Phillies Nation

Revere had the at-bat of the night against Tim Hudson. Can he keep it up? (AP)

For a second, forget about Chase Utley spraying line drives all over (and out of) Turner Field last night.  It was a satisfying sight, for sure.  But equally fulfilling was the sight of Tim Hudson, prior to Utley’s two-run single, laboring in the fifth inning.

Hudson threw 90 pitches to 21 batters over the course of 4.1 innings, which breaks down to 4.28 pitches per plate appearance for the Phillies.  That is an impressive number.  Yes, injuries stripped the Phillies of plenty of power and production last season.  Equally as important, however, was that those injuries, as well as certain personnel, made the lineup eminently easier pitch deep into games against.

That is why I mention the importance of Hudson laboring prior to Utley’s fifth-inning knock.  Even if the Phillies hadn’t capitalized in the fifth, Hudson was undoubtedly on his way out of the game shortly thereafter.  An idea made famous by Billy Beane and then brought to the big stage by the Yankees and Red Sox, getting into the opponent’s bullpen early should be the goal of every offense over the course of a season.  Mission accomplished for the Phillies on Monday night.

For the better part of three innings, Hudson was in cruise control.  He was getting ahead (10/11 first pitch strikes) and putting Phillies hitters away (11 hitters faced through three).  But the Phillies gradually raised his pitch total from 13 in each of the first two innings to 19 in the third, 21 in the fourth and 24 in the fifth before he was yanked in favor of Luis Avilan.

Continue reading Behind Revere, New-Look Lineup Shows Patience

Utley got off on the right foot in the Phillies loss. (AP)

A near-cycle from Chase Utley wasn’t enough to overcome a shaky start from Cole Hamels as the Braves held off the Phillies, 7-5.

UTLEY UNLOADS ON OPENING DAY

-What a day for Chase Utley. In the fourth, Tim Hudson tossed a sinker that hung up in the zone and Utley tagged it to dead center field, over 400 feet away for the first homer of the season for the Phillies.

-In the fifth, Utley slapped a single to right that scored Cole Hamels and Ben Revere, moving the Phillies to within a run at 4-3. Beyond the single, Utley came hard out of the box and advanced to second base on the throw that went to third, where Jimmy Rollins had advanced on the hit.

-In the seventh, Utley tripled on a wormburner through the right-center gap. Really, it should have been a double, but Utley ran like his ass was on fire and made it just ahead of the throw. Ryan Howard sent him home on a ground out. Utley would finish 3-for-5 with three RBI.

-The offense was able to do enough to chase Tim Hudson from the game after just 4 1/3 innings. Hudson allowed three runs, walked three, and struck out three.

-Michael Young was 0-for-2 but did walk twice. Domonic Brown went 1-for-3 with walk.

HAMELS CAN’T SETTLE

-In what was the first start of his career on Opening Day, Cole Hamels was unable to bring his spring success with him to Atlanta. Hamels lacked command early which led to a monster, two-run home run by Freddie Freeman and a solo shot by Dan Uggla in the first two frames. Justin Upton also crushed a 460-foot homer to left-center field in the fifth inning on a pitch that was right down the middle.

Continue reading Utley Stars, Hamels Stalls in Phillies Opening Day Loss

Earlier today on our Phillies Nation twitter account (@PhilliesNation), I posted this:

Well, it happened. Cliff Lee was awesome tonight, fanning 10 Mets in eight innings as the Phillies held on for a 3-1 victory.

Jimmy Rollins and Domonic Brown supplied the offense, both going yard to right field; Rollins in the fifth inning, Brown in the seventh, both off starter and Cy Young candidate R.A. Dickey. Jonathan Papelbon supplied the other arm, closing down the Mets in order in the ninth for his 35th save.

For J-Roll, it was his 21st of the season. CSN put up an interesting graphic regarding Jimmy: He’s had four seasons of 20 homers and 30 steals, only Bobby Bonds (9) and son Barry Bonds (7) have had more. That’s how good he’s been for such a long period of time in this town.

For Dom, it was his fourth bomb of the season; he also added a triple to raise his average to .248 on the season. He homered over the weekend, so he’s starting to flash some of that power we were all hoping to see.

But it was all about Lee pushing the Phillies to within 3 1/2 games of the second wild card in the National League. They needed that shutdown performance from him, something he was able to provide for most of last season, but has been relatively sparse this year. That’s not to say Lee hasn’t been the victim of bad luck and bad play by his offense – but I think we all know he hasn’t been as crisp as in 2011.

