Phillies leaking oil; Series continues; Biiru-leaguer

The Braves and Phillies resume their three-game series tonight as Kyle Lohse (7-12, 4.54) takes on Buddy Carlyle (8-5, 5.02) 7:05 p.m. ET from Turner Field. Discuss it here.

Preview: It’s all starting to come a little dangerously undone for the Phillies in their quest for their first post-season berth since 1993. Yesterday in Atlanta, Lance Cormier, who entered the game with a 7.59 ERA, allowed just one run on four hits with a walk and five strikeouts over 5 2-3 innings. Cormier’s curveball was cracking, but I’d be lying if I said the Phillies’ heads were in that game. Coming off the a deflating series loss in Florida, the Phils have lost three straight and trail the Mets by five games in the NL East. Attention once again shifts toward the Wild Card, where the Phillies trail the Diamondbacks by three games. Ryan Howard, who looked as though he’d avoid breaking the all-time strikeout mark last homestand, has 16 strikeouts in his last six games and is back on pace to exceed 195 for the season. Howard went 0-for-4 yesterday with three Ks.

Roster moves: The Phillies have recalled RHP Geoff Geary from triple-A Ottawa and purchased the contract of RHP John Ennis from Ottawa.

Biiru-Leaguer: Now would be a good time to tell you I will touring the Japanese Baseball League Sept. 5 through 13. (You’ll be surprised to learn I don’t plan my vacations around the Phillies’ pennant race.) The tour is organized by Bob Bavasi, brother of Seattle Mariners GM Bill Bavasi, and includes a five-stadium tour of Japanese baseball, including stops in Tokyo, Nagoya, Hiroshima and Sendai. Beerleaguer senior correspondent and foreign-league guru Martin Smith, aka my stepfather, will also be making the trip. Just the guys. This is Martin's second time taking the Bavasi JapanBall tour. Read more about it here.

The plan is to log on to Beerleaguer from the hotels, write a few entries and snap a few photos. However, the schedule is hectic, so I’ve prepared a series of automated posts for the rest of this series and the upcoming homestand. I look forward to sharing the experience with you. Enjoy your week, go Phillies and I'll talk to you soon!

Comments

[strange]

Sounds amazing. I'll look forward to the posts, with some envy.

[J. Weitzel]

Thanks, strange. There is a detailed itinerary on the JapanBall Web site if anyone is interested. I've also included daily details in the autoposts, which start tomorrow.

[Sophist]

Is the first pitch at 7:05 ET or 7:35 ET? The Phils' website says the latter.

[Andy]

Have fun, Jason.

Since you mentioned the WC - there is an upside to getting the card instead of the division: our pitchers would have, minimum, twelve opportunities to stick one in Bradley's ear.

[diggitydave]

andy brings up a good point. i can't remember when such bad blood was created between the phillies and a team of another division (obviously bad blood exists within the NL east, mostly with the mets and fish).
but what with the Ruiz/Giles incident, and bradley smoking a home run then proceeding to flip his bat, flip off the fans seated behind home plate, and stare down the entire left field crowd, i'd say a fair amount of angst was created just from that series.
that would really be a helluva battle.
now the only problem is getting there...

[denny b.]

Here are some final stats (although Clearwater still has a few games left) of some the Phillie minor leaguers in 2007:

Hitters:

Jaramillo (AAA)- .271, 6 HR's, 56 RBI's
Costanzo (AA)- .270, 27 HR's, 86 RBI's
Golson (A,AA)- 15 HR's, 68 RBI's, 30 SB's
Jacobs (AA)- .310, 21 HR's, 83 RBI's
Cardenas (A)- .295, 9 HR's, 79 RBI's
Berry (A)- .312, 3 HR's, 44 RBI's, 55 SB's
Marson (A)- .288, 7 HR's, 63 RBI's
Harman (A)- .281, 13 HR's, 62 RBI's

Pitchers:

Happ (AAA)- 4-6, 5.02 ERA, 118 IP, 117 K's
Carrasco (A,AA)- 12-6, 139 IP, 103 K's
Outman (A,AA)- 12-7, 159 IP, 151 K's
Carpenter (A)- 17-6, 3.20 ERA, 163 IP, 116 K
Bastardo (A)- 10-0, 100 IP, 110 K's

[denny b.]

