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The total number of bases stolen by the Phillies was down in 2011 compared to recent years. In my previous post, I suggested that a big part of the dropoff has to do with the number of bases that are being stolen by Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino.

In 2011, Rollins stole 30 bases for the Phils and Victorino stole 19. Based on their career numbers for stolen bases based on plate appearances and the number of times they have been on base, which of those numbers should come as a bigger surprise?

I think the answer is that based on his pre-2011 numbers, Rollins’s stolen base total of 30 given his plate appearances and times on base is a lot closer to expected than Victorino’s 19. The 30 stolen bases isn’t really even a surprise of Rollins, given his past history of stolen base totals relative to the number of plate appearances he gets and the number of times he gets on base. Rollins missed time with injuries in 2011, limiting his plate appearances to 631 for the season. His stolen base rate in 2011 was very similar to what it was in 2006. That year he got 758 plate appearances, was on base 253 times and stole 36 bases. Based on his ’11 rate, he would have stolen 36 bases over 758 plate appearances in 2011 as well.

While his 2006 and 2011 rates of stolen bases are similar, Rollins has slowed a bit in the stolen base department over the past three years. He stole a career high 47 bases in 2008 and in that year his rates for stolen bases per plate appearance and stolen bases per time on base were also the highest for his career. In the three years since, Rollins has gotten 1,750 plate appearances, been on base 553 times and stolen 78 bases. Had he stolen bases at the rate he had through the end of 2008 and gotten the same number of plate appearances and times on base, we would have expected between 85 (if you use times on base) and 89 (if you use plate appearances) stolen bases.

The other thing I think the table above illustrates is that whether you base it on his stolen bases per plate appearance or his stolen bases per times on base, Rollins has been more likely to steal a base over his career than Victorino.

Victorino saw a bigger drop in his stolen bases in 2011, having stolen 132 bags over his last four seasons, an average of 33 per year.

Victorino stole more than 40 bases in the minors in both 2001 and 2002. In 2003 he got just 86 plate appearances with the Padres, but still stole seven bases. He arrived with the Phils in 2006 and didn’t run at all, getting just four stolen bases in 462 plate appearances. He followed that up with four years with the Phils as an everyday player in which he stole an average of 33 bases a year, at least 25 in every season and at least 30 in three of the four, before stealing just 19 in 2011.

Victorino was effective in his stolen base attempts in 2011, he just made fewer of them. He was caught stealing just three times, giving him a safe rate of 86.4%, which was the second-best of his career after 2007 when he stole 37 bags and was caught just four times (90.2% safe). He also saw considerable time in the leadoff spot in the order, getting 237 plate appearances batting first in the order. While hitting first in the order he stole just nine bases — in 2010 he had gotten 386 plate appearances as a leadoff hitter and stole bases at a much higher rate, getting 22 for the season while batting first.

So why did Victorino run less last year? I don’t know. But I think it’s important to remember that even when you include stolen bases, 2011 was the most productive year of his career as an offensive player. He walked at the best rate of his career, hit a career-high 16 triples and, as a percentage of his plate appearances, delivered extra-base hits and home runs at the highest level of his career. Remember, as good as Victorino’s year was, he had even better numbers before slowing at the end of the season. After going 2-for-4 with a walk and a triple against the Fish on September 2, Victorino was hitting a monster 308/384/542 in 471 plate appearances for the season. His numbers tumbled after that as he hit 163/237/288 over his last 115 plate appearances.

Victorino will appear on the February 20 episode of Hawaii Five-O.

This article by Jayson Stark suggests the Phils may be trying to trade Joe Blanton and that doing so might enable them to try to bring back Oswalt.

Looking at the four teams from yesterday’s post, here’s how those potential playoff teams in the NL have pitched against the Phils this season:

St Louis was one of two teams in baseball with a winning record against the Phils going into last night’s game, winning six of the nine games the teams played (including three of four in the series that ended on Monday). Seattle was the other team and they went 2-1. Washington is 9-8 against the Phils after beating them last night.

The 2.96 ERA that St Louis pitchers threw to against the Phils is the best mark for any NL team. The Cards took three of four from the Phils in the recent series and the Phils won two of three against the Cards in St Louis in mid-June. May 16 and 17 the Phils played a two-game set in St Louis and lost both games as St Louis starters Jamie Garcia and Jake Westbrook held the Phils to two runs (one unearned) over 15 innings.

