Philliesflow.com

The Phils continued to roll last night, beating the Brewers 7-2 to win for the ninth time in their last 11 games, winning the game with a wackadoo starting lineup that didn’t include Rollins, Utley, Howard or Ibanez. They did just fine without those guys as Valdez, Pence, Mayberry and Francisco combined to go 8-for-18 in the game and drive in six runs.

Hamels gave the Phils another fantastic start, throwing a complete game and holding the Brewers to a pair of runs on two solo homers. If you’re looking for something to worry about in the complete game effort, I’d go with the rising home run rate for Hamels — he was great at preventing the home run early in the season, but has been a lot less great recently. In his first 17 starts he allowed six in 116 innings (about 0.47 HR per nine innings). Over his last 11 starts he has now allowed eight in 78 innings (about 0.92 HR per nine innings).

The Phillies are 92-48 on the year after beating the Milwaukee Brewers 7-2 last night. They are 44 games over .500 for the first time in the history of the organization and lead the NL East by ten games over the Braves.

Hamels got the start for the Phillies and threw a complete game, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks. Two of the hits went for extra-bases, both solo home runs. He struck out two.

He set the Brewers down in order in the first, getting Corey Hart on a fly ball to right, Jerry Hairston on a ground ball to short and Ryan Braun on a popup that Martinez handled.

Prince Fielder grounded to second for the first out of the second. Casey McGehee was next and he singled to left, but Hamels got Yuniesky Betancourt to ground into a double-play to end the inning.

Hamels struck Jonathan Lucroy out swinging for the first out in the third. Carlos Gomez tried to bunt for a hit, but Mayberry retired him for the second. The pitcher Chris Narveson grounded to second.

Hamels walked Hairston with one out in the fourth, but got Braun and Fielder to leave him stranded.

McGehee grounded to third for the first out of the fifth. Betancourt was next and he hit a 1-0 pitch out to left center to put the Brewers up 1-0. Hamels got Lucroy and Gomez behind Betancourt.

He started the sixth with a 6-1 lead. Nyjer Morgan flew to center for the first out, but Hart was next and he lined a 3-1 pitch out to right center, cutting the lead to 6-2. Hamels got Hairston and Braun behind Hart.

Fielder singled to right to start the seventh. McGehee popped to Martinez for the first out. Betancourt was next and he went down on a soft ground ball handled by Hamels, with Fielder moving up to second with two down. Lucroy walked on five pitches and righty Josh Wilson hit for the pitcher Tim Dillard. Wilson grounded to third to end the inning.

Hamels set Morgan, Hart and Hairston down in order in the eighth.

Up 7-2, he got Braun, Fielder and McGehee in the ninth. He threw 111 pitches in the game.

The Phillies lineup against lefty Chris Narveson went (1) Victorino (2) Valdez (3) Polanco (4) Pence (5) Mayberry (6) Ruiz (7) Francisco (8) Martinez. Valdez at short with Rollins, who was activated before the game, on the bench. Martinez at second with Utley having his head checked and rested. Mayberry at first against the lefty with Howard resting. Ibanez resting with Francisco in left. Francisco starts just his third game since July 22. July 22 was the 98th game of the year for the Phils — last night’s game was number 140. Polanco drops to three in the order with Valdez hitting second.

The Phils didn’t have a base-runner until Hamels walked with two outs in the third. Victorino flew to center to leave him at first.

They went in order in the fourth.

Mayberry started the fifth with a single. Ruiz fouled out to the catcher and Francisco hit into a double-play behind him.

This might not even be Francisco’s favorite year in professional baseball.

The Phils were down 1-0 when Martinez and Hamels both struck out to start the sixth. Victorino was next and hit a ball to left that almost left the yard, hitting high off the very top of the wall and bouncing back onto the field for a double. Valdez was next and doubled just over the head of Gomez in center, scoring Victorino to tie the game at 1-1. Polanco followed with a walk that put men on first and second for Pence. Pence hit a ball to the gap in right-center that Gomez misplayed badly. Pence should have had a double, but wound up at third with Valdez and Polanco both scoring to put the Phils up 3-1. Mayberry was next and reached on an infield single with Pence scoring. 4-1. Mayberry stole second before Ruiz brought him home with a double to left. 5-1. Francisco singled to left and Ruiz scored. 6-1. Righty Tim Dillard came in to pitch to Martinez and Martinez singled to right where the ball was mishandled by Hart for an error, allowing Francisco to go to third. Hamels struck out swinging to leave both runners stranded.

Looked like the misplay of Pence’s ball that gave him an extra-base was going to cost Milwaukee a run when Mayberry followed with an infield single that brought Pence home from third, but he would have scored on Ruiz’s double anyway. Gomez didn’t have a good inning in center either way.

The lead was cut to 6-2 when the Phils hit in the seventh. Polanco singled with two outs, but Pence grounded to the pitcher behind him.

Francisco singled with two outs in the eighth and stole second before Martinez drew a walk. It put men on first and second for Hamels. Hamels hit for himself and struck out swinging to leave both runners stranded.

