Phillies Nation Perfect Season: Roy Halladay wins pitcher’s duel

Every day until Opening Day arrives, Phillies Nation will take a daily look back at a regular season victory from that particular day in history that you can watch in full in lieu of live Phillies baseball. Think of it is as your daily Phillies watch recommendation.

May 20, 2011 – Phillies 3, Rangers 2

For the third start in a row, Roy Halladay pitched very well and was offered little run support. But, unlike his last two outings, the Phillies came away from this game with a win.

The Phillies still failed to score much for Halladay in this game, but did just enough against Rangers pitcher C.J. Wilson. A second inning home run from Ben Francisco gave the team a 2-1 lead after the Rangers struck first in the previous inning. For Francisco, the home run could not have come at a better time, as he had a .380 OPS in the month of May heading into this game.

In the fourth inning, the Phillies added one more run on a solo home run from Raul Ibanez, his fourth of the season. That was enough support for Halladay, who pitched eight strong innings and earned his sixth win of the season. Ryan Madson closed things out in a scoreless ninth to earn his eighth save of the season, and the Phillies held on for a 3-2 win.

The Phillies were held to three runs or less for the seventh straight time. They were 2-5 during this stretch and, despite a strong rotation, needed more out of their lineup moving forward to meet the hefty expectations set for them heading into the 2011 season.

Rangers Lineup

1. Elvis Andrus, shortstop
2. Mitch Moreland, right field
3. Ian Kinsler, second base
4. Michael Young, first base
5. Adrian Beltre, third base
6. David Murphy, left field
7. Yorvit Torrealba, catcher
8. Craig Gentry, center field
9. C.J. Wilson, pitcher

Phillies Lineup

1. Jimmy Rollins, shortstop
2. Wilson Valdez, second base
3. Placido Polanco, third base
4. Ryan Howard, first base
5. John Mayberry Jr., center field
6. Raul Ibanez, left field
7. Ben Francisco, right field
8. Carlos Ruiz, catcher
9. Roy Halladay, pitcher

You can watch the full game by using this link. You can also watch it on your Smart TV or streaming device with the YouTube app. Just put “TEX AT PHI – May 20, 2011” into the search bar and click on the video.

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