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Grapefruiting: Phillies No-Hit Tigers … Sort Of

Sadly, my initiation into BrightHouse Field was short-lived. The Phillies/Tigers game today was called due to rain after 3 innings.

It sucks, obviously, as I paid a boatload (more like a battleship-load) for this weekend trip; however, I’m taking it as it comes, and it was great being in BrightHouse Field (which is a great high-A venue) and talking to a bunch of fans.

What I did see was a fantastic three innings by Chad Durbin. It was a perfect three innings. He punched out Magglio Ordonez on three pitches â€” the last being a beautiful curveball that rested in Chris Coste’s glove on the outside corner for a picture-perfect backwards-K. After this outing, it’s safe to say Durbin has won a spot on the 25-man roster, and will be the long-relief man in the bullpen. He’ll be the first guy in the rotation after the inevitable Adam Eaton screw-up.

At this point, the only holes the Phillies really need to fill are the two middle relief bullpen positions. One should go to Francisco Rosario, who has done enough to earn a right-handed sixth inning job. The other is still a toss-up. Travis Blackley did nothing to secure his position, nailing Curtis Granderson in the head and walking another batter before being called back to the dugout during the rainstorm. If I had to put money on it, I’d say Blackley lost a job today, and Vic Darensbourg is on the 25-man roster with Rosario. But Pat Gillick did say the final two spots aren’t even on the roster yet. While that quote seems obscure, I still think you’ll see Rosario and Darensbourg join Durbin and Eaton on the 25-man.

Get used to it, fans:

Myers/Hamels/Moyer/Kendrick/Eaton

Durbin/Rosario/Darensbourg/Madson/Romero/Gordon/Lidge

Unless Gillick stuns us all and is able to move Helms, this is our 12-man pitching staff on March 31. (Which isn’t bad, it’s just not World Championship-caliber.)

The Phillies manufactured just one run in the three innings, with Pat Burrell and Pedro Feliz knocking hits before Geoff Jenkins walked off Kenny Rogers. Coste sac-flied Burrell home; Durbin and Rollins couldn’t get clutch runs home. I’m a tad worried about Rollins (and Chase Utley, who was 0-2 in this game), but they’re proven enough that it’s merely slow start.

That’s the “game-wrap.” Tomorrow I’ll catch the Phils-Blue Jays game in Dunedin, weather permitting. I’ll have more updates as the day progresses.

Tim Malcolm

Tim first found the Phillies as a little infant at Veteran’s Stadium, cheering on a Juan Samuel game-winning home run in his very first game. With the pinstripes in his blood, he witnessed Terry Mulholland’s 1990 no-hitter, “Steve Carlton Night” at the Vet, game three of the 1993 World Series, countless games during the charmed 2008 championship season and various road excursions. Since November 2007 Tim’s been writing about them daily at Phillies Nation, becoming one of the world’s most popular Phillies scribes. You can catch him on Twitter and Facebook, as well. When he’s not talking about the Phils he’s relaxing with a St. Bernardus ABT 12 or one of his many favored brews.