Valdez singled with one out in the ninth and Polanco went down on a fly ball to right behind him. Pence was next, though, and he doubled to right with Valdez scoring to extend the lead to 7-2. Mayberry walked before Ruiz grounded to third for the third out.

Victorino went 1-for-5 with a double, dropping his average on the year to .299. That’s the first time he’s ended the day with an average under .300 this year since July 28.

Valdez 2-for-5 with a double. He’s 7-for-19 with three extra-base hits to start September.

Polanco 1-for-4 with a walk. He has one extra-base hit, a double, in his last 155 plate appearances over 36 games.

Pence 2-for-5 with two doubles and three RBI to raise his line with the Phillies to 311/383/541.

Mayberry 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. 3-for-his-last-8 with three walks.

Ruiz 1-for-5 with a double and an RBI. 321/390/420 since the All-Star break.

Francisco 2-for-4 with an RBI. 5-for-7 with a double and two walks in his last two starts.

Martinez 1-for-3 with a walk. Five walks in 26 plate appearances in September.

Roy Halladay (16-5, 2.49) faces righty Shawn Marcum (12-5, 3.11) tonight. Righties have hit just 181/230/301 against Marcum for the year. Lefties have fared better at 257/313/390. He made one start against the Phils this year, allowing an unearned run on April 18. Halladay hasn’t allowed a home run in his last eight starts. Halladay has made one start against Milwaukee this year and it was pretty much his worst outing of the season. On April 19 he was charged with six runs in 6 2/3 innings in Philadelphia and the Phils lost 9-0. Halladay’s line was bad for the night anyway, but got worse when Herndon took over for him with two outs and two on in the seventh and gave up a three-run shot to Casey McGehee.

After an unbelievable June in which he allowed one run in 42 innings over six starts, Cliff Lee was a little off in July. Last night he made his first start of August and it looked like June all over again. Lee threw a complete game shutout, striking out eight as the Phils topped the Giants 3-0.

Pence went 3-for-4 in last night’s game, homering early and adding an RBI-single in the ninth. He drove in two of the three runs the Phils scored in the game.

The Phillies are 72-39 on the year after beating the San Francisco Giants 3-0 last night in San Francisco. They have won seven in a row and lead the NL East by 8 1/2 games.

Lee got the start for the Phillies and threw a complete game shutout, allowing six singles and a double. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out eight.

Aaron Rowand led off the bottom of the first with a single, but Lee got Jeff Keppinger to ground into a double-play behind him. Pablo Sandoval grounded to third for the third out.

Up 2-0, Lee set the Giants down in order in the second.

Chris Stewart singled to center with one out in the third. The pitcher Madison Bumgarner bunted him to second with the second out, but Lee got Rowand to ground to short to leave Stewart stranded.

Sandoval singled with one out in the fourth. Lee struck Carlos Beltran out behind him before Orlando Cabrera moved Sandoval to second with a single. Lee struck Cody Ross out swinging 2-2 to the inning with both men stranded.

Lee set the Giants down in order in the fifth, sixth and seventh. In the fifth inning, Howard made a very nice over-the-shoulder sliding catch in foul territory to retire Stewart for the second out. In the sixth, Keppinger hit a ball down the third base line, but Polanco made a diving stop and threw to first in time for the second out. Cabrera ripped a line drive ticketed for left field in the seventh, but Polanco snared it for the second out.

Aubrey Huff singled to start the eighth with the Phils still up 2-0. Stewart flew to left for the first out and switch-hitter Andres Torres hit for the pitcher Bumgarner. Torres reached on an infield single that moved Huff up to second, but Lee struck Rowand out looking and got Keppinger on a ground ball to third to keep the Giants off the board.

Lee was up 3-0 when he started the ninth. Beltran doubled to left with one out. Cabrera popped to short for the second out and Lee struck Ross out looking 2-2 to end the game.

The Phillies lineup against lefty Madison Bumgarner went (1) Rollins (2) Polanco (3) Victorino (4) Howard (5) Pence (6) Mayberry (7) Ruiz (8) Valdez. Utley and Ibanez sit against the lefty with Mayberry in lefty and Valdez at second. Victorino hits third for Utley with Polanco hitting second.

Rollins and Polanco both singled to start the game, putting men on first and second. Rollins was thrown out trying to steal second for the first out, with Polanco moving up to second. Victorino walked, putting men on first and second for Howard. Howard hit an inside-out liner to third, which was caught by Sandoval. Sandoval threw to second to double-off Polanco and end the frame.

No run for the Phils on two hits, a walk and a stolen base.

Pence led off the second and homered to left, putting the Phils up 1-0. Mayberry was next and he homered to left, too. 2-0. Ruiz grounded to second for the first out before Valdez walked. Lee tried to bunt him to second, but struck out for the second out. With Rollins at the plate, Valdez was picked off of third and then thrown out at second to set the Phillies down.

The Giants had gotten six outs in the game, two of which they had gotten on the bases.

Polanco and Victorino struck out as the Phils went in order in the third.

Howard and Mayberry struck out as the Phils went in order in the fourth.

