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Phils 6, Mets 3 game notes

Very good pitching from Cory Lidle is just what the Phils needed to snap a five-game skid, beating the Mets 6-3 Wednesday night.

Credit Lidle for snapping the skid
Many people would say Brett Myers has been the most reliable Phils pitcher this season, but when it comes to knowing what you can expect, game in and game out, Cory Lidle is the model of consistency.

The steady Lidle gave the Phils seven strong innings yesterday, allowing just five hits, three earned runs and only one walk. The best inning came in the seventh as the game dragged into the late hours, forcing grounder, grounder, walk, strikeout to hold the Mets in check in his final set.

The bats may be cold, but pitching had been the big culprit during the losing streak, with a team ERA of 7.98 during that stretch entering Wednesday’s game. Ugueth Urbina and Billy Wagner, finally pitching in hold and save situations, both pitched brilliant scoreless sets, including two strikeouts by Urbina.

Ishii finally exposed
As for Mets pitching, the Phils finally exposed Kazuhisa Ishii, whose name in Japanese means "give me a big, fat break."

Like Victor Zambrano the game before, Ishii can be exposed quickly by simply having a patient approach at the plate. That patience paid off big as Jason Michaels lead off the fourth with a walk, followed by free passes to Bobby Abreu and Pat Burrell to load the bases ...

... excuse me for a moment. I’m going to copy and paste this next part from Tom Goodman’s morning article on Swing and a Miss, because if I write it, I might bust my keyboard into a thousand pieces.

Jim Thome’s dismal season can be summed up by a single at-bat in last night’s game against New York. Thome came to the plate in the top of the fourth inning of a scoreless tie with the bases loaded and no one out. The Mets’ Kaz Ishii had walked the first three batters. So Thome, a veteran who should know better, swung at the first pitch and popped it up. Mets third baseman David Wright charged toward the stands but dropped the ball while leaning over the tarp. Wright was charged with a tough error on the play giving Thome new life. Reprieve in hand, Thome proceeded to strike out on three straight pitches.

Luckily, with a capital "L," David Bell nubbed a 0-2 pitch up the middle that scored two runs. It was nearly a double play ball, which would have given Sports Radio plenty to talk about.

Then it was Chase Utley time, and he nailed it off the left-hander for a three-run homer. Utley's continued improvement in this department is the reason why the future isn't pitch black.

Preparedness and patience
I’ve talked about this subject at length lately, calling out Jimmy Rollins’ lack thereof. Jimmy went 0-5 again last night and should be benched next game for Tomas Perez, who hasn’t played much lately. For the series, he’s 0-10 against Zambrano, Ishii and the Mets pen. A manager with stones would say take a seat, Jimmy. It’s never too early to start earning your $40 million.

Then there’s Thome. I'm usually pretty calm watching games, but I nearly lost it watching Thome's AB. Totally unbelievable performance by the so-called veteran leader.

After seeing that, I flipped on ESPN to check on the Braves-Marlins. Every team in baseball should be forced to watch one Braves game a week. The Braves have nine rookies on their team, yet you wouldn’t know it from their collective patience.

Time to bring up Ryan Howard
You know something’s askew when out-of-town papers start wondering why Ryan Howard is stuck in Scranton. But how about the New York Times, having absolutely no business covering this subject at all, making it the centerpiece story this morning in their sports section.

The paper of record published a lengthy piece on Howard, asking the same questions many of us have been asking:

While the Phillies are at Shea Stadium, their most intriguing player waits in a minor league ballpark at the base of Montage Mountain, on the edge of the Poconos, in the ready position.

The Phillies say Howard is a victim of circumstance, stuck behind first baseman Jim Thome and his six-year, $85 million contract, which has three seasons remaining. More specifically, Howard may be a victim of his own talent. While prospects in similar situations make for juicy trade bait this time of year, Howard has become almost too valuable to deal. The Phillies do not necessarily need him, but they are understandably terrified of giving him up ....

... Although Howard believes he was major league ready last September, when he batted .282 in his first callup, the Phillies maintain that he can benefit from another summer with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. They insist he can still improve his defense and enhance his patience at the plate. But one scout who watched Howard last week said that his only real weakness was hitting sharp breaking balls on his hands. Scores of 22-year-olds have been promoted with far greater problems.

Promoting Howard would be quite simple. Do the Phils really need two utility infielders? The answer is no. Has Jim Thome played himself out of the starting lineup? Without a doubt.

Said Goodman this morning in his comments thread, "The thing that bothers me most about trading Howard is that the overwhelming majority of people who follow the Phillies believe it would be a mistake to trade him at this point, but they are powerless to convince management. Wade is desperate, more than ever, and will act accordingly. I am convinced he fully expects to be gone when the fallout of such a poor decision begins."

If that’s the case, it would be the definitive last move in the Ed Wade era. Remember the movie "The Hunt for Red October?" Like Commander Marko Ramius, Commander Wade would essentially scuttle the ship by dealing away the future.

Sean Connery impersonations
Every guy has a Connery impersonation and this line from "Red October" is my favorite. "The officers and I will submerge beneath you, and scuttle the ship."

One reason to back Wags for All-Star

A story bound to pick up steam, should the Phils wheels come unglued even more, is the idea of dealing away closer Billy Wagner, who’s a free agent after the season.

Though his contributions have been largely overlooked, there’s a significant chance Wagner will be named to the All-Star game. He’s arguably the second-best closer in the National League behind Chad Cordero of Washington, based on his 18 saves, low 2.34 ERA and 0.98 WHIP.

Fans should be cheering on his selection no matter what, but I’m pulling for it a bit more because it will make him more attractive to potential buyers should the Phils enter sell mode.

You didn’t hear it here, but Wagner has been good, not great, in my opinion. I can't remember the last time he pitched in a high-pressure situation. Then again, outside the bubble of Philadelphia, few closers have been great and Wags is still one of the best, despite a slip in his velocity.

Trades rarely happen within the division, but teams that could use his services include Atlanta and Florida. I wouldn’t hesitate to trade Wags within the division because he’s hinted at retirement for two years.

However, we all remember what happened the last Atlanta-Philadelphia trade, and I doubt Ed Wade would cut his losses for prospects in his last gasp as GM.

Tuesday night game, reality TV notes

The Phillies continue to strand base runners at an alarming pace, and Geoff Geary gets rocked in a four-run fifth, as the Phils lose to the Mets 8-3 Tuesday night.

“Fire Me, Please!” is a great summer hidden camera show that aired opposite the Phillies game last night on CBS. I know this because I flipped channels after Utley left them loaded. Contestants intentionally try to get fired the first day on the job and must do so by a certain time.

If the game last night was an episode of “Fire Me, Please!” Jimmy Rollins would have been canned after the first at bat.   

For the second time in as many weeks, J-Rolls’ lack of approach really hurt, and probably won't receive the scrutiny it should. Last time it was against these same Mets in the series opener at CBP, and once again J-Roll's failure to understand the situation cost them.

Facing Victor Zambrano, notorious for allowing free passes, throwing to Mike Piazza, who can’t throw out base stealers, J-Roll’s job in life couldn’t be clearer. Get on base. Be patient and you can stretch one bag into two virtually uncontested. Entering the game, base runners were 16-16 running on Zambrano, and everybody and their grandmother knows about Piazza.

Instead, J-Roll’s stuck in Citizen’s Bank Park mode. He went 0-5 trying to clear the fences in every AB I saw (forgive me, I only saw three). His night went pop-up, strikeout, deep fly, pop-up, ground out. Referencing my last post, it isn’t a question of heart and passion with J-Roll, it’s about execution, preparedness and an approach demanded from a player with his experience.

Tejeda
Robinson Tejeda had another good outing in spite of the results and some wildness. He displayed uncommon poise after a rocky third inning, in which he allowed two runs. He bounced back in the fourth allowing only a lead-off walk. The rookie continues to impress me with his pitch selection. I also agreed with Manuel's decision to pull him early. Playing in the oppressive heat, these players were soaked.

Geary and Manuel
Geoff Geary deserves credit on this anti-Geary space for a couple of nice outings recently, but I question Charlie Manuel’s decision to bring the right-hander into this close-game situation. He should have handed the ball to Aaron Fultz, who’s pitching with a lot of confidence and is making a case as the team’s best reliever this season. He pitched a 1-2-3 eighth, dropping his ERA to 3.41 and WHIP to a very good 1.10.

That said, Bobby Abreu, all-star starter, didn't help Geary. See below.

Utley
Chase Utley had a nice at bat going with two outs and the bases loaded, but struck out to end the rally. Right approach, but wrong results.

Zambrano
This is the second time in a row Victor Zambrano has gotten the best of the Phils. He reminds me a lot of Russ Ortiz, who always looked like he could give up the big inning when he was pitching in Atlanta, but it never happens.

Abreu update
I didn't see Abreu's costly miss against the wall, so anyone that did feel free to comment on it. Readers know my feelings on Abreu - I believe he's a vital part of the Phils and a star in my book, but his failure to show up in big moments is undeniable, and his defense is suspect at best.

One part passion, two parts performance

Balancing heart, skill, other.

The phenomenon of assigning culpability where it ought not be assigned extends far beyond Phillies fans. The faults of the world have been blamed everything from violent movies to the religious right: to Janet Jackson’s boob to Michael Moore.

Displacement happens when shop talking the Phils, too, where losing gets blamed on everything from Citizens Bank Park, umpires, fan negativity to Charlie Manuel’s verbal skills and leadership.

The individuals lobbying hardest for these factors are also the loudest, but in my experience--blogging for over a year and reading others--those voices represent the minority.

An ongoing concept being revisited is the idea the Phils play without passion, focus and determination, which was the subject of Todd Zolecki’s morning Inquirer article. We’ve read this piece twice this season going on a hundred.

To me, lack of passion is closer to the root problem than things like fan negativity or ballpark dimensions, but doesn't represent the whole. Going back three managerial eras – Terry Francona, Larry Bowa and Manuel – each of these teams faced criticism for lack of heart, and both Bowa and Manuel publicly urged players to show fire.

This criticism is justified. The boys in red have been noticeably listless for years, not just in front of fans, but to baseball men and front office suits across the league, most of them believing the Phils have all the right pieces to field a winner.

No one, it seems, can figure out the Phillies.

When assigning blame--a favorite topic on Beerleaguer--the best points are made when the fat is trimmed leaving one irrefutable point, not easily done with an enigma like the Phils. For example, "The Phils got swept by the Red Sox because the Red Sox played better." I’d start there and work down when talking about last series.

Using the series sweep as a springboard, philly.com asked readers what’s wrong with the Phils. An overwhelming majority blamed management (36%), but the rest blamed player-related issues, such as not caring (24%), bad pitching (21%) and no timely hitting (20%). So about 65-35 if you chose to view it that way, though it might have been a smaller spread had the choice specified manager and general manager.

Back when the season started, I made it clear 2005 was all about Jim Thome, Bobby Abreu, Jimmy Rollins, Pat Burrell, Mike Lieberthal and David Bell–the veteran core installed to win. But I also said the offseason’s big move was hiring Manuel, the players’ coach, to give this team the comfort they were reportedly starved for.

I posted a similar poll back when the team was struggling in April. Votes are actually still rolling in on my defunct blog, Berks Phillies Fans, and the results show more blame cast on the players, with 38 percent blaming the players, with less votes going to choices like general manager (26%), the manager (16%) and the owners (14%).

Just as the players earned credit for the 12-1 homestand, so, too, should they receive blame for their recent failures at home. Brett Myers, their best pitcher, went 0-1 with a 15.95 ERA in two starts. Jon Lieber and Vicente Padilla allowing six and five runs in their only outings. Mike Lieberthal went 2-14, and David Bell went 4-25.

Heart can’t be easy for one man to educe into a team of 25 professionals, yet some teams like the Atlanta Braves have kept the competitive edge for years--decades. When thousands and thousands of baseball players in the world are narrowed down to 30 teams, competitive drive has to kick in higher than at any level. The role of manager shouldn't be taken for granted.

