Iron Pigs Beat Brewers
Posted by Michael Baumann, Thu, September 08, 2011 11:42 PM | Comments: 10
2011 Game Recaps, Posts
It was almost a laughable lineup, about half regulars and half bench players (or scrubs, or yannigans, depending on your own personal vernacular), but it turned out to be effective. The Phillies submitted a starting lineup without Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Raul Ibanez, and Jimmy Rollins and still managed to tag the National League’s second-best team for seven runs, while Cole Hamels held the Brewers to two earned runs and six baserunners for his third complete game and 14th win of the year.
The Phillies, who had managed only two baserunners off Brewers starter Chris Narveson through 5 2/3 innings, tagged him for six runs in the sixth to overhaul a 1-0 Brewers lead. Eight straight batters reached base after the first two hitters of the inning were set down quickly. The offensive explosion was somewhat fortuitous, as Milwaukee center fielder Carlos Gomez overran what would have been the last out of the inning, which turned into a game-tying double for Wilson Valdez. Two batters later, Gomez broke in on a Hunter Pence fly ball that wound up going over his head for a two-run triple. The next batter, Stanford-educated first baseman and mermaid aficionado John Mayberry Jr. had an infield single when it looked like Brewer shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt had thrown him out by half a step.
Hamels, who had allowed a fifth-inning solo home run to Betancourt, needed no more support, allowing one more run on a Corey Hart homer in the bottom of the inning before retiring 11 of the last 13 men he faced. Pence doubled in Exxon in the top of the ninth to settle the score at its final mark of 7-2.
Shaun Marcum faces Roy Halladay in a battle of former Toronto Blue Jay teammates at 8:10. The Phillies are now 9 1/2 games ahead of Milwaukee for home-field advantage throughout the National League playoffs.
Posts: 0 Jeff
Great pitching wins. Leave Ryan plant Howard on the bench.
Posted: 12:01 AM on September 9, 2011
Posts: 0 Andrw from Waldorf
WOW
I really LOVED this line up and expected it to score. Howard has a .360 slugging vs lefties.
Id run this line up out there vs a leftie at any time.
These guys always play well.
Guess when I saw the line up and ws excited. I am in the minority.
Posted: 12:08 AM on September 9, 2011
Posts: 0 bacardipr05
A little far fetched though Iron Pigs though. Well a little with Mini-mart an guess you can add Mayberry. Everyone else was a MLB veteran however.
Posted: 12:45 AM on September 9, 2011
Posts: 0 bacardipr05
Most likely David “Hairy” Bush will get a call up for a spot start soon. Even Kendrick will be tossed in the mix to.
Posted: 01:11 AM on September 9, 2011
Posts: 0 Don M
This is the way the Brewers could beat the Phillies in the postseason ….”had managed only two baserunners off Brewers starter Chris Narveson through 5 2/3 innings”
Nareson isn’t even a pitcher that we’d face, because he’s not good enough. Any of their top 4 starters (definitely their top 3) can shut any offense down at any time. They are the closest thing to the Phillies in the National League, and are a real threat to challenge if we’re not clicking..
Phillies put up a crooked number last night and managed to get the win, but last night wasn’t the Brewers best effort, just as it was not ours … we’re now split 2-2 in the season series, and we’ll face some tougher pitching coming up
Posted: 10:00 AM on September 9, 2011
Posts: 2541 Chuck A.
And it didn’t hurt that we caught a break with the call at first where Mayberry was CLEARLY OUT. That inning could have been over and the Phillies would have only had 3 runs instead of the inning continuing and the chance for more. And Narveson was already rattled by the delay when the umpires went to look at Vic’s hit. The whole complexion of the game would have been differently
Posted: 10:20 AM on September 9, 2011
Posts: 0 John
The Phillies submitted a starting lineup without Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Raul Ibanez, and Jimmy Rollins
Posted: 01:33 PM on September 9, 2011
Posts: 0 Don M
True …. but Victorino, Polanco, Pence, Mayberry, Ruiz are all part of the regular plans to play against LHP … and Howard’s numbers vs. LHP are well documented this year
for all the knocks on Howard.. Chase Utley is hitting only .262 overall, including .202 vs LHP, with an OPS of .633
Howard vs LHP is a .233 hitter with a .652 OPS …neither number is good, but if everyone wants Howard to sit vs. LHP – why isn’t there an outcry for Utley to sit too/instead ?
….
No im not advocating sitting either player, ever . . . . . but my point was, regardless of who our lineup was last night, it was shutdown for more than half the game and a crooked-number was what led to a victory … This was a crappy Brewers pitcher, and they are still without Rickie Weeks … at full strength, these teams are VERY evenly matched overall
Posted: 03:07 PM on September 9, 2011
Posts: 0 philajaime
I’m too lazy to check, but I’ll bet every team in the MLB has a reliever with more than 60 IP….probably more than one.
Bastardo leads our bullpen with just 54 1/3 IP.
The Braves have FOUR relievers with more than 65.
17 complete games will do that, I guess.
Posted: 11:24 AM on September 9, 2011
Posts: 770 betasigmadeltashag
A couple of things Yes JMJ seemed to be out, but I think Valdez hit the ball hard and it was not a great route but that guy covers a lot of ground not many CFers make that play, and he did play a single into a triple on Pence. Valdez is now hitting like .450 with RISP and two outs, that is just amazing. The one big difference between these two teams in the defense, the Brewers defense is in the bottom 2 or 3 in the NL. So it is not a fluke that they miss play balls. I really think that will haunt them in the playoffs. In any case it has to be a bit demoralizing to face a Phillies line up with JRoll, Howard, Chase, and even Raul on the bench and they still beat you.. Hope ;the good doctor can get a big lead tonight and have a short outing and get some rest.
Posted: 02:58 PM on September 9, 2011