Game recap

Season on the blink

The Phillies never got it figured out in 2012, losing their final game yesterday in fitting fashion as the Nats topped them 5-1. Lee made a quality start and took the loss. The pen gave up a pair of runs in the eighth inning and Utley, Howard and Rollins combined to go 0-for-4 in the game with Rollins and Howard sidelined with injuries.

They end 2012 having won 21 fewer regular season games than they won in 2011.

Jimmy Rollins seems unfazed, coming up with this gem after the game that suggests the Nats would have finished second had the Phils been healthy: “It’s all come together for them. So that’s great for them. But with us being healthy, you know, they’re still second place. But we weren’t [healthy].”

Huh?

I’m having a lot of trouble understanding how the Phillies being healthy would have helped the Braves finish ahead of the Nationals.

I’m not even sure that’s what he meant.

Just so we’re all on the same page: The Phillies played baseball for about three hours on 162 different occasions in 2012. That’s a lot of baseball. It showed that they weren’t especially good relative to the teams they were playing against.

They weren’t especially good at scoring runs or preventing them.

They finished 17 games behind the best team in their division.

They paid Halladay, Howard, Utley and Rollins about $66 million to hit a combined 245/324/427 and throw to a 4.49 ERA over 25 starts.

Most fans would agree they have one young impact player in the organization, at least in terms of hitters. He hit .235 for the year and finished the season with numbers very similar to his disappointing 2011 season.

There are some problems here. The expensive core is getting old and looking older than they are. The Phils have close to no chance or replacing them or coming close to replacing them with players currently in the organization. Getting healthy would help, but if you think that’s the only thing the Phillies need, I think you might want to look again.

The Phillies have finished the 2012 season at 81-81, losing 5-1 to the Washington Nationals in yesterday’s final game of the year. The Phils end the year in third place, 17 games out of first and seven games out for the Wild Card. The Nats take the series two games to one.

Lee got the start for the Phillies and went six innings, allowing three runs on eight hits. Six of the hits went for extra-bases — three doubles, a triple and two home runs.

He set the Nationals down in order in the bottom of the first. Pierre made a fantastic play for the second out on a ball hit by Mark DeRosa, reaching up and over the fence to take away a home run.

Michael Morse doubled to left to start the second, but Lee set the Nats down in order behind him to leave Morse at second.

Jayson Werth tripled to center with two outs in the third. Lee got DeRosa on a fly ball to center to leave Werth stranded.

He started the fourth up 1-0. Ryan Zimmerman led off and hit a 1-2 pitch out to right. 1-1. Morse and Tyler Moore doubled back-to-back. 2-1 with nobody out and Moore at second. Lee got Ian Desmond on a foul out to Ruiz for the first out, then struck out Danny Espinosa and Jesus Flores back-to-back to leave Moore stranded.

Ugly start to the frame as the Nats go home run, double, double with their first three hitters.

Through four innings, Lee had allowed three doubles, a triple and a home run and given up just two runs.

Werth singled with one out in the fifth, but Lee got DeRosa and Zimmerman behind him.

Lee struck Morse out to start the sixth before Moore homered 3-2, extending the Washington lead to 3-1. Desmond followed with a single, but Lee struck Espinosa and Flores out back-to-back behind him at first.

De Fratus threw a 1-2-3 seventh. Switch-hitter Steve Lombardozzi hit for pitcher Christian Garcia and flew to right for the first out. Werth popped to third for the second and DeRosa grounded to second for the third.

Three up, three down for De Fratus. He allows five runs on the year over 10 2/3 innings in 13 appearances. Three of the five runs he allowed came in a single outing. He ends the year with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.12 ratio. Righties hit just 130/231/130 against him in 26 plate appearances.

Papelbon started the eighth. Zimmerman led off and walked. Bryce Harper ran for him at first. Morse was next and Papelbon got ahead of him 0-2 before Morse fouled off five pitches, then hit a 1-2 offering out to right-center for a two-run homer. 5-1. Papelbon struck Moore out swinging for the first out and righty Tyson Brummett came on to face Desmond. Desmond singled to left and moved up to second when Espinosa singled to right. It put men on first and second with one out for Flores. Brummett struck him out swinging for the second out. Lefty Chad Tracy hit for the pitcher Sean Burnett and Brummett struck him out swinging 2-2 to end the frame.

Papelbon faces three hitters and they go walk, homer strikeout. He was fantastic this year, ending with a 2.44 ERA and a 1.06 ratio. He came into yesterday’s appearance with an 0.59 ERA and an 0.88 ratio in 30 2/3 innings over his last 31 appearances.

28-year-old Tyson Brummett faces four batters in his debut, allowing singles to the first two before registering back-to-back strikeouts to leave the runners stranded.

Overall the pen goes two innings in the game, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk while striking out three.

Everyone should be well-rested of their next appearance.

The Phillies lineup against righty Edwin Jackson went (1) Pierre (2) Frandsen (3) Utley (4) Ruiz (5) Brown (6) Ruf (7) Schierholtz (8) Martinez. Mayberry on the bench with Schierholtz in center. Pierre plays left with Ruf at first for the sidelined Howard. Martinez starts at short for the sidelined Rollins.

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

Ruf walked with two outs in the second and moved to third on a ground-rule double down the left field line by Schierholtz. Martinez grounded to short to leave the runners at second and third.

Frandsen singled with two outs in the third. Utley grounded to second to set the Phillies down.

Ruiz started the fourth with a double and moved up to third when Brown grounded out for the first out. Ruf was next and he flew to center, deep enough for Ruiz to tag and score, putting the Phillies up 1-0. Schierholtz singled to center before Martinez flew to left to end the frame.

The Phillies were down 2-1 when they hit in the fifth. Lee and Pierre struck out back-to-back to start the inning before Frandsen doubled to left. Utley was next and hit the ball well, but Moore handled the line drive at first to leave Frandsen stranded.

Jackson set Ruiz, Brown and Ruf down in order in the sixth.

Schierholtz lined a double to right, his second double of the day, to start the seventh. Martinez flew to left for the first out. Nix hit for Lee and struck out swinging for the second. Righty Christian Garcia came in to face Pierre and got Pierre on a fly ball to center to leave Schierholtz stranded.

Lefty Sean Burnett set the Phillies down in order in the eighth.

Lefty Gio Gonzalez pitched the ninth with Washington up 5-1. Brown fouled out to third for the first out. Ruf struck out swinging 1-2 for the second out. Wigginton hit for Schierholtz and drew a walk. Martinez flew to left and the season was over.