There’s always something to be said about collective heart, but there’s still percentage points more to be said about individual performance. Runs earn wins. Runs are achieved with the crack of a bat, the whip of a wrist and the snap of a glove, yards away from the dugout, the bleachers, the press box.

Phils staying put with Padilla in rotation

Manager Charlie Manuel hopes the struggling right-hander can straighten things out in the starting rotation.

Beerleaguer take
I’m in favor of one more go for Padilla, which is shaping up to be a possible career-changing game. There have been rumors stemming from last season Padilla would be a great weapon out of the bullpen. But with the season-ending injury to Randy Wolf, his place in the rotation is secure at least until Saturday, when he’s scheduled to pitch against San Diego.

The concept of Padilla the reliever is worth dissection. He can’t go long innings anymore, not lasting over six innings this season, but he’s typically terrible in the first inning, as he was Saturday. I’m uncertain how a slow starter would translate to late-inning duty, but he’s proven to be a man of short focus. My gut tells me it would work, with Padilla stepping in to limited action and trying to throw gas. Then again, there’s no telling how pouty Padilla will take it.

In spite of Saturday’s meltdown, Manuel is rightfully standing by his man.

"I'm for Padilla," Manuel said to mlb.com writer Ken Mendel Sunday. "I'm not looking to cut or punish him. I'm looking to get Padilla pitching like he showed us he can. The biggest thing is to encourage."

Mendal said Amaury Telemaco, Geoff Geary or Ryan Madson could serve as alternatives if Padilla stumbles. The best option is still Padilla. But forget about Telly and Geary. And in my opinion, forget about Madson, too.

Yanking Madson from the bullpen midseason robs the bullpen of perhaps their best weapon. It also forces the 24-year-old to drastically shift gears. If a Madson experiement fails, I fear a major tailspin.

Gavin Floyd
The best alternative, should Padilla crumble even more, may be to recall Gavin Floyd, whose odds of success in the starting five are just as good as Madson’s.

Floyd is by no means pitching up to expectations this season. He’s obviously battling with the idea of failure. Update from Sporting News Ken Rosenthal: "He does not have the power curveball that he had, and he doesn't have great command of his fastball," one scout says. "Triple-A hitters are laying off the fastball, and he can't get them to chase his curve. It's more of a slurve this year. He used to have a snap-dragon type breaking ball."

Many thought the 22-year-old would be a staple in the rotation at this point this season, but he’s struggled since his brief stint earlier in the year. His Scranton numbers are an unimpressive 3-5 with a 6.68 ERA.

But one gets the feeling Floyd is wilting away on the forest-green carpet of Lackawanna County Stadium and might benefit from time with the big boys, throwing to major-league catchers Mike Lieberthal and Todd Pratt. He’d also have access to major-league pitching instruction from coach Rich Dubee to get that curveball straightened out. Another benefit, obviously, is Madson can remain in the bullpen.

If Padilla struggles yet again and Floyd works a solid game his next start, I’d consider making the switch. At the very least, Floyd, the future of Phils pitching, can gain experience, while Padilla, not the future of Phils pitching, steps aside.

Gammons quotes
Peter Gammons in his latest espn.com column: "Whomever designed that park in Philadelphia was an idiot." I was thinking the same thing watching Manny Ramirez's pop fly sail out yesterday.

Gammons also reported the Phils called the Toronto Blue Jays about a deal involving Ted Lilly for Ryan Howard but the Jays refused.

Catching up on the fourth-place Phils

Blogging feels too much like work this morning.

I was gone since Friday, picking a good time to take a mini-vacation to attend a friend’s wedding. Now I'm back, and there's not much to say.

I’m not surprised the Phils got swept. It’s disappointing for fans because this series was the most anticipated of the year. Boston is a bigger attraction than the Yankees, and there were plenty of Red Sox fans at Citizen’s Bank Park this weekend.

There’s a fair share of bad luck involved here. The Red Sox are the best team in baseball right now, and the Phils picked a bad time to step on the tracks. The defending champs are surging and doing what they do best - just pound teams into submission – and there wasn’t much anyone can do to stop it. As far as I’m concerned, the previous series loss to the Mets was worse.

The Phils didn’t look battle-ready. I saw a couple innings in the hotel bar. I watched Jim Thome miss a pitch that was a foot and a half under his bat. I watched him hit a line drive right into the shift. I saw Ugueth Urbina give up another home run. I arrived home in time yesterday to see the Phils’ impressive comeback, only to watch it disappear.

It’s tempting to fall back on the old saying “It’s a long season” because it always seems true. The Phils went from rock bottom to contention during the June homestand, and there isn’t much space separating them and the first-place Nationals, with over half the season left to play.

Then there’s the philosophy the Phils are a team of peaks and valleys, and there’s no point in getting too hopeful, as we did after the homestand, or falling into complete despair, like we did in late April. “They pull you in and spit you out” is a common expression.

Then there’s a frightening look at a team like the streaking Braves, winning without Chipper Jones and three starters, and believing it’s time to sell the farm. Every GM in the division is watching Atlanta and waiting for John Schuerholz to make his deal, and the Phils would benefit from shedding a long-term contract for prospects.

Future forecast
Many points written in this space before the season appear to be coming to fruition. I thought the Phils would be right in the middle based largely on a mediocre starting rotation. I thought Atlanta would surge mid-season and they are, paced by Andruw Jones and John Smoltz, whom I picked to win the MVP and Cy Young respectively.

So it’s game by game as it should. Next up are those NY Clowns, another team running in place.

Later on, after I have time to catch up on the headlines, I’ll have more focused thoughts on Vicente Padilla, John Lieber, Jim Thome and other problem areas. Until then, feel free to post your thoughts. As a fan, where are you?

Team of the Living Dead

Despite major injuries, the Atlanta Braves refuse to pass quietly into the night.

It must be voodoo.

How else do you explain overcoming injuries to three major starters, including Tim Hudson, Mike Hampton and John Thomson? How is it possible that night after night, they insert two or more rookies in their lineup and get decent production out of all of them? How do you explain a walking corpse named Franco batting cleanup some nights and stealing two bases in one game, hitting two home runs the next? And have you seen John Smoltz lately? He's just a stump with a head and slings the ball to the plate with his mouth.

The fact the Braves haven’t sunk like stones must be magic.

Or just typical Braves’ baseball. And the worst has yet to come.

Phans have experienced this story 13 times before. We know it by heart. We know what happens in the next chapter. Head zombie, John Schuerholz, will make his deal.

You know the deal, right? The one that rewrites the landscape of the division and helps them win their 14th consecutive pennant.

This year, the deal could be for a number of top starters, and it could happen very soon. How about Jason Schmidt for the stretch run? He’d make a nice Brave. Or maybe a package deal that includes both Schmidt and Alou? Wouldn’t that be something. Barry Zito would be a good fit, as would Kip Wells or even Roger Clemens.

Schuerholz's magic lies in his unbelievable patience, coupled with and an endless amount of prospects – tools Wade doesn’t have or utilize effectively. While Wade grabbed Ugueth Urbina as an insurance reliever, Schuerholz pushed on with an even weaker bullpen. Now he’s waiting for the chips to settle, and when he finally pulls the trigger, it’s guaranteed to be huge – much bigger than Uggie.

The Braves lost last night, but over the past 10 games they’re slowly creeping back into the picture, pulling to a half game back of the Phils and only four out of first.

If history repeats itself, they're destined to go on a run while the rest of the division treads water.

And right now, the zombie's hand is grasping at the ankle of the Phillies.

Mets 4, Bozos 3

Someone help. There's pie in my face.

The best I can do is read the box score, but somehow I know exactly what happened. The Phils faced their worst nemisis today: a crappy left-hander. Kaz Ishii got his second win this afternoon, tying his second-longest outing of the season going 6 2-3, holding the Phils to one run until the seventh inning.

Meanwhile, the Phils are now stranding runners at an alarming clip, including nine this afternoon. That's the story of the series loss in my opinion.

Bobby Abreu
I missed the game, but driving home the hot topic on WIP radio was Bobby Abreu failing to deliver in the ninth. In my book, Abreu is a run-scoring machine, a presence the major media outlets underappreciate. Listening to the radio guys discount his "stats," like stats are so irrelevant, represents the small-town approach that drives serious and educated baseball fans to alternative media.

The argument today was whether or not Abreu is a star, and this series was great helium to inflate the giant head of Howard Eskin. Abreu also made the last out Tuesday, and Eskin has long championed the notion that minority athletes are inferior to whites Abreu can't "carry" a team.

Eskin believes Abreu isn’t a star because a star must rise to the occasion in big spots, and with Bobby, those dramatic moments are few and far between.

I would agree 100 percent actually, but he's a star in my book based on the number of runs he creates. In order to win, you need runs, and that’s what he does – puts nine Phillies in great shape to win ballgames. The negativity toward things like taking the first pitch doesn't even make sense anymore.

Phils 8, Fools 4

Late notes from last night’s win.

How much credit does Robinson Tejeda deserve for keeping Phillies pitching from sinking? A ton. Paul Hagan had that story this morning:

Taking nothing away from the specter of losing lefthander Randy Wolf for a year or more - he's expected to decide today whether to have reconstructive elbow surgery - Tejeda certainly has lessened the level of anxiety somewhat.

Manuel said Tejeda has succeeded because he has better command and suggested that his focus has improved, that he's pitching up to the level of competition.

Said Tejeda: "Every year is not the same. I'm still working on trying to get better. But I like to compete. I hope I've showed them that I'm the guy."

Manuel sounds convinced.

"He came up basically to be a long guy," he said. "We put him in there [as a starter], because that's what we had. And he'll stay there. He's done a good job."

On the opposite side, Victor Zambrano faked his way through six innings, giving the Phils plenty of chances just like the first time they faced. The Phightins stranded 10 in this one, and for a while it looked like another wasted opportunity against a divisional foe.

Fortunately for the Phils, Kenny Lofton has gone totally nuts.

Kenny Lofton has gone totally nuts
Kenny Lofton and Chase Utley represent unique pieces the Phils never had the last few seasons. They’ll hit to opposite fields, they’re fast, and they’re clutch. They’re both aggressive, but in the right way.

No one is stepping to the plate with more confidence than Lofton, who busted the game wide open with a three-run double in the seventh. It’s insane, but when Lofton steps to the plate, my gut tells me good things will happen.

Lofton: .387 BA .455, OBP, .482 SLG, 137 ABs

Through June 14, his 10 runs created per game were tied for the team lead with Bobby Abreu.

Looking at his overall contribution, Lofton’s nine win shares is tied with outfielders like Andruw Jones, Moises Alou and Jose Guillen, with 1.9 fielding win shares good for 19th among all outfielders. Trading for Lofton has turned into Ed Wade’s greatest achievement this offseason.

Chase Utley also deserves credit for a great game, going 3-5 with a big RBI single in the seventh. Since the Polanco trade, Utley has cooled off a little, and it’s not that he’s seen many lefties since then. Chalk it up to his transition to full-time second baseman, which is easier said than done.

Thome
What can be more holly-jolly than the sight of Jim Thome plodding around the bags? It was good to see his homer. It was even better to see it land in the upper deck.

Urbina
Ugueth Urbina allowed another home run last night. Patience must be exercised with the veteran stopper as his role on this team will prove vital in the last months of the season. In the meantime, Manuel would be wise to air on the side of caution when using him in a setup role in Citizen’s Bank Park.

Manuel and the media
I agreed with Manuel’s decision to limit Tejeda to six innings. With questions regarding Padilla’s health, Tejeda could pull extra duty, plus it’s not a bad to ease the rookie into things.

I watched the press conference afterwards. The first question Cholly answered was why he pulled Tejeda after 67 pitches. It’s not the first time Manuel has been second-guessed for a decision that actually worked. But still, that slick reporter had to show Charlie who’s boss.

"You see, Mr. Manuel, where we come from, double switches and pitch counts mean something. Don't they teach you that out on the farm?"

We’re really impressed.

DJ Jazzy Jeff
The Phightins did their best Uncle Phil impression last night, grabbing the Mets by the seat of the pants and tossing them out the door, Jazz-style.

