Phillies Recap: August 27, 2009

Pittsburgh Pirates 3, Philadelphia Phillies 2

It was another low-scoring game in Pittsburgh as the Phillies offense was mostly stagnant once again. Though Jay Happ tossed another great game, he was done in by a late inning home run and the Phils' offensive inadequacies. The Phillies ended up dropping two of three to the lowly Bucs, in whats has to be one of the most embarrassing series of the season. The final score was 3-2.

Happ (10-3) pitched well for the most of the night and was backed by some terrific defense. He induced several double-plays and stayed out of major trouble all night. However, in the eighth inning, he was touched up by Garrett Jones for a game-winning two-run shot. Overall, Happ went the distance with an eight-inning, four-strike out performance. Happ allowed the three earned runs on seven hits and two walks. It was not the complete game he wanted.

The Phillies offense loaded the bases with no one out in the first inning and only tallied one run. Charlie Morton pitched well enough to keep the Phillies off the board. Jimmy Rollins had three hits while Paul Bako homered and reached base safely four times. Other than that, the Phillies we shut out the rest of the way by the Pirates bullpen. It was an ugly performance as the Phillies hitters were mostly impatient at the plate.

This is not what the Phillies were looking for in Pittsburgh. They dropped two of three and go limping home with the offense again struggling and the bullpen in the midst of turmoil. Their record drops to 73-52 and the Atlanta Braves, who come to town tomorrow night, will most likely make up some ground tonight. The Phillies need to regroup quickly as they trot home from a very mediocre 4-3 road trip.