The Diamondbacks notable whiffed the Phils at a high rate, striking out 52 Phillie hitters in 52 innings. Ian Kennedy (14 strikeouts in 12 innings against the Phils over two starts) did a lot of the damage there. Joe Saunders struck out 11 Phillies in 11 2/3 innings in his two starts, despite allowing 11 runs in those 11 2/3 frames. Josh Collmenter struck out nine in 7 2/3 innings over two appearances and Daniel Hudson fanned six in six frames in his one start.

Last night the Phils lost 7-5 to the Washington Nationals to fall to 98-57 on the year. They have lost five in a row and six of seven.

It’s the first time this season the Phillies have lost five games in a row.

Worley gave up a two-run homer to Wil Ramos in the top of the second to put Washington up 2-0. They Phils came back in the bottom of the inning, scoring two runs on five singles to tie the game at 2-2. In the bottom of the third, Mayberry singled with two outs, stole second and took third on a throwing error by Ramos before scoring on single by Ibanez to put the Phils up 3-2. Danny Espinosa hit a two-run shot off of Worley in the sixth to put Washington back up at 4-3. Justin De Fratus started the eighth for the Phillies and hit the first batter he faced and walked the next one before Bastardo took over. Bastardo made a throwing error and allowed two singles before getting out of the frame. Washington plated three runs to extend their lead to 7-3. Mayberry followed a leadoff walk by Utley with a two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth to make it 7-5.

Not a good start for Worley, who allowed four runs over six innings. He has thrown to a 4.23 ERA over his last eight starts. Like Hamels, Worley’s home run rate has skyrocketed late in the season. Over his first 12 appearances for the year, Worley threw 62 1/3 innings and allowed just two home runs (0.29 HR per nine). Over his last 11 appearances, he’s thrown 66 2/3 innings and allowed eight (1.08 per nine).

Blanton threw a scoreless inning in the game. In three relief appearances since returning he has allowed a run on three hits and no walks over three innings while striking out four.

Schwimer threw a scoreless inning as well, dropping his ERA on the year to 6.35.

Bastardo faced six hitters. One reached on an error, two singled and he got three outs. Over his last six appearances, he’s thrown 3 1/3 innings and allowed six runs on six hits and five walks (16.20 ERA with a 3.30 ratio and opponents have hit 400/524/667 against him).

Mayberry was 3-for-4 with a two-run homer in the game. He’s hitting 307/350/614 since the All-Star break. 302/366/543 at home for the season compared to 248/308/512 on the road.

Francisco was 3-for-4 with three singles. He has started seven games in September and hit 400/400/400 (10-for-25 with ten singles and no walks).

Ibanez had two singles, going 2-for-4 with an RBI. He came into the game 2-for-his-last-22.

At the top of the order, Rollins, Victorino, Polanco and Utley combined to go 0-for-16 with two walks.

Roy Oswalt (8-9, 3.66) faces righty Brad Peacock (1-0, 1.42) tonight.

Everything was a little upside down last night in Houston. Former Astro Roy Oswalt pitched for the Phillies with former Astro Hunter Pence playing right field. Former Phil Brett Myers started for the Astros. Joe Blanton pitched in relief.

Oh, and the Phils looked awful. And lost. 5-1. They didn’t do much of anything with Myers, who dropped his ERA on the year to 4.52 by holding them to a run over eight innings. The Phils weren’t charged with an error in the game, but looked pretty bad in the field. During one three-batter stretch in the fourth, the Phils had a ball go off of Ibanez’s glove in left for a hit, Jimmy Rollins and Pete Orr knocked each other down trying to field a ground ball behind second and Oswalt couldn’t handle a relay from second on a would-be double-play. Again, no errors, but you want to make some of those plays if you’re only going to score one run.

Oswalt again didn’t pitch well for the Phils. In his last five starts he’s had two really good outings, but the other three times out he’s allowed 14 runs in 19 innings. Since the end of May, Oswalt has made 13 appearances with the Phils (12 starts) in which he has thrown to a 4.66 ERA and opponents have hit .314 against him.

The Phillies are 94-50 on the year after falling 5-1 to the Houston Astros last night. The Phils have lost two in a row, but won six of their last eight. Their magic number to clinch a playoff spot is one. They lead the NL East by 12 games over the second-place Braves. The Braves have 14 games left to play and lead the Cardinals by 4 1/2 games in the Wild Card hunt.

