Bats Once Again Fall Silent In Loss To San Diego

Shortly after learning that they’d lose Cliff Lee for at least 15 days to a left oblique strain, the Phillies had their 13-game win streak in San Diego snapped in a 5-1 loss.

Offense

– The Phillies had just three hits tonight, and one of them came off the bat of Roy Halladay.

– In the fourth inning, the Phillies wasted a gift from the Padres. After Polanco led off the inning with a single, Jimmy Rollins reached on a fielding error by shortstop Jason Bartlett. With two on and nobody out, Hunter Pence struck out on a fastball up in the zone, and Shane Victorino flew out to center. Following a walk by Ty Wigginton to load the bases, Galvis was retired on a lazy fly to center. Two on,  nobody out. No runs. It’s becoming a familiar story.

– This team is not coming through on situational hitting, as the fourth inning indicates. They’re now hitting  just .227 with runners in scoring position, and .179 with two outs and runners in scoring position.

– The Phillies came within one out of failing to notch an extra base hit for the third time this season. However, Wigginton bailed them out with a meaningless double to score Rollins in the ninth. The Phillies are 0-2 in games in which they fail to slug an extra base hit. They’re 7-6 in games in which they register an extra base hit. Though it is a limited number of games, this statistic is more evidence that the Phillies biggest problem offensively is a lack of pop. This team is capable of stringing a few hits together; the problem is they’re predominantly singles. When it comes to scoring runs, extra base hits are crucial.

– For the first time this season, John Mayberry Jr. did not get the start against a left-handed pitcher. He did have a pinch hit appearance against Luebke in the eighth, but struck out, looking lost in the at bat. There’s not too much more you can say about Mayberry right now. He’s been a far cry from the man we saw in the second half of last season. Still, it’s early, and the law of averages suggest he’ll come out of this terrible funk.

– The Phillies have scored 2 runs or less in 9 out of 15 games this season.

Pitching and Defense

– Halladay and Brian Schneider were battery mates for the first time since 2010, and though he pitched well, Doc didn’t look quite like himself being paired with Schneider. He went 7 innings, allowing five hits, with four walks to five strikeouts. It took him 117 pitches to get through seven. The walks and high pitch count made for an uncharacteristically inefficient start by Halladay’s standards. Still, he only allowed two runs, and certainly pitched well enough to win. To borrow the familiar term, he battled tonight.

-In the second inning, Doc did something he has never done before. After striking out Nick Hundley to start the inning, the good doctor issued three straight walks to load the bases. It was the first time in his career that Halladay had ever done that. He was bailed out though when Freddy Galvis made a fantastic play, diving to his left, and throwing to first from his back to get Orlando Hudson. The play was superb, and that’s something we’ve come to expect from Galvis as he has been nothing short of amazing at 2B this season. The Padres would score a run on the play, but Galvis’s effort allowed Halladay to get out of a bases loaded jam with minimal damage when he struck out Cory Luebke in the subsequent at bat.

– Walks have been something of an issue in the early going for Doc. After walking just seven batters through all of April last season, he already has eight walks this season. There is not too much cause for concern, however, as Halladay has walked more batters in the month of April than any other month throughout his career.

– Michael Stutes pitched a rough 8th inning. After getting the first two outs, he walked Cameron Maybin, opening the door for a three run rally by the Padres. With a player like Maybin at the plate, who was hitting just .167 coming into the game, Stutes has to be more aggressive and get the out there.

– Four of the Padres five runs came with two outs.

Game Notes

– Halladay has yet to throw a home run ball this season.

– This was another demoralizing loss for the Phillies as their starting pitching was once again good enough to win the ballgame, but the bats failed to pull their weight.

– Despite the loss, chances are this day will be remembered more for the injury to Lee than anything else. After starting the season with Howard and Utley on the DL, the Phillies now take a hit to their greatest strength–starting pitching. The injuries, coupled with the current lack of offensive execution, certainly make it seem as though the Phillies are a snake-bitten team right now.

– The Phillies go for the series victory tomorrow when they send Joe Blanton (1-2, 4.26) to the mound against rookie righthander Anthony Bass (0-2, 3.38). The Phillies haven’t lost a series in San Diego since 2006.