Phillies Recap: October 1, 2009

Houston Astros 5, Philadelphia Phillies 3

W - Paulino (3-11), L - Lee (14-13)

The Phillies, as expected, came out flat against the Houston Astros. After a night of celebrating their NL East crown, the Phillies did not muster much on offense against Felipe Paulino, while fielding a partial lineup. Cliff Lee was roughed up a bit early and late in his start, and ultimately took the loss. The Phillies rallied late but fell short by a final score of 5-3.

Cliff Lee had a tough time in the first inning, allowing two quick runs. He went on to settle down nicely, but came apart again in the sixth, allowing two runs again, before being lifted. On the night, he went 5.2 innings and allowed three earned runs. Lee did strike out five but allowed six hits and three walks. The Phillies bullpen got a good deal of work and allowed one run late.

The Astros must have enjoyed what they saw from Felipe Paulino. For five innings, he took care of business against a resting Phillies lineup. Paulino went five strong innings, allowing six hits and a run while fanning five Phillies. The Astros bullpen came in for three strong innings before they made the game interesting. For the Phillies, Ben Francisco had three hits but they did little else on offense.

This was an expected loss, though they had chances to win the game. The Phillies will continue to rest key players and line up their rotation for the playoffs. Though the best record in the National League is at stake, the Phillies will likely focus more on their team needs rather that playoff seedings. The are a game behind the chase for the top record, though.

Phillies Recap: September 18, 2009

Philadelphia Phillies 9, Atlanta Braves 4

W - Kendrick (2-1), L - Hudson (1-1)

The Phillies battled injuries and a tough Braves team to find a way to win their 86th game of the season. Jay Happ went three innings before being lifted as a precautionary measure. Kyle Kendrick came on in long relief and really helped the Phillies' bullpen. Carlos Ruiz also suffered a sprained wrist on a play at the plate. For the Braves, Tim Hudson was solid but was hurt by his nemesis, Ryan Howard's two homers. When all the scoring was done, the Phillies found themselves on the right side of a 9-4 decision.

Happ came back and showed signs of his mid-season form, but struggled with his command at times. In his three innings, he allowed just a solo homer and scattered five hits in all. The real story for the pitching, though, was Kyle Kendrick who came in for long relief and delivered four blank innings. It was another promising performance for the once-outed right-hander. The Phillies bullpen was mostly saved and finished off the game, once it was out of reach.

On offense, the story tonight was the long ball. Ryan Howard punished Tim Hudson once again with another pair of homers off the righty. Hudson went seven solid innings, though, allowing three earned runs on six hits and a walk. However, once the Phillies got into the Braves' pen, they unleashed their offense. Jimmy Rollins delivered the keynote with a three-run shot in the ninth that put the game out of reach for good. Ben Francisco put in a solid night's work with three hits including a homer of his own.

This was a bittersweet win for the Phillies. It was an important one in the standings, but costly for the roster. It is unclear the extent of the injuries to Happ and Ruiz, but both situations are certainly concerning. The catching depth on the Phillies' roster is minimal, so if Ruiz is out for an extended period of time, the Phils will be essentially crippled at that position. For now, the Phillies can take some pleasure in their win, as they move to 26 games over .500 and drop their magic number to eight.

An Idea Out of Left Field

With both Raul Ibanez and Matt Stairs struggling right now, the Phillies need to get both on track for the post-season push and beyond. Ibanez, their All-Star left fielder, is the everyday starter and has had a severe power outage since the break. In order to provide the necessary punch and protection for the middle of their order, the Phillies need Raul to get back on track, hitting the ball hard. On the flip side, Matt Stairs is their pinch-hitting extraordinaire, who provides left-handed power off the bench. Without his imposing threat, the Phillies' bench is average at best.

The ways and reasons these two players have struggled since the middle of the season are complete different. Raul Ibanez had a groin problem that forced him to the disabled list. Since that time, he has not hit many balls hard and produced very few runs. Let's take a look at his production from both halves of the season:

Pre-All-Star Break: 64 G, 289 PA, .309 BA, 22 HR, 60 RBI

Post-All-Star Break: 39 G, 156 PA, .220 BA, 5 HR, 19 RBI

Clearly, Ibanez's power outage is cause for some concern. But what is the actual cause? Almost without a doubt, it is his timing, which has suffered due to his inability to pick up pitches out of the pitcher's hand. With this trouble in timing, Ibanez could potentially be compounding his problems by trying to compensate for the lack of vision with some bad mechanical habits at the plate.