It was indeed a great night for the Phils, AND for Philadelphia-native Jeffery A. Townes, affectionately known as DJ Jazzy Jeff and popular guest star in the long-running sitcom "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air."

Townes received some kind of award (we’ll call it the award for outstanding achievement in the field of excellence) before the game.

Those who remember Jazzy Jeff know him as the better half of the ’80s rap group DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. The Fresh Prince, Will Smith, went on to achieve moderate success in television and film. Townes went on to receive ... the award for outstanding achievement in the field of excellence.

Definitive Jazz quote from the show: [Explaining a shrunken shirt] The directions on the shirt said "Hand Washed." So that's exactly what I did. Before I put the clothes in the washer, I washed my hands.

Today’s preview
Cory Lidle vs. Kaz Ishii starting in, oh, three minutes.

Rabble-rousing ruffles fan's feathers

Today's Beer Leaguer headline caught the attention of at least one Mets blog.

Mostly Mets did not take too kindly to my old-fashioned mud-slinging this morning when I called the Mets "clowns."

Well Stinky, your bums may have won the battle, but tonight we'll win the war.

Seriously, Mostly Mets offered some nice compliments and encouraged readers to drop by. I encourage the same, and fans of all teams are always welcome to this space.

Even fans from Stinktown.

Clowns strike first: Mets top Phils

The Phillies return home after a tough road trip, but stumble out of the gate, losing to the last-place Mets 8-5 last night.

Sometimes it’s easy to just sum up the last few innings when doing these games stories, and sometimes it’s easy to just pluck numbers from the box score. This game isn’t one of them.

Many people will blame the two homers surrendered by Ugueth Urbina in the eighth as the reason the Phils lost this game, with the Mets putting it out of reach at that point 8-5. But at no point did the Phils lead this game. From the onset, you could tell something was off, and the problems can be traced to the very beginning.

Jimmy Rollins
His mistakes were typical J-Roll. When Jose Reyes led off the game with a weak roller, J-Roll lazed up to it without urgency allowing the fleet Reyes to reach easily. I believe that set the table for the Mets the rest of the way against Brett Myers, who lasted only 3 1-3, allowing six earned runs including a run-scoring balk in the first.

Then there’s J-Roll the table-setter, who led off the bottom half of the first by swinging at the first pitch and popping up.

The box score shows a healthy 2-5 with an RBI and a run scored for the recipient of a new $40 million contract, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. It doesn’t say that three of his outs came on a total of four pitches. In fact, his last hit would have been a game-ending double play had it not been for a lucky bounce. Oh, and he saw two pitches in that at bat.

I’ll reiterate what I said last week when Ed Wade re-upped J-Roll for five years. He’s solidly average to above-average both in the field and at the plate, and I don’t expect his approach to hitting to ever change.

There have been rumblings that fans would rather see Kenny Lofton in the leadoff spot. Lofton had an identical line to J-Roll last night (2-5, 1 RBI, 1 R), but his approach was much better. I would not be opposed to swapping them.

I’ll have more on last night’s game later this morning, including a look at the two bullpens. I'm disappointed the Phils didn't give the 43,000 in attendence the passionate game they deserved.

*******************************************************************************************

Bell and Lieberthal
Time to revisit the most informative Beer Leaguer comment thread this season.

Last night, David Bell and Mike Lieberthal hit seventh and eighth respectively, setting up a couple innings in which a Mets pitcher got to face a string of weak right-handed hitters, in addition to the pitcher spot.

Here’s what alert reader George S. observed a few days ago about batting Bell and Lieby back-to-back:

"Bell and Lieberthal, batting in sequence in the lineup, present an offensive black hole that the Phillies cannot usually overcome. Rally-killers extraordinaire.

I looked at all the Phillies' box scores and counted the games where neither Bell nor Lieberthal started, the games where one or the other started, the games where they both started, but batted apart in the order, and games where they both started and batted consecutively in the order.

The results:

Record with neither: 4-0 5.75 RPG
Record with one of them: 10-5 6.00 RPG
Record batting apart: 12-7 5.42 RPG
Record batting in order: 10-18 3.71 RPG

Start both: 22-25 4.40 RPG
Don't start both: 14-5 5.95 RPG

Bat them in order: 10-18 3.71 RPG
Any other option: 26-12 5.45 RPG"

I wouldn’t blame Bell and Lieberthal for last night, but it’s certainly frustrating how easy opposing pitchers can notch two or three-straight outs.

Brett Myers chin hair report
Brett Myers chin hair is beginning to curl forward in the tradition of Ming, mortal enemy of Flash Gordon.

Urbina and the bullpen
He’s been the as-advertised flyball pitcher we expected. On a team with so many groundball pitchers like Cory Lidle, Jon Lieber and Ryan Madson, the hanging action of Urbina’s pitches is like nothing else on staff. He picks his spots, and the ball arrives uninhibited. It’s easy to see how hitters can meet his pitches cleanly.

Aside from Urbina, the Phils received more strong innings from the B-list bullpen, including another great game from Aaron Fultz, who helped his cause with a neat little two-out single. Geoff Geary, Rheal Cormier and Billy Wagner also pitched scoreless sets.

On the other side, the much-maligned Mets bullpen held it for Kris Benson.

Losing within the division
After the game, Charlie Manuel expressed his frustration with losing to divisional foes. They’re now 12-19 against the NL East.

Year after year, their poor record against division rivals is a major reason they can't shake their "can't win in the clutch" stigma.

Phils set to battle a bunch of bums

A June sweep of the struggling Mets could knock them out of the picture.

Lets face it: No one should be surprised the Mets are a complete mess, even the Beer Leaguer, who picked them to win the NL Wildcard.

Yep. If you never read this space again, I’ll understand.

The problem started when GM Omar Minaya surrendered to impulse over practicality this winter, grabbing the expensive Porsche instead of the economic Civic. If he used half the money they spent on big-ticket Carlos Beltran - who they didn’t need - and used it for a fifth starter and middle relief, they could be in the hunt.

The Mets can still boast a solid core of talented young players, including third baseman David Wright and outfielder Victor Diaz. They probably have the best pitcher in the division in Pedro Martinez (who the Phils won’t see this series), in addition to a handful of veterans, like Cliff Floyd, Mike Piazza and Mike Cameron, who aren’t as washed up as people think they are.

But I was baffled how a team willing to spend so much on Beltran, Pedro and Kris Benson (who pitches tonight) failed to address bullpen even a little bit. Instead, they assembled a rag-tag collection of has-beens or never-weres knowing their No. 4 and 5 pitchers, Victor Zambrano and Kaz Ishii (who replaced the injured Steve Trachsel), were disasters waiting to happen.

Four of the seven relievers that started the year in the pen are gone, including veteran Mike DeJean. DeJean was outrighted by the Mets yesterday.

Record-wise, they've replaced the Phils at the bottom of the barrel. They've played a brutal stretch since the Houston series ending June 9, losing eight of ten, including their most recent sweep at the hands of the Mariners.

To add salt to the wounds, bodies are dropping like flies. Second baseman Kazuo Matsui was placed on the DL yesterday, which wouldn’t be a huge concern if Miguel Cairo wasn’t also on the shelf. Chris Woodward and ex-Phil Marlon Anderson will likely split time at the position.

In their frenzy, the team has scoured the waiver wire for scabs, signing former Reds closer Danny Graves. They also signed former-Phil Jose Offerman back on June 8.

It hasn’t been an auspicious debut for manager Willie Randolph, either. The rookie skipper faces Charlie Manuel-type criticism for his use of the bullpen and for making certain lineup decisions. Common requests, read on Metsgeek, include moving David Wright to the No. 3 hole, moving Aaron Heilman to the rotation and Ishii to the pen, dropping Jose Reyes out of the leadoff hole, moving Floyd to first base and making Victor Diaz full-time in the outfield, and the list goes on and on and on. Nothing Randolph does seems to work.

For the Phils, this is a great opportunity to dig in, puff out their chests and demonstrate some inner-division dominance. The Mets are really on the ropes, and a sweep could be enough to knock them out of the picture for good. In order to do that, the Phils must summon a killer instinct that’s been missing the past two seasons.

Let’s go Phils. Crush these bums.

365 days of blogging about baseball

One year ago today, I began what my wife calls a lurid affair with my blog.

Deciding my long-winded e-mail rants about the Phillies deserved wider exposure, I launched a free Blogger blog after reading about the service in Time Magazine. Calling it Berks Phillies Fans, with the intention of having a group of local fans contribute to the conversation, my first official post came about 4 p.m. on a Friday afternoon. Nothing would ever be the same again.

"Welcome to the official blog for Berks County Phillies fans. This forum is intended as a venue for Phillies fans to share their opinions. Have fun."

Like a whimpering mouse, my posts were short, sweet and largely unfocused in those first few months. I harassed established bloggers to add my link and some of them did, some did not, probably because of random posts like this:

"Mike Krzyzewski would set himself up for disaster if he accepted the Lakers head coaching position vacated by Phil Jackson. First, he'd inherit a team that's old, thin, and dispassionate. They'll likely lose Shaq to the Clippers or Mavs, and Phoenix is making a strong push for Kobe."

Over time, BPF evolved. I designed a flashy banner, added links, and a hit counter that steadily went up and up. I stayed active over the offseason while many veteran Phils’ blogs went cold and gained some loyal readers.

Today, I’m in my second month under the new title Beerleaguer. I’ve received great feedback and encouragement to seek a larger audience for this site, and have no intention of stopping.

Tonight I plan on making sweet love to my blog. It will be hot and intense.

Thanks, fine readers, for making Beerleaguer the buxom blog it is today.

Mr. Lieber, meet Mr. Treadmill

Jon Lieber was supposed to be the Sabermetricians' trump card.

Conventional wisdom states a pitcher must strike out no less than 10 batters a game, instigate at least one bench-clearing brawl a year, and date a cast member of the television show "Charmed" to be considered an ace.

On the other side, all statheads need is a guy to get dirty outs any way possible, happily trading flash for a hair cut you can set your watch by. That's Lieber's game. Er, it was his game ... until this season.

Some hard-to-please fans refused to look at the facts when GM Ed Wade signed the crew-cutted Yankee to replace Eric Milton and Kevin Millwood. They called him a No. 3 starter at best, saying he "wasn't lights out enough" and his strikeout totals were too low. They also believed he was an injury risk, preferring Wade sign a young gun like Carl Pavano who projects to have a long, promising career dating Playmates over a 35-year-old Alabamian who recently underwent Tommy John surgery.

The truth is, evidence indicates that pitchers coming off Tommy John actually pick up velocity. But the story with Lieber is in the numbers that don’t make SportsCenter.

Prior to 2005, he would have been perfect for close confines of Citizen’s Bank Park. His equivalent home runs per nine was an exceptional 0.9 in 2004, but the most impressive aspect of his game was his 0.8 equivalent walks per nine. Lieber was a control pitcher with a heavy fastball and sinker, especially tough on right-handers when he busted it inside. He was the Yanks’ best pitcher the second half of the season, and after the Bombers let him walk, GM Brian Cashman regretted the decision almost immediately.

PECOTA projected he would allow only 19 home runs this season.

Yesterday, he gave up home run number 20 and is now on pace to give up more home runs than Eric Milton last year.

So much for rock-solid evidence.

So what’s going on with this guy? He had a concrete pattern as easy to predict as his hair cut.

Ever since his first start, he’ll get to a point in the game when his jaw hangs open and he starts hanging his stuff. He’s walked 20 batters, after surrendering just 18 free passes last season. That indicates an issue with his control and conditioning, which has been address by manager Charlie Manuel who said Lieber must lose a few pounds. The season isn’t half over, and the hottest months and most grueling stretch are yet to come. His conditioning isn’t a joke anymore, it’s a concern, and represents another good reason to seek out some help in the rotation.

The most troubling part of his game may actually be his own defense, which has been atrocious. On several occasions this season, he botched a routine throw to first. Like Chuck Knobloch, he’s gone batty in that part of his game.

