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The Phillie rotation includes Cole Hamels, Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay these days, but Kyle Kendrick has clearly been the best starter of the group. Kendrick went seven strong innings last night as the Phils topped the Marlins 7-2.

Just about everybody thought it was a fluke when a 22-year-old Kendrick went 10-4 with a 3.87 ERA in 2007 and helped to pitch the Phillies into the playoffs. We might all want to reconsider. Kendrick is 28 now and he’s thrown to a 3.44 ERA over his last 46 starts going back to the start of 2011.

The Phillies, meanwhile, are having a lot of success against the Fish and the Mets and a whole lot less against everyone else. 8-2 against the Marlins and Mets and 5-14 against everyone else.

The Phillies are 13-16 on the year after beating the Miami Marlins 7-2 last night. The Phillies have won four of their last six.

Kendrick got the start for the Phillies and went seven innings, allowing two runs on seven hits and two walks. Three of the hits went for extra-bases, a double, a triple and a home run. He struck out five.

Kendrick was charged with five runs in 5 2/3 innings in his first start of the season. Since then he’s made five starts in which he’s thrown to a 1.54 ERA with a 1.03 ratio. Opponents have hit .219 against him in those starts and the Phils have gone 4-1. Lefties are hitting 233/291/370 against him for the season.

Juan Pierre was the first batter of the game. He drew a walk and moved up to second when Donovan Solano singled to center. Pierre stole third before Placido Polanco hit into a double-play, scoring Pierre to make it 1-0 with the bases empty. Dobbs singled into left, but Kendrick retired Justin Ruggiano on a ground ball to short to end the frame.

Marcell Ozuna doubled with one out in the second, but Kendrick got the next two hitters to leave him stranded.

It was 1-1 when Kendrick started the third. Solano and Polanco singled back-to-back with one out, but Kendrick got Dobbs swinging for the second out. Ruggiano walked to load the bases, but Kendrick got Rob Brantley looking to leave them loaded.

Through three innings, Kendrick had allowed four singles, two walks, a double and a stolen base, but held Miami to a single run.

Adeiny Hechavarria tripled with one out in the fourth. The pitcher Alex Sanabia was next, though, and Kendrick got him on a ground ball to first with Hechavarria holding third for the second out. Pierre popped to Rollins to end the inning.

No run for the Fish after putting a man on third with one out.

The Phils led 2-1 when Kendrick set Miami down in order in the fifth. Solano smashed a ball back up the middle and off of Kendrick’s leg to start the frame, but Kendrick went after the ball quickly and threw to first to get the out.

Nice play by Kendrick. Solano hit the ball hard.

The Phils led 4-1 Ruggiano homered to center to start the sixth. 4-2. Kendrick retired the next three.

He set the Marlins down in order in the seventh. Lefty Chris Coghlan hit for the pitcher Jon Rauch and struck out looking for the first out.

Adams set Polanco, Dobbs and Ruggiano down in order in the eighth with the Phils still up by two.

Adams drops his ERA to 3.27 with the outing. He hasn’t allowed a hit or a walk over two innings in his last two appearances.

Papelbon started the ninth with a 7-2 lead after the Phils scored three in the bottom of the eighth and set the Marlins down in order.

Ideally, Papelbon wouldn’t be pitching in the ninth with a five-run lead no matter how many runs you score in the bottom of the eighth. The Phillies play ten more days in a row before their next off-day, which is on May 13.

Papelbon allowed two runs in an inning in his first appearance of the year. Since then he’s thrown nine scoreless innings in nine appearances.

Overall the pen went two scoreless innings in the game in which they struck out two and did not allow a hit or a walk. Adams threw 14 pitches and Papelbon eight. Neither of them has thrown more than one day in a row.

The Phillie lineup against righty Alex Sanabia went (1) Rollins (2) Utley (3) Michael Young (4) Howard (5) Delmon Young (6) Brown (7) Mayberry (8) Kratz. Revere on the bench with a swollen finger, so Mayberry plays center against the righty. Delmon Young makes his first appearance in right as a Phillie. Kratz catches.

Michael Young doubled to center with two outs in the bottom of the first and the Phils down 1-0. Howard struck out swinging to leave him stranded.

First extra-base hit for Young since April 10. He came into the game 19-for-his-last-63 (.302) with 19 singles.

Brown lined a homer out to right with one out in the second, tying the game at 1-1. Mayberry and Kratz went down behind him.

Kendrick dumped a soft single into center to start the third, but Rollins grounded into a double-play behind him and Utley struck out for the third out.

Howard homered to left with one out in the fourth, putting the Phils up 2-1. Brown delivered a two-out single later in the frame, but Mayberry flew to left to leave him at first.

Kratz walked to start the fifth and Kendrick bunted him to second with the first out. Rollins was next and hit a ball to second that Solano didn’t handle for an error, leaving the Phils with runners on the corners and one out for Utley. Utley flew to right, deep enough for Kratz to tag and score, putting the Phils up 3-1. Michael Young followed with a single, sending Rollins to third. With Howard at the plate, a passed ball scored Rollins (4-1) and moved Young up to second. Howard was walked intentionally and the righty Sanabia got the righty Delmon Young to ground to short to end the inning.

Marlins tally an error, a passed ball and an intentional walk in the frame and the Phillies gave them one out on a bunt. If they get an out on the ball booted by Solano they are out of the inning with no damage done.

Righty Jon Rauch walked Mayberry with one out in the sixth. Kratz struck out for the second out and Kendrick grounded to second to end the inning.

It was 4-2 when righty Tom Koehler set Rollins, Utley and Michael Young down in order in the seventh.

Koehler came back to start the eighth. He walked Howard and Nix back-to-back before Brown singled to left, scoring Howard to make it 5-2 with nobody out and runners on first and third. Mayberry was next and he went down on a ball handled by the pitcher for the first out with Brown moving up to second. With Kratz at the plate, a wild pitch scored Nix (6-2) and moved Brown up to third. Kratz singled into left and Brown scored. 7-2. Frandsen hit for Adams and grounded into a double-play to end the inning.

Not quite sure why the righty Koehler seemed like the right guy to use in a two-run game to face Howard, Nix and Brown to start the inning. Lefty Mike Dunn had thrown 17 pitches the day before. Whatever the reason, it didn’t work out well for Miami as all three of them reached to start the frame and the Phils went on to score three runs.