For him to come out and take control from the start was key. It was apparent even prior to first pitch he would need to do that against a very good knuckleballer in Dickey, a guy who has been one of the best in baseball all year. With runs hard to come by, Lee was ace.

KK was great again (AP).

Behind Kyle Kendrick and Dom Brown, the Phillies inched closer to the Cardinals in the Wild Card standings with a 3-1 win over the Marlins.

KENDRICK GOES NO-NO FOR FIVE

-Kendrick did not give up a hit until the sixth inning, after Rob Brantly singled a sharp liner to center field. Two pitches prior to that base hit, Kendrick appeared to have Brantly struck out on a very close pitch, but did not get the benefit from home plate umpire.

-That sixth inning became a struggle for Kendrick after allowing that first hit, but he got out of a bases-loaded jam by striking out Giancarlo Stanton, his eighth of the night, a career high.

-Kendrick owns the Fish, not having lost to the club in over four years. The last time: September 9, 2008. His final line: seven innings, one run, two hits, three walks, and the eight K’s.

Continue reading Phillies Keep Wild Card in Sights with Win Over Miami

Congrats to Jimmy Rollins on his 2,000th hit.

With a double in the fifth inning off Reds starter Mat Latos, Jimmy Rollins became the fourth Phillies hitter to collect 2,000 hits in their career.  The other three are Mike Schmidt, Richie Ashburn, and Ed Delahanty.  All three of which are in the baseball Hall of Fame.

Rollins would need just 235 more hits to take over first place from Schmidt.  The short stop already has 134 hits this season but has only collected more than 200 hits one time in his career.  For the current Phillies, Rollins joins Juan Pierre (2,123) and Placido Polanco (2,044) as current roster players with at least 2,00o hits.  And for those who care, the next closest is Chase Utley with 1,248.

So amongst the excitement from Rollins, the rest of the Phillies couldn’t get much working against Latos.  The Reds right went seven innings, allowed just the one run and struck out six.  The Cincinnati bullpen pitched two scoreless innings to secure the 2-1 victory.

Continue reading Rollins Reaches 2,000 Hits, Phillies Fall to Reds

Cloyd had everything working in Cincy. (AP)

The Tyler Cloyd Project is going smoothly thus far. Cloyd fanned nine Cincinnati Reds as the Phillies won the first game of the series, 4-2.

Jimmy Rollins was the difference as he launched a three-run homer in the fifth inning, his 17th, off Johnny Cueto. John Mayberry Jr. added a solo shot in the sixth inning off the NL Cy Young candidate.

Cloyd isn’t quite on Cueto’s level yet, but certainly outpitched him at Great American Ballpark on Labor Day. While the grills were burning, Cloyd was churning out strikeouts on the mound. The nine he posted is a season high for Cloyd, coming against a World Series contender in the NL.

So far, he’s been as advertised after going 15-1 in the minor leagues this season. As the Phillies make a late run at a wild card berth, they’re also holding tryouts for 2013. Cloyd is surely penciling his name in early for a chance at a rotation spot.

Phillippe Aumont recorded his first ever Major League save, but did give up two hits and a run in the ninth inning.

For once, the Phillies did not look like the 2012 Phillies; they looked like the Phillies of old in their 4-2 victory.  They played a little small ball and the pitching was terrific.  The Phillies will go for the sweep tomorrow!

HALLADAY HAS STRONG START

- Roy Halladay pitched seven strong innings.  He gave up two earned runs, both coming from Steve Lombordozzi’s two-run single in the fifth inning.  Halladay gave up seven hits and one walk.  He struck out six.

-Halladay’s winning percentage is over .500!  He is now 8-7 with a 3.88 ERA.

MAYBERRY COMES THROUGH

-The Phillies jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first inning.  Chase Utley hit a RBI single to right field.  Then, John Mayberry Jr. singled to bring home the second run.

-With the game tied at two in the sixth inning, Mayberry smacked a fly ball into the first row of the left-center field seats.  Mayberry’s twelfth homer of the year gave the Phillies a 3-2 lead.

-The Phillies added an insurance run in the eighth inning.  Utley was hit by a pitch and stole second and third base.  Mayberry lifted a fly ball to right-center and Utley scored on the sacrifice fly.  The Phillies took a 4-2 lead.

-Mayberry finished the night 2-for-3 with three runs batted in.