Lieber is showing troubling signs of physical and mental fatigue. After Sunday’s game, I’m officially "disappointed" in him, and it’s only going to take one more bad start at home before fans start jumping all over him.

Remember, they got him for three seasons at a pretty high price. What kind of pitcher will he be in 2007?

Maybe they should have followed conventional wisdom after all.

Dismal base running dooms Phils

Someone call John Vuckovich. Ask him if he’s still got that nice polyester getup hanging in his closet.

It’s been a major issue all season, but yesterday the Phillies' incompetence on the bases came to a head, losing to the A’s 2-1 in a torturous, rip-your-hair-out affair. This was the toughest loss in months.

The big blunder happened in the fourth inning when Bobby Abreu was given the green light from third base coach Bill Dancy to score on a one-out double by Jim Thome. Mark Kotsay’s throw from center field arrived well before Abreu reached home and was tagged out easily by catcher Jason Kendall. Had he been given the stop sign, both Chase Utley and Jason Michaels would have had opportunities to score him.

Instead, the inning resulted in no runs, one of many in which they had plenty of base runners but couldn’t drive them home. They stranded seven on the day, including five leadoff hitters that reached.

Their foolishness cost them earlier in the game when Mike Lieberthal was caught off second on Ramon Martinez's grounder back to the pitcher Kirk Saarloos. Chase Utley also got doubled off first later in the sixth when Kotsay chased down a fly to deep center, throwing him out by a good ten feet.

Jimmy Rollins accounted for the only run, leading off the game with a home run. He went 3-4 on the day with two steals.

The game was basically theirs for the taking all afternoon. Oakland starter Kirk Saarloos gave up nine hits and four walks in 6 1-3 innings. The Phils spoiled a solid outing from Cory Lidle, who allowed two runs on five hits in 7 2-3 innings.

After the game, manager Charlie Manuel called this one of the toughest losses of the season, and it’s hard to argue that. With a win, they could have guaranteed themselves at least a 3-3 road trip.

The good news is the Nationals also lost, so the Phils remain 1.5 games out of first and still have a chance to salvage a .500 road trip this afternoon.

Tejeda notches win as Phils top A's

Rookie Robinson Tejeda, making his first "official" start as a member of the rotation, earned his first win in leading the Phils to a 6-1 win over the A’s Friday night.

The 23-year-old gave up four hits and walked three in 5 2-3 innings. He has not allowed a run in his two starts this season.

After the game, manager Charlie Manuel talked about his young pitcher.

“He has a chance to be very good,'' Manuel told the AP. “He has the stuff, he's pretty cool and he's composed.”

Coming into 2005, Tejeda, who was protected on the 40-man roster, had a track record of control problems, allowing too many walks and surrendering home runs. Those aren’t uncommon issues for a young fire-baller, however, and between spring training, his time in Triple-A Scranton, and now here with the Phils, we’re seeing fewer traces of that, though his walks still outnumber his strikeouts 17-14.

We’re not talking about a marquee Baseball America cover boy either. Tejeda spent five seasons the minor league system before he even reached Double-A Reading, where he pitched in the shadows of Gavin Floyd, a Baseball America cover boy.

What we’ve seen so far out of Tejeda is an ability to keep his cool no matter where he’s asked to contribute. Remember, he was a starter just as Floyd was, who was also asked to shift to the bullpen. He could handle it; Floyd could not.

Pratt
If it takes making Todd Pratt Tejeda's full-time catcher to maintain that composure, I’m for it. The veteran backup started last night and went 1-4 with 3 RBIs including a two-run double in the seventh.

Pratt’s ability to handle young pitchers is something I touched on earlier in the season. He was the guy behind the plate when Gavin Floyd pitched seven strong innings in St. Louis. Floyd retired 19-straight batters in that game.

Starter search
Friday night meant the Phils can rest easy for a little while on their possible pursuit of another starter. Between Padilla and Tejeda I still believe something will break down. One option being talked about is the guy they faced last night, Barry Zito, who looked great until he stumbled in the seventh inning. Zito took a one-hitter into the seventh, and after the game teammate Eric Chavez said it was his best stuff since 2002. Zito's price tag is high, however, earning $5.6 million this season, and Paul Hagen reported yesterday there are no clear indications Oakland GM Billy Beane plans on moving him ... yet.

B-list bullpen
Rheal Cormier, Aaron Fultz and Geoff Geary did the job once again as the bullpen continues to impress. Fultz allowed an RBI double in the eighth, but Cormier and Geary worked perfect innings.

Notes from the favorite player file

Hot, hot, hot!
That’s how my stepfather Martin Smith described Ryan Howard in a email this morning after he slugged two more home runs last night for the Red Barons. At present, he’s leading the league in batting with .377. Perhaps his stock is on the rise after all. Damn you, Goodman.

Polly party
Placido Polanco is gone but not forgotten by the Beer Leaguer. Polly played a key role in the Tigers sweep of the Padres in a classic interleague grudge match. He went 6-12 in the series.

Julio! Julio!
He's the best ageless wonder since Satchel Paige. Julio Franco went 2-5 last night and stole two bases, batting out of the three-hole. Let me repeat that: a 47-year-old stole two bases last night. You go with your bad self, Julio!

Phils-Mariners series wrap

I was set to write about a faint “pop” this morning emanating from the Pacific Northwest. It would have been the sound of the Phillies’ bubble bursting.

Instead, a 13th-inning triple by Jimmy Rollins led to a game-winning sacrifice fly by Tomas Perez, allowing the Phils to escape the land of the lost with at least one win, defeating the Mariners last night 3-2.

While this blogger used the time to catch up on reading (“Into Thin Air” by Jon Krakauer), watch fine cinema (“Direct Action” with Dolph Lundgren; “Batman Begins” with Christian Bale), and sweep our dirty floors (caused by cat, James, and dog, Madeleine), the Phils narrowly avoided a sweep themselves.

But I’ll take it. Coming off an emotional homestand then jetting off to parts unknown, a series loss to the Mariners wasn't unexpected.

The lack of extra-base hits was a surprise however; they managed only three all series. In addition, David Bell went hitless in his return to Seattle and Mike Lieberthal and Jim Thome each collected only one hit.

On a related note, check out George S.’ comments in my Larry Andersen post about Bell-Lieberthal. Great stuff.

Moving to the pitchers, I like the Phils deep bullpen right now. Rheal Cormier, Ugueth Urbina, Ryan Madson, Geoff Geary and Billy Wagner allowed only one run – a homer given up by Cormier – over 6.2 innings last night. Geary deserves respect this morning on this space, typically hostile toward the right-hander. He earned the win, and Wags got the save.

Moving on to the starters, Jon Lieber pitched eight innings two days ago and leads the team in wins, but would it be out of line to say he’s been a disappointment? What’s the deal with all the home runs? He gave up a homer to Dave Hansen Wednesday, who hadn’t hit one since July of last year.

As for Vicente Padilla, he had a typical line Tuesday going five innings and change, allowing three earned runs. There are no indications Padilla will ever become the dominant pitcher coaches talked about. He’s a fifth starter who would be battling to keep his job in a healthy rotation.

Then there’s Brett Myers. His only negative is he doesn’t get run support. What a fine year he’s having. Make this man an All-Star.

More left coast fun as the Phils travel to Oaktown for a series with the Athletics. The A’s are a bad team with a punchless offense, including a team OPS of .689.

Tonight it's Barry Zito against Rob Tejeda in the Super Bowl of blog gossip the last few days. Zito has been talked about as a potential replacement for Randy Wolf, with the unproven Tejeda his current substitute.

Plenty of Beer Leaguer for everyone
Sam Moyerman, writer of the best Sixers-slash-fantasy sports blog on the planet, provides yet another vehicle for me to spread my propaganda this morning on A Fantasy Life. It's the first of a two-part interview talking about the Phillies and fantasy baseball.

For any comic book fans out there, Sam is a featured reviewer for the popular Web site Broken Frontier.

Should Phils search the scrap pile?

There are no easy answers should Randy Wolf need season-ending Tommy John surgery, but one option is to seek hidden treasure on the cheap.

Digging through the scrap heap is a strategy that works for some teams like Atlanta and Seattle (Kerry Ligtenberg – Pioneer League bullpen find for the Braves several years back, Bobby Madritch, 6-3, 3.27 ERA for Mariners in second half of 2004), but never seems to work for the Phils (Paul Abbott – released by Tampa Bay, horrid last season).

One name out there is veteran left-hander Donovan Osbourne, pitching with the independent Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League. He’s 2-3, but has a 1.84 ERA, second lowest in the league. I'm not saying he's the answer, but why not send a scout to L.I. for the weekend to check into it?

Fans might be unwilling to accept anything but an ex-Cy Young winner like Barry Zito to replace Wolf, and may be quick to remember the Abbott disaster last season, but the economics of the situation may limit their choices.

The Phils’ practice of ignoring the independent and foreign leagues is pretty silly, and the Braves have been able to repeat as division champs, in large, because of their resourcefulness in patching holes with retreads. The best example is ageless wonder Julio Franco who bats fourth about twice a week for the Bravos.

In general, any pitcher doing well in the Atlantic League is worth considering. Talent-wise, it’s about on-par with Double-A.

Needless to say, the Phils advanced scouts should be working overtime to come up with some options to solve this dilemma, and I'd hate to see the Phils ignore this avenue just because Abbott didn't work out.

R-Phils
The Reading Phillies are a pitiful 26-41 this season, dead last in the Eastern League. It comes as no surprise.

Entering the season, the roster was overstuffed with veteran retreads from other teams, including an opening-day starting five comprised of players from other organizations.

As Mike Drago pointed out yesterday, the troubles can be partially blamed on a potentially good rotation that was never realized due to injury, including top prospect Cole Hamels, Keith Bucktrot and Edwin Moreno.

As for their replacements, their top starters – Seung Hak Lee, Chris Rojas and Allen Davis – have done OK, but are 26, 28 and 29 respectively. Ouch.

So far, top prospects Michael Bourn and Chris Roberson have done well but project as nothing more than slap hitters with great speed. Bourn is young, but Roberson is not (25), and is still considered pretty green.

The talent void in Double-A is a major problem that should not be taken lightly. This will come back to bite the organization very soon.

Larry Andersen quotable of the night

... came after catcher Mike Lieberthal took a bouncing pitch to the man area. Taking time to shake it off, the camera zooms in on Lieberthal’s face:

L.A: "... looking ashen, does Lieberthal."

Perfect.

Phils face tough questions in rotation

Are the Phillies confident with Vicente Padilla and Robinson Tejeda assuming spots 4 and 5 in the rotation for the rest of this season?

That’s the million dollar problem the Phillies will face should Randy Wolf require season-ending Tommy John surgery. He’d miss this season and possibly all of 2006.

The question: Should the Phillies deal for another starter?

Here’s what we know: Padilla, rumored to be moving to the bullpen before news of Wolf’s injury, is a free agent after the season and all signs point the Phils not resigning him. That leaves two vacancies after ’05.

In the short term, plans for shifting him to the pen will have to be scrapped. Padilla stays put, and rookie Tejeda takes Wolf’s spot in an all right-handed rotation.

Having a left-hander can be a great asset. Just ask Bobby Cox about Tom Glavine and Mike Hampton. Ask the Phillies hitters about those guys, too. But it’s by no means essential for this team to have a southpaw. For example, Florida, perhaps their chief competitor, fields a lineup of mostly right-handers, and the Phils sure won’t miss Wolf against the Fish. The negative side is teams can prime their left-handed bats for any series with the Phils, knowing they won't see a southpaw. In other words, it's good to have one in the mix, but quality is still what's important.

Sometimes young pitchers like Tejeda can pitch on pure emotion for a couple starts, confuse hitters and have some success. In the minors, Tejeda was notorious for allowing home runs. He led the Double-A Eastern League by allowing 29 homers last season, which tied a Reading club record. For the season, he went 8-14 with a 5.15 ERA, allowing 59 walks, which was fifth-most in the EL.