Rollins was 0-for-4 to drop his average to .243. 220/289/341 against righties.

Utley 0-for-3 with an RBI.

Michael Young 2-for-4 with a double. His UZR/150 at third base for the year is -0.3.

Howard 1-for-2 with two walks and a home run. One of the walks was intentional. He came into the game with three walks in 105 plate appearances for the season. He now has five, two of which are intentional.

Delmon Young 0-for-3. 2-for-9 with a home run on the season.

Brown 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI. 12-for-his-last-31 with a walk, two doubles and two home runs (387/394/645).

Mayberry 0-for-3 with a walk. He has a huge opportunity to work his way into an everyday role with the Phillies willing to sit Revere, but things went real bad for him when he has a similar chance in 2012. The Phillies damage his value as a player when they play him in center — the more he plays center the more his overall value will decrease, cause he’s not very good there. He’s 5-for-his-last-35 at the plate (.143). His dWAR for the year as calculated by Baseball-Reference is -0.6. The Phillies have played less than a fifth of the season.

Kratz 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. He’s 7-for-his-last-26 with four walks and a home run (269/367/385).

Pettibone (1-1, 4.35) faces righty Ricky Nolasco (2-2, 3.82) tonight. Pettibone’s made two starts for the Phils and both have been okay. Opponents have hit .333 against him, but he’s done well to limit the walks, walking just two in 10 1/3 innings. Nolasco has allowed more than three runs in just one of his six starts. He faced the Phils on April 12 and held them to a run over six innings. The Phils won the game 3-1 when they scored two runs charged to Jon Rauch in the top of the tenth.

The Phillies started Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee in the two games of their short set with the Indians. Cleveland scored 20 runs in the two games and the Phils scored exactly two more than they would have scored if they had sent you and 24 of your closest friends to Cleveland.

Last night the Phils got three hits, all singles, on their way to a 6-0 loss. The Phillies walked seven times in the game, but went 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position, leaving two men on base in the fourth, fifth and sixth.

For the third straight start, Cliff Lee didn’t pitch very well. In last night’s game he allowed five runs over six innings. After throwing to a 1.52 ERA over his first three starts for the year, he’s thrown to a 6.00 ERA over his last three.

The Phillies are 12-16 on the year after losing 6-0 to the Cleveland Indians last night. The Indians take both games of the two-game set.

Lee got the start for the Phillies and went six innings, allowing five runs on nine hits and two walks. Two of the hits went for extra-bases, both doubles. He struck out four.

Opponents have hit .325 against Lee over his last three starts and the Phils have lost all three games.

He set the Indians down in order in the first.

Carlos Santana walked with one out in the second and went to third on a single by Ryan Raburn. Mike Aviles was next and flew to left for the second out. Santana tagged and scored from third to put Cleveland up 1-0. Yan Gomes flew to center to leave Raburn at second.

Michael Brantley singled with one out in the third and moved to second when Jason Kipnis followed with a walk. They both scored on a double by Asdrubal Cabrera, extending the Cleveland lead to 3-0. Mark Reynolds moved Cabrera up to third with an infield single before lee struck Santana out swinging for the second out. Raburn was next, though, and he reached on an infield single to make it 4-0 with men on first and second. Aviles flew to right to leave the runners stranded.

Brantley singled with two outs in the fourth, but Lee got Kipnis on a fly ball to center to leave him at first. Nix made a fantastic play for the second out in the frame, going over the wall to take a home run away from Drew Stubbs.

Reynolds reached second on a two-base error by Rollins with one out in the fifth. Raburn was next and doubled to right, scoring Reynolds to make it 5-0. Aviles flew to center to leave Raburn at second.

Reynolds ball was hit hard, but right at Rollins at short. He just didn’t handle it and it bounded out into to center. Revere had a long run to get to it and Reynolds ran hard all the way to wind up at second, just ahead of Revere’s throw and Utley’s tag.

Lee kept the Indians off the board in the sixth despite one-out singles by Stubbs and Brantley.

Horst started the seventh. Santana and Raburn singled back-to-back with one out, putting runners on first and second. Aviles flew to center for the second out, but Gomes was next and loaded the bases on an infield single on a ball deflected by Horst. Stubbs followed and he reached on an infield single as well. Santana scored and it was 6-0. Brantley popped to Rollins to leave the bases loaded.

Four hits in inning for the Indians. Three of them were infield singles and the other, Raburn’s, was softly hit to left.

Horst has been charged with a run in three straight appearances, although the run was unearned in the first of the three. Opponents are hitting .347 against him for the year.

Aumont pitched the eighth. He allowed an infield single and hit a batter, but kept Cleveland off the board.

Aumont was pitching for the second day in a row. He has a 1.96 ratio to go with his 3.12 ERA and has hit two batters in 8 2/3 innings.

Overall the pen went two innings, allowing a run on five hits and no walks. Aumont has thrown two days in a row. He threw 21 pitches in the game and Horst threw 22.

The Phillie lineup against righty Trevor Bauer went (1) Rollins (2) M Young (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) D Young (6) Brown (7) Ruiz (8) Nix (9) Revere. Rollins leads off against the righty with a .305 on-base percentage against righties for the year. He’s had one year since the end of 2008 in which he’s on-based better than .332 against righties — he on-based .360 against right-handed pitching in 2011. Nix in right with Mayberry on the bench against the righty. Delmon Young at DH again.

Rollins and Utley both walked in the top of the first, but Rollins was caught stealing for the first out, Michael Young stuck out for the second and Howard struck out for the third.

Not a big fan of the attempted steal by Rollins given that Bauer walks everyone and hadn’t gotten an out in the game yet.

The Phillies went in order in the second.

Down 1-0, Nix walked to start the third. Revere was next and bunted, but the pitcher Bauer fielded and threw to second in time to get Nix for the first out. Revere stole second and moved up to third when Rollins flew to center for the second out, but was left at third when Young struck out looking.

Utley walked to start the fourth with the Phils down 4-0. Howard flew to right for the first out and Delmon Young grounded out second with Utley forced at second for the second. Brown moved Young up to second with a single to right, but Bauer struck Ruiz out swinging to leave both runners stranded.

Nix and Revere walked back-to-back to start the fifth, but the Phils went in order behind them.

