Phillies Nation

Photo Credit: Philly.com

With tonight’s 5-2 loss, the Phillies dropped their second straight to the Washington Nationals. Their fourth consecutive loss drops them two games below .500. Just when it seemed like the Phillies turned things around, they go back to their losing ways.

HALLADAY NOT HIS BEST

-Roy Halladay struggled through six innings. He allowed five earned runs on nine hits. He walked one and struck out six, but he surrendered two home runs.

-The month of May hasn’t been pretty for Doc. In 33.1 innings, Halladay has given up 40 hits. In five starts, he has allowed 20 earned runs. That’s a 5.40 ERA in the month of May.

-Halladay’s ERA is now 3.58 this season. At the end of May in 2007, Halladay had an ERA of 3.90: that would be the last time Halladay had an ERA this high through the first two months of the season.

BIG THIRD INNING FOR NATS

-Halladay ran into most of his trouble during the third inning, where he allowed four earned runs. Jordan Zimmermann and Steve Lombardozzi led off the inning with back-to-back singles. Bryce Harper continued to hurt the Phillies, smacking a triple over Shane Victorino‘s head. Two runs scored on the play, giving the Nationals the lead. Harper would then show off his speed by scoring on a sacrifice fly.

Continue reading Phillies Lose Their Fourth Straight Game

Houston Astros (15-20) at Philadelphia Phillies (17-19)

Jordan Lyles vs. Cliff Lee (0-1, 2.17)

Time: 1:05, Citizens Bank Park
TV: CSN
Weather: Thunderstorms, 69
Media: Twitter and Facebook

On Monday, Joe Blanton continued his consistency en route to a 5-1 win.  Highlighting the offense, Freddy Galvis went 3-for-4 and Placido Polanco smacked a home run, marking his 2,000th career hit.  This afternoon, Cliff Lee looks to finish off this two game series with another Phillies’ victory.

Continue reading Gameday: Astros (15-20) at Phillies (17-19)

Houston Astros (15-19) at Philadelphia Phillies (16-19)

Lucas Harrell (2-2, 4.58) vs. Joe Blanton (3-3, 3.24)

Time: 7:05, Citizens Bank Park
TV: CSN
Weather: Showers, 68
Media: Twitter and Facebook

2012 hasn’t started the way fans had hoped, but the Phillies’ schedule seems to be in their favor this week. The Phillies were able to win the series against the Padres, who currently have the worst record in Major League Baseball. Tonight, they open a two game set with the Houston Astros, another team below .500. Then, they head to Chicago to face the Cubs, who are last in their division, then return home to face the Boston Red Sox who are also in last place. With this week’s schedule, the Phillies are in a perfect position to improve their record.  The Phillies need to take advantage and win the next few series.

The Astros don’t have much expectations for the 2012 campaign, other than finishing towards the bottom of their division. Despite being under .500, the Astros haven’t been completely awful to this point. Wandy Rodriguez has been their best pitcher, and they’ve gotten some offense out of their 22-year-old second baseman, Jose Altuve. Brett Myers returned to the closers’ role and has converted nine out of ten saves.

Continue reading Gameday: Astros (15-19) at Phillies (16-19)

Philadelphia Phillies (10-11) vs. Chicago Cubs (7-14)

Kyle Kendrick (0-1, 9.39) vs. Matt Garza (1-1, 3.38)

Time: 1:35 PM, Citizens Bank Park
TV: PHL 17
Weather: Sunny, 65
Media: Twitter and Facebook

Joe Blanton led the Phillies to a 5-2 victory on Saturday. Also on Saturday, Carlos Ruiz had a big night, going 2-for-4 with a home run and 3 runs batted in. The Phillies hope to keep the momentum a they are looking to get back to the .500 mark today.

Continue reading Gameday: Cubs (7-14) vs. Phillies (10-11)

Philadelphia Phillies (9-11) vs. Chicago Cubs (7-13)

Joe Blanton (1-3, 4.34) vs. Randy Wells (0-0, 3.60)

Time: 7:05 PM, Citizens Bank Park
TV: TCN, MLBN
Weather: 80% chance of rain, 41 degrees
Media: Twitter and Facebook

Even with Roy Halladay on the mound, the Phillies were unable to beat the last place Chicago Cubs. After showing signs of life during the last few games on the West Coast, the Phillies offense only managed one run against Chicago. The Phillies hope to inch closer to .500 today with Joe Blanton on the hill.

