Monday, April 18, 2011
Posted: 11:15 p.m.Updated: April 19, 1:10 a.m.
By Jim Salisbury
CSNPhilly.com
Roy Halladay pitches Tuesday night so maybe the Phillies can win without getting an extra-base hit.
They couldnt do it on Monday night. Their nine singles werent enough to overcome the Milwaukee Brewers, who hung a 6-3 loss on the Phillies in 12 innings at Citizens Bank Park.
The Phils lost the game when Kyle Kendrick was pulled out of mothballshe pitched for the first time in 10 daysand gave up three runs in the 12th on an assortment of personal miscues that included a four-pitch leadoff walk, a throwing error, a wild pitch and a hit batsman.
While Kendrick got the loss in the box score, he certainly wasnt the only culprit in the defeat.
Where has this teams offense gone? The Phils have turned into a punch-and-judy hitting club right before our eyes. They have been held to one or zero extra-base hits in five of their last nine games. They have five wins in their last nine games largely because of their pitching. This is a pitching-based team so keep your fingers crossed that the big guns in the rotation stay healthy. Injuries have already affected the pitching staff, but so far theyve hit in the bullpen, where Brad Lidge will soon be getting company from J.C. Romero, who injured his right calf Monday night. Romero said he expects to go on the disabled list. The Phils cleared a spot on their 40-man roster when injured reliever Brian Schlitter was sent back to the Cubs on Monday. Reliever Mike Stutes, who nearly made the big-league roster out of spring training, could soon get the call.
MLB
Back to that offense: The Phils have averaged just 3.3 runs in their last seven games. After 15 games, No. 3 hitter Jimmy Rollins amazingly has just four extra-base hits (all doubles) and just one RBI. The two hitters in front of him, Shane Victorino and Placido Polanco, are hitting .311 and .375, respectively, so Rollins is getting chances with runners on base. As a hitter, Rollins looks to drive the ball, so it makes some sense to bat him third. But he is clearly not driving the ball so manager Charlie Manuel might soon have to consider someone else for the No. 3 spot, though his options are limited.
Manuel was an accomplished hitting coach before becoming a major-league manager. Can he figure out why the Phils arent driving the ball for extra bases?
No, I cant, he said.
Manuel is frustrated with the offense. He has made that clear the last two days, venting at length about the teams lack of power and need to improve offensively. Manuel has even mentioned a time or two about how the team misses the production of Pat Burrell, a player Manuel benched on occasion.
Their guy pitched a good game and kept us off balance, Manuel said of Shaun Marcum, Milwaukees starter Monday night.
While that might be true, Marcum was gone after six innings. The Phils had 18 outs to work with against Milwaukees bullpen and scored just two runs. One of those runs came on Pete Orrs clutch pinch-hit single which tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the ninth. Wilson Valdez had a key bunt to set up that run as the Phils played some small ball. They also manufactured a run in the seventh. Thats what you have to do when your offense is basically a bunch of singles.
The last few days, we havent hit well, Ben Francisco said. Weve got to hit balls hard, make better outs, have better at-bats.
Every game you lose stinks and this was no different.
There was one bright spot for the Phils in an otherwise dismal night. Starter Joe Blanton appeared to take a step forward. He followed two bad starts with seven innings of two-run ball and did some clutch pitching in the fifth when he struck out Prince Fielder on a nice changeup to end a threat with two men on base.
Kendrick was anything but clutch. He actually looked a little frightened as he walked the leadoff man in the 12th then threw errantly to first on a bunt. That set up Ryan Brauns 400-foot sacrifice fly to center, which broke the 3-3 tie. Milwaukee scored two more runs before the uprising was over.
And thats how the Phils lost this one.
Halladay pitches on Tuesday. The way things are going, hed better not expect a lot of run support.
E-mail Jim Salisbury at jsalisbury@comcastsportsnet.com