Righty Bryan Shaw started the sixth for the Indians with the Phils down 5-0. Delmon Young walked with one out and moved up to second on a bloop single into left-center by Brown. Ruiz and Nix both struck out to leave the runners on first and second.

Revere singled off of Shaw to start the seventh. Rollins was next and grounded to second, but Revere avoided the tag of Kipnis and the throw to first was too late to get Rollins. It left men on first and second with nobody out, but Michael Young hit into another double-play and lefty Rich Hill came in and got Utley to ground to second to end the frame.

Nothing for the Phils after putting men on first and second with nobody out.

Down 6-0, the Phillies went in order in the eighth. Hill got Howard on a fly ball to center for the first out. Righty Joe Smith took over after that and struck Delmon Young and Brown out back-to-back.

Righty Cody Allen got Ruiz, Nix and Revere in the ninth.

Three hits in the game for the Phililes, all singles. Two for Brown and one for Revere. They walked seven times.

Rollins 0-for-3 with a walk. 0-for-6 with a walk in the two-game set. 252/310/383 for the year.

Michael Young 0-for-4 and struck out twice. 0-for-7 with a walk in the series and 326/396/400 on the season.

Utley 0-for-2 and walked twice. 1-for-5 with two walks and a home run in the series. 290/345/520 for the year. 338/390/581 against righties and 154/214/346 against lefties.

Howard 0-for-4. 1-for-8 with a double and two strikeouts in the set. 273/286/444. Three walks on the season total. He’s also hitting .154 and slugging .346 against lefties — 154/185/346.

Delmon Young 0-for-3 with a walk. 2-for-6 with a walk and a home run in the series.

Brown 2-for-4. 2-for-7 with a walk in the series. 244/317/378 for the year.

Nix 0-for-2, walked twice and took a homer away from Stubbs in the fourth. 250/321/417 for the season.

Revere 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base. 1-for-6 with a walk in the series.

Kendrick (2-1, 2.41) faces righty Alex Sanabia (2-3, 4.85) tonight in Philly as the Phils face the Fish. Kendrick threw a complete game shutout in his last start as the Phils topped the Mets 4-0. He allowed five runs over 5 2/3 innings in his first start of the year. Since then he’s made three starts in which he’s thrown to a 1.29 ERA with an 0.96 ratio. Righties are hitting 206/242/254 against him for the season. Since the end of 2010, Kendrick has made 76 appearances, 45 of which are starts, in which he has thrown to a 3.48 ERA overall and 3.47 ERA in his 45 starts. Roy Halladay’s ERA in his starts since the end of 2010 is 3.48. The 24-year-old Sanabia has had two bad starts and three good ones. In the stuff to work on category, he’s walked 16 in 29 2/3 innings and lefties are hitting 340/468/560 against him on the season.

Some fans have surely been hoping that the additions of Carlos Ruiz and Delmon Young to the lineup may be enough to save the Phillies. It still might, but it wasn’t last night. The Phillies played their first game with both Young and Ruiz in the lineup and got pounded 14-2 by the Indians.

Roy Halladay was terrible in the game and so was the bullpen. Halladay allowed eight runs in 3 2/3 innings and the pen gave up six more over 4 1/3 after he left. Again, a big part of the problem is Halladay, but another big part of the problem is that the Phillies bolstered their pen this off-season by fixing the back of it. It’s the middle that’s awful. Horst, Valdes and Durbin all have an ERA of 5.91 or worse for the year and have combined to throw to a 7.08 ERA in their 26 appearances.

The Indians hit more home runs before the end of the fifth inning last night than the Phillies had hits in the game. They hit six in the first five innings and the Phils had five hits for the game.

The Phillies are 12-15 on the year after losing 14-2 to the Cleveland Indians last night. The loss snaps a three-game winning streak for the Phils.

Halladay got the start for the Phillies and went 3 2/3 innings, allowing eight runs on nine hits and two walks. Three of the hits went for extra-bases, all home runs. He struck out three.

The Phillies are 2-4 in the games Halladay has started. In three of his six starts he’s gone four innings or less. Opponents are hitting just .240 against him, but he’s allowed eight home runs and 13 walks over 32 innings. In 2011, Halladay pitched 233 2/3 innings for the Phils and allowed ten home runs and 35 walks for the season.

Jason Kipnis singled with one out in the first and stole second before moving up to third on a ground out by Asdrubal Cabrera. It put a man on third with two outs for Carlos Santana and Santana hit a 2-1 pitch out to right, putting the Indians up 2-0. Jason Giambi followed with a walk before Mark Reynolds homered to right-center, extending the lead to 4-0. Lonnie Chisenhall went down on a ground out to Utley to set Cleveland down.

Two home runs off of Halladay in the inning. Cleveland scores four after having two outs and a man on third with no runs in.

It was 4-1 when Halladay set the Indians down in order in the second.

Kipnis singled to start the third, but was caught stealing for the second out after Cabrera popped out for the first. Santana drew a two-out walk, but was left at first when Halladay struck Giambi out swinging 2-2.

Reynolds singled to right to start the fourth and scored when Chisenhall followed with a home run to right. 6-1. Ryan Raburn and Drew Stubbs followed with back-to-back singles, putting runners on first and second. Raburn moved up to first when Michael Brantley flew to center for the first out. Stubbs stole second before Kipnis grounded to first for the second out with the runners holding second and third. Cabrera was next, though, and he delivered a two-run single into right. 8-1. Durbin took over for Halladay and struck Santana out looking to end the inning.

Durbin pitched the fifth, allowing four more runs on four hits, a single, a double and two home runs. 12-1. Both of the home runs were two-run shots, one by the righty Raburn and the other by the lefty Brantley.

Durbin went 1 1/3 innings in the game, allowing four runs on four hits, two of which were home runs. He came into the game having not been charged with a run over his last six appearances, but his ERA for the year is up to 7.00 with the outing. Walks didn’t hurt him last night, but he has a 2.00 ratio for the year, in large part due to the seven walks he’s allowed in nine innings.

Coming into last night’s game, Durbin had not allowed a home run since August 13, 2012, when Chase Headley hit one off of him while he was pitching for Atlanta. He had faced 105 batters since that game. Last night in the sixth he allowed two home runs in a three-batter span.

