Phillies Recap: August 5, 2009

Philadelphia Phillies 7, Colorado Rockies 0

J.A. Happ turned in a masterful performance, shutting down the Colorado offense and giving the Phillies one of their best starts of the season. The Phillies came out strong against the Rockies, scoring early and often. But the real story tonight was Happ's second shutout of the season, in front of an electric crowd at Citizens Bank Park. The Phils picked up a 7-0 win over Colorado.

Happ (8-2) was very sharp, mowing through the Rockies' order with relative ease. If Happ was pitching for his job in the starting rotation, he certainly made a compelling case. Happ scattered four hits and two walks over a complete game shutout while striking out a career-high 10 batters. Happ did not allow an earned run and never really came close. The dominant game by Happ makes the deicision to move him into the bullpen that much harder, as his season ERA was lowered to 2.74, which is good for eighth in the majors.

Jorge De La Rosa (9-8) fell victim to the Phillies and Citizens Bank Park once again, as he surrendered homeruns to Pedro Feliz and Jimmy Rollins in the second inning. Then in the fifth inning, Jayson Werth tagged him for a three-run homer, which broke open a 7-0 lead for the Phillies. De La Rosa finished five innings, giving up seven earned runs, while only striking out three. The Rockies bullpen came in to finish the last three innings without giving up any runs, but the game had been decided by that point.

Overall, this was an important game for the Phillies. Their offense came alive with timely hitting and Happ provided the shut-down performance the team so sorely needed. Happ must also now be considered a legitimate contender for the Rookie of the Year Award. The losing streak is over, the lead in the NL East is safe, and Cliff Lee takes the mound tomorrow afternoon. It seems as though all is well in Philadelphia again.