Continue reading Gameday: Cubs (7-13) vs. Phillies (9-11)

The Phillies lost to the Minnesota Twins in Clearwater, 6-4.

Roy Halladay didn’t have his best outing as he allowed five earned runs over 2 and 1/3 innings. Two of the seven hits he allowed were home runs.

Joe Savery, Michael Stutes, and Michael Cisco each looked sharp out of the bullpen. Savery pitched 1 and 1/3 scoreless innings while Stutes put in two. Both Savery and Stutes struck out two and did not walk a batter. Cisco retired the side in order. Also, Jake Diekman showed some promise by striking out the side.

Carlos Ruiz (2-for-2), Placido Polanco (2-for-4), Freddy Galvis, and John Mayberry Jr. each drove in runs for the Phillies.

Howard update: Ryan Howard spoke to the media today. Howard is in a boot, still healing from his infection in his Achilles heel. Howard is on antibiotics and must wait for the skin to heal before removing the boot. Although cleared for some minor workouts, Howard has no timetable for his return.

Phillies Nation’s winner for the number one Philadelphia Phillies Top Moment of 2011 is … (drum roll, please) … The 19 inning marathon against the Cincinnati Reds!

This may not come as a surprise.  We remember staying up late, refusing to turn off the television.  We remember it being one of the oddest games of recent memory. We remember Wilson Valdez taking the mound in the 19th inning and retiring the meat of the Reds’ lineup.  We remember it being one entirely awesome game.

I’ll be honest: there are some things that I forgot.  It was practically two games in one: 6 hours and 11 minutes of insanity.  With the game occurring last May, many things have exited my brain.  I thought that I’d test your knowledge in a few trivia questions:

1. Who were the starting pitchers?
2. Which Phillies homered?
3. How did the Phillies score the winning run?

No cheating. The answers are after the jump.

Continue reading Top Moment #1: Nineteen Innings of Madness

Source: REUTERS / Tim Shaffer

As the snow melts, the waiting is almost over. When pitchers and catchers report, there’s a little relief as baseball withdrawal is put on hold, but nothing is like the return of meaningful games. Anticipation and excitement build up as Opening Day approaches. A new year means new hopes, dreams, and memories. For a baseball fan, Opening Day is more than the beginning of a new season; it’s one of the best “holidays” out there.

The words “cold,” “rain,” and “losing” have been associated with Opening Day through the years. Win or lose, it’s great to have baseball back again.

2011′s first game resulted in a victory as the Phillies opened the season with a bang, indicating that there were many more great moments to come.

Continue reading Top Moment #2: Mayberry Opens Season with Walk-off Single

AP Photo | Matt Slocum

Cliff Lee had a fabulous month of August, going 5-0 with a 0.45 earned run average. He had a 0.78 WHIP and opponents batted .173 against him. Pretty impressive numbers, right? But guess what is even more scary? That wasn’t even his best month of the 2011 season. While Lee had an unbelievable August, his month of June was even more incredible.

Continue reading Top Moment #3: Lee’s Flawless Month of June

Charlie Manuel is a big reason the Phillies won 102 games

In the last couple of years, the last day of the season was somewhat meaningless. By that time, the Phillies already clinched the division and September callups saw much of the action.

2011 was a tad different. The division was already clinched, but the Phillies were playing for something else: history. And as it turned out, Game 162 was pretty intense too.

Looking back, the 4-3 win may not have been the best thing. The Phillies finished off the collapse of the Atlanta Braves by eliminating them from the postseason. This changed the playoff schedule as the Phillies were forced to play the St. Louis Cardinals, a red-hot team, in the first round of the playoffs. As we all know, this did not benefit the Phillies, but there is still reason why the 102nd win is a great moment.

Continue reading Top Moment #4: Win 102