Valdes pitched the sixth with the lead cut to 12-2. He walked Santana with one out, but got Giambi to hit into a double-play behind him.

Valdes struck out the first two men he faced in the seventh before Raburn and Stubbs, both righties, homered back-to-back. 14-2. Brantly struck out swinging for the third out.

Valdes strikes out four in two innings, but allows two runs on two hits and a walk as both of the hits are solo homers. He has 18 strikeouts in 14 2/3 innings, but a 7.98 ERA and a 1.57 ratio. Opponents are hitting .310 against him.

The only other time in his career in which Valdes has allowed two home runs in a game was June 30, 2010. He was pitching for the Mets and Miguel Montero and Kelly Johnson got him in a four-batter span in the sixth.

Aumont pitched the ninth and allowed two singles and a walk, but managed to keep the Indians off the board when Yan Gomes hit into a double-play with the bases loaded to end the inning.

Aumont has a 3.52 ERA for the year thanks to a whole lot of good fortune. Opponents are hitting .281 against him and he’s walked seven in 7 2/3 innings. Righties have hit just .176 against him, but lefties are hitting .400. He hasn’t allowed a home run, which is the way to go if you’re going to walk more than eight runners per nine innings and have a 3.52 ERA. In 27 appearances with the Phillies over two years, Aumont has walked 16 in 22 1/3 innings. There’s close to no chance he can be successful over a large number of innings if he walks batters at that rate.

Overall the pen went 4 1/3 innings in the game, allowing six runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out five. They gave up four home runs.

Valdes threw 38 pitches in the game and Durbin 26. Aumont 17. Nobody has thrown more than one day in a row thanks to the off-day Monday, but Valdes seems unlikely to be available tonight and probably Durbin as well.

The Phillie lineup against righty Zach McAllister went (1) Rollins (2) Michael Young (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Delmon Young (6) Brown (7) Ruiz (8) Mayberry (9) Revere. Delmon Young debuts with the Phils at DH. Mayberry in right against the righty.

The Phillies went in order in the bottom of the first.

They were down 4-0 when they hit in the second. Howard struck out swinging for the first out before Delmon Young hit a 1-1 pitch out to right-center. 1-1. Brown and Ruiz went down behind Young.

Nice first at-bat of the year for Young.

The Phillies went in order in the third and again in the fourth.

Delmon Young led off the fifth and was drilled in the back by a 1-2 pitch. Brown followed with a walk and the runners moved up to second and third on a ground out by Ruiz. Mayberry was next and grounded back to the mound with the runners holding. Revere grounded to short to leave them stranded.

No run for the Phils after putting runners on first and second with nobody out. No RBI for Mayberry with one out and runners on second and third.

Delmon Young gets drilled after homering in his first at-bat.

The Phillies trailed 12-1 when they hit in the sixth. Utley hit a 3-1 pitch out to right-center with two outs to make it 12-2. Howard followed with a double and Delmon Young moved him up to third with a single, but both runners were left stranded when Brown flew to center.

Mayberry singled with one out in the seventh, but Revere grounded into a double-play behind him.

They were down 14-2 when lefty Nick Hagadone started the eighth for Cleveland. Galvis and Michael Young walked back-to-back to start the frame, but the Phillies were turned away when Frandsen grounded into a double-play and Howard grounded to short.

Righty Matt Albers set Delmon Young, Brown and Ruiz down in the ninth.

Rollins was 0-for-3 in the game. He’s hitting 240/305/373 against right-handed pitching for the year.

Michael Young 0-for-3 with a walk to drop his line on the year to 341/412/418. He came into the game 7-for-his-last-11. He’s 19-for-his-last-59 (.322) with 19 singles.

Utley 1-for-3 with his fifth home run. 27 games divides nicely in 162 — multiply everything by six to get his on-pace numbers. He’s on pace to hit 30 home runs with 114 RBI.

Howard 1-for-4 with a double. He came into the game 5-for-his-last-14 with nine RBI. He’s walked three times this season and is on pace to walk 18 times in 606 plate appearances for the season with 18 home runs and 96 RBI. It didn’t matter last night, but he’s hitting 160/192/360 against left-handed pitching. Given the addition of two right-handed bats in Delmon Young and Ruiz, it will be interesting to see how long Howard plays first base against left-handed pitching. Pretty sure the answer is a long, long time. Think 2016.

Delmon Young 2-for-3 with a home run and a hit-by-pitch. Didn’t cost the Phils a thing defensively, but he can’t DH forever.

Brown 0-for-3 with a walk. He came into the game hitting 286/364/464 over his last eight games. 224/316/343 against right-handed pitching for the season. That there’s a problem if you want to be a bad defensive corner outfielder who’s primary contribution is being able to hit right-handed pitching.

Ruiz 0-for-4 with a strikeout. 1-for-8 with a double since his return.

Mayberry 1-for-3. He was hitting 316/409/553 for the year before going 4-for-his-last-28. Now he’s hitting 242/324/470. He’s actually been good against righties, 255/340/447, but has gone just 4-for-19 (211/286/526) against lefties. Will be interesting what the Phillies do in both left and right against lefties with Delmon Young back. I think what they will do is play Delmon Young in right and Brown in left. Offensively at least, I think you could argue that it leaves their best hitting option against left-handed pitching on the bench in Mayberry. Also, Brown and Young are bad defensive players. Young is definitely terrible and Brown is at least bad and maybe terrible.

Revere 0-for-3 and hit into a double-play, dropping his average on the year to .200. He’s 6-for-his-last-40 (.150) with a triple and no walks (.150 on-base percentage). Among 218 players across both leagues with 70 plate appearances for the season, his wOBA of .206 is 214th. The Phillies really have no other choices in center. Mayberry can’t handle it defensively, despite starting three straight games there against the Mets. It’s not a good option, but I think the Phillies might start to play Mayberry in center against lefties regularly with Revere struggling so badly, assuming Young is going to play nearly every day.

Lee (2-1, 3.03) faces righty Trevor Bauer (0-1, 5.40) tonight in game two of the set. Lee has allowed 17 hits in 12 innings over his last two starts and the Phils have dropped each of his last three outings. The 22-year-old Bauer was the third pick of the 2011 draft. He’s made one start this season, walking seven Rays in five innings while being charged with three runs. He has a 2.50 ERA and a 1.17 ratio in three starts at Triple-A in the International League with 24 strikeouts over 18 innings.