Geary and Ennis?

Does the front-office even care? Why not sign Jeff Juden or Adam Bernero while they are at it?

The Mets brought up Humber and Pelfrey. The Braves dumped a washed up pitcher in Wickman and are going with young kids in their pen. The Pads have gone with some young kids in their pen most of the year. The Yankees and Red Sox can go to AAA or AA to bring up kids to pitch, in the pen or the rotation.

And, the Phils trot out cast-offs like Ennis, Kane Davis and Rosario, a guy in Geary who has been terrible most of the year and Castro, who has no idea where the ball is going, as their September call-ups. Plus, they have added next to nothing to their bench (Roberson and Barajas). Do they even want to win?

BTW, Mateo gave up 0 runs, and struck out the side in his final outing at Reading.

[Whelkman]

I don't care what his record is; I want a guy named "Outman" on my team. The guy was born to play baseball; just the mention of his name should strike fear into opposing batters.

[Andy]

@denny b
BB and K would also be helpful in the list; as it stands, for instance, we do not see the downsides of Costanzo (75 BB, 157 K)and Golson (23 BB, 173 K) and Bastardo (in his 91 Lakewood innings had 42 BB and 98 K). Other factors might be mentioned. Jacobs, at AA, is 30. Bastardo, is small 5' 9", 160 lbs or so.

In the "help is on the way" vein, ya might also mention Jason Donald (SS) had a pretty good year and Chance Chapman (2007 draftee) is off to a good start.

[Andy]

@denny b
I thought you were talkin future days, based on your list. Most of the guys there would (probably) be over matched at a MLB level. Happ might be up to it, and probably deserves a chance. (I'd much rather see the ball in his left hand than in either of Eaton's.) Outman might be able to pitch an inning or two but I'm not convinced he would outdo Rosario. The real problem is that there is not any pitching depth at any level above A-ball in the organization.

[Andy]

@whelkman - gotta love his name AND Bastardo's. Oh, the beerleaguer possibilities!!

[phargo]

Have fun in Japan.

We'll wait here and suffer.

[MG]

It was depressing to get back from vacation and see that the Phils have gone into the tank over the weekend. Kind of figured it might happen though especially with Hamels staying on the DL.

The sad thing is that it isn't going to be much better. Pretty damning indictment on the current state of your minor league system when you don't have a single guy you can call up on Sept. 1st who will help the big league club.

[Reed]

Phils go on a tear winning 5 of their next 6. The offense averages 8 runs a game.

[Crazy Jon]

Will be tough tomorrow in the day game vs. Hudson.

[denny b.]

"I thought you were talkin future days, based on your list. Most of the guys there would (probably) be over matched at a MLB level."

Most of it was just a final rundown on some of the minor leaguers 2007 stats. Some people would like a rundown on some of these guys and how they did this year.

And, yes, if you called up most of these guys right now, they would be likely overmatched. Most of the above list are not close to ready for MLB. But, a few might be.

And, certainly a few would do no worse than some of the crap we keep bringing up.

And, Mateo is better than all 4 of those guys we just "promoted". But, do you want to give your team the best chance to win? Or do you want to win a PR deal?

There aren't many options in the high minors. Can't argue with that. But, there are a few better options than what we have now at the big league level.

[Jack]

Has Gillick or the club ever mentioned the name Julio Mateo since they picked him up? This team is miserable, call up Mateo and Happ and maybe one other young pitcher who at least has good stuff and could get guys out and use the experience. Don't give me this crap of Geary and Ennis and Rosario. They're bums and every person in this city knows it.

[control13]

I never paid much attention to Rosario before, and I've heard a couple of people mention that he's crap. I know he's a castoff from Toronto. He seemed to look pretty good in what was a mop up I guess in FL the other night, and he throws in the mid-90's. Is there any upside there?

[Ben Keeler]

Sophist - 7:35 is first pitch.

DennyB - Adam Benero. That is name from 2006 I forgot.