Oswalt got the start for the Phillies and went seven innings, allowing five runs on 11 hits and two walks. Three of the hits went for extra-bases, two doubles and a home run. He struck out five.

He set the Astros down in order in the bottom of the first, getting Jordan Schafer on a fly ball to left, Angel Sanchez on a fly ball to center and striking JD Martinez out swinging.

Carlos Lee singled to left to start the second with the Phils up 1-0, but Oswalt got Brian Bogusevic to ground into a double-play behind him. Jimmy Paredes popped to Rollins for the third out.

Oswalt got Jose Altuve on a fly ball to center for the first out of the third. Humberto Quintero grounded to short for the second before pitcher Brett Myers singled to right. Schafer followed that with a walk, but Oswalt got Sanchez on a fly ball to right to leave both runners stranded.

Martinez doubled to right to start the fourth. Lee grounded to third for the first out with Martinez holding second. Bogusevic was next and he hit a ball to left that went off of Ibanez’s glove for a single that moved Martinez up to third. With men on first and third, Paredes hit a ground ball up the middle that Rollins and Orr both tried to field at the same time just to the right of second base. They ran into each other and both fell to the ground. Paredes was safe with a single, Martinez scored to tie the game at 1-1 and Bogusevic took second. Altuve was next and hit a ball to first. Howard went to second to force Paredes for the second out. Oswalt covered first but the relay from Rollins went off of Oswalt’s glove and Altuve was safe. Bogusevic moved up to third on the play. Quintero was the next batter, with two men down and men on first and third, and he doubled into the right field corner. Bogusevic scored to put Houston up 2-1 and Altuve took third. Myers grounded to second for the third out.

Oswalt got the first two to start the fifth before Martinez singled to right. Lee was next and he hammered an 0-2 pitch out to left for a two-run homer that put the Astros on top 4-1. Oswalt struck out Bogusevic for the third out.

Quintero and Myers singled back-to-back with two outs in the sixth, putting men on first and second for Schafer. Schafer lined to short for the third out.

Martinez singled yet again with one out in the seventh. Lee was next and Oswalt hit him on the hand with a pitch. Martinez moved up to third on a wild pitch before Bogusevic hit a ground ball to second. Lee was forced at second for the second out and Martinez scored from third to make it 5-1. Paredes followed with a walk, putting men on first and second, but Oswalt got Altuve on a fly ball to center to leave both runners stranded.

Martinez made a great play for the first out of the seventh. Sanchez chopped a ball to third and Martinez leaped high to snare it and made a strong throw to first in time for the first out.

Blanton, Joe Blanton, pitched the eighth, making his first appearance for the Phils since May 14. Quintero led off with a single to left. Righty Jason Michaels hit for Myers and popped to third for the first out. Blanton struck Schafer out swinging for the second out and got Sanchez to ground to Rollins for the third.

Blanton dropped his ERA on the year to 5.35 with the scoreless inning.

The Phillies lineup against righty Brett Myers went (1) Rollins (2) Victorino (3) Pence (4) Howard (5) Ibanez (6) Ruiz (7) Orr (8) Martinez. Rollins returns to the starting lineup for the Phils with Polanco on the bench and Martinez at third. Orr plays second with Utley still sidelined.

Pence doubled to right with two outs in the first, but Howard struck out swinging 3-2 to leave him at second.

Ibanez doubled to left to start the second. Ruiz grounded to short for the first out before Orr singled into center, scoring Ibanez to put the Phils up 1-0. Orr stole second and moved up to third when Martinez grounded to first for the second out. Oswalt grounded to first as well, leaving Orr at third.

Pence singled with two outs in the third and stole second, but Howard flew to left to leave him stranded.

Ruiz singled to right with one out in the fourth. Orr flew to center for the second out and Martinez grounded back to the mound.

Down 2-1, the Phils went in order in the fifth.

They were down 4-1 when they hit in the sixth. Ibanez walked with two outs, but Ruiz flew to center behind him.

They went in order again in the seventh.

Down 5-1, Rollins singled to start the eighth. Victorino flew to left for the first out, Pence grounded to second with Rollins moving up to second for the second. Howard grounded out to Altuve to end the frame.

Righty Mark Melancon took over for Myers in the ninth. Ibanez led off with a walk. Ruiz flew to right for the first out and Orr flew to center for the second. Polanco hit for Martinez and walked, putting men on first and second. Gload hit for Blanton and grounded to second.