The Phillies took a 3-1 lead into the seventh inning yesterday. For the second time in two days they lost, falling 6-4 to the Pirates.

Between Bastardo, Aumont, Adams and Papelbon, the back of the bullpen should be a strength for the Phillies. Charlie Manuel sure looked afraid of it in yesterday afternoon’s game, though. Lee threw 122 pitches in the game. With two outs in the top of the seventh, Lee had thrown 107 pitches and the Phillies were up 3-1 with a Pirate runner on first. Lee stayed in the game and faced three right-handed hitters in a row, all of who singled, before getting the final out of the frame in what was now a tie game.

Aumont started the eighth and allowed four of the five men he faced to reach base before Durbin took over. Before the frame was over the Pirates had scored three more runs.

The Phillies did manage to score four runs. Coming into the game they had scored three or less in 11 of their last 13.

The Phillies are 9-14 on the year after losing to the Pirates 6-4 last night. The Pirates take the series three games to one. The Phillies have lost three in a row and are five games under .500 for the first time this year.

Lee got the start for the Phillies and went seven innings, allowing three runs on ten hits and a walk. One of the hits went for extra-bases, a solo home run. He struck out seven.

Lee’s ERA rises to 3.03 on the year with the outing. He’s allowed 17 hits in 12 innings over his last two outings. The Phils have lost the last three games he’s started.

Starling Marte singled off of Lee to start the top of the first, but Lee got the next three Pirates in order.

Pedro Alvarez singled to right with one out in the second, but Lee got Jose Tabata on a line drive to center for the second out and struck out Clint Barmes for the third.

The pitcher John McDonald started the third with a single to right, but Lee struck Marte out for the first out and Brandon Inge for the second. Andrew McCutchen flew to right to end the frame.

With one out in the fourth, Michael McKenry hit a ball to Frandsen at third. Frandsen threw it away for a two-base error, but Lee struck out Alvarez for the second out and got Tabata on a fly ball to center to leave McKenry stranded.

McDonald singled again with one out in the fifth and the Phils up 1-0. Lee struck Marte out behind him for the second out before Inge moved McDonald up to second with a soft single to left. Lee retired McCutchen on a ball taken by Nix in foul territory to leave both runners stranded.

Second hit of the game for McDonald off of Lee.

Sanchez led off the sixth and hit a 2-1 pitch from Lee out to left-center, tying the game at 1-1. Later in the frame, Alvarez delivered a one-out single, but Lee got the next two to leave him at first.

Lee started the seventh with the Phils up 3-1. Marte walked with one out, but Lee retired Inge on a fly ball to right for the second out. McCutchen was next and singled to left with Marte moving up to second. It brought Sanchez to the plate with men on first and second and he singled softly into center, scoring McCutchen to cut the lead to 3-2 with men on first and third. McKenry was next and he singled softly into center as well, scoring Marte to tie the game at 3-3 with runners on the corners. Alvarez popped to short to end the frame.

Aumont started the eighth in a tie game. He struck Walker out before hitting Barmes with a pitch. Barmes moved up to second on a single by lefty Travis Snider and Marte followed that with another single that loaded the bases. Lefty Garrett Jones hit for the rigthy Inge and doubled off the wall in right, scoring Barmes and Marte to put the Pirates up 5-3 with men on second and third and one down. Durbin took over for Aumont and walked McCutchen intentionally, loading the bases for Sanchez. Sanchez flew to right for the second out, Marte scored to make it 6-3 and Jones moved up to third. McKenry walked before Alvarez flew to center to finally end the inning.

Aumont faced five hitters, getting one out and allowing two singles, a double and hitting one batter. The three runs he was charged with in the game are the first earned runs charged to him for the season. He’s allowed seven hits and six walks in 6 2/3 innings, which gives him a 1.95 ratio.

Durbin faced four hitters, walking two (one intentionally) and getting two outs. He and Aumont have the same 4.05 ERA for the year and both have thrown 6 2/3 innings, but Durbin’s ratio is even higher than Aumont’s at 2.10. Durbin hasn’t been charged with a run over his last five appearances, but has allowed four hits and five walks in 5 2/3 innings.

Valdes started the ninth with the Phils down 6-4. Walker led off with a single. Barmes was next and bunted. Kratz jumped on it and he and Barmes got tangled up near the plate. Kratz threw to first, where Walker was safe. Barmes was really late getting out of the box, though, and Rollins threw to first in time to get him for the first out. Manuel came out and argued that Barmes had interfered with Kratz trying to field the ball and was ejected. Snider flew to center for the second out with Walker tagging and going to third. Valdes struck Marte out swinging to leave Walker at third.

Valdes allows a single in the scoreless inning, dropping his ERA on the year to 9.28 after six appearances. He’s struck out 12 in 10 2/3 innings, but allowed 16 hits. Opponents are hitting .356 against him.

Overall the pen goes two innings in the game, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks. Aumont threw 23 pitches in the game, Durbin 22 and Valdes 15.

The Phillie lineup against righty James McDonald went (1) Rollins (2) Frandsen (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Nix (6) Brown (7) Carrera (8) Kratz. Young, Mayberry and Revere on the bench. Frandsen at third, Nix in right and Carrera in center. Kratz catches the day game after a night game after Quintero caught game three.

The Phillies went in order in the bottom of the first.

Howard led off the second with a double. Nix was next and hit the ball well, but Inge handled it at second and threw to first in time to retire Nix as Howard went to third. Brown and Carrera both struck out to leave Howard at second.

Third straight game that Howard has had an extra-base hit. Brown strikes out with one out and a man on third and it helps keep the Phillies off the board. Nix hit the ball well and Inge made a nice play.

Rollins walked with two outs in the third and two second on an error on a pickoff attempt by McDonald. Frandsen grounded to short to leave him stranded.

Rollins came into the game with no walks in his last 42 plate appearances.

Utley walked to start the fourth and took second on a wild pitch. Howard struck out for the first out and Nix flew to center for the second, bringing Brown to the plate with two outs and Utley still on second. Brown doubled to center, scoring Utley to put the Phils up 1-0. Carrera popped to first and leave Brown at second.

Lee singled with one out in the fifth, but was caught by McDonald for the second out. Rollins flew to right to end the inning.