Ruiz and Lee struck out as the Phils went in order in the fifth.

Victorino singled to right with two outs in the sixth, but Howard struck out behind him.

Pence singled to center to start the seventh. Mayberry was next and he grounded to third, with Pence forced at second for the first out. Ruiz hit into a double-play to end the frame.

The Phils went in order in the eighth.

Victorino singled to left with one out in the ninth and moved up to second on a ground out by Howard. Pence chopped a ball up the middle for a single and Victorino raced around to score, putting the Phils up 3-0. Mayberry struck out swinging to leave Pence at first.

Rollins was 1-for-4 with a single and a caught stealing. He’s stolen 24 bases on the year and been caught six times.

Polanco 1-for-4 with a couple of nice plays at third.

Victorino 2-for-3 with a walk.

Howard 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.

Pence 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI. 360/393/600 in 25 at-bats with the Phillies so far. The Phils are 6-0 since he arrived.

Mayberry 1-for-4 with a home run and two strikeouts. He has three home runs in his last 11 at-bats.

Ruiz 0-for-3.

Valdez 0-for-2 with a walk.

Vance Worley (7-1, 2.33) faces lefty Jonathan Sanchez (4-5, 3.81) tonight. Sanchez has been sidelined with biceps tendinitis and will be making his first start since June 24. He’s walked 52 of the 297 right-handed batters he’s faced this season. Righties are hitting just .224 against him for the year, but on-basing .367. Worley didn’t pitch great in his last start, allowing four runs in six innings to the Pirates. His seven starts before that were fantastic, though. In those outings he was 5-0 with a 1.14 ERA and opponents hit .151 against him over 47 1/3 innings.

Manuel is doing his best to explain why he called Lincecum and Cain “good but not great.” It’s kind of a tough task.

The article linked above suggests that when Oswalt is activated to start Sunday’s game, Francisco or a pitcher may lose their roster spot. The Phils are currently carrying 11 pitchers. If you count Gload as an infielder, they have seven infielders.

Things looked bad early for the Phils last night, but Cliff Lee made it through a shaky start to his start and Michael Martinez delivered another big hit. Down 2-0, Utley doubled in a pair of runs in the top of the eighth. The Phils rallied for two more in the ninth, getting two-out singles from Francisco and Rollins before Martinez cleared the bases with a two-out double.

For Martinez it was his second huge offense game in the last three the Phils have played. He’s hitting 297/357/459 in 37 at-bats in July. In the five games since the All-Star break, he’s driven in more runs than Utley, Howard, Ibanez, Brown and Ruiz combined. The day before the All-Star break, he went 4-for-5 against the Braves.

The Phillies are 60-36 on the year after beating the Chicago Cubs 4-2 last night. They lead the NL East, 3 1/2 games ahead of the Braves.

Lee got the start for the Phillies and went six innings, allowing two runs on eight hits. Four of the hits went for extra-bases, three doubles and a home run. He struck out six and didn’t walk a batter.

Reed Johnson led off the bottom of the first and doubled to right on a 3-2 pitch. Starlin Castro was next and he hit Lee’s first pitch out to left, putting the Cubs up 2-0. Aramis Ramirez was next he doubled to center. Jeff Baker lined to short for the first out before Marlon Byrd hit a ball hard towards third that Martinez snared. Martinez went for first for the second out with Ramirez holding second. Lee struck Alfonso Soriano out looking 1-2 to end the inning with Ramirez at second.

Not a great start for Lee. First three batters he faces deliver extra-base hits, followed by a line drive out and a ball hit hard to third.

Carlos Pena started the second with a double and moved to third when Geovany Soto followed with a single. The pitcher Matt Garza tried to bunt Soto to second but couldn’t and struck out for the first out. Lee struck Johnson and Castro out back-to-back to leave runners on the corners.

Lee threw a 1-2-3 third and a 1-2-3 fourth.

Johnson doubled to left with one out in the fifth. Castro was next and he hit a ball that was deflected by Rollins and went into left for a single that moved Johnson to third. Lee got Ramirez on a popup to short and struck out Baker to keep the Cubs from extending their lead.

No run for Chicago after putting men on first and third with one out.

Carlos Pena singled to right with two outs in the sixth. Lee got Soto on a ground ball to third to leave him at first.

Stutes took over for Lee in the seventh. Johnson singled to left with one out and Castro flew to right behind him for the second. Ramirez moved Johnson to second with a single into center and lefty Blake DeWitt hit for the righty Baker. Stutes got DeWitt on a fly ball to center to leave both runners stranded.

Stutes was back to pitch the eighth with the score tied at 2-2. He got the first two batters before getting behind the lefty Pena 2-0. Pena was walked intentionally and Stutes struck Soto out to leave him at first.

Not a fan of walking Pena or much of anyone with two outs and nobody on base.

Bastardo started the ninth with a 4-2 lead. Lefty Kosuke Fukudome hit for the pitcher Sean Marshall and the lefty Bastardo struck him out swinging 3-2 for the first out. Johnson struck out swinging 0-2 for the second. Castro fouled off fives pitches before striking out looking 1-2 to end the game.