Interesting non-use of Bowker there against the righty. Manuel must have felt Polanco was the better bet to get on base, or maybe he’d be better off waiting to use Bowker if the Phils got men on base. Polanco is on-basing .313 against righties for the season.

Rollins was 1-for-4 with a single in his return.

Victorino 0-for-4. 176/256/311 over his last 82 plate appearances. Really looks like a good candidate for a day off.

Pence 2-for-4 with a double. He’s hitting .408 (13-for-32 with four doubles, a triple and a home run) over his last eight games.

Howard 0-for-4 and struck out twice. He’s 3-for-his-last-16 with eight strikeouts.

Ibanez 1-for-2 with a double and two walks. 360/418/600 in his last 55 plate appearances.

Ruiz 1-for-4. 389/457/472 over his last 82 plate appearances.

Martinez was 0-for-3. He’s 2-for-his-last-19 with four walks. He has started nine of the 12 games the Phils have played in September, going 5-for-29 with a double and a home run (172/314/310).

Hamels (14-7, 2.60) faces lefty JA Happ (5-15, 5.77) tonight. Happ is having a miserable year — righties (273/362/473) and lefties (295/356/457) are both hitting him hard. Hamels been very good against righties this season, holding them to a 196/244/298 line for the season, but has allowed more home runs in his recent outings. From May 13 to July 27, Hamels made 15 starts in which he faced 411 batters and hit four home runs. Over his last two starts he has allowed four home runs to the 60 batters he has faced.

Wherever it is, here’s hoping he renews for another couple of months.

The Phils got more outstanding starting pitching last night as Cliff Lee threw 8 2/3 shutout innings and the Phils topped the Reds 3-0. For Lee it ends an August in which he allowed two runs in 39 2/3 innings over five starts.

In June, Lee allowed a run over 42 innings in five starts. In June and August combined, Lee threw to an 0.33 ERA with an 0.73 ratio and struck out 68 in 81 2/3 innings. In the months of the season other than June or August, Lee has thrown to a 4.22 ERA with a 1.28 ratio and struck out 130 in 113 innings.

In the first three games of the four-game set, the Phils have now outscored the Reds 15-2. The starting pitchers for the Phils have thrown 21 2/3 scoreless innings in the set, allowing ten hits and three walks while striking out 23. By runs scored per game, the Reds have the second-best offense in the NL behind St Louis.

The Phillies are 86-46 on the year after beating the Cincinnati Reds 3-0 last night. They are 40 games over .500 for the first time since 1977 and in first place in the NL East, 7 1/2 games ahead of the Braves.

Lee started the game for the Phillies and went 8 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing six hits and a walk. One of the hits went for extra-bases, a double. He struck out seven.

Up 1-0, he set the Reds down in order in the bottom of the first. He got Brandon Phillips on a line drive to right, Dave Sappelt on a line drive to left and Joey Votto on a ground ball to second.

Both Phillips and Sappelt hit the ball well against Lee in the first, but both into outs.

In the second he got Jay Bruce to ground to first, Miguel Cairo swinging and Drew Stubbs swinging.

Ramon Hernandez stated the third with a single to right. Paul Janish struck out swinging for the first out before the pitcher Dontrelle Willis bunted Hernandez to second with the second. Phillips grounded to short for the third out.

Sappelt reached on an infield single to start the fourth, but was thrown out trying to steal second as Lee struck out Votto. Bruce singled to right before Cairo flew to right to end the inning.

Stubbs reached on an infield single to start the fifth. Hernandez was next and hit a ball to the right of Valdez at short. Valdez made a nice play, fielding in the hole and throwing to second to force Stubbs. Utley sailed his throw to first to try to double-up Hernandez, but it was backed up nicely by Ruiz. Ruiz threw to second and Hernandez was tagged out to complete the double-play. Janish flew to left for the third out.

Up 2-0, Lee set the Reds down in order in the sixth.

He started the seventh up 3-0 and struck out Bruce and Cairo as he set the Reds down in order.

Stubbs singled to left to start the eighth, but Lee got Hernandez on a fly ball to center for the first out and Janish on a fly ball to right for the second. Righty Todd Frazier hit for the pitcher Jose Arredondo and Lee struck him out looking 2-2 to end the inning.

Lee got the first two to start the ninth before Votto doubled to center. Bruce was next and Lee walked him on a 3-2 pitch, bringing the righty Cairo to the plate as the tying run. Lee hit Cairo with an 0-2 pitch that Cairo didn’t try real hard to get out of the way of, loading the bases for the Reds. Madson took over for Lee and lefty Yonder Alonso hit for the righty Stubbs. Madson got Alonso to pop to Polanco in foul territory on a 1-1 pitch to end the game.