I see the Brewers picked up Ray King from the Nats. Nope, we couldnt have used him. Our bullpen is set.

[enrico]

Sick! I suggest taking a Cole Hamels bobble head with you, that way when he returns, he'll be unstoppable.

Enjoy the vacay.

[curt]

Ray King (a) wasn't fat enough (b) wasn't old enough (c) hadn't pitched for enough teams (d) hadn't been released often enough and (e) wasn't hurt enough to qualify for our BP.

[JD]

When is Hamels coming back?. Go Phils!

[gr]

sounds like a great chance to see all kinds of players we'll never ever attempt to sign.

[Ben Keeler]

but at least King wont be on the Nats for our remaining 7 games, but curt I think he is fat enough to be a member of the Phils pen

[Andy]

@curt
forgot (f) deosn't have enough fingers

@dennyb
gotcha
yeah, Happ and Mateo would be better than Geary et al
and it might be fun to see Costanzo get a look at CBP from the 1B side of the plate.

[Pete]

Mateo has been accused of abusing his wife. I hope the front office got the message when he was signed that some of us weren't happy with the signing, and the message it sent.

[MPN]

Well, I guess Madson is not doing well at all. Burried on Phillies Pravda is this:

Catcher Pete Laforest was claimed by the Phillies off waivers from the San Diego Padres, the club announced today.

Laforest, 29, appeared in 10 games for San Diego and hit .360 (9-25) with one home run and three RBI. A left-handed hitter, Laforest was designated for assignment by the Padres on August 31. In 86 games for triple-A Portland this season, Laforest hit .230 with 29 home runs and 72 RBI. He finished seventh among all Triple-A players in home runs and had four 5-RBI games.

Originally selected by Montreal in the 16th round of the 1995 draft, Laforest has appeared in 54 major league games for Tampa Bay (2003 and 2005) and San Diego (2007) and has a career average of .204 (28-137) with two home runs and 13 RBI.

To make room for Laforest on the 40-man roster, the Phillies transferred right-hander Ryan Madson to the 60-day disabled list. He will wear #4 and is expected to be in uniform by Wednesday in Atlanta.

[clout]

Andy: Good posts on the youngsters (and oldster) mentioned on denny b's list. Obviously you can't post every stat but the most significant are K/BB ratio for both hitters and pitchers and OPS, again both on offense and defense (OPS against).

[Mike Cunningham]

That's what you need in September 4 catchers!

Is this away to allow Manuel to use Coste at 3rd, while Ruiz and barajas split time at C???

[clout]

MPN: Maybe it's because I follow them more closely than aany other team, but opver the years the Phillies seem to have had more trouble keeping their pitchers healthy than any other team. I wonder why?

[Mike Cunningham]

Or is he only to serve the Left Handed Pop role, from hence forward known as the Russel Branyan Spot (formerly known as the Randall Simon Spot)

[Mike Cunningham]

clout, do you think a player with a poor BB/K ratio can not improve that ratio when they move to the big leagues???

[Andy]

@mike cunningham
BB/K ratio for both hitters and pitchers often serves as a better indicator of major league skills than the more traditional ways of looking at players once they're here. Take a look at the last year in the minors of most big MLB stars and it tends to jump out. For pitchers it demonstrates command; for batters it indicates the eye necessary to judge pitches.

[clout]

Mike C: It's not impossible, but in the overwhleming majority of cases the K/BB ratio gets worse the first year in the bigs. That makes sense since the competition is tougher. Good players, of course, get better with experience. But, especially for minor league pitchers, K/BB is the best predictor of future success and the higher the level, the better predictor it becomes (i.e. a good K/BB in AA is way more significant than in A ball.)

[clout]

Andy: Exactly right.

[Billy Mac]

Lineups

Coste MIA again and Dobbs starting against lefty Carlyle. Game starts at 7:35 tonight.