So here it is: The Phils No. 1 bargaining chip is top slugger Ryan Howard, who's nice insurance if Jim Thome’s back gives out again. Howard’s value was never higher than it was this winter after slugging 46 minor-league home runs.

But after struggling in limited time during his call-up, blamed mostly on bad mechanics, the Phils kept him in Scranton instead of brining him along on this interleague road trip. It may have been his only chance to see the light of day this season. In fact, he may never see the light of day in Philadelphia.

The Phils won't admit it, but Howard’s stock is dropping by the day, almost to the point where his value may be greater as insurance for Thome. The Phils will need to relinquish more than just Howard to get a proven starter to town anyway, but I’m still in favor of shopping him. There are teams, such as the Astros, that need a slugging first baseman and may be willing to overspend. You never know.

Here's my opinion: As the season wears on with Padilla, Tejeda and no Randy Wolf, the Phils will realize they need another starter, lest we forget Padilla's history of arm problems. If they're serious about about making the playoffs, (and thanks to the Homestand they're right in the hunt) they'll need to make a deal.

Wolf could be headed for Tommy John

According to a report on ComcastSportsNet, the Phillies may be losing pitcher Randy Wolf for the season.

An MRI and ultrasound taken Monday on Wolf’s left elbow revealed an injury to the ulnar collateral ligament. Because he has injured the same ligament two previous times in the past year, it was recommended that he undergo ligament transplant – or Tommy John surgery.

Wolf will receive a second opinion on Wednesday and visit a third doctor later in the week.

Wolf has been the most consistent pitcher for the Phillies over the past month and a half. After a 1-3 record and 6.52 ERA in April, Wolf has gone 6-1 with a 3.35 ERA since.

Beerleaguer take
Entering the season, there were concerns Wolf's elbow wouldn't hold up through the season, and now those fears appear to be coming true.

The Phillies could find themselves without a lefthander in the rotation for the remainder of this season and possibly all of next, with a lot of immediate weight now on the shoulders of 23-year-old Robinson Tejeda, scheduled to pitch in his place on Friday.

Beerleaguer babbles about J-Roll

The Phillies resigned Jimmy Rollins to a five-year $40 million contract extension yesterday.

Beerleaguer take
J-Roll's 2004 was a little overrated because he stunk early and turned it on during garbage time, but many still considered it a career year for the 26-year-old.

Maybe because I stopped paying close attention around August, the thing that sticks with me most about J-Roll in '04 is how much I complained about his approach at the plate – swinging at high strikes and swinging at first pitches, even when facing a new pitcher. He didn’t start the season as the leadoff hitter, Marlon Byrd did, and J-Roll got the job back only because Byrd was terrible.

When he did, he played better baseball and now the job is solidly his. Season after season, J-Roll is basically the same trusted player. Shortstops are a valuable commodity and he’s soundly average to above-average, having a parallel career to that of Atlanta’s Rafael Furcal, who's a year older. He started slow again this season, but over the long haul gives the team a decent switch-hitting leadoff presence and someone to anchor the defense. I don't think J-Roll will ever be much better offensively than he is right now, no matter how much time he spends with Tony Gwynn.

J-Roll’s durability is easy to take for granted, isn’t it? He plays every game and doesn’t wear down. It’s no surprise PECOTA, a stat-based system that compares players to similar players over history, sees basically the same guy in five years. His attrition rate is extremely low, with EQA, a batting stat independent of park and league effects, all straight lines to 2009. If anything, his defense could decline, but basically the only thing that will change is his hair cut.

Signing him for five years gives the Phils enough time to develop someone in the pipeline. Right now they have nothing down there. I don't think five years is overreaching in this case, so this is a good resigning by Ed Wade.

And a note: The conventional wisdom is that Philadelphia athletes are unhappy and will bolt town at all costs, especially when it comes to the Phillies. Here’s another long-term signing to prove that notion false.

Phillies pitching at a glance

• The Phillies are resourceful enough to patch together a replacement pitcher until Randy Wolf returns from the DL. Amaury Telemaco, who’s a good soldier for accepting assignment after assignment to Triple-A Scranton, returns to take Robinson Tejeda’s spot as a long-inning reliever. Telly could even provide a spot start if needed.
• Tejeda will start Friday’s game in Oakland. He’s been a nice surprise so far, building on the high-strikeout season he had last year in Reading, in addition to a good spring training in which he saw plenty of action. Interestingly, it was Pedro Liriano who earned the spot in the pen, beating out both Telemaco and Tejeda, yet he hasn’t resurfaced with the Phils since his demotion early in the season.
• With the exception of Jim Thome and Vicente Padilla, the Phils have been largely injury-free, and Wolf’s elbow problems come just as he was beginning to string together some good, consistent starts. His elbow issues started June of last year, and he wasn’t the same pitcher the rest of the season, finishing the year of the DL.
• Gavin Floyd’s struggles appear to be more than shot confidence at the hands of Charlie Manuel, who used him twice in the bullpen to horrid results. He’s 2-7 with an ERA over 7.00 in Scranton. My fear is the Phils have a pitcher on their hands that has all the tools but no guts. The good news is he's still 22-years-old, about the same age as a college graduate.
• Terry Adams has been absolutely rocked since accepting his assignment to Scranton. Sometimes it’s better to read the writing on the wall and just retire.

Plenty of Beer~Leaguer for everyone

John Carroll of promohthree, known throughout the Philadelphia blogosphere as the blog with the map on it, conducted an IM chat interview with me last Sunday. If you aren’t getting enough of my drunken rants here, check out his interview and my shameless attempt to promote Beer_Leaguer, otherwise known as beer*leaguer.

The Homestand

A novelization of the Phillies season would be a cinch to write. Prefacing to May 14, lead protagonists Ed Wade and Charlie Manuel are in a cold, dark place. Ed has just called Charlie into his office for a closed-door meeting.

"Charlie," Ed says, letting a whoosh blow from his executive chair as he sits. "Pull up a seat."

Charlie slides a metal chair across the floor and bobbles into it, exhaling, "What is it, boss?"

"It’s time we shake things up around here," Ed says, pushing his dome of hair back into place. "I just got off the phone with Jim Bowden in Washington. I traded Marlon Byrd to the Nats for Endy Chavez."

Charlie’s eyes grow wide. "You ol’ stick in the mud," he says, a grin spreading wide across his powdery cheeks. "You done good, boss. You done real good."

The players done good, the manager done good, even Ed Wade done good. The Homestand, which will forever be immortalized on this space with a capital "H," is the big news of the season, made entirely possible by Endy Chavez.

OK. Not really.

There’s no formula to predict that a team that totally stunk for a month and a half would drop a 12-win megaton bomb squarely on the head of Howard Eskin. Historically, it was their best home stay in 123 years, before the invention of baseball.

As a result, in just two weeks the Phils have gallantly charged out of last place into almost in last place. The Nationals, happy to be freed from the block known as les Olympique de los Expos del Puerto Rique, have embraced their swank new digs at ritzy RFK Stadium, besting the Phils by winning 24 games at home this season.

As a reward, the Phillies have the day off to have hot sex with their wives, girlfriends or both before hopping on a jet that will take them to parts unknown. They’ll trade punches and pelts with two struggling teams in the Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics, one a high-priced bust and the other a rebuilding team trying to mask that fact by riding out their "Moneyball" fame.

The Homestand has done more than just put wins on the board. It’s changed people. The hard to please Eagles fans have given way to Penn State fans, happy to cheer on hard work, David Bell, Santa Claus, Scott Stevens, and Beyonce.

Things are so good that Jimmy Rollins, a premier shortstop that could start just about anywhere, decided to accept the Phillies retirement plan, signing a five-year extension to secure J-Roll past the prime of his career.

When things are good, they’re real good.

"Charlie, one last thing before you go," says Ed.

"Wass that, boss?"

"Do you think we can turn this ship around?"

"Dar-nabbah-gerba-nub."

NL East poll revisited

No division was overhauled more than the NL East this winter, resulting in a five-team battle royal without a clear favorite. Here's a look back at an offseason that shaped baseball's best division.

After the last chip fell into place when the Florida Marlins signed first baseman Carlos Delgado, I polled readers on my former space, Berks Phillies Fans, on which move would have the greatest impact in the division.

Here’s how readers voted, finalized March 1:

1. Mets sign Carlos Beltran: 44
2. Marlins sign Carlos Delgado: 13
3. Braves trade for Tim Hudson: 12
4. Mets sign Pedro Martinez: 9
5: Phillies hire Charlie Manuel: 3
6: Atlanta moves John Smoltz to starting rotation, get Danny Kolb: 3*
7: Nationals move to Washington: 1
8-10: The signings of Jon Lieber, Al Lieter, Esteban Loazia: No votes

(* 2 votes for negative impact)

Here was my ranking:
1. Tim Hudson
2. Carlos Delgado
3. (Tie) Charlie Manuel & Pedro Martinez
5: Nationals to Washington
6: (Tie) Carlos Beltran & Jon Lieber
8: Danny Kolb/John Smoltz
9: Al Leiter
10: Esteban Loazia

The year is still young, but so far it’s hard to argue any one of these players has moved to the head of the class. If I had to pick one right now, I’d go with Pedro, who’s carrying the weight of a bad Mets pitching staff on his shoulders. In addition, Delgado has fit in nicely in Florida’s right-hand heavy lineup.

I’m not surprised that Carlos Beltran, who received the most votes, has been somewhat of a bust in New York, with a dozen or more NL outfielders having better seasons, including teammate Cliff Floyd. I did pretty well with that one, putting Beltran in a tie for No. 6 with Jon Lieber.

Two keen observers said the Danny Kolb signing would impact the Braves in a negative way. On top of some untimely health issues with Mike Hampton and Chipper Jones, Kolb has been the Braves biggest problem.

But at this point, there’s only one clear choice for No. 1: the Nationals moving to Washington, D.C.

With the win last night, the first-place Nats improved to a lusty 23-9 at RFK Stadium, the best home record in the majors. Their success can be credited to the comfort of playing in front of fans that care, in addition to the quiet acquisitions of Vinny Castilla, Esteban Loaiza and Jose Guillen. Nick Johnson is also having the breakout season we've read about for two years.

I was surprised more people didn’t vote for this one and commented about it in the connected thread back in February.

“Here’s a team that finally gets a regulation amount of home games in a place that isn't Montreal, Canada or San Juan, PR,” I said. “If you think Wilkerson, Vidro and company won't benefit positively from playing 50 percent of their games in Washington, D.C. - in front of press and fans - you're wrong. Montreal was a horrid situation, and everyone involved in baseball is glad it's over.”

I also wondered why more readers didn’t vote for Charlie Manuel.

“Larry Bowa and pitching coach Joe Kerrigan were reportedly like oil and water with players in Philadelphia, and new skipper Charlie Manuel is beloved by all,” I said. “The Phillies will not be the favorites to win the NL East, and that's a good thing. From everything Phillies fans have read in the papers, Manuel is the type of manager who will let it up to the players to push each other.”

So if you had to vote right now, which move would you say has made the greatest impact within the division, and do you believe things will change by the end of the season?

A word about blogging
I've been at this for almost a year, and one aspect I love about blogging, perhaps more than anything else, is writing canned Sunday posts, like the one you just read.

60 travels down highway 61
Bob Dylan makes a rare TV appearance tonight on "60 Minutes." He talks with Ed Bradley in his first television interview in over 19 years.

Stolen game notes from boss's credenza

I’m sick of following up games with stock coverage and opinion. Here are some skewed observations from Friday night’s broadcast.

* The Brewers have a second baseman named Bill Hall. I worked three summers in a sheet metal shop with a second-shift spot welder named Bruce Hall. Like everyone else, he backed his pickup truck into his parking spot, paid union dues and was very friendly. I graduated with his daughter, Leslie.

While on the subject, a guy at the shop named Dan-something once let me borrow his homemade CD of rare Budgie songs. Does anyone remember Budgie? Theatric Brit-metal from the ‘70s. Album art, depicting birdmen with rocket packs, is pictured from their 1976 classic "If I Were Brittania I'd Waive the Rules."