After getting Alonso to end last night’s game, lefties are hitting 213/289/267 against Madson for the year, which is worse than the 255/303/324 line for righties.

Madson threw three pitches in the game. Nobody in the pen has thrown more than one day in a row.

The Phillies lineup against lefty Dontrelle Willis went (1) Victorino (2) Polanco (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Pence (6) Mayberry (7) Ruiz (8) Valdez. Mayberry starts in left with the lefty on the mound. Ibanez on the bench after going 3-for-5 with a two-run homer the night before. Valdez at short with Rollins on the DL.

Victorino and Polanco walked back-to-back to start the game. Utley hit a ground ball to second with Polanco forced at second for the first out and Victorino moving up to third. Howard hit a ball that Votto handled at first, throwing to second where Utley was forced for the second out as Victorino scored to put the Phils up 1-0. Pence flew to center to leave Howard at first.

Good no strikeout for Howard to bring Victorino home from third with one out.

Ruiz and Valdez singled back-to-back with one out in the second, putting runners on first and second for Lee. Lee bunted, Willis fielded and threw to third, where Ruiz was out but called safe. Victorino popped to Phillips near the first base line for the second out. Polanco grounded back to the pitcher.

No run for the Phils after getting an extra out and loading the bases with one out.

Pence and Mayberry walked back-to-back with two outs in the third. Ruiz flew to right to leave both runners stranded.

The Phils went in order in the fourth.

Lee grounded to second for the second out and didn’t run it out. He took a couple of steps towards first and waved his hand at the ball as Phillips fielded and threw to first.

Willis struck out Polanco, Utley and Howard in the fifth.

Pence led off the sixth and hit a 2-1 pitch out to center, putting the Phils up 2-0. Mayberry struck out behind him before Ruiz singled into center. Valdez grounded to third with Ruiz forced at second for the second out and took second on a wild

Victorino started the seventh with a walk and moved to third when Polanco followed with a single to center. Utley was next and hit a ground ball to short with Polanco forced at second for the first out and Victorino scoring to put the Phils up 3-0. Utley was running when Howard his a soft ground ball to short. Janish had moved to cover second and made a nice play, coming back to get the ball and then throwing to first to get Howard for the second out. It brought Pence to the plate with Utley at second and two. Righty Jose Arredondo came in to pitch to Pence and got him on a fly ball to left to set the Phillies down.

Mayberry and Ruiz singled back-to-back to start the eighth, putting men on first and second for Valdez. Valdez hit into a double-play, which left Mayberry at third with two down. Lee grounded to short for the third out.

Polanco singled with one out in the ninth, but Utley and Howard both flew out behind him.

Victorino was 0-for-3 with two walks in the game. He’s 3-for-his-last-21.

Polanco 2-for-4. He’s 2-for-his-last-13.

Utley 0-for-5 with an RBI and four men left on base. 7-for-his-last-35.

Howard 0-for-5 with an RBI. 5-for-his-last-34 with 14 strikeouts.

Pence 1-for-3 with a walk and a home run. He has homered in two straight games and seven times in his last 95 plate appearances. He’s slugging .573 in his 119 plate appearances with the Phils. He hit 340/413/596 in August.

Mayberry was 1-for-3 with a walk. He goes 2-for-15 to end the month, but hit 296/356/685 in 59 plate appearances in August.

Ruiz was 3-for-4. 304/383/412 in his last 232 plate appearances.

Valdez 1-for-4. Since August 22, when Rollins went on the DL, Valdez has hit 316/333/579 in 21 plate appearances (6-for-19 with a walk, two doubles and a home run).

Worley (9-1, 2.65) faces righty Mike Leake (11-8, 4.04) this afternoon. Leake threw to a 5.70 ERA in his first nine appearances of the year, which included three relief outings. Since then he’s made 17 starts in which he’s thrown to a 3.49 ERA with a 1.18 ratio. The Phillies have gone 14-2 in the games that Worley has started this season — if that’s not the biggest surprise of the year it makes the photo. The Phils have won 12 straight games that Worley has started. Worley has been charged with more than one run in just four of those 12 and more than two runs in two of the 12.

Joe Blanton is expected to pitch for Lakewood on Friday.