Pierre was 0-for-4 and struck out twice yesterday in his only action of the series. Made a great catch in the first to take a homer away from DeRosa. He finishes the year at 307/351/371.

Frandsen 2-for-4 with a double. 6-for-13 with three doubles in the series. 338/383/451 in 210 plate appearances for the season.

Utley 0-for-4. 0-for-11 with a walk in the series. 256/365/429 for the year. Hit 215/324/355.

Ruiz 1-for-4 with a double. 1-for-8 with a double and a walk in the series. He was hitting 353/413/596 for the year at the end of the day on July 16. 250/345/390 in 116 plate appearances after July 16. Still ends the year at 325/394/540, which is the best year of his career with the bat by a wide margin.

Brown 0-for-4 in the game and 3-for-12 with a double in the series. He plans to have an MRI on his right knee today — let’s hope it reveals 120 ground outs to second that can be removed with a simple and safe surgical procedure. Ends the year at 235/316/396. 196/288/333 against lefties for the season.

Ruf 0-for-2 with a walk and two strikeouts. 3-for-8 with two walks, a triple, two home runs and five RBI in the three-game set. He also struck out five times. 333/351/727 for the year in 37 plate appearances.

Schierholtz 3-for-3 with two doubles. He finishes at 257/321/407 for the year. 273/319/379 with the Phillies in 73 plate appearances. He came into the game hitting 238/290/317 for the year with the Phillies over 70 plate appearances.

Martinez 0-for-4 and left five men on base. 2-for-11 with a strikeout in the series. 174/208/252 for the year.

No game today.

Stadium Journey recently published a new review of Citizens Bank Park.


Not Ruf enough to whip this world alone

Darin Ruf homered twice last night, but it wasn’t enough for the Phillies as they fell to the Nats 4-2.

Rosenberg came up with a solid effort, getting the start in what was sure to be a bullpen game for the Phils. He pitched well and left after four frames with the score tied at 1-1. The bullpen wasn’t real good after that, though. Lindblom and Bastardo both struggled and the Phils were lucky they combined to allow just three runs over the two innings that they threw.

Ruf’s pair of solo shots accounted for all of the runs the Phillies scored in the game.

The Phillies are 81-80 on the year losing to the Washington Nationals 4-2 last night. The loss snaps a three-game win streak for the Phils. They are in third place in the NL East, 16 games out of first, and have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Rosenberg got the start for the Phillies and went four innings, allowing a run on three hits and two walks. One of the hits went for extra-bases, a double. He struck out three and dropped his ERA on the year to 6.12.

He struck out Tyler Moore in a 1-2-3 bottom of the first.

Adam LaRoche walked to start the second and moved to second when Chad Tracy followed with a single. Rosenberg struck Mark DeRosa out swinging for the first out before Roger Bernadina walked to load the bases. Rosenberg struck Sandy Leon out swinging for the second out and got the pitcher Tom Gorzelanny on a ground ball to third to leave the bases loaded.

Two walks and a single in the frame, but Rosenberg gets out of it with the help of two big strikeouts. No run for the Nats with one out and a man on third as he gets Leon swinging 0-2.

Rosenberg set the Nats down in order in the third.

The Phillies led 1-0 when LaRoche doubled off of Rosenberg to start the fourth. Tracy moved LaRoche up to third with a ground out before Roger Bernadina singled to left, scoring LaRoche to tie the game at 1-1. Rosenberg picked Bernadina off of first to end the inning.

Diekman started the fifth and gave up a leadoff single to Leon. Switch-hitter Danny Espinosa hit for the pitcher Christian Garcia and struck out swinging for the first out. Steve Lombardozzi was next and grounded to third with Leon forced at second for the second out. Bryce Harper was next and moved Lombardozzi to third with a single to right. Harper stole second before Diekman struck Moore out swinging 3-2 to leave the runners at second and third.

Diekman allows two hits in the frame, but puts up a zero. He’s been charged with one run in six innings over nine appearances since the start of September, but with a 1.83 ratio. He’s walked five in six innings.

Lindblom started the sixth. LaRoche was the first batter he faced and the lefty hit a 1-0 pitch out to right, putting Washington up 2-1. Tracy walked and moved to second when DeRosa followed with a single. Bernadina popped out to Frandsen for the first out before Lindblom hit Leon with a pitch, loading the bases for righty Eury Perez. Perez grounded to short with Martinez coming home to force Tracy for the second out. With the bases still loaded, Mayberry singled into center, moving everyone up a base and plating DeRosa to extend the Washington lead to 3-1. Righty Kurt Suzuki hit for the pitcher Zach Duke and grounded to short to end the inning.

Not a good inning for Lindblom, who faces eight hitters and allows two singles, a home run, a walk and hits a batter. He was lucky to only allow two innings in the frame.

Over his last two appearances, Lindblom has allowed three runs on five hits and two walks over 1 1/3 innings.

For the year, Lindblom has a 4.96 ERA and a 1.50 ratio when not pitching in Dodger Stadium. He threw 25 2/3 innings in Dodger Stadium this year, allowing three runs. All three of the runs came on a solo homer.

Horst struck out LaRoche and Tracy in a 1-2-3 seventh.

Horst hasn’t allowed a hit or a walk over his last three appearances, striking out four over 2 2/3 innings. He was pitching for the second day in a row.

Bastardo started the eighth with the Phillies down 3-2. The Nats quickly loaded the bases with nobody out — DeRosa doubled, Bernadina was hit by a pitch and Leon walked. Perez was next and again grounded to short. Martinez again fielded and came home for the force, this time getting DeRosa for the first out. Lombardozzi was next and flew to center for the second out. Bernadina tagged and scored from third. 4-2. Righty Ian Desmond hit for the pitcher Tyler Clippard and flew to Brown in right to leave the runners at first and second.

Like Lindblom in the sixth, Bastardo was fortunate to allow as few runs as he did. Washington loads the bases with nobody out and winds up scoring just one.

Bastardo came into the game having not been charged with a run over 4 1/3 innings in his last six appearances.

The bullpen went four innings in the game, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks while striking out four. Lindblom and Bastardo both didn’t pitch well, but were able to limit the damage.

Horst threw 14 pitches in the game and has thrown two days in a row. Lindblom threw 24 pitches last night. Bastardo 19 and Diekman 17. Rosenberg surely cannot go today after 54 pitches over four innings.

