility.
Posted: 09:07 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 1431 Pat Gallen
Lee has not been sharp. Funny things happen when you aren’t playing for a contract. Just sayin’.
Posted: 09:11 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 0 Jeff
all that money to a .500 pitcher, even when he was with us the first time he had the horrible streak. yes he was great in the playoffs but come on. between his contract and howie we could have 6 players. howard is just a waste of human space. i love most of this team but hate this guy. not clutch. swings at horrible pitches. very streaky. never feel confindent in big spots. you should never feel like that with your 200 million dollar man.
Posted: 09:43 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 865 The Original Chuck P
I hope not, Pat. That’s a bad thought. I still think he kicks it into high gear when the playoffs roll around and that’s all I care about. Just be there when it matters.
Posted: 09:44 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 1431 Pat Gallen
Yeah might be slightly harsh, but guys that aren;t playing for that big contract no longer have 110% of the drive. It’s nature really. Maybe singling him out is wrong, but honestly he looks bad right now.
These are the Nationals – he struck 12 of them out on 99 pitches less than 2 months ago. They didn’t change much.
Posted: 09:50 PM on May 31, 2011
Posts: 0 bacardipr05
Lets not sugar coat this turd a sugar coated turd still stinks. Lee was rocked Baez sucked an my man Zag just cant seem to get a break every time he is called up. Not sure whats up with Lee he has given some brilliant performances then a bunch of turds.
Posted: 10:35 PM on May 31, 2011