Vance Worley threw his the first complete game of his career last night, holding the Giants to two runs on three hits and a walk as the Phils pounded San Francisco for a 7-2 win.

The Phils are now 9-2 on the year in the 11 starts that Worley has made — that .818 winning percentage is the best for any of their starting pitchers. They are 17-4 (.810) when Halladay starts.

Worley hasn’t allowed more than two runs in any of his last seven starts. In those outings the Phils have gone 7-0 while Worley has thrown to a 1.14 ERA and opponents have hit .151 against him.

The bats have come alive for the Phillies in July. After scoring 3.69 runs a game in May and 3.78 runs a game in June, the Phils have scored 113 runs while going 14-6 so far in July. That’s about 5.65 runs per game.

The Phillies are 65-37 after beating the San Francisco Giants 7-2 last night.

Worley got the start for the Phillies and threw a complete game, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk. Two of the hits went for extra-bases, a double and a home run. He struck out five.

Andres Torres was the first batter of the game and hit a ball over Mayberry’s head and off the wall in right. Torres moved to third on a ground out by Jeff Keppinger and came home to score on Pablo Sandoval’s fly ball to left, putting the Giants up 1-0. Aubrey Huff flew to right for the third out.

Up 4-1, Worley set the Giants down in order in the second and again in the third.

Keppinger led off the fourth with a single. Sandoval popped to short for the first out and Huff flew to right for the second. Nate Schierholtz grounded to Utley to leave Keppinger stranded.

Worley had a 5-1 lead when he started the fifth. Cody Ross led off and hit a ground ball to third. Martinez fielded, but his throw to first was bad for an error. Worley left him stranded by striking out the next three hitters, getting Mike Fontenot, Eli Whiteside and pitcher Barry Zito all looking.

He threw a 1-2-3 sixth.

Up 6-1, he set the Giants down in order in the seventh.

He got the first two in the eighth before righty Aaron Rowand hit for the pitcher Zito. Rowand hit Worley’s first pitch out to left, cutting the Phillies lead to 6-2. Worley got Andres Torres on a ground ball to second for the third out.

Keppinger flew to center to start the ninth. Sandoval was next and drove a ball to left, but Ibanez made a nifty catch, timing his jump and crashing into the wall, for the second out. Worley walked Huff, then got Schierholtz to fly to right to end the game.

The Phillies lineup against lefty Barry Zito went (1) Rollins (2) Martinez (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Victorino (6) Ibanez (7) Mayberry (8) Schneider. Tim Lincecum was supposed to start the game for the Giants, but was scratched due to the flu. Mayberry played right instead of Brown, who was in the lineup before Lincecum was scratched.

Rollins and Martinez both flew out to start the bottom of the first with the Phils down 1-0. Utley followed with a single and came in to score when Howard doubled into the right field corner, tying the game at 1-1. Victorino walked after that and Ibanez hit the first pitch he saw from Zito out to right-center, putting the Phils up 4-1. Mayberry struck out to end the inning.

Ibanez stays in the lineup against the lefty with Francisco on the bench and delivers early. He came into the game hitting 221/250/379 against lefties.

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

Victorino and Ibanez went down to start the fourth. Mayberry was next and he hit a 1-1 pitch out to left center, extending the lead to 5-1. Schneider struck out for the third out.

Score another for Manuel’s lineup against the lefty Zito.

They went in order in the fifth.

Utley led off the sixth and drove a ball to center. It hit off the wall and rolled and rolled towards right. Schierholtz finally got to it and threw it into the infield, but Utley raced all the way around and slid in just ahead of (or at about the same time as) the tag. He was called safe and the Phils were up 6-1. The Phils went in order behind him.

Very close play at the plate. Whiteside’s tag was high cause the relay came in on the third base side of home plate, but Utley might have been out.

Mayberry started the seventh with a double to left. He took off trying to steal third, but left too early. Zito stepped off and threw to second where he was picked off for the first out. Schneider walked behind him. Worley tried to bunt him to second, but struck out fouling off strike two. Rollins flew to center to end the inning.

Up 6-2, Martinez and Utley went down to start the eighth before Howard pounded a 1-0 pitch out to center. 7-2. Victorino flew to left for the third out.

Rollins was 0-for-4. He’s 1-for-his-last-20.

Martinez 0-for-4. 2-for-his-last-16.

Utley 2-for-4 with a home run. 11-for-24 with four doubles and three home runs over his last nine games.

