Phillies Preview: September 30, 2009

Philadelphia Phillies 10, Houston Astros 3

W - Kendrick (3-1), L - Moehler (8-12), Phillies Clinch NL East

Pedro Martinez was not sharp tonight but he battled his way through the early part of the game and kept the Phillies close. Slowly but surely, the Phillies offense broke through against Brian Moehler and the Astros. After falling behind early, by a score of 3-1, the Phillies continued to just score and put up nine unanswered runs. They pieced together the bullpen to record their 92nd win of the season, by a final of 10-3. With the win, the Philadelphia Phillies clinched the 2009 NL East title.

The Phillies were hoping for more from Pedro tonight. But to his credit, he got through four innings and limited the damage, despite not having very good stuff at all. He was lifted early for a pinch hitter and did not qualify for the win. On the night, he allowed three earned runs on six hits and a walk, but it could have been much worse. Kyle Kendrick came in for three scoreless innings of great relief, and picked up his third win of the season. In a classy move, Charlie Manuel brought in Brad Lidge to record the final out of the game.

For the Astros, it was the same old story for Brian Moehler as he started to fall apart in the middle innings. The Phillies began to hit the ball very hard for extra base hits and scored four times in a big fourth inning that put them ahead for good. Moehler allowed seven earned runs on six hits over 4.1 innings pitched. The Astros bullpen allowed the rest, as seven different Phillies had RBIs and they did not rely on the long ball too heavily. Raul Ibanez did hit his career high 34th homer of the year.

So the Philadelphia Phillies will retain their title as the National League East Champions for the third straight season. It was a great win for the Phillies, who would have clinched anyway because the Braves have lost. However, it now gives the Phillies four extra days to rest, work their rotation into place, and aim for the best record in the National League. The Cardinals had already lost, giving the Phillies a two game lead ahead of the Central champs. And the Dodgers entered play later, with just a one game lead over the Phillies. The Phillies are headed to the playoffs again!