Liberty Ball

I would like to take a little time to congratulate the Fresno State Bulldogs.  They are the new NCAA Baseball Champions.  If you have heard anything about the College World Series this year, you will know that Fresno State is the lowest seeded team in any sport to win a championship.  They were the underdog in basically ever game they played since the Regionals started.  Through the tournament they faced 6 elimination games and beat 5 different conference champions.  The Bulldogs made it in automatically by winning the WAC.  Otherwise they would not haver received an at-large bid.

I was cheering for them the entire time they were in Omaha.  They showcased what hard work, timely hitting, and playing as a team can really achieve.  I’m sure the Phillies management had to be pleased to see the win.  The Phillies 19th round draft pick, Steve Susdorf, was named to the All-CWS team as a starting outfielder for the Bulldogs.  Susdorf came back for his senior year after being drafted by the Tigers last season all so he could do “something special” with his team.  I don’t even think he knew that his something special would be this big.

Enjoy it, boys.  I had a great time watching you.

After dropping 6 games in a row, the Phillies beat the Oakland A’s last night 4-0 behind a strong performance from Kyle Kendrick on the mound and Chase Utley at the plate.

Kendrick gave up just 4 hits and struck out 4 in his 8 innings of work before handing the game over to JC Romero for the 9th inning. Kendrick’s record is now a nice 7-3 although his ERA is still close to 5. For how bad Myers and Eaton have been, Kendrick and Moyer (and the bullpen for that matter) have made up for them with their surprising first halves.

Chase Utley hits, the Phillies win. It’s a pretty simple concept. As Utley’s struggles went, so did the Phillies as a team. Charlie Manuel really shook up the lineup and it worked to break out of the losing streak. Here is what the starting lineup looked like:

1. Jayson Werth RF

2. Chase Utley 2B

3. Jimmy Rollins SS

4. Pat Burrell LF

5. Ryan Howard DH

6. Pedro Feliz 3B

7. Shane Victorino CF

8. Chris Coste C

9. Eric Bruntlett 1B

It was very strange to see the lineup get shifted that much after the middle had been relatively unchanged for most of the season. Whatever it takes to win though. Utley went 4-5 on the day with a double and a triple. His average should jump over .300 with a couple hits tonight. Chris Coste gave the needed production from the catcher position (I still think he should be the everyday starter) by going 2-3 with 2 RBIs. Pat Burrell and Pedro Feliz rounded off the production with each having an RBI.

The Phillies have been linked to almost every starting pitcher trade rumor, and I like the fact that they are trying to bring in a big name to be the #2 we need behind Cole Hamels. I wonder if they do get a solid starter, like AJ Burnett for instance, if they designate Adam Eaton or keep him in the lineup and try to put Myers back in the bullpen. Some have said that Myers gets traded, but I don’t feel any team really wants him right now. Also, if you will notice I haven’t been bashing Tom Gordon lately. That’s because he hasn’t pitched due to a “balky shoulder.” He said he is so sore that he sometimes has trouble playing long toss in the outfield with Romero. If the problem persists, look for the Phils to jump into the rumors for bullpen help, especially lefties.

Phillies play at a terrible time for anybody who works during the day (3:30) against the A’s in Oakland. Adam Eaton goes against Rich Harden. I’m going to leave it to I just hope the offense shows up.

The Phillies lost to the Los Angeles Angels last night 6-2 to run their losing streak to 4.  Once again the offense was shut down getting only 5 hits.  Jayson Werth homered and Pedro Feliz drove in Chris Coste in the 7th inning to tie the game at 2.  The Angels then scored 2 runs off of starter Brett Myers in the 8th before he was pulled, and another 2 off of Chad Durbin in the 9th inning.  Myers was terrorized by the long ball giving up three in the game.  He is now 3-9 with an ERA of 5.51.  So much for him being an “ace as a #2.”

One good thing is that Chase Utley’s average did not go down any in the game…Eric Bruntlett got the start at 2nd and Geoff Jenkins actually pinch hit for him in the 9th.  This does not bode well for the what was unanimous All-Star.

It’s very difficult to win a game when you only get 2 hits in 9 innings.  That’s what happened yesterday as the Phillies lost the opener to the Angels 7-1.  Shane Victorino and Chris Coste were the only Phillies to tally a hit, and Victorino and Ryan Howard each drew walks.  The Phillies were even helped out by 4 Angels fielding errors, but could only make them count for 1 run (RBI Chase Utley).