Three scoreless innings for the pen. Stutes threw 37 pitches in the game, Bastardo 18. Neither of them have thrown more than one day in a row.

The Phillies lineup against righty Matt Garza went (1) Rollins (2) Martinez (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Victorino (6) Ibanez (7) Brown (8) Ruiz. Victorino returns to the lineup and Mayberry goes back to the bench. Martinez continues to play third and hit second for Polanco. Second is too high for Martinez.

The Phils went in order in the first.

Ibanez and Brown walked back-to-back with two outs in the second and the Phils down 2-0. Ruiz grounded to second to end the frame.

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

Brown doubled to left with one out in the fifth, but was left stranded at second when Ruiz fouled out to Pena and Lee struck out swinging.

Martinez walked with one out in the sixth, stole second and took third on a throwing error by Soto. Utley struck out swinging 1-2 for the second out and Howard struck out swinging 3-2 to leave Martinez at third.

Utley and Howard can’t put the ball in play against the righty Garza and the Phils don’t score with one out and a man on third. Martinez turned out to be the hero in the ninth, but did his best to make a run for the Phils out of almost nothing in the sixth.

Brown singled to center with two outs in the seventh and moved to second when Ruiz followed with a single to right. With the righty Garza still pitching for Chicago, Gload hit for Lee and flew to center to leave both men stranded.

Gload is 1-for-his-last-14.

Rollins led off the eighth and singled to right off of Garza. Lefty Sean Marshall took over for Garza and Martinez singled softly to center, moving Rollins to second. Utley was next he hammered a 1-1 pitch to the gap in left-center. The ball landed on the track and bounced off the wall. Both runners scored and the game was tied at 2-2 with nobody out and Utley on second. Utley stole third as Howard struck out swinging for the first out. Victorino was next and chopped a ball to short. Castro fielded and threw home, where Soto tagged out a sliding Utley on a close play for the second out. Ibanez struck out swinging to leave Victorino at first.

Third strikeout of the game for Howard.

With the lefty Marshall on the mound, Mayberry hit for brown and grounded to short to start the eighth. Ruiz struck out swinging for the second out. Francisco hit for Stutes and singled to center. Rollins was next and he reached on an infield single on a ball deflected by Ramirez at third, putting men on first and second for Martinez. Martinez flared an 0-1 pitch into right that dropped inside the line. Both runners scored, putting the Phils up 4-2. Martinez was caught be between second and third and was tagged out sliding into third for the third out.

Manuel takes Brown out of the game with the score tied, letting Mayberry hit for him against the lefty. Francisco delivers a big pinch-hit single that keeps the frame alive for Rollins to single and Martinez to double and put the Phils ahead.

Rollins was 2-for-5 with two singles. He’s 8-for-his-last-18 and hitting 365/412/492 in July.

Martinez was 2-for-4 with a walk, a double, a stolen base and two RBI.

Utley 1-for-4 with a double and two RBI. He’s 2-for-his-last-18.

Howard 0-for-4 and struck out three times. 1-for-his-last-19.

Victorino 0-for-4 in his return to the lineup.

Ibanez 0-for-3 with a walk.

Brown 2-for-2 with a double and a walk and removed for a pinch-hitter against a lefty in a tie game. He’s 2-for-his-last-12. I think the Phils should be considering both Mayberry and Francisco as potential platoon partners for Brown in right with Victorino back.

Ruiz was 1-for-4. He’s hitting 341/442/477 so far in July.

Worley (5-1, 2.15) faces righty Ryan Dempster (7-6, 4.68) this afternoon. Dempster threw to a 6.32 ERA in his first 13 starts of the year, but has gone 3-1 with a 1.99 ERA and a 1.10 ratio over his last seven outings. Worley has allowed one run or less in seven of the nine starts he has made for the Phillies this season.

This suggests that Oswalt could return in early August if things continue to go well.

The Phils topped the Cardinals 4-0 last night behind still more dominant pitching from Cliff Lee. Lee threw a complete-game shutout and rolled to his eighth win of the year, backed up by home runs from Rollins and Howard.

Over his last four starts, Lee has allowed one run in 33 innings, throwing to an 0.27 ERA with an 0.76 ratio. He has thrown two complete games in a row and threw 15 innings in the two starts before that — he’s averaging 8.25 innings pitched over his last four starts.

Lee and Halladay have now combined for seven complete games on the season — Halladay has four and Lee has three. No other team in either league has more than six complete games for the year.

The Phillies are 47-28 on the year after beating the St Louis Cardinals 4-0 last night. They have won the first two games of the set, outscoring St Louis 14-2.

Lee got the start for the Phillies and threw a complete game shutout, allowing six hits and a walk. Two of the hits went for extra-bases, both doubles. He threw a career-high 126 pitches.

He walked Ryan Theriot to start the bottom of the first. Jon Jay grounded to second with Theriot forced at second for the first out. Matt Holliday hit into a double-play to end the inning.