Howard 2-for-4 with a double, a home run and two RBI. 6-for-his-last-14. Twenty home runs on the year for Howard, all 20 of which have come against righties. He’s slugging .320 against lefties.

Victorino 0-for-3 with a walk. 6-for-his-last-16 with three walks.

Ibanez 1-for-3 with a three-run homer. 5-for-his-last-11. 279/309/498 over his last 285 plate appearances since May 3.

Mayberry 2-for-3 with a double and a home run. 353/353/647 in his last 34 plate appearances (12-for-34 with seven doubles and a home run).

Schneider 0-for-2 with a walk. He’s hitting .176 in 81 plate appearances for the year.

Cole Hamels (12-5, 2.62) faces righty Tim Lincecum (8-8, 2.90) tonight. Lincecum has allowed one run or less in five or his last six starts, throwing to a 1.66 ERA with a 1.13 ratio over those six outings. Hamels has allowed more than two runs in a start once in his last 11 outings. Righties are hitting 199/246/288 against him for the year. Over his last 14 starts he’s allowed just four home runs in 96 2/3 innings. That’s about .37 home runs per nine innings compared to his career rate of about 1.07.

This suggests there is no timetable for Contreras’s return and that Blanton may not return at all this year.

Gary Finkler has combined sports blogging and sketching at 7thinningsketch.com

A lot of folks didn’t show up for the Phillies last night, and in some cases the no-shows were more literal than others. The starting pitcher Blanton was a late scratch, forcing Kendrick, who has been pitching out of the pen, into an unexpected start. Jason Giambi went nuts in the game, homering three times in the first five innings and driving in seven runs. The Phils, meanwhile, could muster nearly nothing offensively and fell 7-1, getting the one run they did score with the help of a four-out inning.

The Phils have now scored seven runs in their last five games.

The Phillies are 26-17 on the year after losing to the Colorado Rockies 2-1 last night. The team’s split the two-game series, but the Phils have lost five of their last six.

Kendrick got the start for the Phillies and went three innings, allowing five runs on seven hits and a walk. One of the hits went for extra-bases, a double. He struck out two.

Dexter Fowler led off the game with a single to center. Jonathan Herrera tried to bunt him to second, but popped it up to Ruiz for the first out. Carlos Gonzalez fouled out to Rollins for the second out before Tulowitzki singled into center, sending Fowler to third. That brought Giambi to the plate and he hit a 2-2 pitch out to right, putting Colorado on top 3-0. Seth Smith followed that with a walk before Jose Lopez grounded to second for the third out.

Kendrick threw a 1-2-3 second, striking out Chris Iannetta, getting the pitcher Jhoulys Chacin on a ground ball to third and Dexter Fowler on a ball hit out in front of the plate.

Gonzalez doubled with one out in the third, but Kendrick got Tulowitzki on a fly ball to left behind him. Giambi was next and hit a 1-1 pitch out to right. 5-0. Smith and Lopez followed with back-to-back singles, but Kendrick struck out Iannetta to leave them both stranded.

Baez pitched a 1-2-3 fourth.

He was back for the fifth with the lead cut to 5-1 and got Ryan Spilborghs on a ground ball to short for the first out. Tulowitzki was next and he hit a ground ball to third that Polanco didn’t handle for an error. It brought Giambi to the plate again and again he homered, this time hitting a 1-1 pitch out to right. 7-1. Smith singled behind him and went to third on a double by Lopez, but Baez struck Iannetta out swinging for the second out and got the pitcher Chacin to pop to Howard.

Mathieson pitched the sixth. Herrera singled with one out and moved up to second when Spilborghs followed and was hit by a pitch, but Tulowitzki flew to center for the second out and they finally got Giambi out, striking him out to leave both men stranded.

Smith singled to start the seventh with Mathieson still on the hill, but was thrown out by Gload trying to stretch it into a double. Lopez reached on an infield single, but Iannetta struck out again for the second and Chacin popped to Orr at second.

Mathieson allows three hits, but goes two scoreless innings. Smith trying to stretch his single and the throw by Gload helped him out a lot.

Stutes pitched the eighth. He allowed a one-out single to Herrera, but struck Spilborghs out behind him and got Tulowitzki on a fly ball to right for the third out.

Romero struck out Giambi and Smith to start the ninth before Lopez doubled. Iannetta flew to right for the third out.

Six innings for the pen in which they allow two runs, only one of which is earned, on eight hits and no walks. Plus they started Kendrick in the game, a guy who was in the pen to begin with. That’s not what the Phillies needed given they don’t have an off-day till June 2.

