Padres Series

Game 1: Phillies 3, Padres 2
Length of game: 3:01; W – Halladay (8-3) – 7 IP, 2 ER; L – Latos (5-4) – 5 IP, 3 ER; Phillies score 2 runs in 3rd inning on 2 run home run by Victorino (9); 2 shutout innings by bullpen (Contreras, Romero, Lidge); Halladay strikes out 7, allows 10 hits

Game 2: Phillies 6, Padres 2
Length of game: 2:02; W – Moyer (6-5) – 9 IP, 2 ER; L – Garland (6-3) – 7 IP, 6 ER; RBI single by Chase Utley ignites rally for 4 run 3rd inning; 2 run home run by Werth (10) extends lead to 6-2; Moyer throws complete game (98 pitches)

Game 3: Padres 6, Phillies 5 (F/10)
Length of game: 3:41; W – M. Adams (1-1) – 2 IP, 0 ER; L – Baez (2-2) – 1 IP, 1 ER; Blanton allows 11 hits over 5 innings, allows 5 earned runs; Phillies score only runs in 1st and 2nd innings (4 runs in 2nd); Padres bullpen throws 8 1/3 shutout innings

Game 4: Padres 3, Phillies 1
Length of game: 2:39; W – LeBlanc (3-4) – 7 IP, 0 ER; L – Hamels (5-5) – 8 IP, 2 ER; Phillies score only run in 9th inning, leave Howard on 2nd, bring tying run to plate; Hamels throws 8 strong innings, allowing just 3 hits and walking 2; Baez continues to struggle, allowing an insurance run in the 9th inning

Final Analysis: While it was an improvement over the 2-7 road trip, this 4 game series was not enough to be considered successful. The offense showed some signs of life throughout the series, but they are still struggling mightily. A total of 15 runs over 4 games (3.8 runs per game) is not in any way good. The pitching was strong, especially the starts from Moyer (9 IP, 2 ER) and Hamels (8 IP, 2 ER). Brad Lidge has looked very strong over the last few games. Since his first appearance on April 30 (1/3 IP, 1 ER), he has thrown 6 shutout innings in 6 appearances. While the offensive struggles are nothing to be ignored, the team looks very hopeful in the big picture. With Hamels seemingly on top of his game (although this may have been a fluke due to throwing only 2/3 innings in his previous start due to rain) and Halladay consistently terrific, the starting rotation has been rounded out nicely by the strong and somewhat consistent starts from Moyer, Blanton, and Kendrick. In the bullpen, Lidge has looked strong, Contreras is virtually unhittable, and J.C. Romero has returned to form with his ERA down to 1.93. With these three late inning stoppers and middle inning guys like Danys Baez (or at least he should be switched to a middle inning guy due to his recent struggles) and Chad Durbin (solid 2.96 ERA), the Phillies pitching looks ready for a World Series. The offense has looked ready for a World Series at times this year. These are good signs. Every year, there are about 8 or 10 teams that have a legitimate chance at winning the World Series; the Phillies are one of these teams. And while this is a good sign and the most important time of year is clearly October, the offense needs to pick it up soon, or else there won’t be an October. The Phillies sit 2 games behind Atlanta for the division lead, and just 0.5 games ahead of the Mets for 2nd place in the N.L. East. Without a major improvement, the Phillies could find themselves clawing from behind during the grueling months of July and August.

Braves Series

Game 1: Braves 9, Phillies 3
Memorial Day - 1:05 EST start time; W - Hanson (5-3) - 6 2/3 IP, 1 ER; L - Blanton (1-4) - 6 IP, 4 ER; Braves scored 3 runs each in the 1st, 3rd, and 7th innings; Phillies scored 3 runs in 7th inning; Brad Lidge threw a scoreless 8th inning in his 1st appearance since returning from the DL.


Game 2: Braves 7, Phillies 3
7:05 EST start time; W - Hudson (6-1) - 6 IP, 2 ER; L - Hamels (5-4) - 2/3 IP, 3 ER; SV - Wagner (8); Braves score 3 runs in 1st inning again; Phillies scored a run in the 9th to cut it to 7-3, left the bases loaded, ended the game with the tying run at the plate; Game was delayed in bottom of 1st inning, which forced Hamels to an early exit; Jose Contreras lowered his ERA to 0.56 with 2/3 scoreless innings.



Game 3: Braves 2, Phillies 1
1:05 EST start time; W - Lowe (8-4) - 8 IP, 1 ER; L - Contreras (2-2) - 2/3 IP, 1 ER; S - Wagner (9); Game was tied, 1-1, entering bottom of 8th inning; Kendrick threw 6 consecutive scoreless innings after allowing a 1st inning run; Braves took lead on Omar Infante single in 8th inning; Jayson Werth went 1 for 3 hitting from the leadoff spot.



Final Analysis: The last time the Phillies scored more than 3 runs in a game: May 21. The last time the Phillies scored more than 5 runs in a game: May 17. This team cannot continue to waste good pitching performances. From the start of the season, I have been very uncomfortable with the pitching staff. I believed that the Phillies' chances of winning the World Series lied only with the pitching staff, because I assumed that the offense would be producing consistently. For the last 2 weeks, it has been the opposite. The pitching staff has been producing consistently, while the offense has looked helpless. I still believe that the pitching staff is shaky, and if the offense doesn't turn it around soon, they will have wasted one of the few stretches throughout the year in which the pitching staff has been consistently good. As they continue to fall further behind the Braves in the standings, the Phillies must look to turn it around as they return home after finishing that road trip 2-7. Who better to turn it around than Roy Halladay though, right?

Braves Series: Midpoint

It's currently the bottom of the 8th in game 2 of the Phillies-Braves series. It seems as if the entire organization is out of sorts. They're about to lose their 3rd straight game (down 7-2), Jayson Werth seems to have been on a different planet for the last week or two, and Charlie Manuel's batting order is ridiculous. Our 8-hitter, Carlos Ruiz, leads the starting lineup in batting average, hitting .311. The rest of the lineup holds stellar numbers such as .254 (Victorino), .250 (Valdez), .247 (Ibanez), and .244 (Castro). Really, I can only think of 3 bright spots in the organization: Roy Halladay (consistently spectacular, not to mention the perfect game), Jose Contreras (0.59 ERA, and just brought about an inning ending double play), and Brad Lidge (out of lineup due to injury, has allowed Contreras to pitch wondefully and has prevented himself from blowing saves). As the top of the 9th now begins, it looks all but hopeless for the Phillies in this game. They will most likely fall 1.5 games behind the Braves for the lead in the N.L. East, and they leave themselves badly needing a win in the final game of the series.

A single by Ben Francisco to open the inning...hope? Ya gotta believe.