I said Ervin Santana was good and he did not let me down.  He went 7 innings giving up the 2 hits and unearned run all while striking out 9 Phillies.  His counterpart, Adam Eaton, was not nearly as impressive.  Eaton gave up a whopping 12 hits, and 6 runs (all earned) in just 5 innings of work.  I had a feeling it was going to be a rough one when Vlad Guerrero went yard in the first inning with a man on.

As many of you might know, there are a lot of starting pitchers who either are, or are expected to become available for trades.  Since Day 1 we have known that starting pitching was a weak point for us.  That was even with the assumption that Brett Myers might be able to pitch a little.  Jamie Moyer has been more than a pleasant surprise while Adam Eaton has done what I expected.  Adding another #1 or 2 guy to go along with Cole Hamels could be huge for the Phillies.

So far the Phillies have asked about CC Sabathia (CLE), AJ Burnett (TOR), Bronson Arroyo (CIN), and Jarrod Washburn (SEA).  I think that whoever reported Washburn made a mistake.  Most likely they were looking into newly available Erik Bedard.  Washburn is terrible.  The problem is that the Phillies don’t really have the farm system to go out and get guys.  They have Carrasco and Bastardo and that’s about it.  To get a guy like Sabathia, Burnett, or Bedard, they would most likely have to give up both those guys.  Sabathia could still become a free agent at the end of the season so it would be stupid to give up the farm just for his arm for a couple months.

I say we go after a lower profile guy who wouldn’t cost as much and just try to better the rotation in a whole by strengthening the bottom of it.  But don’t be surprised if the Phillies make a move in the next week.  I have heard that Ryan Freel (OF) is being looked at by many teams, Phillies included.  Also Tim Redding (SP, WAS) might be a name to consider.

Kyle Kendrick gave up a 3-run homerun to Boston’s JD Drew, and then gave up a solo shot to the next batter, Mike Lowell.  The Phillies added a run of their own in the bottom of the inning, but after Boston put up 2 runs in the 3rd, the game basically became out of reach.  Final score Red Sox 7, Phillies 4.

Boston is a very good team.  I personally feel they are the best in the AL.  Although I wish we would have played them tougher, especially after the first game win, I’m not too upset to lose 2-3 to them.  I am upset that it happened at home though.  The Red Sox are 18-22 on the road.

What’s most alarming about the game is that Chase Utley went hitless again.  It’s not too long of a streak, but he is 0 for his last 20 atbats.  His BA is now under .300 at .294.  It’s just like I said earlier in the season, the whole lineup doesn’t hit at the same time.  For awhile it was Chase and Pat Burrell doing all the damage, then it was Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard, or Shane Victorino and Geoff Jenkins, or Jayson Werth…you get where I’m going.  It seems like 2 guys are on together while the rest of the team coasts for a little bit.

Tonight the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim come into town to play at 7:05.  25 year old Ervin Santana gets the start for the Angels.  You can go ahead and add his name to the list of very talented YOUNG pitchers.  He is 8-3 with an ERA of only 3.40.  A few years ago I was actually worried because it seemed like all the good pitchers in the league were getting old.  Luckily all these young guys have come through in the last 2 years and have shined.  Cole Hamels, Edinson Volquez, Tim Lincecum, Santana, Cueto, Justin Verlander…the list goes on but I can’t think of any more off the top of my head (if anybody says Joba Chamberlain they are stupid).  I leave Chamberlain off because he is only seen as “good” because he plays for the Yankees and ESPN loves the Yankees.  The dude has not done well as a starter, and how many middle relievers become stars?  Honestly.  I don’t care if he didn’t give up a run in 20 innings.  Brad Lidge did almost the same and he is in a position that is vital to his team.

Well Boston definitely responded in yesterday’s game.  When a game gets handed over to Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon with a lead to close out the last 2 innings of a game, things don’t look good for the opposition.  Sadly, the Phillies were in that position last night as Red Sox starter Jon Lester handed a 3-0 game over to their bullpen to seal the deal.  The Phillies, who put up 8 runs the previous night had only 8 baserunners on 7 hits and 1 walk.  4 batters combined for the 7 hits.

Jamie Moyer picked up the loss giving up 2 runs in 5 innings of work.  Lester shut down our prolific offense by hammering the strikezone.  Out of his 99 pitches, 68 were for strikes.  That’s when it is key to get the ball in play and hope to find holes.  The scariest thing about the Sox is that their starting rotation goes about 8 quality guys deep once they all return.  Or so it seems.