The Phillies lineup against lefty Tom Gorzelanny went (1) Frandsen (2) Mayberry (3) Utley (4) Wigginton (5) Ruf (6) Brown (7) Kratz (8) Martinez. Martinez continues to play short with Rollins sidelined with a sore calf. Wigginton at first against the lefty with Howard down. Ruf hits fifth and plays left. Kratz catches with Ruiz likely to go in this afternoon’s finale.

Frandsen and Mayberry struck out back-to-back to start the top of the first before Utley drew a walk. Wigginton moved Utley up to third with a single, but Ruf struck out swinging to leave the runners at the corners.

Timing, Darin, timing.

Kratz walked with one out in the second, but Martinez grounded into a double-play behind him.

Frandsen doubled with one out in the third. Mayberry was next and hit a ball that DeRosa didn’t handle at short for an error, putting runners on the corners with one down for Utley. Utley hit a ball to first. LaRoche fielded and came home, where Frandsen was caught up and eventually tagged out for the second out. With two down and runners on second and third, Wigginton struck out swinging to end the frame.

Nothing for the Phils after putting men on first and third with one out.

Ruf led off the fourth and hit a 2-2 pitch out to left, putting the Phils up 1-0. Brown and Kratz went down before Martinez singled to left. Righty Christian Garcia came in to pitch to Rosenberg and got him on a popup to Tracy at third in foul territory.

It was 1-1 when Garcia set the Phillies down in order in the fifth.

Lefty Zach Duke started the sixth and walked the leadoff man Wigginton. Ruf struck out for the first out before Brown moved Wigginton to second with a single. Kratz lined softly to short for the second out. Martinez hit a ball back up the middle and off the pitcher’s glove for a single that loaded the bases. Ruiz hit for Diekman and grounded to short to end the frame.

Frandsen doubled to left off of righty Ryan Mattheus to start the seventh with the Phils down 3-1. Mayberry struck out, Utley struck out and Wigginton flew to left to leave him at second.

Nice to see Frandsen, who has been pounding lefties, double off of the righty.

Ruf led off the eighth and homered to left off of righty Tyler Clippard on an 0-2 pitch, cutting the Washington lead to 3-2. Kratz singled with one out in the frame, but Martinez and Orr went down behind him to leave him at first.

Tyler Clippard is a good right-handed pitcher and Ruf homers off of him down 0-2 in the count. Clippard has really struggled of late, throwing to an 8.76 ERA over his last 13 appearances, but that’s still impressive.

Righty Drew Storen set the Phillies down in order in the ninth. Nix hit for Bastardo and grounded to short to end the game.

Frandsen 2-for-5 with two doubles. 4-for-his-last-9.

Mayberry 0-for-5 and struck out twice. 3-for-his-last-36 with a double and 13 strikeouts.

Utley 0-for-3 with a walk. 1-for-his-last-10.

Wigginton 1-for-3 with a walk. 4-for-his-last-11 with a walk.

Ruf 2-for-4 with two strikeouts and two solo homers. 11-for-31 on the year with six extra-base hits, including three home runs, and nine RBI. Ten strikeouts and one walk, which was intentional, in 33 plate appearances.

Brown 1-for-4. 200/293/340 against lefties for the year.

Kratz 1-for-3 with a walk. 181/224/292 over his last 76 plate appearances.

Martinez 2-for-4 with two singles. 11-for-his-last-33 with three doubles.

Lee (6-8, 3.12) faces righty Edwin Jackson (9-11, 4.13) this afternoon. Lee has an 0.93 ERA in his ten starts since the end of July. Jackson has allowed 16 home runs to left-handed batters on the season, which is a lot. Rollins, who almost surely won’t play in the game, is 4-for-6 against him this year with two homers.


Nat that it matters

Kyle Kendrick delivered another outstanding start last night, throwing seven scoreless innings as the Phils topped the Nats 2-0. Ruf provided all of the offense the Phils would need in the game with two-run triple in the top of the second.

The Phillies had one base-runner after the fourth inning, which came on a two-out walk by Mayberry in the fifth.

After the game, Manuel suggested the Kendrick was in the rotation for 2013, barring some major acquisition.

The Nationals clinched the NL East during the game. Pittsburgh’s 2-1 win over Atlanta went final shortly after Brown grounded to second to end the top of the ninth.

The Phillies are 81-79 on the year after beating the Washington Nationals 2-0 last night. They are in the third place in the NL East, 15 games behind the first place Nats and have two games left to play. They have won three in a row.

Kendrick got the start for the Phillies and went seven shutout innings, allowing four hits and a walk. One of the hits went for extra-bases, a double. He struck out four and dropped his ERA on the year to 3.90.

Kendrick ended June with a 5.35 ERA for the season. From the start of July to the end of the year, he made 20 appearances (13 starts) in which he threw to a 2.64 ERA over 85 1/3 innings. Opponents hit just .215 against him in those outings.

He set the Nats down in order in the bottom of the first.

He started the second up 2-0. Michael Morse and Ian Desmond singled back-to-back with one out, putting men on first and second for Danny Espinosa. Espinosa went down on a soft ground ball to first for the second out, moving the runners up to second and third. Kendrick walked righty Kurt Suzuki to pitch to the pitcher John Lannan with the bases loaded. Lannan grounded to short to end the inning.

Washington went in order in the third and again in the fourth.

Suzuki singled to center with one out in the fifth. Lefty Roger Bernadina hit for Lannan and flew to center for the second out. With Jayson Werth at the plate, a wild pickoff attempt by Kendrick went for an error that allowed Bernadina to move up to third. Kendrick got Werth looking 2-2 to end the inning.

Kendrick’s throw to first wasn’t that bad. It looked like Wigginton got a little tangled up with the runner and had trouble trying to get to it.

Bryce Harper doubled to center to start the sixth. Ryan Zimmerman was next and hit a popup into shallow right field. Utley ran it down with his back to third, which allowed Harper to move up to third with one out. Adam LaRoche was next and Kendrick got the lefty on a popup to Martinez at short for the second out. Harper held third and was left there when Kendrick struck Morse out looking 3-2.

Kendrick gets out of one out, a man on third and the lefty LaRoche at the plate. He made a beautiful pitch to Morse that tailed in to catch the outside of the plate to end the inning.

Second time in two innings that Kendrick strikes out a good hitter with runners on for the third inning.

Kendrick threw a 1-2-3 seventh.

De Fratus started the eighth. Switch-hitter Steve Lombardozzi hit for the pitcher Ryan Mattheus and flew to left for the first out. Werth followed with a single to left and moved up to second when Harper walked behind him. Zimmerman flew to center for the second out on a nice diving play by Mayberry. Horst came in to face the lefty LaRoche and struck LaRoche out swinging to leave the runners stranded.