Yadier Molina singled to left with one out in the second. Lee struck Andrew Brown out looking for the second out and got Daniel Descalso on a fly ball to center for the third.

Pitcher Kyle Lohse doubled to left to start the third. Pete Kozma, the nine hitter behind Lohse hitting eighth, was next and hit a ball hard back up the middle, but Lee leaped up and snared it, looking Lohse back to second and throwing to first to get Kozma. Theriot moved Lohse to third with a single, but Lee got Jay to hit into a double-play to end the inning.

Great defensive play by Lee on the ball hit hard by Kozma saves the Phils a run.

Up 3-0, Lee set the Cards down in order in the fourth.

He threw a 1-2-3 fifth as well. He had thrown 69 pitches through five innings.

Two popups and a fly ball to center in a 1-2-3 sixth.

Lance Berkman doubled to left with one out in the seventh. Molina was next and grounded to third with Berkman holding. Brown grounded to third for the third out.

Kozma singled to center with two outs in the eighth. Theriot was next and hit a ball back up the middle that was deflected by Lee, but went to Utley who threw to first for the third out.

Up 4-0, Lee got the first two hitters in the ninth before Berkman singled to center. Molina grounded to short to end the game.

The Phillies lineup against righty Kyle Lohse went (1) Rollins (2) Victorino (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Polanco (6) Francisco (7) Brown (8) Ruiz. Francisco plays left with Ibanez on the bench against the righty.

Rollin started the game with a single to center on a ball deflected by Kozma at second, but Victorino hit into a double-play behind him. Utley flew to right to set the Phillies down.

The Phils went in order in the second and again in the third. Francisco ripped a ball down the third base line, but was robbed of extra-bases by a diving Descalso to end the second.

Rollins led off the fourth and hit a 2-2 pitch out to right, putting the Phils up 1-0. Victorino grounded to second before Utley singled to left. Howard was next and he hit a 1-0 pitch out to left. 3-0. Polanco followed with a single before Francisco hit into a double-play to set the Phils down.

Sixteen homers for Howard on the year, all 16 against righties.

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

Howard started the seventh with a single to right. Polanco was next and hit a line drive, but it was caught by Kozma at second and Kozma threw to first where Howard was doubled-off. Francisco flew to center for the third out.

Ruiz singled to right with one out in the eighth. Lee hit for himself and grounded to short for the third out.

Lee had thrown 99 pitches through seven innings when he hit for himself in the eighth.

Victorino tripled to right with one out in the ninth and came in to score when Utley followed with a fly ball to right, putting the Phils up 4-0. Howard struck out for the third out.

Rollins was 2-for-4 with a home run in the game. He has three home runs in the last nine games. In those games he’s hitting 297/381/568 in 42 plate appearances.

Victorino 1-for-4 with a triple.

Utley 1-for-3 with an RBI. 3-for-his-last-15 with three singles.

Howard 2-for-4 with a two-run homer. 258/370/570 against righties for the year and 267/327/367 against lefties.

Polanco 1-for-3. He’s 1-for-his-last-14.

Francisco 0-for-3 to drop his average to .218. Descalso made a great play to take extra-bases away from him in the second. 4-for-his-last-26 with four singles and eight walks.

Brown was 0-for-3 and is hitting .141 in 64 June at-bats. He has outslugged Francisco for the year, but Francisco is out-on-basing him .338 to .278 for the season.

Ruiz 1-for-3. He’s raised his average from .238 to .257 over the past two games, going 5-for-7.

Oswalt (4-5, 3.38) faces righty Chris Carpenter (1-7, 4.47) tonight. Carpenter has allowed a ton of hits so far this year. After allowing 370 in 472 2/3 innings in 2009 and 2010 combined, he has given up 113 in 98 2/3 innings so far this season. Righties are hitting .302 against him for the year. The Phils are just 5-7 in the games that Oswalt has started this year and have lost three of the last four. Oswalt has allowed at least three runs in each of his last three starts. He’s thrown to a 5.12 ERA with a 1.40 ratio over his last three outings.

The next update to Philliesflow won’t be until next week.

Impressive turnout. The weren’t all that attractive, but there sure were a lot of them.

The Phils scored ten runs without an extra-base hit last night, pounding the Cardinals 10-2. Down 2-1 in the eighth, the Phils put together a monster inning, plating nine runs on five singles, four walks and two memorable hit batters.

The game was also notable because the bullpen gave up a run — St Louis scored one charged to Stutes in the seventh. That’s the first run charged to the Phillies bullpen since June 10. The pen came into the game having thrown 17 1/3 scoreless innings over the last nine games. After finishing tenth in bullpen ERA in the NL in 2010, the Phils are second this season as their relievers have thrown to a 2.80 ERA

The Phillies are 46-28 on the year after beating the St Louis Cardinals 10-2 last night. They lead the NL East by 4 1/2 games over the Braves.

Halladay got the start for the Phillies and went six innings, allowing a run on four hits and two walks. One of the hits went for extra-bases, a double. He struck out five.