The Phillies beat the Red Sox 8-2 last night.  Ryan Howard plowed the way going 3-5 with 2 homeruns and 4 RBIs.  Now I respect the Red Sox and how they play, but I sure don’t like them.  I hardly ever saw anybody wearing a Boston ballcap until they won the World Series a couple years back.  Out of nowhere everyone was jumping on their bandwagon claiming to have been cursed and been lifelong fans.  Yeah right.

Cole Hamels got the win (his seventh) and Chad Durbin pitched the final 2 innings giving up just 1 hit and without walking anybody.  Jimmy Rollins also went yard completing a stat line of 3-5 with 2 runs scored and 3 RBI.

The most surprising hits of the game were two triples.  Now with Shane Victorino and Jimmy Rollins at the top of the lineup, it’s not surprising to see a triple or 2, or 3 in a game, but neither of them contributed.  The two who legged out triples were none other than Ryan Howard and Pat Burrell, the two slowest Phillies minus the pitchers.  Way to get out there an hustle.  That’s the mentality this team needs to keep up throughout the long summer months.

So I think it should be a rule that Tom Gordon should not be allowed to pitch in the 9th inning or later of a game.  Granted tonight’s loss, 7-6 in 10 innings, is not all his fault.  There were two errors in the inning that led to Rick Ankiel scoring for the Cardinals.  One was charged to Chase Utley, the other to Gordon, but it was Utley’s poor throw that gave Gordon his error.

Brett Myer’s got knocked around pretty good again giving up 6 runs in 6 innings.  The bullpen pitched a scoreless 3 innings before Gordon came in.  Ryan Madson, JC Romero, and Chad Durbin each pitched an inning in the effort.

Ryan Howard had another big day going 2-4 with 4 RBIs.  I just cannot get a good read on him this year.  He has been the most inconsistent player in the majors.

The Phillies face another tough matchup tomorrow as they begin a series with the best team in the AL, the Boston Red Sox.  Cole Hamels takes on Bartolo Colon in his first start against Boston.  I’m done making predictions on games.

Losing a series on the road 2 games to 1 against a good team is never fun. The thing to remember is that the road team is supposed to lose. It’s called a home-field advantage for a reason. Just look at the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs. These two teams have the best record in the AL and NL respectively. Boston is 14-20 on the road while the Cubs are 14-16. The Phillies are actually one of just 3 teams to have a winning road record. Both the Angels and Cardinals are also above .500 on the road. The good news is that even with dropping two games to the second place Marlins, we still lead them by 3 games in the NL East.

Tuesday:

As I said in my dialog with The South Florida Fan last time we played the Marlins, Brett Myers tends to give up homers in the first inning. Well that’s exactly what happened Tuesday. It’s always hard to fight out of a 3 run hole after your starter gives up 2 homeruns for 3 runs in the bottom of the first inning. Myers later gave up another 2-run shot in the 5th inning. Homers from Pat Burrell and Jimmy Rollins weren’t enough to overcome the original lead of the Marlins as the Phils lost 5-4. Myers, who had been pitching better of late, picked up the loss to run his record to 3-8.

Wednesday:

What a way to spoil a fantastic start by Cole Hamels, Tom. Hamels pitched 8 innings, gave up 2 solo homers and struck out 13! Yes, THIRTEEN! After the Phillies tied the game at 2 in the top of the 9th, Tom Gordon came into the game to preserve the game to give us a chance in extra innings. Gordon did record an out. That ends the good things that he did in the game. He also gave up a hit and walked 2 to load the bases for Dan Uggla. With one out, bases loaded, tie game in the bottom of the 9th, one of the top power hitters this season at the plate, and Tom Gordon pitching, I was not optimistic about the outcome. Uggla ended the game in grand fashion, literally. He crushed the ball for a walk-off grand slam. I figured he would at least get a sac fly to win it, but not that.

Yesterday:

Would you believe me if I said that our best starter is the oldest man in baseball? Well with the Phillies 3-0 win over the Marlins last night Moyer moved to 7-3 on the season. He has been quietly having a very nice first half. He has been able to utilize his offspeed junk to set up his “fast” ball. I might as well just call it a straight ball. The key for Moyer is location which he has been spot on with. He is a pitcher who really works hard to miss opposing teams bats, and hopefully as teams see him for a second and third time this season they don’t start to key in on him.