Mayberry saves the day and keeps the Nats off the board with the diving catch.

De Fratus faces four batters. He got two outs, one on a line drive to left and the other on a diving play by Mayberry that easily could have gone for a hit. The other two batters reached on a single and a walk. He hasn’t throw a full inning in any of his last four outings.

Horst strikes out the only batter he faces in the game, dropping his ERA on the year to 1.19. Lefties are hitting 178/260/200 against him for the season.

Aumont set righties Morse and Desmond down to start the ninth and got the switch-hitter Espinosa on a ground ball to second to end the game.

Aumont earned career save number two with the 1-2-3 frame.

Overall the pen goes two scoreless innings, allowing a hit and a walk while striking out two. De Fratus threw 15 pitches and Horst and Aumont were both under ten. Nobody has thrown more than one day in a row.

The Phillies lineup against lefty John Lannan went (1) Frandsen (2) Mayberry (3) Utley (4) Ruiz (5) Wigginton (6) Brown (7) Ruf (8) Martinez. Wow. That’s lacking some of the elements you would hope to see in a starting lineup (example: major league players). Rollins on the bench with Martinez at short. Wigginton at first for the sidelined Howard. Ruf in left. Frandsen leads off against the lefty with Mayberry hitting second.

Frandsen singled to left to start the top of the first, but Mayberry hit into a double-play behind him. Utley flew to left for the third out.

Ruiz started the second with a walk. Utley popped out for the first out before Brown moved Ruiz up to second with a single to center. It brought Ruf to the plate with two men on and he blasted a ball to left-center, just out of the reach of Harper as Harper crashed into the wall. It went for a triple and both runners scored to put the Phils up 2-0. Martinez grounded to second with Ruf holding for the second out. Kendrick struck out swinging for the third.

Another big hit for Ruf. Martinez can’t bring the runner home from third with one out.

Frandsen singled again to start the third and again Mayberry grounded into a double-play behind him. Utley fouled out to Zimmerman at third for the third out.

Mayberry hits into his second double-play in two at-bats, erasing Frandsen’s single for the second time.

Wigginton singled with one out in the fourth. Brown followed with a triple that put runners on second and third with one out for Ruf. The lefty Lannan walked the already-tripled righty Ruf, loading the bases for Martinez. Martinez grounded to first. LaRoche fielded, tagged first for the second out and threw home to get Wigginton to complete the double-play.

Martinez again can’t get it done with a runner on third and less than two outs. If he doesn’t watch out he’s going to get a reputation as someone who’s not a great offensive player.

Brown 2-for-2 with a double in two at-bats against the lefty through four innings. He ends the day at 191/291/340 against lefties for the year in 55 plate appearances.

Mayberry walked with two outs in the fifth. Utley struck out to leave him at first.

Righty Craig Stammen started the sixth and struck out Ruiz, Wigginton and Brown in order.

He was back for the seventh and struck out Ruf, Martinez and Kendrick in order.

Stammen faces six batters in the game and strikes out all six.

Righty Ryan Mattheus set the Phils down in order in the eighth.

Righty Drew Storen set the Phillies down in order in the ninth.

Frandsen was 2-for-4 with two singles that were followed by Mayberry bouncing into a double-play. He is still hammering away at left-handed pitching. 403/431/548 for the year (in 65 plate appearances).

Mayberry 0-for-3 with a walk and hit into two double-plays. 3-for-his-last-31 with 11 strikeouts.

Utley 0-for-4. Made a very nice play on the popup for the first out in the bottom of the sixth, which changed the inning. 3-for-his-last-15 with three singles. 317/440/413 over his last 83 plate appearances. Prior to his 3-for-his-last-15 he had hit 354/493/479 over his last 67 plate appearances.

Ruiz 0-for-3 with a walk. Came into the game 5-for-his-last-9. 10-for-his-last-32 with two doubles and two home runs.

Wigginton 1-for-4. 211/281/349 over his last 196 plate appearances.

Brown 2-for-4 with a double. He’s 5-for-his-last-29 (.172).

Ruf 1-for-4 with a two-run triple and a walk. Career walk number one is intentional. 9-for-27 on the year with two doubles, a triple and a home run. 5-for-12 against lefties with a walk, three extra-base hits and seven RBI.

Martinez 0-for-3. He’s 7-for-his-last-24 (.292) and hitting .168 for the season.

BJ Rosenberg (1-2, 6.86) gets career start number one in a bullpen game tonight against lefty Gio Gonzalez (21-8, 2.89). Got ‘em right where we want ‘em. Rosenberg threw three innings his last time out, which was his longest outing of the year. Six of his 20 appearances at Triple-A this season came as a starter. Righty Tyson Brummett is on the active roster for the Phillies as of Sunday — Brummett made 44 appearances this year between Reading and Lehigh Valley, eight of which were starts. Righties are hitting .199 against Gonzalez for the year. It will be his fifth start against the Phils this season — 3-1 with a 2.52 ERA and a 1.08 ratio so far.

Update: Lefty Tom Gorzelanny and not Gonzalez tonight.


Phils on their toes against the Fish (except for Howard)

The playoff hopes (dreams? fantasies? Tough to find the right word there) and Ryan Howard’s season both came to an end this weekend as the Phils were mathematically eliminated from the post-season. Howard dropped something heavy on his big toe and the Phillies took two of three from the Fish. Two of three wasn’t enough, though, the Phillies would have needed to take about eight out of three to keep their chances alive. With three games left to play, the Phils are six out for the Wild Card.

Lee pitched seven strong innings in the opener, but the Phils managed just one run in the game and fell 2-1.

Halladay allowed four runs over five innings in game two of the set, but the Phils got enough offense to overcome yet another rough start from the ace and won 9-5. Utley and Ruiz combined to go 4-for-9 in the game and drove in five runs.

Hamels was very strong yesterday, allowing a run over seven innings and getting his 17th win of the season as the Phils topped the Fish 4-1. Ruiz had three more hits in the game.

The Phillies are 80-79 on the year after beating the Miami Marlins 4-1 yesterday afternoon. The Phillies take two of the three in the series and are in third place in the NL East, 16 games behind the first-place Nationals. They have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Hamels got the start for the Phillies and went seven innings, allowing a run on five hits and a walk. Two of the hits went for extra-bases, both doubles. He struck out eight.

Up 3-0, Hamels struck out Gorkys Hernandez, Bryan Petersen and Jose Reyes in order in the bottom of the first.