It was 1-1 when Frandsen walked to start the sixth. Utley moved him to third with a single before Utley stole second, putting men on second and third for Howard. Howard singled into right, scoring Frandsen to make it 2-1 and sending Utley to third. Lefty Justin Wilson came in to pitch to Nix and Mayberry hit for Nix. Mayberry hit a ball to third, which Alvarez fielded and threw home in time for McKenry to tag Utley out trying to score for the first out. With Brown at the plate, the runners moved up to second and third on a wild pitch before Brown flew to center. Howard tagged and scored from third to extend the lead to 3-1. Carrera fouled out to Alvarez to end the inning.

It was 3-3 when Wilson set the Phils down order in the seventh. Young hit for Lee and flew to left for the second out.

Lefty Tony Watson started the eighth for the Pirates with Pittsburgh up 6-3. Franden led off with a double and Utley bunted him to third with the first out. He scored on a ground ball by Howard (6-4) before Mayberry popped out to end the frame.

Presumably Utley knew the Phillies were down three runs and had six outs left when he bunted Frandsen over to third. With the infield back, he may have thought he could bunt for a hit like he had earlier in the series.

Brown doubled to left to start the ninth. Carrera and Kratz went down behind him before Galvis hit for Valdes. Watson got Galvis on a popup to Alvarez to end the game.

Rollins was 0-for-3 with a walk in the game. 4-for-15 with a double and a walk in the series. 258/305/404 for the season. 216/273/314 over his last 55 plate appearances.

Frandsen 1-for-3 with a walk and a double. 2-for-4 with a walk and a double in the series. 313/389/438 for the season.

Utley 1-for-3 with a walk. 5-for-13 with a walk and a home run in the series. 309/360/543 for the year.

Howard 2-for-4 with a double in the game and 5-for-16 with two doubles and a home run in the set. 360/365/540 over his last 52 plate appearances. 284/302/432 for the year. Three walks for the season and one in his last 65 plate appearances.

Nix 0-for-2 in the game and 1-for-4 in the series. 250/289/444 for the year.

Brown 2-for-3 with two doubles and two RBI. 4-for-13 with a walk and two doubles in the series. 4-for-his-last-7. 243/325/371 on the year.

Carrera was 0-for-4 and struck out twice. 1-for-5 in the series and 1-for-12 on the year.

Kratz 0-for-4. 0-for-9 with two walks in the series. 185/206/308 on the season.

Kendrick (1-1, 3.28) faces righty Dillon Gee (1-3, 3.95) tonight in New York. Kendrick has been good three straight outings, throwing to a 1.89 ERA over those appearances. One of them came against the Mets and he allowed two runs over six innings. Gee has had two good starts on the season, in which he allowed one run over 12 innings, and two bad ones. Over the bad ones he’s allowed 12 runs in 7 2/3 innings. One of the bad ones came against the Phillies as he allowed seven runs in three innings. Mayberry, Young and Howard all homered off of him in that game.

A lot went well for the Phillies last night, Halladay was outstanding for the third time in a row and Utley and Howard both homered against a lefty, but the bullpen faltered and the Phils fell 5-3 to the Pirates.

The Phillies started the seventh with a 3-1 lead. Bastardo allowed a solo homer in the seventh that cut the lead to one. Adams started the eighth and allowed all four of the men he faced to reach base, which led to two more Pirate runs. Horst allowed a run in the ninth as Pittsburgh got some help from a slightly flukey two-out triple.

Pittsburgh starter lefty Wandy Rodriguez came into the game with an 0.56 ERA, having not allowed a home run in his three starts this season. Utley and Howard have both been struggling terribly against lefties, but both hit solo home runs off of Rodriguez to help the Phils to their early lead. It wasn’t enough, though, as the Phils scored three runs or less for the eleventh time in 13 games.

The Phillies are 9-13 on the year after losing 5-3 to the Pittsburgh Pirates last night. The Pirates lead the series two games to one with game four this afternoon.

Halladay got the start for the Phillies and went six innings, allowing a run on one hit and two walks. The hit was a single and he struck out eight.

He has a 1.71 ERA and an 0.62 ratio over his last three starts. Thanks to two terrible starts to start the year, he has a 5.08 ERA for the season.

Starling Marte was the first batter of the game in the top of the first and walked. He stole second before Travis Snider struck out looking for the first out. Andrew McCutchen struck out looking for the second. Marte stole third with Garrett Jones at the plate, but Halladay got Jones looking to leave Marte stranded.

Up 1-0, Halladay set the Pirates down in order in the second.

He struck out two in a 1-2-3 third.

Jones walked with two outs in the fourth and Halladay hit the next batter Walker. Alvarez was next and singled softly into center, scoring Jones to tie the game at 1-1. Halladay struck Martin out looking to leave the runners at first and second.

Up 2-1, Halladay set the Pirates down in order in the fifth and again in the sixth.

Bastardo started the seventh with a 3-1 lead and Alvarez homered to right with one out. 3-2. Martin went down on a ground out for the second out before righty Gaby Sanchez hit for the shortstop John McDonald. Sanchez grounded to Howard to end the frame.

Alvarez came in to the series hitting 125/222/232 for the year. He’s 4-for-8 with two home runs in the set so far.

First home run, or earned run of any kind, that Bastardo has allowed this season in 8 1/3 innings over nine appearances.

Adams started the eighth. Jose Tabata hit for the pitcher Vin Mazzaro and drew a walk to start the inning. Marte moved him up to second with a single. Snider was next and he showed bunt, then swung away and singled to right, scoring Tabata to tie the game at 3-3 with men on first and third. McCutchen walked to load the bases and Horst came in to pitch to the lefty Jones. Righty Brandon Inge hit for Jones and singled to left. Everyone moved up a base and Marte scored to make it 4-3. Walker was next with the bases still loaded and nobody out. He hit a ball to first. Howard came home and Quintero went to first in time to complete the double-play. Alvarez grounded to Utley to leave runners at second and third.

Adams faced four hitters in the game without getting an out. Two singles and two walks. 4.00 ERA and a 1.44 ratio over nine innings in 11 appearances.