He walked Ryan Theriot to start the bottom of the first, but Ruiz threw Theriot out trying to steal second for the first out. Halladay struck Jon Jay out for the second out before walking Matt Holliday. Lance Berkman grounded to second to end the inning.

Two walks in the frame for Halladay. He came into the game having not walked more than two batters in any of his 15 starts on the year.

Daniel Descalso doubled with two outs in the second, but Halladay struck pitcher Kyle McClellan out looking 1-2 to leave him at second.

Halladay set St Louis down in order in the third and again in the fourth.

Yadier Molina and Descalso singled back-to-back to start the bottom of the fifth, putting men on first and second. McClellan tried to bunt the runners up, but popped it up to Ruiz for the first out. Molina was way off of second and could have been doubled-off, but there was nobody covering second. Skip Schumaker was next and he blooped a single that dropped just in between Rollins and Victorino for a single. Victorino threw to third and Molina was nearly forced, but was safe and the bases were loaded with one out for Theriot. Theriot rolled an 0-2 pitch to Polanco. Polanco didn’t get it out of his glove cleanly. He threw to second to force Schumaker for the second out, but Theriot beat Utley’s relay to first and Molina scored to put St Louis up 1-0. Jay popped to Rollins to leave the runners at first and third.

Tough inning for Halladay, who should have got a double-play on Theriot’s ball after the bloop falls in shallow center for Schumaker.

Not a good day for bunting by pitchers. McClellan can’t do it there and Halladay can’t do it twice for the Phils.

Halladay threw a 1-2-3 sixth.

Stutes started the seventh with the game tied at 1-1. He walked Descalso with one out and lefty Mark Hamilton hit for the pitcher McClellan. Hamilton moved Descalso to third with a single before Schumaker flew to center, deep enough for Descalso to score without a play at the plate. 2-1 St Louis with two outs and a runner on first. Theriot flew to center for the third out.

For Stutes it was the first time in his last six appearances he has been charged with a run. In those appearances he has allowed just two hits but walked six. A walk hurt him last night.

The Phillies led 10-2 when Bastardo started the eighth. He walked Holliday with one out, but got the next two hitters behind him.

Bastardo hasn’t allowed a run in ten innings over his last 12 appearances. In those ten innings he’s allowed just one hit and walked five.

Herndon got two strikeouts in a 1-2-3 ninth.

He hasn’t allowed an earned run in any of his last nine appearances. In those nine games, Herndon has thrown 13 innings, allowing one unearned run on nine hits and a walk. He’s dropped his ERA for the year from 9.28 to 4.18.

Bastardo threw 25 pitches in the game. Stutes 20 and Herndon ten. Nobody has thrown more than one day in a row.

The Phillies lineup against righty Kyle McClellan went (1) Rollins (2) Victorino (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Polanco (6) Ibanez (7) Brown (8) Ruiz. Five-hitter Polanco comes into the game hitting 233/279/285 since the end of April. 130/192/304 in 26 plate appearances in the five-hole for the year (3-for-23 with a double, a home run and two walks). Polanco isn’t a five-hitter when he’s hitting well.

The Phils went in order in the first.

Howard walked on a 3-2 pitch to start the second. Polanco flew to right for the first out before Ibanez hit into a double-play.

Ruiz singled to center with one out in the third and Halladay struck out trying to bunt him to second. Rollins walked on four pitches, putting men on first and second for Victorino. Victorino popped to third to leave both runners stranded.

Howard walked again with one out in the fourth. Polanco flew to right for the second out and Ibanez grounded to first to set the Phils down.

Not a good night for driving in Howard after a walk in the early going.

Ruiz singled with one out in the fifth. Halladay again tried to bunt him to second and again couldn’t do it. This time he got the bunt down, but McClellan fielded and threw to second to force Ruiz for the second out. Rollins grounded to first to end the frame.

Halladay isn’t such a good hitter. Or bunter. So let’s hope the Phils don’t put him in the lineup for his stick.

Down 1-0 in the sixth, Utley singled with one out. Howard hit into a double-play behind him.

Ibanez walked with one out in the seventh. Brown flew to right behind him for the second out, but Ruiz followed with a single to left that moved Ibanez up to second. Halladay was up next having thrown 97 pitches in the game and demonstrated his inability to do much anything with the bat. With the righty McClellan still on the mound for St Louis, Gload hit for Halladay and singled to left. Ibanez rounded third and came home. Descalso took the throw from Holliday between second and third almost exactly where Ruiz was in the base path. Descalso tagged Ruiz out at almost the same time Ibanez crossed the plate. Ibanez was called safe, the frame was over and the game was tied at 1-1.

Very close play whether Ibanez actually got home before Ruiz was tagged out.