Kendrick threw 73 pitches in the game. Baez 40, Mathieson 40. Romero 19 and Stutes 18.

That’s all bad. Don’t know what the Phillies are going to do. But they’re going to have to do something. Halladay tonight helps, but they’ll need more. Nobody in the pen has thrown more than one day in a row, but you shouldn’t be looking for Kendrick, Baez or Mathieson in relief soon.

The Phillies lineup against righty Jhoulys Chacin went (1) Rollins (2) Martinez (3) Polanco (4) Howard (5) Gload (6) Ibanez (7) Ruiz (8) Orr. Gload starts in right against the righty with Mayberry and Francisco on the bench. He’s not an outfielder, but why not? Orr at second with the righty Valdez on the bench. Martinez in center again. For entertainment purposes, I really think they should have considered a third non-outfielder in left. Maybe Oswalt again.

Down 3-0, the Phillies went in order in the first and again in the second.

Ruiz blooped a single to left to start the third with the Phils down 5-0. Carlos Gonzalez strained his groin chasing after the ball and had to leave the game. He was replaced by Spilborghs. Orr followed that with a ground ball to first with Ruiz forced at second for the first out. Lee hit for Kendrick and struck out swinging for the second out. Rollins struck out to leave Orr at first.

No problem for me using Lee to pinch-hit there.

Polanco singled on a ball deflected by Chacin with one out in the fourth. Howard struck out swinging for the second out. Gload was next and he struck out swinging, too, but on a wild pitch from Chacin that allowed him to take first. Ibanez was next and delivered a ground-rule double to right-center with Polanco scoring from second to put the Phils on the board at 5-1 and Gload taking third. Ruiz popped to second to leave both runners stranded.

Again the Phils need help from the defense to put a run on the board.

Orr flew to center to start the fifth with the Phils down 7-1. Gload hit for Baez and grounded to first for the second out. Rollins followed with a walk and Martinez struck out swinging.

The Phils went in order in the sixth.

Ibanez started the seventh with a single to right. Ruiz followed with a ground out to first that moved Ibanez to second. Orr struck out swinging for the second out and, with Chacin still on the mound for Colorado, Mayberry hit for Mathieson and struck out to leave Ruiz at second.

Polanco singled with two outs in the eighth and took second without a throw. Howard grounded out to leave him there.

Gload started the ninth with a single to right, but Ibanez flew out behind him and Ruiz hit into a double-play to end the game.

One extra-base hit in the game for the Phils, the double by Ibanez. One walk (Rollins in the fifth).

Rollins was 0-for-3 with a walk in the game and 1-for-6 in the two-game set. He’s hitting 266/344/358 on the season. 184/200/263 over the last eight games.

Martinez was 0-for-4 in the game and 0-for-7 in the series. He’s hitting 194/237/194 for the year.

Polanco 2-for-4 in the game and 2-for-7 in the series. 335/337/427 for the year.

Howard was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. 0-for-7 in the series, dropping his line on the year to 241/319/475. 132/233/340 over his last 60 plate appearances.

Gload was 1-for-4 with a strikeout in the game. He’s 2-for-his-last-10 and hitting 313/313/313 for the year (10-for-32 with ten singles and no walks).

Ibanez was 2-for-4 with a double in the game and 3-for-7 in the series. 339/350/542 in May and 233/287/349 on the season.

Ruiz was 1-for-4 and left four men on base. 2-for-6 in the series and 218/319/333 for the season. He was hitting 351/415/568 after going 2-for-4 against the Nats on April 14. He has hit 098/240/122 in 50 plate appearances since.

Orr 0-for-3 with a strikeout in his only action of the series. 230/299/279 on the season. 9-for-his-last-50. Valdez was 2-for-3 with a double in the series and is hitting 244/277/309 on the year.

Roy Halladay (5-2, 2.21) faces lefty CJ Wilson (4-2, 3.38) tonight as the Phils host the Rangers. Lefties are hitting just .212 against Wilson with two extra-base hits, both doubles, for the year. The Phillies are 0-2 in the last two games that Halladay has started. He has thrown a complete game in both of them. Righties are hitting .190 against him for the year.

The Phils put both Blanton and Victorino on the DL. The linked article suggests that Worley will likely replace Blanton but that Domonic Brown is not likely to replace Victorino.

Update: Brown was called up to replace Victorino.