He set the Marlins down in order in the second and again in the third.

Petersen singled to center with one out in the fourth and moved to third when Reyes followed with a double to left. Giancarlo Stanton was next and hit a ground ball to third. Orr fielded and threw home. Petersen was tagged out for the second out. It brought Carlos Lee to the plate with men on first and second. The runners moved up to second and third on an error by Hamels on a pickoff attempt before Lee singled to right. Reyes scored, cutting the lead to 3-1, but Brown threw Stanton out at the plate to end the inning.

Donovan Solano doubled to left to start the fifth. John Buck was next and flew to center for the first out with Solano tagging and moving up to third. Gil Velazquez followed with a walk, putting runners on the corners for the pitcher Nathan Eovaldi. Eovaldi struck out trying to bunt Velazquez to second for the second out. Hamels struck Hernandez out looking to leave the runners on the corners.

With one out in the sixth, Reyes bunted looking for a hit. Hamels fielded and threw wildly to first for his second error of the day, which left Reyes on second on the error. Reyes stole third before Stanton popped to Rollins with Reyes holding. Lee struck out looking to end the inning.

No RBI for Stanton with one out and the speedy Reyes on third.

Hamels set Miami down in order in the seventh.

Bastardo started the eighth up 4-1. Righty Austin Kearns hit for the pitcher Ryan Webb and popped to Utley for the first out. Bastardo struck out Hernandez and Petersen behind him.

Papelbon started the ninth with a three-run lead. Stanton and Lee singled back-to-back with one out, bringing Solano to the plate as the tying run with men on first and second. Papelbon got Solano swinging for the second out and Buck swinging to end the game.

The Phillies lineup against righty Nathan Eovaldi went (1) Rollins (2) Pierre (3) Utley (4) Ruiz (5) Brown (6) Schierholtz (7) Ruf (8) Orr. Ruf plays first with Howard out for the season after hurting his toe. Ruiz catches. Pierre in left against the righty with Brown in right and Schierholtz in center. Orr at third against the righty.

Rollins was the first batter of the game and walked. Pierre was next and singled to right. Rollins took third and Pierre moved up to second as the throw went to third. Utley flew to left for the first out, deep enough for Rollins to tag and score, putting the Phils up 1-0. Ruiz was next and doubled to left, plating Pierre. 2-0. Brown lined to short for the second out before Schierholtz singled to right. Ruiz scored from second and the Phils led 3-0. Ruf moved Schierholtz to second with a single, but Orr struck out swinging to leave both runners stranded.

The Phillies went in order in the second and third. Ruiz and Brown struck out back-to-back to end the third.

Orr singled to right with two outs in the fourth. Hamels struck out swinging to leave him at first.

The lead was cut to 3-1 when the Phils went in order in the fifth as Eovaldi struck out Pierre and Utley.

Ruiz singled to start the sixth, but the Phillies went in order behind him.

Lefty Dan Jennings started the seventh. Frandsen hit for Orr and grounded to first for the first out. Hamels struck out for the second before Rollins drew a walk. Pierre flew to left to leave Rollins at first.

Utley and Ruiz singled back-to-back off of lefty Michael Dunn to start the eighth. It put runners on the corners with nobody out for Brown. Brown flew to center for the first out, deep enough for Utley to tag and score, which extended the lead to 4-1. Schierholtz singled to right, putting runners on the corners again. Righty Ryan Webb came on to pitch to Webb. Webb grounded to third. Ruiz was caught up between third and home and eventually tagged out for the second out. It left men on second and third with two down for Frandsen. Frandsen lined to second to leave them stranded.

Heath Bell set the Phillies down in order in the ninth. Nix hit for Bastardo and grounded to second for the third out.

Rollins was 0-for-3 in the game and walked twice. 4-for-11 with three walks in the series. 250/316/427 for the year. 287/376/537 in September.

Pierre 1-for-4 with a strikeout. 1-for-6 with a walk in the series. 310/354/374 for the year. He hit .375 in 67 plate appearances in September.

Utley 1-for-3 with a walk yesterday and 3-for-11 with a walk in the series. 266/374/445 on the season.

Ruiz 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI. His double was the only extra-base hit of the game for the Phillies. 6-for-13 with two doubles in the set. 330/398/547 for the year. 278/348/479 over his last 161 plate appearances.

Brown 0-for-3 with an RBI. 1-for-7 with a walk and a triple in the series. 234/320/400.

Schierholtz 2-for-4 with an RBI in the game and 4-for-6 in the series. 248/313/391 for the year. 238/290/317 in 70 plate appearances with the Phillies. 175/206/238 against lefties for the year overall.

Ruf 1-for-4 with a single in the game. He started all three games in the set and went 3-for-12 with a double and four strikeouts. 8-for-25 for the year with two doubles and a home run. He still hasn’t walked yet. 320/308/520 in 26 plate appearances.

Orr 1-for-2 in the game. 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI in the series. 321/333/453 for the season.

Kendrick (10-12, 4.08) faces lefty John Lannan (4-0, 4.23) tonight at Nationals Park. Kendrick is not Cy Young and has been hit hard in two of his last three starts, throwing to a 6.59 ERA in those outings. He allowed three homers in two innings his last time out. Lannan started against Kendrick on September 26 and allowed two runs over 5 1/3 innings.


I think the easier way to do this is that if there’s anyone in the rotation who actually is Cy Young, let us know; otherwise we’ll just assume that isn’t the case

The Phillie starter got blasted early again last night and the Phillies fell to the Nats 7-3.

A day after Kyle Kendrick allowed three home runs to the first eight Nationals he faced, Tyler Cloyd gave up two to the first five Washington hitters in the series finale. A three-run double by Darin Ruf in the bottom of the first made it look like the Phils might be able to overcome Cloyd’s rough start, but the Phillies wouldn’t score again in the game as Washington piled on five unanswered runs.

Last night’s game was the final game of the year at home for the Phils. They finish the season 40-41 at home. They went 52-29 at home in 2011.

The Phillies are 78-78 on the year after losing 7-3 to the Washington Nationals last night. The Nats take the series two games to one. The Phillies are 1-4 over their last five games and in third place in the NL East, 17 games out of first. They are six games out for the Wild Card with six games left on their schedule.

Cloyd got the start for the Phillies and went five innings, allowing six runs on six hits and two walks. Five of the hits went for extra-bases, two doubles and three home runs. He struck out four.

Cloyd has a 4.91 ERA and a 1.21 ratio after six starts with the Phils. He’s walked just seven in 33 innings, but has allowed eight home runs and at least one in every start. Eight home runs in 33 innings has him on a pace to allow about 48 over 200 innings. That’s too many.