* This has bothered me for weeks: What’s up with the promotional ads for hat day? One overlay says the kid "stole his hat from his boss’s credenza." What the hell is a credenza?

* I’m not sure what I think about Chase Utley’s soul patch.

* I like the new logo for Citizen’s Bank.

* Endy Chavez earned a spot in the fireworks promo. A good nickname for Endy would be L’il Endy. He'd endear himself to fans more if he had a non-threatening name like that.

* Comcast is really proud of their town-hall steroid series.

* The number of fans on cell phones, talking with friends that can see them on television, has increased 50 percent this season.

* I once e-mailed Paul Hagan because in two consecutive columns he wrote interesting factoids on Carlos Lee. In one of them, he wrote how Lee kept in shape over the winter by maintaining his farm in Puerto Rico. I told him he should invest in cows with sturdier teets because he’s a notoriously slow starter. I also asked him to check out my blog and he never responded.

* One day a study will be done among non-ESPN play-by-play announcers and it will show that Harry Kalas speaks the least, and Chris Wheeler talks the most.

* The Brewers have, or have had, Jeff Cirillo, Geoff Jenkins, David Nilsson, Lyle Overbay and Scott Podsednik, and in my mind’s eye, they all look like the same guy.

* I’m not sure what I think of Brett Myers's chin hair.

* I wouldn’t mind a J-Roll figurine.

* Wise is now pitching for Milwaukee. Former Phillie Rick Wise was hired as pitching coach of the independent Allentown Ambassadors when I covered sports for the Allentown Times. At the press conference, I asked what he was being paid for the job and he refused to say. Months later, he and manager Darrell Evans were fired, and the next season, the Ambassadors folded.

* Derrick Turnbow is shaped like a bowling pin.

* The evening ends with one of my favorite players, David Bell, smashing a walk-off three-run homer over the left-field wall. For Bell, it’s sweet redemption. For the Phils, it means 10 wins in 11 games during this homestand.

Late afternoon Brewers notes

The Beerleaguer proudly predicted the Phils recent streak starting with the St. Louis series, but I never imaged it would be this good. Hopefully all good things don’t necessarily have to come to an end this weekend when they face a good Brewers team.

The Brew Crew have a team ERA of 3.72 on the strength of a solid rotation and good bullpen. They’ve been helped with some good defense as evident in their 4.40 FIP.

A key matchup Saturday sees Chase Utley, now the full-time man at second, against junkball southpaw Doug Davis, representing the kind of pitcher the team often struggles against. I view this game as the first game of the rest of Utley’s career.

The Phils and Brewers represent my preseason picks as the darkhorses in the NL. The Phils find themselves alone in second in the NL East, while the Brewers have hovered around .500 for most of the season, but find themselves 10 games back of NL Central-leading St. Louis. The Brewers are a bad road team, going 11-19 away from Miller Park, while the Phils now have one of the best records at home going 19-11 at CBP.

Tonight it’s Victor Santos (2-5, 2.71 ERA) against a man that needs no introduction, Brett Myers.

The flip side of the Urbina trade

Ugueth Urbina is now a Phillie. So what does he got?

After stuffing myself with jerk chicken last night at Bahama Breeze restaurant in King of Prussia, I didn’t last 10 minutes through last night’s game. So this afternoon, game coverage has been sacrificed for good meal and a solid night’s sleep. The big story anyway is still the Urbina trade. Let's talk about it.

The consensus among those who write about the Phils was that Wednesday’s deal was good one. I endorsed it Wednesday night saying that Urbina gives the team more options and security out of the pen, and in making the move sooner than later, it pulls another option out of the shallow pool of available arms, making it harder for the opposition to do the same.

Though I received nice compliments on the post, I’ll be the first to admit I fell into a trap, not because I followed majority rule, or because Urbina looked horrible last night, or because he got in a fight on Sunday. I don’t care about that stuff. I put too much stock into 2003 when he helped the Marlins win the World Series, and I looked at his ERA and saves. I should have known better.

Mike Berquist, a writer I try to emulate whenever I apply advanced stats to my opinions, came up with a great nugget yesterday on A Citizen’s Blog about Urbina’s flyball to groundball ratio. Here’s the link. Tom Goodman of Swing and a Miss also has concerns. Needless to say, he’s not the ideal guy you want pitching a close game in the small confines of Citizen’s Bank Park.

Obviously, the Phils would like to see all their pitchers keep it on the ground, but the reality is pitchers of Urbina’s moxie are hard to find. And this fact is undeniable - If they didn't get an extra body soon, Billy Wagner and Ryan Madson, already pitching too much, would start hanging them. It’s a risk they couldn’t afford, and I take comfort in knowing Urbina isn’t on the Braves.

However, a reactionary move such as this one is only proper if it’s right, and you have to ask whether Urbina was the best answer, even if the pickins were slim. I have to wonder if a GM with the leverage as Ed Wade, i.e. one with money to spend, could have wriggled out a young pitcher like Mike Gonzalez from Pittsburgh, a guy they’ll soon be hard pressed to afford. Gonzalez hasn’t given up a home run this season, and has a grounball ratio over six times higher than Urbina.

So today, I’m curious to hear from those who thought the Phils got taken, or those who have second thoughts. I don't find any shame in second-guessing myself, and there are plenty of gray areas being discussed throughout the blogosphere.

Urbina will help them more than hurt them, but my confidence in that statment changes with every new nugget I read.

Feeling good
There's no reason Phillies fans should feel anything but proud of what the Phils have done these last few weeks. This is shaping up to be a remarkable summer of baseball.

Phils get Urbina in three-player swap

Finding themselves back in the thick of the hotly contested NL East, the Phils pulled off a major move by trading Placido Polanco to the Detroit Tigers for veteran reliever Ugueth Urbina, pictured, and infielder Ramon Martinez.

The Phils finally acted out a trade that was strategized months ago, when Polanco unexpectedly accepted arbitration thus blocking the celebrated promotion of Chase Utley at second base.

Ever since, GM Ed Wade has been wiping the egg off his face and figuring out ways to move Polanco. Many thought he’d go at the deadline, or in a package with Ryan Howard.

But in moving him sooner than expected, Wade may have finally trumped division rivals by plucking a premium reliever out from under their noses.

According the AP, Tigers president Dave Dombrowski told Wade he was close to moving Urbina to another team in the NL East. It’s possible that team was either Atlanta, Florida or New York, where the relievers have struggled.

Goodbye, Polanco
A deal with such high reward would have never happened if the Phils kept Polanco on the bench these first two months. Instead, Manuel showcased Polanco most games against left-handers, and got great results in return. He was a big part of their recent resurgence. 

In Polly, the Tigers are getting a good, versatile starting second baseman. The Phillies will miss the options he creates. To replace him, the Phils get throw-in Ramon Martinez for more infield depth.

Hello, Urbina
While the Phils will miss Polanco’s utility, they’re getting back more than they’re giving up. Urbina is the man the Phils should have traded for in 2003. Instead, the Marlins got him and won the World Series.

At 31-years-old, he’s had outstanding but overlooked career, earning 236 career saves and a 3.39 ERA. His new job will be setting up games for closer Billy Wagner.

Paging through scouting reports, one finds high praise for his transition from hard-thrower to crafty veteran. His 88-90 mph fastball now sets up his slider and changeup

“Urbina's mindset is his great strength,” according to Stats Inc. “He does not give in to hitters. It's why he yields so few hits and strikes out such a high ratio of hitters despite a mediocre fastball, and why he walks a lot of hitters.”

Urbina becomes the fourth Venezuelan on the Phils roster, joining Bobby Abreu, Tomas Perez and Endy Chavez.

How the trade will impact the Phils most
*In the bullpen, the key number is three - three steady arms they can depend on to anchor the pen. Their new back two – Urbina and Wagner – are playoff-caliber stoppers in back of the dependable Ryan Madson. In addition, left-hander Rheal Cormier can return to duty more suitable of a 38-year-old, becoming an excellent situational compliment to left-hander Aaron Fultz, who’s pitching above expectations.

The bottom line is, Urbina gives Manuel more options and security. Lately, it was becoming clear the bullpen structure wouldn’t last the summer, with Cormier, Madson and Wagner taxed for too many innings.

*The future is now (again) for Chase Utley at second base. Utley most prove himself against left-handers and show he can be an everyday second baseman. I believe he can. In addition, fans have one less thing to fuss about.

*Because the Phils got Urbina, the Braves, Marlins, Nats and Mets did not.

Beerleaguer final verdict
When I first heard about it, I grumbled a little because they didn’t get any prospects in return. Later I realized they probably wouldn’t get good enough prospects straight up for Poly, let alone as a throw-in.

Those are concerns for another day anyway. Today, they’re a better team than yesterday. In getting a quality arm in Urbina, surely one of the best available, Wade has sent a message that he’s in it to win it. This trade is designed for the stretch, something they meakly tried to create the previous two seasons. I’m right behind him on this one. This time he did it right.

Historically, Phils better than Rangers

Busy production day here at work, so let’s get right to the point (er, little stars).

*Another win for the Phils featuring more good stuff from Kenny Lofton and Bobby Abreu. The Rangers wore their standard gray uniforms in honor of the historic occasion while the Phils got all crazy with their flamboyant blue-brimmed hats. Team captains Hank Blalock and Jim Thome exchanged squash-bottom necklaces and turquoise in a ceremony held before the game.

* Entering the season, Jon Lieber had been a very consistent groundball pitcher with good command, and his ability to keep balls in the park was the reason Ed Wade made quick work of bringing him to town. Instead, he’d done the opposite, allowing two homers again last night.

Now 8-4, Lieber isn’t exactly a disappointment, but he’s not instilling much confidence either. When he makes a mistake, it’s always a big mistake. His pitch may have intended to sink or come high inside, but arrives flat, and it seems like opponents can sense when he opens up and know when to turn it loose.

*Charlie Manuel caught flack earlier this year for allowing Lieber to swing away with one out and Mike Lieberthal on first instead of having him bunt. Lieber has been a terrible bunter this season, striking out last night trying to move Lieby along. As long as the plodding Lieberthal is on base ahead of him, I would agree with his Whiteness - the team would be better served if Lieber swung away in those situations.

*Tom Goodman of Swing and a Miss adopted the bad base-running issue weeks ago, and perhaps the worst display came yesterday when Lieberthal forgot the number of outs and got doubled off first. Goodman's conclusion:

"No Phillies team in memory has run the bases so poorly. It cannot be a coincidence that they have new coaches at first and third."

*The Phils have stepped in a fair pile of luck during this stretch, and Placido Polanco got a couple breaks yesterday – a free pass on a pitch that didn’t hit him, and a good bounce on a hot shot to first base.

*Word has apparently spread to the American League about Jim Thome’s struggles as teams continue to test him with high fastballs. He should have struck out twice last night but ...

*C.B. Buckner doesn’t need to be crouching behind the plate to make a bad call. From third, he ruled Thome safe on a 3-2 check swing when he clearly went around.

*Nothing brings out Chris Wheeler’s mysterious giggling like dollar dog night.

MLB takes detour through bizarro world

Tonight’s haphazard interleague schedule couldn’t be more random if you tried.

Are you ready for the magic tonight when Tampa Bay travels to Cincinnati? Or how about the pastey Twins traveling to sun-drenched Arizona to take on the D-Backs? Cleveland at San Diego and Kansas City at San Francisco are kind of like vacations for the Indians and Royals. And spanning the country, let’s not forget the all-teal aquatic battle when the Mariners travel to Miami's industrial complex to take on the Marlins at Dolphins Stadium.

As for the Phillies and Rangers, I imagine a scenario tonight at CBP similar to when the pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock. Pat Burrell and Mark Texeira staring at one another, mirroring every move, saying nothing.

Notes from a game none of us saw

Nothing kills it for this blogger more than an ill-timed Monday day game. It was a buzz kill for the Phils, too, as they dropped the last game of series 10-8 to Arizona.