Moyer pitched 8 innings of shutout ball. He only gave up 2 hits and 1 walk. The Marlins have to be glad to see him leave town. The Marlins are now 0-9 in games that Moyer starts against them. Brad Lidge struck out 2 in the 9th for his 18th save.

Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Pat Burrell, and Pedro Feliz all had 2 hits in the game. Ryan Howard is getting back closer to .200. By going 0-5 he is back to batting just .204. That is simply unacceptable for a major league player no matter how many homeruns or RBIs he has. Another player who has not been performing this season is catcher Carlos Ruiz. He is batting just .217 with only 2 HRs and 16 RBIs. Personally I would play Chris Coste over him. I think a lot of you would agree with me seeing as he is outperforming Ruiz, and he is a fan favorite across MLB.

Today:

The Phillies move to the STL to take on the Cardinals tonight at 8:15et. Both teams are 40-28 so it looks to be another good, tough series. Kyle Kendrick gets the start against the surprising Todd Wellemeyer. Wellemeyer made 11 starts last season and they were his first starts in his career. He has started 13 games for the Cardinals this year and is posting a 7-1 record with a ridiculous 2.93 ERA. The Cards, however, are without annual MVP candidate Albert Pujols who strained his calf coming out of the box the other day. Hopefully he can make a fast recovery for them. Look for another low scoring game tonight with the final score being 5-4. I would say that Brad Lidge can finally face his demons and pitch against Pujols in the bottom of the 9th for the save, but that’s not going to happen. He still gets the save though.

Shane Victorino went 3-5 on Sunday against the Braves, scored 3 times, and drove in a run of his own.  Ryan Howard, who is still above .200, was also 3-5 with all three hits being doubles.  He drove in 4 Phillies, mostly Victorino, on the way to a 6-3 victory.

As the guys on TBS said, he looks more confident now and is starting to progress because he is hitting the ball to left field.  During his MVP season in ‘06 Howard showed power to all parts of the field.

The bullpen picked up another win with Brett Myers getting his 17th save.  Adam Eaton had another quality start going 6 innings giving up 3 earned runs.

The Phillies are 15-4 in their last 19 games.  I credit the recent surge to not only the return of healthy Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino at the top of the order, but also to the return of first base coach Davey Lopes.  Since Lopes’ return those two have been on base much more and have been putting pressure on the opposing pitchers and defense all while setting the table for Utley, Howard, and Burrell who each have over 40 RBIs this season.  Only the Texas Rangers can also make the claim of having 3 men with that many RBIs.

The Phillies are up 4 games on the Florida Marlins for the lead in the NL East.  Now I don’t like to say that one game is more important than any other, or that one series is more important…but this one is.  We face the Marlins tonight to start a three game series down in Miami.  A series win here will put us in first place by 5 games.  That is huge no matter what time of the year it is.

Saturday the Phillies beat the Braves, or should I say Chipper Jones, 6-2.  Jones hit a 2-run homerun in the bottom of the 6th inning to then tie the game at 2.  Those would be the Braves only runs in the game.  Thankfully 2-run 8th and 9th innings for the Phillies cemented the victory.

Pat Burrell, Carlos Ruiz, and Jimmy Rollins all went deep in the game.  Rollins hit his in the 9th, while it was Burrell’s 15th on the season.  The Phillies are still barely in front of the Marlins for the league lead in homeruns.  I would like to point out that this game was in Atlanta so the theory that they only hit them in CBP is crap.

Shane Victorino just won the game for the Phillies!  Not only did he score what would be the winning run, but he just won it with a great defensive play.

Brad Lidge came in up 2 runs for the save in the bottom of the 10th inning.  He gave up a week bloop hit, then the Phillies defense had a few lapses.  The next batter reached on a bunt, and the man who was on first went all the way to 3rd as no Phillies covered either 2nd or 3rd base.  Then the man on first stole second without so much as somebody moving to the bag.  This took the inning ending double play out of posibility.  After a strikeout, Yunel Escobar came to the plate.  With two outs, down by 2, with runners on 2nd and 3rd, Escobar singled up the middle to Shane Victorino.  The Flyin’ Hawaiian got to the ball quickly and fired a laser to catcher Chris Coste on the fly to nail Gregor Blanco.  It was one of the best throws I’ve seen this season.  Look for it to be on the top plays in the morning.

Phillies win 4-3.  Lidge did give up a run, but got his 16th save in 16 chances this year.