Phils
1. J Rollins, SS
2. C Utley, 2B
3. P Burrell, LF
4. R Howard, 1B
5. A Rowand, CF
6. G Dobbs, 3B
7. J Werth, RF
8. C Ruiz, C
9. K Lohse, P

Braves
1. W Harris, LF
2. K Johnson, 2B
3. C Jones, 3B
4. M Teixeira, 1B
5. B McCann, C
6. J Francoeur, RF
7. A Jones, CF
8. Y Escobar, SS
9. B Carlyle, P

[Ben Keeler]

Carlyle is right handed.

[CJ]

Yeah, there's no way Dobbs is playing against a lefty...

Dobbs vs. lefty: 4-24, all singles, 14 Ks.

Ouch. I'd rather have No Hit at the plate against a lefty! :-)

[fljerry]

Its hard to believe Dobbs is starting against a lefty. He looks real bad batting against leftys this year. Is Helms hurt? Are you sure Carlyle is a lefty since Werth is hitting behind Dobbs?

[CJ]

fljerry: Carlye is a righty. Although he does bat left...

[Billy Mac]

Carlyle throws right. I noticed in his bio he batted left and assumed he also threw left. Strange to expose your pitching arm when batting ....

[fljerry]

Lots of ballplayers throw right and bat left.
The one we know best was richie ashburn

[Billy Mac]

Zolecki reported on his blog today that Ruben Amaro Jr. is interviewing for Houston's GM vacancy Thursday. Here's hoping Ruben can fool them for a few hours and get the job.

[CJ]

fljerry: Lots of players do it... but few pitchers do it for the reason Billy Mac mentioned. You don't want to expose your pitching arm to a poorly thrown fastball when you're batting.

[Billy Mac]

fljerry, I know lots of players do it. But it fairly rare for a pitcher, since it exposes their pitching arm. I think Mulholland did it. Trivia: Can you name the famous player who threw left but batted right ? This is very rare.

[Billy Mac]

2nd try. Mulholland threw left and batted right. And there is a future hall of fame position player who also did it. Name him.

[MG]

If the Phils don't get 6 innings tonight from Lohse, they have no shot. Just hope that Lohse can locate his breaking ball tonight because he couldn't in his last outing against the Mets.

[Mr. Mac]

Who is the guy who posted under the name Pete? Is that a tongue in cheek comment about Mateo? If not, take your sanctimonious opinion somewhere else. I, and most other Beerleaguer bloggers could give a rat's behind about what this guy allegedly did off the field. Management is more worried about the negative publicity it might bring to the team than it is actually winning.

The entire NFL, NBA and half of MLB is a disgrace when it comes to player behavior. That is a domestic affair and one in which none of us were present. Maybe the guy is trying to get his life in order. If you are so self righteous, maybe you should give him the second chance he deserves. That's how the Phillies should present it to the public, that Mateo is truly sorry for what happened and they are willing to give him a second chance. They are too worried about the PR hit though. This is the phony crap that the Phillies pull all the time. Pretend that nothing happened. They didn't do their homework again when they picked him up, so they will try to quietly release him in the off season, problem solved. Pitching is a problem because management is inept, and for all intents and purposes, I feel Gillick has been told a big "NO CHANCE" when it comes to Mateo being brought up. I am truly sick and tired of all of the non sports fans chiming in to be heard about moral issues. We need live pitching arms, dammit.

Sorry, I feel better now.

[fljerry]

Billy Mac
Not sure who you are thinking of batting right and throwing left but aren;t the Drew brothers both bat left and throw right?

[Billy Mac]

On Mateo: I've heard the Phils are hoping it blows over by next year and he will be given an opportunity to make the 2008 squad. But he wasn't acquired as a deadline trade for this purpose. Everyone knows that Gillick is being told by ownership (Monty) that Mateo cannot be on the roster this year.

[Glennbo]

Billy Mac -- Not a hall of famer, but I believe Brett Butler threw left and swung right.

[Billy Mac]

fljerry, the Drew brothers both bat left and throw right. That is the common way. This guy batted right but threw left. Hint: He was at CBP last week.

[Billy Mac]

Butler threw and batted left. Not Butler.

[Bruce Ruffin]

The Phillies will be victorious tonight. Isn't the opposing pitcher some journeyman who has never been good for his whole career?

