Homers Plague Myers, Phils In 5-4 Loss

When the first inning dust settled Brett Myers had given up three runs from two home runs and the Marlins were up 3-0. That wasn’t enough. The Marlins would score five in total, and the Phillies would only garner four, leading to a 5-4 loss in Miami Tuesday.

The Phils are now three games ahead of the Marlins in first place. Myers now stands at 3-8 with a 5.34 ERA. He walked four and struck out five, but the homers killed him. Mike Jacobs, Hanley Ramirez and Jorge Cantu all went yard off the faltering righty, who was leaving fastballs and hanging curveballs in the zone yet again. Two steps forward. Two steps back.

Jimmy Rollins and Pat Burrell hit homers to cut into the Florida advantage, but the Phils couldn’t accumulate enough with runners on to seize a tie or the lead. Chase Utley and Ryan Howard combined for an 0-for-8 night; maybe more important, Shane Victorino went just 0-for-5. When he doesn’t get on base it spells trouble.

The bullpen did a nicejob cleaning Myers’ mess, with Clay Condrey lowering his ERA to 4.26 and JC Romero pitching another full-tilt inning.

Blame this one on Myers. The offense wasn’t completely on point against Ricky Nolasco, but Myers was just missing. Now we just don’t know what to expect from him — five runs in five innings or a no-hitter through seven.

Moreover, the whole game just felt lost. Maybe it was my vantage point — the sound was low most of the time because of the grating Marlins broadcasters; the broadcast itself reeked of a stadium auction; the Marlins quickly took the wind out of the Phils’ sails. This one was a first — a game that just seemed lost from the top. The Phils were due for one of those.

Associated Press photo