Horst returned for the ninth. Barmes singled to left with one and moved up to second on a ground out by Tabata. Marte was next and blooped a ball down the first base line, which went off of Utley’s glove in right for a triple. Barmes scored and it was 5-3. Righty Michael McKenry hit for the pitcher Mark Melancon and flew to left to leave Marte at third.

It would have been a nice play, but Utley usually catches the ball hit by Marte that went for a triple. He had made a long run, but was in position to make an over-the-shoulder basket catch and didn’t come up with the ball. Cost the Phillies a run.

Horst allows a single to the first man he faces in the eighth with the run charged to Adams, but then does a great job to get out of that frame without further damage before allowing a run in the ninth with the help of Marte’s unlikely triple.

He drops his ERA to 6.52 by allowing a run over two innings. Opponents are hitting .342 against him in the early going.

Overall the pen goes three innings, allowing four earned runs on six hits and two walks. Horst threw 27 pitches in the game, Adams 21 and Bastardo 16.

The Phillie lineup against lefty Wandy Rodriguez went (1) Rollins (2) Utley (3) Young (4) Howard (5) Mayberry (6) Brown (7) Revere (8) Quintero. Utley moves up to second in the order with Young third against the lefty. Quintero catches Halladay again.

Rollins started the bottom of the first with a single, but was thrown out by McCutchen as he went for two. It cost the Phils a run, cause Utley was next and he hit a 1-0 pitch out to right, putting the Phils on top 1-0. Young and Howard went down behind Utley.

Brown singled to center with one out in the second. Revere was next and grounded to short with Brown moving up to second and two down. Quintero grounded to first to leave Brown stranded.

Halladay and Rollins both struck out as the Phils went in order in the third.

It was 1-1 when the Phillies hit in the fourth. Young struck out swinging for the first out, but Howard was next and he pounded a hanging 0-2 breaking ball way out to right for a home run, putting the Phils back up at 2-1. Mayberry followed with a walk and moved up to second when Brown hit a routine grounder to Walker at second that was booted for an error. Revere popped to short for the second out and Quintero was walked intentionally to pitch to Halladay with the bases loaded. Halladay struck out swinging to leave them loaded.

I wouldn’t walk Quintero intentionally very often. Howard hit the ball really far. Great to see him homer off the lefty, but that was a really bad pitch.

Rollins doubled down the third base line to start the fifth and Utley followed with a bunt single that put runners on first and third. Young was next and grounded to third. Alvarez fielded and went to second for the first out of the inning. When the throw went to second, Rollins broke for home. Walker took the throw at second and threw home. The ball beat Rollins by a wide margin and he was tagged out for the second out of the frame. Howard lined to first to leave Young at first.

Miserable base-running by Rollins as the Phils fail to score after putting runners on first and third with nobody out.

Revere singled with two outs in the sixth and moved up to third when Quintero followed with a single. With the lefty Rodriguez still on the mound for Pittsburgh, Frandsen hit for Halladay and singled to center, scoring Revere to put the Phils up 3-1 with men on first and second. Righty Vin Mazzaro took over for Rodriguez and got Rollins to ground to second to leave the runners stranded.

Halladay had thrown 95 pitches in the game.

The lead was cut to 3-2 when Mazzaro set the Phillies down in order in the seventh.

Righty Mark Melancon started the eighth with the Pirates leading 4-3. Brown singled with one out, but Revere hit into a double-play behind him.

Righty Jason Grilli started the ninth with Pittsburgh up 5-3. Nix hit for Quintero and flew to right for the first out. Carrera hit for Horst and was hit by a pitch, but Rollins fouled out behind him and Utley struck out swinging to end the game.

Carrera is 1-for-8 with the Phils, but with a .364 on-base percentage thanks to a walk and two hit by pitches.

Rollins was 2-for-5 with a double. He’s 7-for-his-last-17. He hasn’t drawn a walk in his last 42 plate appearances.

Utley 2-for-5 with a long home run off of a lefty. 211/286/464 against lefties for the season.

Young 0-for-4. He actually hit into yet another double-play, although it doesn’t count as an official GDP due to the unusual nature of the play and Rollins’s base-running decision. 4-for-his-last-l7 with four singles.

Howard 1-for-4 with a long home run against a lefty on an 0-2 pitch. 142/182/381 against lefties.

Mayberry 0-for-3 with a walk. 235/297/382 over his last 37 plate appearances.

Brown 2-for-4 with a pair of singles. He came into the game 2-for-his-last-21.

Revere 1-for-4 to up his average to .207. He has one extra-base hit in 93 plate appearances and has walked in about 4.3% of his plate appearances.

Quintero 1-for-2 with a walk. 3-for-his-last-5 with a double and a walk has his line for the year up to 313/353/438.

Lee (2-1, 2.83) faces righty James McDonald (2-2, 4.12) this afternoon. Lee has had one bad start in four tries this year, which came in his most recent outing as he allowed five runs in five frames against the Cards. He’s allowed just 22 hits and four walks over 28 2/3 innings while striking out 23. McDonald has walked 12 over 19 2/3 innings in his four starts. Opponents are hitting just .216 against him, but on-basing .341. Cause he walks everyone, you see.

The Phillies couldn’t figure out 25-year-old lefty Jeff Locke last night. Locke came into the game with a career ERA of 5.67 and made the best start of his career, throwing six shutout innings as the Pirates beat the Phillies 2-0.

The Philiies put multiple runners on base in the first, second and fourth innings last night, but were unable to score. After the fourth inning they had two hits, both singles that came in the eighth.

Four of the eight position players the Phils started last night ended the day hitting under .230 for the season (Revere, Brown, Kratz and Galvis). Those four players have combined to post an on-base percentage of .261 over 259 plate appearances in 2013.

The Phillies have been shut out in three of their last eight games. In ten of their last 12 games they have scored three runs or less. They’re hitting 182/239/280 against left-handed pitching with a .520 OPS, which is 30th of 30 MLB teams. Their hitters batting number one in the order have a .272 on-base percentage for the season, which is 27th of 30 MLB teams. They are 12th in the NL in on-base percentage and 14th in walks. Only two NL teams have struck out more.

The Phillies are 9-12 on the season after losing 2-0 to the Pittsburgh Pirates last night. The teams have split the first two games of a four-game set.

Hamels got the start for the Phillies and went eight innings, allowing two runs on seven hits and a walk. Four of the hits went for extra-bases, three doubles and a homer. He struck out six.