I should be hooked up to an IV coffee drip on Mondays. I forgot about yesterday’s game until the third inning, clicked on Yahoo! and saw the Phils were down 7-1. Then I forgot about the game again until the ninth, but remembered in time to listen to the call on Chase Utley’s bases-loaded, two-out single while driving home in a hail storm. Weird scheduling. They were off Memorial Day last week but played yesterday?

So this morning’s post calls for bulleted points, which are easier to write, and in most cases, easier to read. And if I knew how to format bullets, they'd be bullets and not little stars.

* Good points raised by George S. in my last post: Do the Phils need another starter, and what are their options?

To ask that question, one must first find out what the team has planned for Vicente Padilla, who’s been their weakest starter thus far. The more I watch Padilla, the more I think he’d fill a nice void in the bullpen. Cormier isn’t cutting it as a plan-B setup man and is better suited as a strictly situational lefthander. I could also see Charlie Manuel using Padilla the way Larry Bowa used Ryan Madson last year.

Jim Salisbury wrote an article on it yesterday, verifying there’s talk in the front office of trading for a veteran starter and moving Padilla to the pen.

“One baseball man who has watched Padilla pitch for several years and knows him well believes the righthander might pick up a couple miles per hour on his moving fastball coming out of the bullpen and pitching an inning at a time.”

Here’s a link of possibilities from the list of pitchers that are free agents after the season, including A.J. Burnett, Jeff Weaver, Matt Morris, Jarrod Washburn and Brad Penny.

I’d be cautious of a guy like Morris because he can give up the longball, and Weaver is so dramatically inconsistent. The best pitcher in this group is Burnett, but will the Marlins trade within the division, and do they need a player like Placido Polanco in return? They might, but they certainly don’t need Ryan Howard with Carlos Delgado locked in.

I might rather see the Phils trade for a top prospect at the Triple-A level to come in a package with a catching or a third base prospect. Gavin Floyd could also reemerge later this year. Charlie Manuel did Floyd a great disservice by using him out of the pen. That was a very stupid move, and he’s only starting to recover from it now. I think Manuel listened to the fans and media too much and should have sent him to Scranton as soon as Padilla returned from the DL. It was too early in the season to start messing around with Floyd.

* On the book front, I finished reading “The Bad Guys Won” by Jeff Pearlman about the 1986 Mets. It’s a quick read and I got what I wanted from it – a look at some of the wacky personalities on the most hated team in baseball.

There’s good stuff about Gary Carter being seen by teammates as a phony, and I like some of the depictions of Keith Hernandez and his pre-game ritual of crosswords and cigarettes. For Phillies fans, there’s also good stuff on hyper-competitive Lenny Dykstra and his habit of betting on everything, and a brutalizing look at an over-the-hill George Foster. I also have a new appreciation for Bob Ojeda, who was the Mets best pitcher that year, not Doc Gooden.

It’s a quick read and newly available in paperback. It’s worth checking out.

* While you’re in the spending mood, two good bands drop albums today: the White Stripes and Coldplay.

* Check out yesterday’s Balls Sticks & Stuff blog interview with A’s pitcher Dan Meyer. Nerds and jocks together at last.

Top 10 reasons the Phils are red-hot

10. Ryan Madson and Billy Wagner
Not brilliant, but the fast-learning setup man and veteran closer have been taxed hard during this stretch. Manuel has shown exceptional confidence in Madson, who’s never inserted into an easy situation. Wagner has faced less pressure but has struggled more, especially when he picks away at left-handers with his slider. Still, Madson and Wagner represent the bright spots in the pen.

9. No. 1 and 2 hitters scoring runs
Jimmy Rollins, Placido Polanco and Kenny Lofton have delivered timely hits and have helped bust innings open. After 87 ABs, Lofton has an OPS of .966 and 19 runs already, while Jimmy Rollins is among the league leaders in runs with 36. Polanco is third on the team with 25. The leadoff men are crossing home plate somehow, and that’s what counts.

8. Bullpen trimmed the fat
No big mystery that shedding Terry Adams 12.83 ERA and 2.67 WHIP would help. Tim Worrell’s 9.82 ERA and 2.22 WHIP are gone, as are his chances of ever working as a setup man are forgotten as he continues to hang out on the DL.

7. Pat Burrell 
The Bat is the feel-good story of the year. The knock was his season thus far was a series of streaks, but during this run he’s been steadily good. His line of .313 BA, .409 OBP, .520 SLG is what you want out of a cleanup hitter, and his home run yesterday turned into the game winner. Seeing how far he’s come since 2003, Phans should make him an All-Star. I did my part.

6. The Platoons
There’s no better word to describe the center field and infield platoons than effective. Jason Michaels and Kenny Lofton play better as part timers, and represent Charlie Manuel’s best strategy of the season. As for the controversial second base platoon, it’s worked during this stretch as Polanco and Utley are both hitting against LHP and RHP respectively. The biggest asset, however, comes late in games, as the platoon has allowed Utley and Polanco to be inserted into big late-inning situations, and boy has that worked out well.

5. Chase Utley
Phans love his grit, and they should. His game-winning grand slam against San Francisco sent shockwaves through the city, letting fans know the Phillies were back. I’ll go so far as to say Utley’s slam was the most important moment of the season.

4. Favorable Schedule
The Phils are finally seizing the moment at Citizen's Bank Park. After a grueling April and May, including two stops in Florida and two in Atlanta, they kicked off this home stand by sweeping the ice-cold Giants.

3. Starting Pitching
To a man, every one of them has done enough to keep them in ball games without any one of them, including Myers, being especially brilliant. Randy Wolf’s victory yesterday was typical of the good-to-very good outings lately. They will need to improve this area at tad, especially Jon Lieber, if they are to keep charging.

2. Bobby Abreu
A run-producing machine, Abreu got hot in late May and hasn’t really cooled down. If it wasn’t for Derek Lee of Chicago, Abreu would get the national recognition he deserves. He's second in OPS (1.058), tied for second in slugging (.598), and tied for second in HRs (14). He’s even made some good grabs in left field. Bobby Abreu is the No. 1 reason to listen to WFAN and not WIP on your drive home.

1. Hitting with RISP
Last but not least, hitting when it counts. That’s been the difference. Like a body moving as one, men are hitting with confidence. They’re second in the NL behind the Nationals in OBP with RISP with .373, second in runs with 217, and fifth in batting average with .274. To compare, with none on, they’re only hitting .264 with a .335 OBP. What an incredible stat.

What an incredible turnaround.

Phils’ two too good for D-Backs

Two home runs by Bobby Abreu in Game 1. Two by Placido Polanco in Game 2. Two big hits by Kenny Lofton. Last night's double-header sweep was too, too sweet.

Saturday night fever
There’s plenty of man-love to go around this morning. Last night’s double-header sweep was a gritty team effort that should do Phans proud. The Phightins are the hottest team in baseball - five straight wins is the longest streak in the majors, pushing their record to 8-2 in the last ten. The Cubs are also 8-2 and continue to rise in the standings.

For the Phils, now two games over .500, it’s been an outstanding stretch thanks to clutch hitting with men on base, including seven, two-out RBIs in Game 1, and for all that hitting, they only stranded eight runners the entire night.

MVP
As complete a team effort as you could ask, the night belonged to flashy center fielder Kenny Lofton.

In a night filled with timely hitting, Lofton’s two-out, two-run single in Game 1 rattled pitcher Javier Vasquez enough that he gave up a two-run blast to the next batter, Abreu, and that sealed it.

He carried that magic into Game 2, delivering a triple in the sixth inning just as hope was beginning to fade against skin-of-his-teeth pitcher Russ Ortiz. I hate Ortiz, who always seems to luck out against the Phils. Serves that punk right.

Lofton is exceeding expectations more than any player on this team. So far, he's added a dimension to the lineup unlike any they’ve had in years - speed, veteran hitting and fire. I like the feeling I get when he steps to the plate. Lofton delivers - and he's still got some wheels.

“Why change anything”
The quote of the night came from color man Larry Andersen following Polanco’s first home run in Game 2:

“With Utley, Bell and Polanco playing the way they are,” he said, “why change anything?”

You know what … that’s not a bad point.

Polanco had a big Game 2 replacing David Bel, but Bell showed why his glove makes him the biggest asset at the position by preserving the lead in Game 1.

With the bases juiced and one out, Phils up 10-6, Bell backhanded a scorcher down the line, fired to second and Utley fired to first for the bang-bang double play.

Let me ask this question: With Bell, Polanco, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Tomas Perez, Jim Thome, and Ryan Howard as insurance in Scranton, is there a deeper infield in baseball?

Come September, having that kind of depth will be huge.

Pitching
10-6 (W-Padilla) 5-3 (W-Myers) were the finals, and it was good to see the team finally give Myers a break by getting the lead in the sixth, making him the pitcher of record.

But the big story was Vicente Padilla, who looked like the Padilla of old at times. Last night was the first time you heard things like “unhittable” to describe his pitches.

Those slap-happy Phillies

If you told me at the beginning of the season the Phils would be 2.5 back of Florida and Atlanta for the division lead on June 3, I would have taken it.

Last place is just as meaningless as first at this point. The word "cellar" is as overrated as David Bell's batting average.

Strange as it sounds, the season is sort of unfolding as planned, isn’t it?

Wednesday night’s tit-for-tat victory was gritty and great, but last night was even better. Coming off an emotional marathon victory - a series clincher - I was sure they’d sleepwalk to defeat. Instead, they smacked the Giants around some more. I love that. The swagger is certainly back.

This was a sensational series for the offense, getting most of it done with slap hits including last night’s bases loaded two-run poke by David Bell. The Phils went yard just twice this series, one by Jimmy Rollins last night and the game-winning slam by Utley Wednesday.

Regular old team batting average is up to .272, second best in the National League, while home runs are well below the pace of last season, including just 24 at home.

David Bell explained through Win Shares
Win Shares are perfect for summing up David Bell’s contributions this season. His regular-old batting average is now up to .263, making it the biggest fraud stat of the season. While Bell’s improvements of late are encouraging, his 1.2 batting Win Shares rank 33rd among third basemen.

The 32-year-old doesn’t look like he’ll repeat last season’s power output, hitting only one home run this season thus far.

However, his batting average is just as blinding as the number of errors he’s committed, which detract from the excellent defense he’s played. His 1.7 fielding Win Shares put him fifth at his position.

I’ve read a lot of opinions lately about trading Bell to the Kansas City Royals, where he can play for his father Buddy Bell. It would certainly be nice to shed his $4.7 million contract, but it won’t happen. Placido Polanco is almost certainly on the trading block, which means Bell isn’t going anywhere.

Polanco is the more tradable commodity of the two, and they must move somebody to get prospects in thin areas like catcher and third base.

Jimmy Rollins explained through runs
A complex stat like Win Shares is perfect for a guy like Bell, but a simple stat like runs can do just fine to explain a guy like Jimmy Rollins.

J-Roll’s job as a leadoff hitter is to get his fleet rear-end to cross home plate as many times as possible, and lately, those cheeks are in motion. He’s now 10th in the NL in runs scored with 35, ahead of celebrated leadoff man Ceasar Izturis of the Dodgers, and celebrated No. 2 hitter Marcus Giles of Atlanta.

Success in the runs category partially depends on the hitters behind him, but considering Florida’s leadoff "stud" Juan Pierre has only 26 runs with Miguel Cabrera and Carlos Delgado behind him, I’d say J-Roll is contributing much more than his low OPS (.702) reveals.

Tonight's pitching matchup
Javier Vasquez vs. Vicente Padilla represents a matchup of pitchers I always thought were pretty similar. Vasquez appears to have regained his pre-Yankees form, sporting a 3.56 ERA.

Ryan Madson retrospective

This the second in a series of collectable Reading Phillies posters highlighting past Baseballtown greats, sceduled to run Tuesday June 7 in the Reading Eagle. The series is sponsored by Buca di Beppo and written by yours truly.

I’ll have my thoughts on the series sweep later today in my post “Slap-happy Phillies.” Guess what that’s about. Until then, here’s a look back on Ryan Madson’s career.

*************************************************************************************************

It's funny how fans take to certain players more than others, but when it comes to Mad Dog, it's easy to see why.