But the problem with Matt Stairs has been much different than Ibanez. Stairs has been adjusting to his new role as a full-time pinch hitter all season. To his credit, he has embraced the role and welcomed it. When he was first acquired by the Phillies a year ago, he said that he would pinch hit everyday if he could. Lately, Stairs has had a number of such opportunities with no success:

Pre-All-Star Break: 56 G, 9 GS, 76 PA, .283 BA, 4 HR, 13 RBI

Post-All-Star Break: 23 G, 3 GS, 31 PA, .000 BA, 0 HR, 0 RBI

This is probably the most black-and-white split you will see among major leaguers. Stairs has been hitless since the All-Star Break and has no hits in his last 27 at bats. There is nothing mechanically wrong with Stairs, though, as his approach always has been and always will be to hit home runs. With that big upper-cut swing of his, all Stairs really needs is repetition against big league pitching.

On to the joint solution to get Ibanez and Stairs back on track, simultaneously. After the Giants series this week, in which two tough lefties will pitch (and Ben Francisco will likely get two starts), bench Ibanez for a series. Starting Stairs for four games against the Astros will likely get Stairs about 15-20 plate appearances, which should help him get the repetitions he needs. Meanwhile, Ibanez can clear his head, spend more time watching film and taking extended batting practice, and get a break from the game.

Ideally, Stairs won't hurt the Phillies too much in the field, and even if he doesn't produce too much, it won't be a loss on what Ibanez is producing now. Francisco can serve as the late inning defensive replacement for Stairs, as he will also need to see some more action to stay sharp. At the same time, Ibanez can use some rest, as he prepares for his first playoff action since 2000. When Ibanez returns, hopefully he can have some things figured out. And when Stairs returns to the bench, he will hopefully be poised for his next pinch-hitting assignment.

Phillies Recap: August 20, 2009

Philadelphia Phillies 12, Arizona Diamondbacks 3

Despite not having his best stuff, Joe Blanton battled the Diamondbacks and got some run support in the meantime. Blanton was able to keep his pitch count relatively low even though he allowed a lot of base runners. His counterpart, Doug Davis, was not as fortunate as the Phillies tagged him all night long. By the end of a long, humid night, the Phillies had swept out the Diamondbacks with a 12-3 win.

Early in the game, Joe Blanton (8-6) was not as sharp as he has been in recent starts. It ended up being a moot point as he finally received some run support from the offense. Blanton ran into trouble a few times, falling victim of some dinks and dunks from Arizona. But he battled all night and kept the team in the game until they could really go to work. All in all, Blanton went eight solid innings, allowing three earned runs while striking out four. He did allow 10 hits but did not walk a batter.

Doug Davis (7-11) struggled from the first pitch he threw on the night. In the first inning, Ben Francisco came through with a clutch two-out two-run single. After that, the Philies offense exploded as Carlos Ruiz homered for his second straight game, Jayson Werth homered for the fifth time in the last five games, and Ryan Howard absolutely crushed a three-run homer to center field. Joe Blanton even got in on the hit parade as he compiled his first career multi-hit game. All in all, the Phillies offense is alive and well once again.

This was an important series win for the Phillies. The sweep puts the Phillies three games over .500 at home and are now 20 games over the .500 mark overall. They won't have much time to bask in the glory of the victory, as they immediately head out for a seven-game trip to New York and Pittsburgh. There's no reason why the Phillies can't be 25 games over .500 by the time they return home.

Phillies Recap: August 11, 2009

Philadelphia Phillies 4, Chicago Cubs 3

Rich Harden had his best stuff tonight and at times looked nearly unhittable. He took advantage of a more generous strike zone than J.A. Happ had and worked through the Phillies order with ease in the early going. Meanwhile Happ struggled with his command as he danced through raindrops before surrendering two runs in the third. However, one word can be used to describe the Phillies' effort tonight: gritty. The Phils fought tough, were patient, and found a way to beat the Cubs, 4-3 on three hits.

Happ was not his normal, confident self tonight as he seemed rattled at times on the bump. Perhaps it was playing at historic Wrigley Field or perhaps it was pitching so close to his hometown. Either way he allowed an uncharacteristically high number of base runners, but survived six innings. The Cubs lacked the one big hit to put the game out of reach, but Brad Lidge blew his seventh save of the season in the ninth after the Phillies took the lead. A strong performance by Scott Eyre (2-1) earned the win and Chad Durbin picked up the save.