Well Cole Hamels returned to form last night.  He pitched a complete game shutout for the second time this season.  The Phillies beat the Reds 5-0 to win 3 of the 4 games they played.  Hamels struck out 4, walked 3 and gave up only 3 hits in his 9 innings of work.

The Reds committed three errors that helped the Phillies score 5 runs on only 5 hits.  Geoff Jenkins hit his 6th homerun, a solo shot, in the 6th inning.  Of the 5 runs, only 2 were earned.  The next hopeful young star, Homer Bailey, got the start for the Reds.  He gave up all the runs for the Reds.  It was his first start this season after he has been disappointing in the minors.  It was rumored that he might be the 5th starter for the team after spring training.

Right now the Phillies lead the Braves 4-2 in the top of the 10th inning.  Chris Snelling lead off the inning with a pinch hit double.  Jimmy Rollins then bunted pinch runner So Taguchi over to third.  He scored on a triple by Shane Victorino.  Chase Utley just drove in Victorino with a double of his own.

The Good News:

Brett Myers appears to have fixed whatever was wrong earlier in the season.  After his first inning against Florida in his last start and his start last night, he looks to be much better.  Last night he carried a no hitter into the 7th inning!

The Bad News:

The one hit that Myers did give up happened to be an RBI double to Joey Votto.  Votto hit another RBI double in the 9th off of JC Romero for the Reds second run.  That would be all they needed as they had Edinson Volquez starting for them.  This kid is lights out.  he pitched better than Myers’ 1 hit, 1 run performance.  He only gave up 2 hits through 7 without any runs.  Both he and Myers pitched 7 innings (Myers recorded an out in the 8th) and both struck out 8.  It was definitely a pitcher’s game last night.

Ken Griffey, Jr. did not play again last night which leads me to believe he is hurt more than the Reds lead on.  Jay Bruce is good, but I don’t think he is good enough to take Griffey’s starting spot.  I don’t know who will play in RF for them today as they are both lefties and Cole Hamels is throwing for the Phillies.

Hamels has to get a good start in here today (game is at 1:05).  He has not done well his last 2 times after I said he should be an all-star.  The Reds’ lineup is laden with lefty power hitters so hopefully he won’t get banged up by them too much.  He really needs to get all 3 pitches working to get the job done.  He has to be able to spot his fastball to make his devastating changeup work.

Well I fell asleep watching the game Tuesday night.  I was kind of awake when each team scored a run in the 3rd inning, and then I heard the sweet voice of Harry Kalas proclaiming victory.

The Phils ended up winning 3-2 over the Reds.  Pat Burrell hit a 2-run homerun in the 6th to put the Phillies up 3-1.  The Reds got a run back in the top of the 8th when Edwin Encarnacion scored on a sac fly off of Tom Gordon.  Encarnacion also hit a solo homer in the 3rd inning for the Reds.

Adam Eaton had his second strong outing in a row.  He pitched 6 2/3 innings and gave up only 3 hits, and 1 run on the homer to Encarnacion.  The bullpen once again proved why it is the best in the NL with JC Romero and Tom Gordon each getting holds en route to Brad Lidge recording his 15th save.

Besides Burrell’s blast, Jimmy Rollins was the man of the game.  He was 3-4 with a double, 2 steals, and he scored a run.  Chase Utley picked up the other RBI.  He went 2-3.  Adam Eaton got a hit, and Greg Dobbs once again came through in a pinch hit role with a hit, but nobody else tallied in that column.

Once again KGJ didn’t play.  He drew a walk in a pinch-hit at bat late in the game.

So after what I wrote yesterday, Dusty Baker decided to sit Ken Griffey, Jr.  Luckily the game was not short on homeruns.  The Phillies homered three times while the Reds were only able to clear the fences twice.  Chase Utley hit his league leading 21st longball.  Pedro Feliz and Chris Coste each went deep in the 4th inning, with Feliz’s being a 2-run shot.  Jay Bruce hit yet another homerun in his young career.  He was called up last week and is already 2nd in the running for NL Rookie of the Year in my opinion.  Soto from Chicago is leading now, but it might not be long until Bruce catches him.

Kyle Kendrick picked up the win in the 5-4 game.  He pitched into the 6th inning before being knocked out.  He gave up all 4 runs before the bullpen pitched a scoreless rest of the game.  Chad Durbin, Tom Gordon, and Brad Lidge all pitched very well in order to preserve the 1-run lead they inherited.