The Phillies started the eighth down 2-1. Victorino singled off of lefty Trever Miller with one out and Utley walked behind him. St Louis brought righty Jason Motte in to face Howard and Motte hit Howard on the arm with an 0-1 pitch to load the bases. Polanco was next and he was hit on his left hand, forcing in Victorino to tie the game at 2-2. Valdez ran for Polanco at first. Lefty Brian Tallet took over for Motte and struck Ibanez out swinging for the second out. Francisco hit for Brown against the lefty and singled to left, moving everyone up a base and scoring Utley to put the Phils up 3-2. Righty Miguel Batista came in to pitch and walked Ruiz. 4-2. Martinez hit for Stutes and walked on four pitches. 5-2. Rollins singled to center, scoring Ruiz and Francisco and moving Martinez to second. 7-2 with men on first and second. Righty Maikel Cleto came in and walked Victorino on five pitches to load the bases. Utley singled to left, scoring Martinez and Rollins and moving Victorino to second. 9-2 with men on first and second. Howard singled to center, scoring Victorino to make it 10-2 and moving Utley to third. Valdez flew to right to end the frame.

Bringing in a righty to hit Howard probably didn’t please a lot of people. Big strikeout for Ibanez with one out and the bases loaded, but the Phils pick him up in a big way. The Phils get nine runs in the inning on five singles, four walks and two hit batters. Manuel lets Francisco hit for Brown against the lefty and Francisco delivers a big single.

Polanco’s pinky finger on his left hand isn’t broken, but this says he’s day-to-day.

Ruiz singled with one out in the ninth and Martinez reached behind him on an error by Molina, who was now playing first. Rollins followed that with a walk, but Victorino flew to right to leave the bases loaded.

Rollins was 1-for-4 with two walks and two RBI. He’s 4-for-his-last-15.

Victorino 1-for-5 with a walk and five men left on base.

Utley 2-for-4 with a walk and two RBI. 2-for-his-last-12.

Howard 1-for-2 with a walk and two RBI. 5-for-his-last-10.

Polanco 0-for-3 with an RBI. He’s 6-for-his-last-43 and hitting 229/278/280 since the end of April.

Ibanez 0-for-4 with a walk and five men left on base. He’s 4-for-his-last-27.

Brown 0-for-3 and taken out for a pinch-hitter in a big situation against a lefty. He’s 9-for-61 in June (.148).

Ruiz 4-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.

Cliff Lee (7-5, 3.12) faces righty Kyle Lohse (7-3, 2.88) tonight in game two of the set. Lohse has been great this year, but less fantastic over his last four starts. In his last three outings, Lohse has allowed four runs in each start without getting an out in the seventh inning in any of the three. In those three starts he’s thrown to a 6.48 ERA and opponents have hit .333 against him. Lee has been amazing in his last three starts, allowing one run in 24 innings (0.38 ERA with an 0.75 ratio).

After four whirlwind games, the Florida Marlins are finally leaving town. They’ll be welcome back whenever they want to come, though. The Phils dismantled the Fish in the series, outscoring them 25-6 and winning all four games.

Yesterday it was Cliff Lee who dominated. Lee threw a complete game shutout, allowing two singles and two walks. The Marlins didn’t put a runner on second base in the game.

The Phillies are 44-26 on the year after beating the Florida Marlins 3-0 yesterday afternoon. They sweep the four-game series and have won seven in a row and are 18 games above .500 for the first time on the season.

Lee got the start for the Phillies and threw a complete game shutout, allowing two singles and two walks. He struck out four and dropped his ERA on the year to 3.12. Over his last three starts, he’s allowed one run in 24 innings on 13 hits and five walks.

He got Emilio Bonifacio, Omar Infante and Logan Morrison on three ground balls in the first.

Gaby Sanchez walked on five pitches to start the second. Jose Lopez was next and he flew to center for the first out. Mike Stanton struck out looking for the second. With John Buck at the plate, Sanchez was picked off of first and Howard threw to second where Rollins applied the tag to end the frame.

Lee got Buck on a ground ball he handled himself for the first out in the third. Chris Coghlan flew to center for the second out. Pitcher Javier Vazquez grounded to Lee for the third.

Lee had faced the minimum through three innings and thrown 33 pitches.

In the fourth he got Bonifacio on a popup to Martinez and Infante and Morrison on a pair of ground outs.

Sanchez flew to right and Lopez struck out swinging to start the fifth with the Phils up 1-0. It brought Stanton to the plate and he singled into center, the first hit of the game for the Marlins. Buck flew to right behind him for the third out.

Lee had a 2-0 lead when he started the sixth. He walked Bonifacio with two outs, but got Infante to fly to left to leave him at first.

The Phils led 3-0 when Morrison started the seventh with a single to center. Sanchez flew to left for the first out and Lee got Lopez to hit into a double-play behind him.

Lee struck Stanton and Coghlan out while setting the Marlins down in order in the eighth.

Hanley Ramirez hit for pitcher Ryan Webb to start the ninth and grounded to short for the first out. Bonifacio grounded to third for the second out and Infante popped to Howard in foul territory to end the game.

The Phillies lineup against righty Javier Vazquez went (1) Rollins (2) Victorino (3) Polanco (4) Howard (5) Ibanez (6) Ruiz (7) Brown (8) Martinez. Martinez plays second with Utley on the bench after the Phils played a day/night double-header on Wednesday and a day game yesterday. Ibanez hits fifth with Polanco out of the five-hole and hitting third.