[fljerry]

Geez we have 2 on oyr team that bats left and throws right - Utley and Dobbs

[fljerry]

Billy mac - sounds like a first baseman then - def not an infielder

[Billy Mac]

Not a first baseman.

[fljerry]

I give up

[Billy Mac]

Answer is Ricky Henderson.

[Bruce Ruffin]

Hmm, thinking about the bullpen, does this sound familiar to anyone? Jose Mesa and a former closer who now is terrible give up a bunch of runs in September, costing the Phillies a playoff spot.

[fljerry]

Billy mac - I would never have gotten that - did not realize he threw left

[Reed]

Ricky Henderson

[Reed]

oops...little late

[denny b.]

"Everyone knows that Gillick is being told by ownership (Monty) that Mateo cannot be on the roster this year."

Which is exactly my point.

The front office DOES NOT WANT TO WIN. They don't care. They have a cash cow in their new stadium and have 40,000 folks showing up every night to watch the team, whether they win or lose.

If they truly gave a crap, our September callups/additions would not have consisted of John Ennis, Fabio Castro, Geoff Geary, Kane Davis, Chris Roberson, Rod Barajas and new catching "prospect" Pete whateverthehellhisnameis. That is truly embarrassing. Hell, Milwaukee is in much worse shape than the Phils, and they can go out and get Ray King (who the Phils can't hit) for the last 25 games. King is better than at least 1/2 of the current bullpen. At least the Brewers are trying to get to the playoffs. The Dodgers got Esteban Loiaza and David Wells. The Cubs got Steve Trachsel. The Phils management isn't even pretending to try or care. Their idea of a late season addition is some cheap 30 year old AAA catcher, who no one else wanted.

Don't try and tell me that we have our best possible group of players playing at the major league level right now. You would think a group that hasn't seen a playoff game in 14 years would try and do everything they could to at least give the Phils team and fans the best chance to win. The Phils fans don't DESERVE this. Guys like Rollins, Utley, Rowand, Burrell, Victorino, Werth, Coste, Howard, Iguchi and Ruiz who have busted their ass all year and done about everything you could have asked, don't deserve this. A guy like Jamie Moyer, who is at the end of his career, doesn't deserve this. A guy like Brett Myers, who volunteered (for the good of the club) to become a reliever after being the opening day starter, doesn't deserve this. Charlie Manuel and his much maligned coaching staff, don't deserve this.

And, about that 30 year old minor league catcher the Phils just brought to the majors...if they can do that, why can't a guy like Gary Burnham get a promotion? Tell me why?

[Bruce Ruffin]

Barajas is a waste of a 40 man roster spot. Are you seriously telling me we could have had Ray King?

[Reed]

Not so sure the Nats wanted to help the Phils on that one. Maybe would've cost something more.

If the Phils traded Adam Eaton and ate 1/2 the contract for King, would you take it. In our dreams.

[Bruce Ruffin]

Since the Phillies don't care about making the playoffs, my suggestion is that they should send Utley, Howard and Hamels to AAA next year and win the AAA championship.

[MG]

Clout - Macnow just mentioned that the Phils' bullpen is directly responsible for 23 losses. Did he get that number from your count?

[clout]

MPN: Even being switched to the 60-day disabled list, there is still a (slim) chance Madson could pitch before season end. He'll be eligible to come off the 60-day on Sept. 26.

denny b.: I agree with everything you say about ownership, but I can't think of any good baseball reasons to bring up Burnham in the heat of a pennant race. He's a great story, but I wouldn't take ABs away from Dobbs. I'd bring him up just so he can say he was in the majors and maybe let him PH in a blowout game. But there's a million career minor leaguers like him out there and you can't give them all a break.

[clout]

MG: Macnow is a genius and the best host on Philly sports radio.

[Bruce Ruffin]

I liked Craig Carton but the Flyers apparently didn't. Who is the guy with the annoying voice, I think he's pretty good too.

[Andy]

clout, you're not really Macnow are you? Here all along I thought you were Durbin fishing for compliments!

[MG]

Clout - Agreed but I think there are some lurkers on here that get some talking/writing points from Weitzel and the Beerleaguer posters without giving the proper attribution.