GAME NOTES

-Antonio Bastardo struck out the side in the 8th inning.

-Jonathan Papelbon completed the 1-2-3 save.  He struck out two in his 29th save of the season.

The Phillies lost the final game of the series to the Atlanta Braves, 12-6.  The Phils had a huge rally, but the bullpen could not keep the game close.

KENDRICK’S STRUGGLES PUT JOB IN JEOPARDY

-Kyle Kendrick finished the night with an unpleasant line: 3.1 innings pitched, seven hits, six earned runs, and three walks.   The Braves had a four-run second inning, with the biggest hit of the inning coming off pitcher Tim Hudson.  Hudson doubled to center field, driving in two.  The Braves would add two more runs off Kendrick in the fourth inning, thanks to Michael Bourn’s ninth home run of the year.  You know a pitcher is struggling when an opposing pitcher gets a huge hit and a player with a career .367 slugging percentage goes yard.

-After the game, Charlie Manuel discussed Kendrick’s role on the team.  According to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com, Manuel said he was unsure if Kendrick will remain in the rotation.  A discussion with pitching coach Rich Dubee will take place, determining Kendrick’s fate.  “We don’t have too many options,” Manuel said of the rotation.

Continue reading Bullpen Falters After Rally

Hamels was Hamels on Sunday. (AP)

The Phillies started off their six-game, post-all-star break road trip by winning the opening series against the Rockies. On Sunday, Cole Hamels shut down Colorado, leading the Phillies to a 5-1 victory. It was the first series victory for the Phillies since they beat Colorado at home nearly a month ago – June 19, 20, and 21.

HAMELS PROVES WHY HE’S WANTED

-Cole Hamels is being watched. He doesn’t seem to mind much, because he turned in an excellent performance as scouts reportedly looked on in Denver. Hamels held the Rockies to one run and six hits over eight innings, grabbing his 11th win of the season – one that could be his final as a Phillie. Over his 111 pitches, Hamels threw 71 strikes – he fanned seven and walked one.

-Not to be overly-dramatic, but there is a real possibility that the Phillies deal Hamels before the July 31 deadline.

Early on, Hamels struggled to keep the Rockies off the basepaths, but came away unscathed. His best inning was likely the fourth when it took just four pitches to get through. After 23 pitches in the first, Hamels settled down to get through eight. That’s what the greats do.

-In the eighth inning, he was still at his best. He allowed the leadoff hitter to get aboard, but ran through the next three hitters, including Carlos Gonzalez, getting the all-star to strike out.

-Antonio Bastardo finished off the game with a 1-2-3 ninth inning, needing just seven pitches, all strikes, to end it. As Ryan Lawrence pointed out via twitter, Bastardo entered the game with a 5.34 ERA in 34 games this year; through 34 games last year, he had a 0.87 ERA. They need him to recapture that 2011 magic if they want to hold off some teams in the late innings down the stretch.

-That’s exactly the kind of game the Phillies envisioned throughout this season; the ace goes eight and hands it off to a worthy bullpen, who seals it. That hasn’t been the case, but Sunday in Denver was just what they wanted to see.

Continue reading Hamels Leads Phillies to Series Win Over Rockies

There’s a fine line between optimism and delusion, and right now, anyone who feel this Phillies season is not in serious jeopardy after the team dropped another series, losing to the Mets, 6-5, in walk-off fashion is fooling themselves. The loss was another nail in a Phillies coffin that seems closer to being sealed for good by the day. They’re now ten games below .500 and 13 games back of the Nationals. They finished the road trip 1-5.

Jimmy Rollins was just a home run short of the cycle at the plate tonight. (AP)

PHILLIES RAIN ON DICKEY’S PARADE

- During the months of May and June, R.A. Dickey went 9-0 with a 1.31 ERA. He was the best pitcher in baseball, rolling through lineups with ease, and hypnotizing hitters with a capricious knuckle ball. A possibility to start the All Star game, tonight would be Dickey’s last chance to convince NL Manager, Tony La Russa, he should be his man on the mound on Tuesday night.

- The Phillies got a first inning run off Dickey–the first time Dickey allowed a first inning run since September 2, 2011–and they’d continue to tack on from there. They wound up with five runs on 11 hits–Dickey’s career high for hits allowed–and battled the wily veteran over his seven innings. They were far from the reason the team lost tonight.

Continue reading Phillies Lose Heart Breaker To Mets