2005: Entering the season, the Phillies bullpen was considered a strength, but after the first few weeks, the pen was a glaring liability. At the center of the problem was veteran set-up man Tim Worrell, who imploded for a 9.82 ERA before landing on the DL. The choice to replace him was obvious: Second-year sensation Ryan Madson.

2004: With no starting pitcher making it past the 7th inning in the first half of the season, the work of middle relief became critical in keeping the Phillies playoff hopes alive. Enter Madson.

A displaced rookie starter with no place to go in the rotation, Madson was moved to mop-up duty and called on in to pitch in countless jams, handling the pressure with veteran poise.

Though he stuck out his share — 52 for the season and 5.8 per nine innings - Madson's brilliance came from making few mistakes in other areas. He kept the ball on the ground, surrendered just 2.2 walks per nine, and less than one homer per nine. He was the perfect weapon to come in with men on base and induce double plays, and finished with the third-lowest relief ERA (1.65) in baseball.

After the season, many considered Madson the team MVP.

Reading: He was always regarded as a good starting prospect, but scouts believe his stuff has dramatically improved since his days in Reading, including a much better curve to compliment a good fastball and excellent change-up.

Still, in 2002 he was sensational. He spent the entire season in Baseballtown and won the Paul Owens Award as the best minor league pitcher in the organization. He was also the Eastern League's winningest pitcher with 16 victories, finished second in the EL in strikeouts (132) and third in ERA (3.20).

His season highlight came on June 22 at Bowie, when he took a no-hitter into the eighth inning but settled for a two-hit complete game.

Burrell and Abreu need your votes!

Don’t let the do-gooder Cardinals fans take over! Be sure to vote for Pat Burrell and Bobby Abreu to represent the National League in the All-Star Game, July 12 at Comerica Park in Detroit.

According to the AP, the Phillies duo trail the front-runners by a wide margin. New York's Carlos Beltran (527,433), Jim Edmonds of St. Louis (402,419) and Cincinnati's Ken Griffey Jr. (261,554) are the leading vote-getters for the NL outfield.

Beerleaguer endorses NL East representatives Burrell, Abreu and Miguel Cabrera of the Marlins, who are running 10th, sixth and fifth respectively. Cabrera edged Cliff Floyd by a slim margin on my ballot. After Floyd, I’d vote Milton Bradley of the Dodgers, Brian Giles of the Padres, then Edmonds, with consideration also going to Brady Clark of Milwaukee, Adam Dunn of the Reds, Brad Wilkerson of Washington and Bo Bice of Alabama.

Beltran and Junior received no consideration.

Albert Pujols and Scott Rolen of the Cardinals are the leading vote-getters for the National League.

The biggest joke thus far is Larry Walker - the Scott Savol of the outfield contestants - running fourth in the voting, with Giles, Wilkerson and Clark failing to crack the top 15.

Utley's pinch slam silences San Fran

Chase Utley, pinch hitting with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the eighth, gets a meatball right in his sweet spot and blasts a game-winning grand slam to lead the Phils over the Giants 10-6 in a wildly-entertaining game.

This is going to be a big morning around the water cooler for the “Free Chase Utley” gang. In one swing, Utley put the Giants away for good in a tit-for-tat- contest that featured just about every nuance of baseball.

Since there are never any pro-platoon people chatting it up around cooler, this morning I’m cracking a keg in honor of keg-shaped manager Charlie Manuel, who saved his best clutch hitter for the best possible spot.

There’s nobody you want hitting with the game on the line more than Utley, who sat out against LHP Kirk Reuter. Brought in with two outs to face total dog right-hander LaTroy Hawkins, everyone at Citizen’s Bank Park (and those of us watching at home in high-definition) knew Utley would deliver the game-winner. It’s the second time this season Hawkins has blown a game against the Phils, and it was the first pinch-hit grand slam since Kevin Jordan did it against the Braves in 2001. Hawkins must have forgotten Utley’s scouting report back in San Fran, which contains one sentence in bold type: Do not throw anything down and in.

Pull up a chair and have a beer, Chase. This one’s on the house.

Left-handed pitchers don’t need a scouting report because Utley never faces them. Instead, the manager has faithfully gone with Placido Polanco at second against lefties, which is the smarter choice. Any decision to start Utley against lefties needs to involve David Bell sitting on the bench so Polanco can slide over. Not only does Polanco read lefties better than Utley, but with Jason Michaels also platooning, inserts the best No. 2 hitter into the lineup. It also doesn't hurt to showcase one of their most tradable commodities.

Pull up a chair next to Chase, Poly, and grab yourself a cup.

Polanco had a fine but easily overshadowed game, going 2-5 with an RBI and a run scored hitting out of the two-hole. He also turned a super-swift double play to get Ryan Madson out of a jam in the eighth inning that I don’t believe Utley would have turned.

Has anyone seen big Jim? Tell him to cool down with a cold one.

The big man was ejected for arguing a called third strike and took his frustration out on the dugout water cooler. It marked the first time in his career Thome was ejected from a game for arguing balls and strikes. For finally showing some emotion and firing up his teammates, he definitely deserves a beer.

His replacement, Tomas Perez, does too. Pull up a chair.

Perez got some boos from the “passionate” crowd when he and not Utley replaced Thome in the third inning. In his second at bat with the bases loaded, Perez slapped a single up the middle that scored two.

Seriously, what’s with all the slap-hit RBIs lately?

Looking at the box score, every last Phillie deserves a cold one. Manuel used the bullpen in a very logical way – Robinson Tejeda, then Rheal Cormier, then Ryan Madson, who earned the win as pitcher of record, then Bill Wagner in a non-save situation. Cory Lidle didn’t have his best stuff, but pitched well enough to keep the game close.

But the big question overheard around the water cooler this morning is when Charlie Manuel will finally start using Utley full-time.

That’s OK, Charlie. You don’t have to answer that now. Come on over and have a beer.

The most significant Chavez numbers

Nine and five.

The Phillies are 9-5 since the “blockbuster” deal that sent Marlon Byrd to the Nationals for Endy Chavez.

No, it didn’t exactly set the world on fire, and no, he doesn’t look like the next Willie Mays, but both teams managed to address need areas, and the Phillies have indeed played better since the trade occurred.

Since May 17, about the time many of us were asking Charlie Manuel to test out Chavez in the leadoff spot, J-Roll’s batting average and slugging are up more than 30 points. Coincidence? If you suddenly went from fastest to second-fastest man on a team, you’d be intimidated, too.

By the numbers, Washington has gotten more from Byrd than Philadelphia has from Chavez. Byrd went 2-3 Monday night with two doubles and three RBIs in leading the Nats over the Braves 3-2. Though he hasn’t homered this season, his batting average is up to .371 and has a good .421 OBP.

Unlike Byrd, Chavez is blocked out of a regular spot in center field, and rightfully so. The platoon of Jason Michaels and Kenny Lofton represents one of Charlie Manuel’s managerial bright spots. Though his playing time with Lofton back is practically nill, he’s given the Phils exactly what they wanted: more speed off the bench and a decent glove. He’s been asked to pinch run and hit sac flys, and that’s been good enough.

It’s understandably harder to swallow losing Byrd than Chavez from a fan’s perspective. Byrd was one of the best players to come through the minors in the last ten years. He was phenomenal, and nothing short of a five-tool prospect, but for some reason, he hit a wall once he reached the big leagues.

His rookie season was a little overrated, but in 2004, it became increasingly clear that pitchers could get him out by jamming him inside. It didn’t appear he could salvage his prospect stroke in Philadelphia, and Manuel and his predecessor Larry Bowa didn’t like him much.

"I hit a funk that I couldn't get out of," Byrd told the Washington Post in his first interview as a Nat. "I couldn't find my swing."

So far, he’s split time with Ryan Church in center field. "I'm platooning, at least," Byrd said. "In Philly, I think they looked at me as a fifth outfielder."

If Byrd was to stay in Philly, there’s a chance he’d become a six outfielder or worse someday soon, with Rule 5 addition Shane Victorino hitting for surprise pop in Scranton (9 homers, .497 SLG). The Phillies are also high on Double-A prospect Michael Bourn, who’s flashing all aspects of his game in Reading this season.

Look who’s back
Speaking of Scranton, you’ll never guess who faced the Red Barons yesterday. Former Phillies “ace” Robert Person threw six strong innings for the Charlotte Knights in their 3-2 win Tuesday. Person allowed two runs on four hits, struck out five, but surrendered a two-run homer to Jim Rushford in the third and left with a no-decision after six.

For the season, the 35-year-old is 2-3 with a 7.00 ERA.

Remember the good old days with Robert Person as the Phils No. 1 starter? What's that? You're trying to forget?

Phils in shape to sneak up standings

With a favorable schedule ahead of them, the Phillies have a great chance to sneak past some teams in the NL East. They're off to a good start, beating the Giants 5-2 last night and pulling to 3.5 games back of the division lead.

One aspect that was going work to the Phillies advantage this season was beginning the year as an underdog. Crowned favorites to win the division the last two seasons, they flat-out choked, especially in 2003 when they let the Wild Card slip away.

The Phillies will do better building toward September, instead of floating out front and waiting to be challenged. This is the time of year when teams that started slow often streak ahead, and the Phils appear to be a prime candidate to go on such a run.

One look at the standings proves their success will be greatly influenced by the rest of the NL East, which is stronger than years past. With only a few games separating first from last, this division is wide open for the team that can get wins any way possible. Unfortunately, I’ve never seen the division so tight. Each team has a chance to take it.

The next time the Phils go to war with an NL East opponent is June 21 when they travel to Shea. In the meantime, they have a great chance to add some “Ws” against beatable teams.

You can’t win consistently unless you’re getting quality starts from your rotation, and right now the Phils staff is delivering. I’d hesitate in calling Lieber, Myers, Lidle, Wolf and Padilla a juggernaut, but there isn’t a glaring weakness like many other teams have. Even pitching-heavy Florida is having issues in the back of their rotation.

Last night, Randy Wolf, probably their fourth starter, won again, getting enough run support to earn his third-consecutive win and fourth in five chances. By all measures, Wolf is having an average season, giving up a lot of home runs (12), a lot of hits (77) and a couple starts where he’s allowed five runs or more. But like the rest of the staff, he hasn’t offered up a devastating implosion in a while.

As for the bullpen, in designating Terry Adams - who I’m actually happy to see accepted his assignment to Triple-A Scranton - the Phils have really trimmed the fat. You can do a lot worse than Rheal Cormier sporting the highest bullpen ERA, currently at a reasonable 5.84. Just ask Bobby Cox, whose bullpen is a complete mess.

Another encouraging sign out of the pen is manager Charlie Manuel has finally settled into certain bullpen roles, in particular, using Ryan Madson as set-up man. Ever since Madson was given his new job, the entire bullpen has been better because certain roles have been established around him. Even rookie Robinson Tejeda comes in in the same type of situation. I’m a big fan of sticking guys in spots and not moving them. Like the rest of us poor shlubs, it’s nice to have “a job,” even if you're a ballplayer.

Above all else, I'm convinced the key to this homestand is getting the big men – Jon Lieber and Jim Thome – back on track.

It’s been a little while – since May 7 at Wrigley in fact – that Lieber lasted seven innings. He’s making a lot of mistakes, offering up homers and hits by the handful, in addition to some uncharacteristic walks that haven’t been an issue with him over his career.

Pitching coach Rich Dubee, speaking to Fox broadcasters on Saturday, has pinpointed the problem in his mechanics (though I can’t remember what exactly) and seems confident in Lieber’s ability to straighten himself out. He’s scheduled to pitch tomorrow.

The grace period for “slow start” is over, and the team could really use Jim Thome’s calling-card long ball. Nothing knocks out pitchers faster than a well-timed digger. The last two years, the team lived and died that way. Boston won a championship that way. Now that parts of the lineup are clicking – Jimmy Rollins in particular - Thome’s bat is the missing weapon to capitalize on all these slap hits lately.

Seriously, what’s with all the slap-hit RBIs lately?