Rollins lined to first for the first out in the bottom of the first, but Victorino and Polanco both singled behind him. It put runners on first and third with one down for Howard and Howard struck out swinging. Ibanez walked to load the bases, but Ruiz popped up to Sanchez in foul territory to leave the bases loaded.

Howard strikes out with a runner on third and less than two outs after failing to bring a runner in from third with less than two outs twice in the night game of the double-header the day before.

Lee singled with two outs in the second, but Rollins popped to short behind him.

Victorino led off the third with a single, but Polanco hit into a double-play behind him. Howard drew a two-out walk, but was left at first when Ibanez followed and grounded to second.

Martinez singled with two outs in the fourth. Lee was next and he roped a ball into the gap in right center. Martinez scored from first and the Phils led 1-0. Rollins popped to second for the third out.

Just another of those Martinez/Lee rallies to plate a run for the Phils.

Victorino struck out and Polanco flew to right for the first two outs in the fifth. It brought Howard to the plate and he hit a 1-1 pitch out to left-center, extending the lead to 2-0. Ibanez followed that with a double to left, but Ruiz flew to right to leave him at second.

That’s home run number 15 on the year for Howard, all 15 of which have come against right-handed pitching. He came into the game hitting for a higher average against left-handed pitching for the year (.256 against lefties and .247 against righties), but slugging .547 against righties and .360 against lefties.

Brown started the sixth with a single off of lefty Michael Dunn. He moved to second on a ground out by Martinez and third on a ground out by Lee. Rollins was next and he lined a double to right. Brown scored and the Phils led 3-0. Victorino struck out swinging to leave Rollins at second.

Brown starts a rally with a single off of a lefty. He came in to the game 2-for-14 against lefties for the year. It was his first hit that wasn’t a home run since June 6 against the Dodgers. In 35 plate appearances June 7 to June 15, Brown went 3-for-29 with three homers and six walks.

Ryan Webb set Polanco, Howard and Ibanez down on three ground balls in the seventh.

Webb was back for the eighth and got Ruiz and Brown on ground outs before Martinez flew to left to end the inning.

Rollins was 1-for-4 with an RBI in the game. 5-for-18 with a double, two home runs and seven RBI in the four-game series. He’s hitting 257/330/377 for the year.

Victorino 2-for-4 with two singles and two strikeouts. 8-for-19 with two doubles in the series. 292/359/476 for the year.

Polanco 1-for-4. 2-for-11 with a walk and a double in the set. 303/351/386 for the year. 244/291/299 in 183 plate appearances since the end of April.

Howard 1-for-3 with a walk and a solo homer. 4-for-12 with a double and two homers in the series. He walked four times and drove in four runs. 251/347/494 on the year.

Ibanez 1-for-3 with a double and a walk. 1-for-12 with a walk and a double in the series. 242/293/407 on the year.

Ruiz 0-for-4 and left four men on base. 3-for-11 with two walks in the series. 245/362/335 on the year. He has one extra-base hit in his last 58 plate appearances. He’s hitting .209 and slugging .233 in June.

Brown 1-for-4 with a strikeout. 3-for-15 with two walks and two home runs in the series. He’s hitting 160/263/360 in 57 plate appearances in June and 229/309/434 in 94 plate appearances for the year. Francisco didn’t play yesterday, but went 0-for-3 with two walks, one of which was intentional, in the set. He’s hitting 216/340/365 for the season. 1-for-his-last-14 with seven walks. In his last 22 plate appearances, he has one hit and a .381 on-base percentage. That’s nutty. I don’t know what it means, but I’m pretty sure it’s not good. He’s striking out a lot less this year and walking a lot more, but getting way fewer hits and seeing less of his hits go for extra-bases.

Martinez 1-for-4 in the game and in the series. 203/226/254 in 64 plate appearances for the year. Utley didn’t play in the game, but was 4-for-11 with two doubles, a triple, a home run, a walk and four RBI in the series. He’s hitting 275/383/500 on the year in 94 plate appearances. In his first 47 plate appearances, which came May 23 to June 4, he hit 195/298/293. In most recent 47 plate appearances he has hit 359/468/718.

Oswalt (4-4, 3.14) faces righty Michael Pineda (6-4, 2.72) tonight in Seattle. Pineda turned 22 in January and has made 13 starts for the Mariners in his rookie season. Opponents are hitting just .208 against him and he’s struck out 80 in 82 2/3 innings. Oswalt’s strikeout numbers continue to drop compared to his career numbers, but he has done a good job of keeping lefties from delivering extra-base hits against him. Lefties are hitting 252/316/336 against him for the year so far, compared to their career mark of 261/307/385.

JC Romero was designated for assignment.

The Phils signed 33-year-old righty Tim Redding to a minor league deal. Redding has made 144 career starts with the Astros, Padres, Yankees, Nats and Mets and thrown to a career 4.95 ERA with a 1.49 ratio. He had a good year for the Astros in 2003 and pitched well for the Nats in 2007 in 15 starts. His last action in the majors came with the Mets in 2009. Lefties have hit 284/368/462 against him for his career.