The Phillies closed out the first half of the 2008 season with a 6-3 win, beating the Diamondbacks via a rope-a-dope style of play. They bobbed and weaved against Arizona ace Brandon Webb, scratching out runs to tie the score. Then they pounced, and it was lethal. The win keeps the Phils ahead of the cavalry in the National League East as the break comes in.
Pat Burrell provided the big blow, a low-ball blast to left field that gave the Phils a 5-2 lead. Pedro “Geico” Feliz provided the extra run via a homer to left. Brad Lidge held on to end the game despite letting up a run during a long inning.
The win went to Ryan Madson, who pitched a seamless eighth. Cole Hamels went the first seven, and while he wasn’t anything dominant, he skipped out of trouble and was helped by some poor Diamondback decisions (though Ryan Howard made a dynamite play to prevent the run from scoring). More than anything, you have to feel for Webb, whose team didn’t give him a chance to score his 14th win.
Jimmy Rollins and Hamels each had big RBI doubles off Webb. But once he was out of the game, it was like taking candy from a Qualls.
The Phils end the first half at 52-44. Not bad. Not overwhelmingly great or anything, but not bad.
Associated Press photo
Tim MalcolmTim 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.