Jayson Werth was the first batter of the game and grounded to short. Bryce Harper was next, though, and the lefty hit an 0-1 pitch from Cloyd out to right-center, putting the Nats up 1-0. Cloyd struck Ryan Zimmerman out for the second out and got Adam LaRoche on a ground ball to first for the third.

The Phils led 3-1 when Cloyd started the second. Michael Morse led off the frame and hit a 1-1 pitch out to left-center. 3-2. Ian Desmond was next and hit a ball well, but Frandsen handled it at third and threw to first for the first out. Danny Espinosa tried to bunt for a hit, but Cloyd handled that one for the second out. Kurt Suzuki grounded to third to end the frame.

Cloyd set the Nats down in order in the third, striking the pitcher Gio Gonzalez out for the first out.

Zimmerman doubled to left to start the fourth. He went to third when LaRoche flew to center for the first out and scored on a ground out by Morse, tying the game at 3-3. Cloyd struck Desmond out to end the frame.

Cloyd walked Espinosa to start the fifth. Suzuki flew to center for the first out before Gonzalez bunted Espinosa to second with the second. Werth walked on four pitches, putting two men on for Harper. Harper singled softly to left past a diving Rollins. Espinosa scored to put the Nats up 4-3 and Werth went to third. Zimmerman struck out looking to leave the runners on the corners.

You want to avoid walking the leadoff hitter when you can.

LaRoche started the sixth with a double and came around to score when Morse blasted a 2-1 pitch into the Nationals bullpen in center. 6-3. Horst took over for Cloyd and got the next three hitters, striking out Desmond and Espinosa before getting Suzuki on a ground ball to short.

Righty Mark DeRosa hit for Gonzalez to start the seventh and singled into center. Eury Perez ran for DeRosa at first and stole second before Werth walked again, putting two men on for Harper. Horst walked Harper, too, loading the bases for Zimmerman. Zimmerman struck out swinging 1-2, but on a wild pitch that allowed everyone to move up a base. Perez scored (7-3) and it brought LaRoche to the plate with one out and men on second and third. LaRoche hit a ground ball to second. Utley fielded and came home where a sliding Werth was tagged out for the second out. Aumont came in and got Morse on a ground out to short, leaving runners on the corners.

Horst doesn’t fare well in his second inning of work, allowing the first three batters he faces to reach on a walk and two singles. He threw 42 pitches in the game, which is the most he has thrown this season. He also threw 42 pitches on July 27 against the Braves.

He’s charged with a run in 1 2/3 innings in the game, which is the only run he’s allowed in his eight appearances in September. He has thrown two days in a row.

Suzuki singled off of Aumont with two outs in the eighth. Lefty Chad Tracy hit for the pitcher Sean Burnett and grounded to first for the third out.

Aumont goes more than one inning for the first time in his career, getting one out in the seventh before throwing a scoreless eighth. That’s three good appearances in a row for him after he struggled for three straight games against the Astros and the Mets. He hasn’t walked a batter in 3 1/3 scoreless innings over his last three outings. If it’s not all about the walks for him, it’s a lot about the walks.

Diekman started the ninth. Werth led off and doubled to left. Diekman got Harper swinging for the first out and Zimmerman on a ground ball to second that moved Werth up to third for the second. LaRoche flew to center to leave Werth at third.

Werth continues to pound left-handed pitching. 384/464/534 for the year.

Diekman faces four hitters, allowing a leadoff double to the lefty-killer Werth and getting the next three. Righties are on-basing .394 against him for the year, which is a lot to on-base. He’s walked too many lefties, eight of the 55 left-handed hitters he’s faced, but they are hitting just .182 against him with a .227 slugging percentage.

Overall, the pen goes four innings in the game, allowing a run on three hits and two walks. Horst threw 42 pitches in the game and has thrown for two straight days, so I wouldn’t be expecting him tonight. Diekman threw 19 pitches last night, but is well-rested.

The Phillies lineup against lefty Gio Gonzalez went (1) Rollins (2) Frandsen (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Mayberry (6) Ruf (7) Brown (8) Kratz. Ruiz on the bench with Kratz catching. Ruf in left for the third straight game and hits ahead of Brown this time, which makes a lot of sense. Mayberry dropped to fifth with the hot Frandsen hitting second.

The Phillies were down 1-0 when they hit in the bottom of the first. Utley singled with two outs and stole second before Howard walked. Mayberry followed with a walk of his own, loading the bases for Ruf. Ruf got ahead in the count and ripped a 2-0 pitch to center that dropped on the warning track for a bases-clearing double, putting the Phils up 3-1. Brown followed with a walk. Kratz flew to right to leave runners at first and second.

Huge hit for Ruf, moved ahead of Brown into the sixth spot in the order against the lefty.

It was 3-2 when the Phils hit in the second. Rollins and Frandsen singled back-to-back with one out, putting runners on first and second for Utley. Utley flew to right for the first out. The runners moved up to second and third on a passed ball before Howard grounded to first to leave them there.

Ruf singled to left with one out in the third. Brown was next and lined to third for the second out. Kratz grounded to short to end the inning.

Another hit for Ruf. Brown looking a little better against the lefty in the game, walking in his first plate appearance and lining out in his second.

It was 3-3 when the Phillies went in order in the fourth.

They were down 4-3 when they went in order in the fifth.

Brown doubled to right with one out in the sixth and the Phillies down 6-3. He took third on a wild pitch before Kratz struck out swinging for the second out. Schierholtz, who had entered the game in the top of the inning with Horst, popped to third to end the inning.

Kratz can’t bring the runner home from third with one out.

Frandsen doubled to right off of lefty Sean Burnett with one out in the seventh. He moved to third on a ground out by Utley. Howard grounded to Desmond to leave Frandsen at third.

Another extra-base hit for Frandsen against a lefty. He’s hitting 434/464/604 against left-handed pitching for the year.

Righty Tyler Clippard set the Phillies down in order in the eighth. Nix hit for Aumont and struck out for the first out.

Righty Drew Storen threw a 1-2-3 ninth. Pierre hit for Kratz and grounded to second for the first out. Schierholtz grounded to first for the second out and Rollins popped to second for the third.

Rollins was 1-for-5 in the game and 2-for-13 with a walk and a home run in the series. 248/312/428 for the year. 2-for-his-last-23.