Third straight good start for Hamels. Over those three starts he has thrown to a 2.57 ERA with a 1.00 ratio and struck out 19 in 21 innings. The Phillies have scored a total of four runs in those games and gone 0-3.

Starling Marte led off the top of the first with a softly hit single to left and stole second. Jose Tabata went down on a ground ball to short before Andrew McCutchen hit a ball to Young that was mishandled for an error. It left runners on first and second with one out for Gaby Sanchez. Hamels struck Sanchez out for the second out and got Russell Martin on a fly ball to center to leave the runners stranded.

McCutchen’s ball was chopped to third. Young tried to backhand it and didn’t field it cleanly. Nice job by Hamels to work around the misplay after it put runners on first and second with one down.

Neil Walker led off the second with a ball hit hard to short that Rollins didn’t handle for another Phillie error. Hamels got the next three to set the Pirates down, with the help of a fantastic play by Young for the first out. Brandon Inge ripped a ball down the third base line, but Young made a diving stop, got to his feet and made a very strong throw to first in time to retire Inge.

Just an outstanding play by Young helps Hamels keep the Pirates off the board after the Rollins error to start the frame. I don’t recall seeing him making a throw like that before. Inge is slow, of course, but it was still rather impressive.

Marte doubled to left to start the third. Tabata and McCutchen went down behind him before a walk to Sanchez put men on first and second. Martin grounded to third to leave the runners stranded.

Neil Walker reached on an infield single to start the fourth. Inge was next and doubled off the base of the wall in right-center, scoring Walker to put the Pirates up 1-0. Clint Barmes was next and flew to center for the first out with Inge tagging and moving up to third. The pitcher Jeff Locke was next and grounded to short with Inge holding third and two down. Marte popped to Rollins to leave the runner stranded.

Walker’s ball to start the inning was chopped between third and short and not handled cleanly by Rollins. Rollins probably wouldn’t have been able to throw Walker out if he had handled it cleanly.

Sanchez doubled to left with two out in the fifth, but Hamels struck Martin out swinging to leave him there.

He struck out Walker, Inge and Barmes in a 1-2-3 sixth.

He set the Pirates down in order in the seventh. Lefty Travis Snider hit for the pitcher Locke and grounded to Hamels for the first out.

With one out in the eighth, Sanchez hit a 2-1 pitch out to right, putting the Pirates up 2-0. Martin followed with a single to left, but Hamels got the next two.

Aumont set the Pirates down in order in the ninth.

Aumont still hasn’t been charged with an earned run this season, but he has walked six in 6 1/3 innings over seven appearances.

One scoreless inning for the pen. Aumont threw seven pitches in the game.

The Phillie lineup against lefty Jeff Locke went (1) Rollins (2) Galvis (3) Young (4) Howard (5) Mayberry (6) Brown (7) Revere (8) Kratz. Utley on the bench against the lefty with Galvis playing second. Young moves up to third in the order with Mayberry hitting fifth.

Young walked with two outs in the bottom of the first. Howard was next and doubled to left-center, moving Young up to third. Mayberry grounded to second to leave both runners stranded.

The ball never got past the outfielders, so it was not a huge surprise that Young didn’t score as McCutchen got the ball in quickly. Nice hustle by Howard to get to second on the hit.

Howard doubles off of a lefty.

Revere reached on an error by Marte with one out in the second and Kratz walked behind him. Hamels bunted the runners up to second and third with the second out, but Rollins went down swinging to leave the runners stranded.

The Phils leave runners on second and third in each of the first two innings.

Young and Howard struck out in a 1-2-3 third.

Down 1-0, Mayberry led off the fourth with a triple to right. Brown was next and was hit by a pitch. The Pirates brought the infield in and Revere hit a ball to third with Mayberry thrown out at the plate. Kratz was next and grounded into a double-play to end the inning.

The Phillies went in order in the fifth and again in the sixth.

Lefty Tony Watson started the seventh for Pittsburgh and struck out Brown and Revere while setting the Phils down in order.

Righty Mark Melancon started the eighth. Nix hit for Hamels and singled to right. Rollins flew to right for the first out. Utley hit for Galvis and struck out swinging for the second. Young moved Nix up to second with a single to left, but Howard grounded to first to set the Phillies down.

Righty Jason Grilli set Mayberry, Brown and Revere down in order in the ninth with the Pirates up 2-0.

Rollins was 0-for-4 with a strikeout in the game. He’s on-basing .250 against lefties for the year after on-basing .281 against them in 2012 and .280 in 2011.

Galvis 0-for-3 to drop his average on the year to .226. He’s 0-for-his-last-11.

Young 1-for-3 with a walk and an error. Also made a fantastic defensive play in the second, which probably saved the Phillies a run. He has at least one hit in 14 straight games. 12-for-his-last-40 with 12 singles.

Howard 1-for-4 with a double and struck out twice. He’s 6-for-his-last-15. Doubled off of the lefty in the game, but he’s still hitting just 111/158/222 against lefties for the season.

Mayberry 1-for-4 with a triple. He’s 7-for-his-last-24 with four extra-base hits and ten strikeouts. His numbers are good so far against both righties and lefties — the Phillies should let him play a lot until they aren’t.

Brown 0-for-3 and struck out twice to drop his average to .206. He’s 2-for-his-last-21 with two singles.

Revere 0-for-4 and struck out twice. He’s 5-for-his-last-33.

Kratz 0-for-2 with a walk. He didn’t walk at all in his first 57 plate appearances and has two walks in his last seven.

Halladay (2-2, 6.04) faces lefty Wandy Rodriguez (2-0, 0.56) tonight. Halladay’s first two starts of the season were both terrible and his last two both good. Over his last two outings he’s thrown to a 1.80 ERA with an 0.67 ratio. Opponents have hit .143 against him and two of the three runs he’s allowed have come on solo homers. He walked six in 7 1/3 innings in his first two starts and has walked three over 15 in his last two. Three walks in 15 innings is 1.8 per nine innings, which is similar to his career walk rate of about 1.9 per nine innings. Rodriguez has been battling a hamstring problem that caused him to miss a recent start, but has been outstanding when he has pitched. He’s allowed a run on five hits and a walk in his 16 innings for the season. Opponents are 5-for-52 with a double against him for the year (096/145/115).