No one disputes that Rich Harden is one of the best pitchers in the game today. He had everything working to his advantage as he was perfect through the first 16 batters. Backed by a few circus-type catches by Milton Bradley in right field, Harden did not surrender a base hit until Jimmy Rollins crushed a two-out, two-run homer to tie the game in the sixth. The Phillies would add a run later on a bases loaded walk to Ryan Howard against Carlos Marmol. In the top of the 11th inning, Ben Francisco came through with a wall-scraping homer for the winning margin.

This was an important game for the Phillies. They came out after the sweep at home and looked lost. Rich Harden was dealing and it looked like the Phils would have their offense shut down again. But great teams find ways to win, even with three hits, and the Phillies did just that. They fought back after a blown save by Lidge to win the ballgame. On the eve of Pedro Martinez's inaugural start with Philadelphia, they improved to 62-48.

Phillies Recap: August 7, 2009

Florida Marlins 3, Philadelphia Phillies 2

The Phillies battled all night against a dominating pitching performance by Ricky Nolasco. And with Joe Blanton starting the night off a little shaky, it provided the window the Marlins needed to sneak by the Phils, by a final score of 3-2. While the strike zone was inconsistent, the Phillies lacked clutch hits at seemingly every key situation of the game.

Joe Blanton (7-6) settled down after giving up three runs in the first two innings. He pitched deep into the game for the Phillies, keeping them close for a chance to come back. However, with the offense punchless, the Marlins survived on the strength of two early homeruns. Blanton ended up going 6 2/3 innings, giving up three earned on eight hits and he struck out four.

Ricky Nolasco (8-7) was again masterful as he turned in yet another great game. Nolasco cruised through most of the Phillies' lineup all night, striking out seven over seven strong innings. His only blemish came on a two-run homer surrendered to Ben Francisco in the seventh inning. It was Francisco's first as a Phillie, an inning after he gunned down a run at the plate.

Overall, it was a very frustrating night for the Phillies who were close all night, but somehow felt way behind. A great pitching performance will do that to even the best teams. However, on a night when the Phillies honored the late Harry Kalas, the home crowd was buzzing for a reason to errupt. Unfortunately, few opportunities arrived and the Phillies, who drop to 61-46, will have to bounce back tomorrow night.

A Roy and a Cy Without a Halladay?

When the Philadelphia Phillies acquired Cliff Lee at this year's trade deadline, many Phillies fans celebrated. But I, like some fans, did not react emotionally towards adding the 2008 Cy Young Award winner from the American League. After all, I looked at Lee's ugly 7-9 record and his general lack of a proven track record. I tempered my enthusiasm in fear of an overrated player joining the team. I could not have been more wrong.

As most fans and analysts believed, Roy Halladay of the Blue Jays would be a Phillie by July 31st. Even more, those same people (myself included) believed that Halladay would propel the Phillies to another World Championship. Perhaps he would have. But there's no way to determine what Doc's impact on the Phillies would have been. The cost for Halladay, both in prospects and contract, was too great. And for the first time in recent memory, the Phillies made the correct, cheap move.

The cost of Halladay was not just super-prospect Kyle Drabek. The Blue Jays also wanted J.A. Happ. Instead, the Phillies traded four players that were not close to contributing to the big league team and acquired an ace pitcher and an above-average fourth outfielder in Ben Francisco. And it's not just Lee's more affordable contract (which may help keep Joe Blanton in Philly) that the Phillies now have; it is also J.A. Happ. Therefore, by the numbers, consider that the Phillies choice was between Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee AND J.A. Happ. Let's look at the numbers since the trade (7/29/09):

Halladay: 2 GS, 0-2, 16.0 IP, 1 CG, 3.94 ERA, 11 K, 4 HR

Lee: 2 GS, 2-0, 16.0 IP, 1 CG, 1.13 ERA, 15 K, 0 HR
Happ: 2 GS, 1-1, 15.0 IP, 1 CG, 1.20 ERA, 15 K, 1 HR

As you can see, no matter how great Halladay would have been, it will be hard to top the contributions of both Lee and Happ. With the outcome of the season far from certain, there will be plenty of time to evaluate the long-term impact of this trade. We will certainly keep an eye on it, but as it stands right now, the Phillies and Ruben Amaro look like geniuses. Is it possible that the Phillies will now have a Roy (Rookie of the Year hopeful, Happ) and a Cy (last year's Cy Young Award winner, Lee) without a Halladay? Absolutely.