Frandsen 2-for-4 in the game. 5-for-12 with three doubles and a triple in the series as the Nats throw three left-handed starters. 335/385/445 for the year. He came into the series 4-for-his-last-18.

Utley 1-for-4 with his tenth stolen base. 4-for-11 with a walk and a double in the series. 265/377/452 for the year. Big series for Utley against a Nationals team that, again, started three lefties. His numbers against lefties are getting better, but they still aren’t real good for the year — 223/328/375.

Howard 0-for-3 with a walk. 1-for-10 with a walk in the series. So he does less well against the Washington lefties in the set. 220/296/425 for the year and 173/226/378 against lefties.

Mayberry 0-for-2 with a walk. Had a chance to feast on left-handed pitching in the series, but went 1-for-10 with a single and two walks. Have I mentioned that the Nats started three lefties in the series? They did! 252/307/405 on the year for Mayberry. 6-for-his-last-37 with six singles. Sure looks to me like he could use some rest.

Ruf 2-for-4 with a double, three RBI and two strikeouts. 5-for-11 with a double and a home run in the series. 5-for-13 on the season.

Brown 1-for-3 with a walk and a double, both of which came against lefties. That raises his line against lefties on the year to 156/269/289. He’s hitting 238/325/399 overall. 268/345/439 against righties. He’s 2-for-his-last-18.

Kratz 0-for-3 with a strikeout, which came with a runner on third and one out. He’s 3-for-his-last-29 and hitting 248/303/511 for the year.

The Phils face another lefty tonight as Lee (6-8, 3.18) goes against Mark Buehrle (13-13, 3.84). Lee has a 2.40 ERA with a 1.07 ratio in his 15 starts since the end of June. He’s walked nine in 108 2/3 innings in those outings. He’s allowed one home run in 50 innings over his last seven starts. Buehrle threw to a 3.18 ERA over his first 18 starts and has thrown to a 5.01 ERA over his last 12, allowing 13 home runs in 73 2/3 innings. It will be his fifth start of the year against the Phils. Over his first four starts he’s 2-2 with a 3.91 ERA and a 1.30 ratio. Wigginton is 4-for-11 with two home runs against him this season, so it will be interesting to see if Manuel makes an effort to get Wigginton into the lineup or continues to play Ruf and Brown at the corner outfield positions.


Kendrick confirms he is not Cy Young, putting at ease the minds of millions who found it suspicious they had never seen him and Young in the same place at the same time

Kyle Kendrick didn’t have much last night, allowing three home runs and five runs to the first eight batters he faced and leaving after just two innings and two batters. The Phillies made it almost all the way back from the 5-0 hole, though. De Fratus started the ninth with the Washington lead cut to 5-4, but was hit hard in the frame and the Nats went on to win 8-4.

Kendrick pointed out after the game that if he was awesome every start he’d be Cy Young. Not sure that’s true, actually, but if his point was that last night’s effort lacked awesomeness, I think we’re all on board.

The bullpen pitched very well until De Fratus ran into trouble in the three-run top of the ninth for the Nats. After Kendrick left after just two innings, Rosenberg, Lindblom and Horst combined to throw six scoreless frames in which they allowed a single and a walk and struck out six.

Former Phil Jayson Werth battled the fans all night, but wound up with the last laugh, singling home a pair of runs with two outs in the ninth to extend the Nationals lead.

The Phillies are 78-77 on the year after losing to the Washington Nationals 8-4 last night. They have lost three of their last four and are in third place in the NL East, 16 games out of first. They are 5 1/2 games out for the Wild Card and have seven left to play.

Kendrick got the start for the Phillies and went two innings, allowing five runs on five hits and two walks. Only four of the runs were earned. Three of the hits went for extra-bases, all home runs. He struck out one.

Kendrick has allowed 11 runs in 13 2/3 innings over his last three starts.

Jayson Werth was the first batter of the game and walked on five pitches. Bryce Harper was next and he hit the first pitch he saw from Kendrick out to center, putting the Nats up 2-0. Kendrick got the next three Washington hitters, getting Ryan Zimmerman on a ground ball to short for the first out, striking out Adam LaRoche for the second and getting Michael Morse on a fly ball to left for the third.

Ian Desmond led off the second and hit a 2-1 pitch out to left center. 3-0. Steve Lombardozzi was next and hit a ball to Utley that Utley didn’t handle for an error, putting Lombardozzi on first when Kurt Suzuki hit a 1-2 pitch out to left. 5-0. The pitcher John Lannan grounded to Rollins for the first out before Werth singled to center. Harper grounded to Howard with Werth forced at second for the second out. Harper stole second before Zimmerman grounded to second to end the frame.

Three home runs allowed by Kendrick to the first eight batters he faces.

LaRoche walked to start the third and moved to second on a single by Morse. That was it for Kendrick. Rosenberg took over and got Desmond to hit into a double-play. Lombardozzi lined to short to leave LaRoche at third.

Rosenberg started the fourth down 5-1. He walked Lannan with one out, but struck out Werth and Harper to leave the pitcher at first.

You want to avoid walking the pitcher when possible.

Rosenberg threw a 1-2-3 fifth with the lead cut to 5-2.

Rosenberg was fantastic in the game, getting a double-play in the third and allowing just one walk over three scoreless innings. Three innings is the longest outing of his career. He has thrown ten scoreless innings over his last seven appearances.

Lindblom set the Nats down in order in the sixth and again in the seventh.

Lindblom faces six batters and gets all six, dropping his ERA with the Phillies to 3.68 after 24 appearances. Opponents are hitting .175 against him since joining the Phils, but he has walked 15 in 22 innings. He has a 1.29 ERA over his last 14 appearances and has struck out 19 in 14 innings.

He was pitching for the second straight day and threw 29 pitches in the game.

Horst started the eighth with the Nats up 5-3. Zimmerman led off and singled to left. Horst struck LaRoche out swinging for the first out and got Morse to ground into a double-play behind him.

Horst faces three batters, allows a single then strikes out the lefty LaRoche and gets the righty Morse to ground into a double-play. He’s been charged with seven runs on the year over 27 innings, but only three of them have been earned. He’s had success against both righties and lefties in limited time with the Phils this year, so it seems like there are lots of reasons to expect significant contributions from him out of the pen in 2013.

De Fratus started the ninth with the Phillies down 5-4. Desmond led off and walked. Lefty Chad Tracy hit for the pitcher Tyler Clippard. Desmond stole second before Tracy grounded to short for the first out with Desmond holding. Suzuki was next and singled softly to left on a ball deflected by Pierre, moving Desmond up to third. De Fratus struck Espinosa out swinging for the second out before Suzuki stole second. It put runners on second and third for Werth and Werth singled into center, scoring both runners to extend the lead to 7-4. Bastardo came in to pitch to the lefty Harper and Harper tripled into the right field corner, scoring Werth to make it 8-4. Zimmerman struck out looking to leave Harper at third.