I just looked and saw that Griffey is once again out of the lineup tonight!

This is quite possibly the most excited I have been for a 3 game series all season.  Not only are the Phillies in 1st place in the NL East, but I get the opportunity to see arguably my all-time favorite player hit his 600th homerun.

Ken Griffey, Jr.  is sitting on 599 career homeruns as he comes into Citizens Bank Park tonight.  He will face Kyle Kendrick tonight, Adam Eaton, and Brett Myers.  Griffey’s lifetime numbers are pretty good against each of them so hopefully we can see him reach this phenomenal milestone.  It would be great for the Reds if he did it at home, but I know that Philly has some of the most knowledgeable fans of the game and I’m sure they will show their class and celebrate for him.

I always want to see the Phillies win, but I might not even care if Griffey gets it done against us.  That’s how much I have loved him over the years.  He has always been a great outfielder (and I love defense), and he has the sweetest swing of all times.

Game tonight is at 7:05.  Also, you can watch the Red Wings go for the Stanley Cup tonight at 8.  It’s always nice to see Pittsburgh lose.  I know I’ll have both games on.

Want to see what thesouthfloridafan has to say about the game?  Well here it is for you.

I had a lot of fun working with the guys over there.  They are passionate about their teams and I love that.  Don’t be surprised to hear more from them the next time these teams get together.  With the Braves losing again today, and the Mets milling around at .500, the Marlins are our biggest competition in the division, so this series and future ones will be very important.

4:15:

And that’s the game!  Lidge blew a fastball right past the youngster.  Like most of the Marlins, he did not shorten up his swing with 2 strikes and took a big hack on a full count fastball down the middle and swung right over it.  Phillies win the series 2-1 with the 7-5 victory.  Dan Uggla went an amazing 1-12 in the series.  Utley only hit 3 homeruns in the series so it was kind of a down series for him too….Now the Phillies are in first place in the NL East.  Big ups to Geoff Jenkins and Pat Burrell for their clutch hits to get us back into this game and win it.

4:12:

Brad Lidge is in to close out the game in the top of the 9th.  He made Mike Jacobs, who had homered twice already in the game, look like a fool with his nasty slider.  Then he let a slider slip to poser boy Uggla.  He hit it hard, but TJ Bohn was able to run under it in left-center for out #2.  Now it’s a full count to youngster Cody Ross. 

3:56:

Well Tom Gordon has walked Luis Gonzalez to start the inning, and is now 2-1 on Ramirez.  It’s not good to put men on base when going into the heart of this lineup.  Good thing they are free swingers (eg. Ramirez’s ridiculous swing on that fastball).  And Gordon struck him out.  I’m still worried that Dan Uggla hasn’t done ANYTHING this series.  He has struck out twice already today, and his BA is now sub .300.

3:49:

Pat “the Bat!”!!! After I said that I wouldn’t be surprised if this game was decided by another homer, Pat Burrell hit a 2 out, 2-run double.  Shane Victorino started off the bottom of the 7th with a single, then moved to second when Tankersley hit Ryan Howard in the ribs.  After another pitching change, the runners advanced on a wild pitch.  They decided to pitch to Burrell rather than walk him with the open base.  Big mistake.  Phillies lead 7-5 going to the 8th with Tom Gordon coming into the game and Jamie Moyer now in-line for the win.

3:27:

Geoff Jenkins hit an absolute bomb to right field in the bottom of the 6th to tie the game up 5-5.  And Ryan Howard just made an amazing play on a botched bunt attempt by Jacque Jones.  Jenkins, who did not start due to lefty pitcher Andrew Miller, pinch hit when the Marlins brought a righty in from the pen.  As the TBS announcers were saying that Jenkins was 0-9 pinch hitting this season, he crushed a deep fly.  The ball went about 30 rows back into the seats, and took about 3 seconds to go from bat to seats.  And Moyer just got Mike Rabello to ground into an inning ending double play, 6-4-3.  We’re heading to the bottom of the 7th with the top of the order coming up.

2:33

So I had a late night last night and forgot that the Phillies were playing at 1:30 today.  Luckily I turned into the game after the Marlins put up 4 runs, with the help of a 3-run homer, in the top of the 3rd.  I did get to see Andrew Miller not catch a ball, and Jimmy Rollins trot home.  It looked a lot like a little league game for a minute.  Then Chase Utley just hit a bomb to right-center for his 20th homerun of the season!  Yeah, 20.