[davthom73]

denny b -- Gary Burnham definitely deserved a September callup, based on the year he just had in AAA. And those who talk about valuable spots on the 40-man roster -- Barajas, as some have said above, is an abject waste of a slot on the 40-man.

And here we are tonight -- Carlos Ruiz -- only 3 hits in his last 25 at bats -- gets the start again. Hmmmmm -- I'm sure someone can define and explain the logic behind that -- so let's hear it folks.

[parker]

RYno!!!

[Sophist]

Alright

[bathtubhippo]

davthom, i thought i heard somewhere that coste's back was sore this week, hence all the ruiz starts.

[Sophist]

How close are Carlyle's pitches that the Braves call-guys think are borderline strikes?

Yesterday was an off-day. Phils should have taken 2/3 in Florida, and I can't hold yesterday against the team. Let's get that wildcard.

[Brian G]

That homer is why I want us to keep this lineup for next year. If Burrell is even a .250/.390 guy, it really helps us with the L-R-L matchup problem for the opposing team late in games. And Burrell's walks are much more valuable when Howard is hitting homers.

[Brian G]

Also, our best hitters are getting the most at bats.

[CJ]

davthom:

You're right... Coste is 5 for his last 26 and 4 for his last 21... so let's get Coste in for his bat!!! ;-)

[Brian G]

Sophist: they're those borderline pitches that are technically balls but are quite often given to the pitcher by a lot of umps. It's a valid point by the announcers.

[bathtubhippo]

by the way, anyone else baffled that adam eaton has managed to be so much worse this season than this career minor leaguer atl has pitching?

[CJ]

Besides, davthom... Ruiz is 4 for his last 14, so he's actually heating up compared to Coste's recent games.

[parker]

Jason, have fun over in the east, and remember: "For relaxing times, make it Santori time."

[Sophist]

[Also, our best hitters are getting the most at bats.]

Brian G -- Agreed. I especially like to see Utley batting 2nd. Over the season, you need Utley to get more ABs than Vic and whoever else they were putting in the 2 spot.

[kdon]

Davethom,

I like giving AAA guys a shot, but Buhrnam in the majors is a non-starter. Good discipline and pop, but the guy is a butcher in the field and is slower than Burrel.

I saw him play in COlumbus last year and he looked like a little leaguer in the OF.

Also, is he on the 40-man? I don't think so, so they would have had to add him.

[parker]

Lohse, economic, uneventful, first inning. Nice, it sounds familiar. Doh!

[Sophist]

Thanks, Brian G -- I missed the location on the pitches they were commenting on, so I wasn't sure.

[squatter]

Wow. 7 pitch inning for starters. He's trying to cure the bullpen problem by keeping them in the bullpen.

[Brian G]

I hate that our a 2-0 lead can't even get me excited considering the the Phillies' "last two minutes" NBA style of games.

[sdphillie]

Anybody else having problems with MLB.tv?

I couldn't watch the preview/highlights, so I had to settle for the WPHT Audio. After gametime, the first two batters come up, and the video dies out asking me to verify my zipcode for blackout purposes. If I could be at the Phillies game tonight, trust me, I would be. I have verified, and now I get some generic sorry message.

[parker]

Ruiz can coste into home after that one.

[Brian G]

haha.. Davthom.

[CJ]

Any comment davthom? ;-)

[Sophist]

Ruiz! Silencing the critics.

[parker]

How about a 3-0 lead?

[davthom73]

CJ -- how functionally dishonest you are, as usual -- Coste has 8 hits in his last 31 at bats -- and you conveniently left off Coste's 3 for 5 game in Pittsburgh 10 games ago. Anyway, Coste has 9 RBI's, and 2 home runs among those 8 hits, while little Carlos has 8 hits in his last 32 at bats, and only 4 RBI's over that span. So let's ee, CJ, who had the better hitting performance over their last 10 games? Can you say . . . Chris Coste? Very good, son.

[CJ]

davthom... quick... say something bad about Rollins!

[CJ]

davthom: You're timing is excellant lol