Werth was loudly booed during the game and especially in his ninth inning at-bat. While waiting in the on-deck circle, he faked throwing a foul ball to fans behind the Nationals dugout and then rolled the ball into the dugout. Flipped his bat dramatically after his two-run single, proving once and for all the wisdom of the seven-year, $126 million deal the Nationals gave him to hit .256.

De Fratus faced five batters in the game and they went walk, out, single, out single. Walking the leadoff man is never a good idea and it hurt De Fratus last night. All three of the guys who reached base against De Fratus in the game (Desmond walk, Werth and Suzuki singled) were right-handed. His line looked a little worse than it was cause of the two-out triple by Harper off of Bastardo that scored Werth, adding a third run to De Fratus’s line.

Like Lindblom, De Fratus was pitching for the second straight day. He threw to a 0.00 ERA over his first seven appearances with the Phillies, allowing two hits and three walks over six innings. In his last three appearances he has allowed four runs on four hits and a walk over 2 1/3 innings.

Bastardo faces two hitters in the game, allowing an RBI-triple to the lefty Harper before striking the righty Zimmerman out. Over his last 17 appearances, Bastardo has struck out 28 in 12 2/3 innings while throwing to a 1.42 ERA and an 0.95 ratio.

Overall the pen goes seven innings in the game, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks. Lindblom and De Fratus have each thrown two days in a row and both of them threw a lot of pitches last night. Lindblom threw 29 and De Fratus threw 27. Rosenberg was pitching for the first day in a row and threw 42 pitches in the game.

It seems like Rosenberg would surely be unavailable tonight and Lindblom and De Fratus at least questionable. Could be an issue if Cloyd doesn’t go nine. That’s a joke, but he went eight his last time out. So we’ll see.

The Phillies lineup against lefty John Lannan went (1) Rollins (2) Mayberry (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Ruiz (6) Brown (7) Ruf (8) Frandsen. Ruf starts in left for the second game in a row, both of which came with lefties on the mound for the Nats.

Down 2-0, the Phillies went in order in the bottom of the first.

They started the second down 5-0. Howard led off and was hit by a pitch. The next three Phils went in order.

Frandsen doubled to left to start the third. Rosenberg was next and bunted. The catcher Suzuki fielded the ball and threw it into left field in an effort to get Frandsen at third. That proved to be ineffective. Frandsen scored, cutting the lead to 5-1, and Rosenberg was safe at first on the error. Rollins flew to center for the first out before Mayberry moved Rosenberg up to second with a single. Utley was next and he singled, loading the bases for Howard. Howard struck out and Ruiz grounded to the pitcher to keep the Phillies from getting more.

Howard really isn’t so good against lefties these days. One out and the bases loaded would have been a nifty time not to strike out.

With one out in the fourth, Ruf hit a ball down the third base line. Zimmerman made a nice play to record the out, though, fielding and making a long throw to first in time to get Ruf for the second out. It cost the Phillies a run, cause Frandsen was next and he hit a 2-1 pitch into center for a triple, his second extra-base hit in two at-bats. Rosenberg was next and he dribbled a ball back up the middle that went for a single. Frandsen scored to cut the lead to 5-2. Rollins grounded to third to end the inning.

Zimmerman’s play on the ball hit by Ruf costs the Phillies a run. The ball Frandsen hit to center should have been caught. It was fairly deep, but Harper turned the wrong way going back on it and couldn’t recover.

Frandsen has monster numbers against lefties for the year and they got better thanks to 2-for-2 with a double and a gift triple off of Lannan in his first two at-bats last night. He’s now at 429/462/592 against lefties for the year.

Lannan set the Phils down in order in the fifth.

Ruiz walked to start the sixth. Brown struck out behind him for the first out. Righty Ryan Mattheus came in to pitch to Ruf and got him to ground into a double-play to end the inning.

Mattheus got Frandsen and Schierholtz, hitting for Lindblom, to start the seventh before Rollins lined a 3-1 pitch out to right. That cut the lead to 5-3. Mayberry struck out swinging for the third out.

Utley doubled to right off of righty Tyler Clippard to start the eighth. Howard struck out swinging for the first out before Utley took third on a wild pitch. Ruiz walked, putting two men on for Brown. Brown got to hit against the righty Clippard and hit a 2-2 pitch well to right. Werth took it on the warning track for the second out, though. Utley scored, cutting the lead to 5-4. Ruf followed and singled softly to right, moving Ruiz up to third. Pierre ran for Ruf at first. Clippard struck Frandsen out swinging 1-2 to leave the runners at the corners.

Brown didn’t miss by much. Howard strikes out against the righty for a big first out.

The Phillies were down 8-4 when righty Drew Storen set them down in order in the ninth. Nix hit for Bastardo and struck out swinging for the first out.

Rollins 1-for-4 with his 23rd homer of the year. He’s 1-for-his-last-18. 249/322/486 with 21 homers over his last 438 plate appearances.

Mayberry 1-for-5. 2-for-his-last-18 with seven strikeouts.

Utley 2-for-4 with a double. He made an error in the second that led to an unearned run when Suzuki followed with a homer. 305/423/463 in September.

Howard 0-for-3 and struck out twice. 7-for-his-last-41 (.171) with 16 strikeouts.

Ruiz 0-for-2 and walked twice. 5-for-his-last-32 (.156).

Brown 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and an RBI. His line against lefties for the year is down to 140/245/256.

Ruf 1-for-4 and grounded into a double-play. Zimmerman made a nice play on his ball in the fourth to take away what might have been another hit. 3-for-9 with a home run so far for the year. Phils face another lefty today in Gio Gonzalez, so Ruf seems like a good bet to get another start.

Frandsen 2-for-4 with a double and a triple, both off the lefty Lannan. Had a big chance against the righty Clippard in the ninth and struck out for the third out.

Cloyd (2-1, 3.86) faces lefty Gio Gonzalez (20-8, 2.84) tonight. Cloyd was fantastic in his last outing, needing just 88 pitches to hold the Mets to a run over eight innings. Lefties are still hitting an ugly 295/380/523 against him for the year. Gonzalez has allowed more than two earned runs once in his last eight starts (he allowed three in the other). Opponents are hitting just .204 against him for the year.


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