Game chat: Myers, Phillies finish out road trip

Brett Myers (3-8, 5.34) tries to rebound from a poor start in Florida when the Phillies look to take two of three from the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. Mitchell Boggs (1-0, 3.86) starts for St. Louis. First pitch is 2:05.

Preview: Following two solid outings, Myers mixed in a real dud, allowing three home runs in Tuesday’s loss to Florida. For Myers, it was his sixth loss in his last seven starts. The Phils can come home with a lot of confidence if they can finish off the Cards to complete a 6-3 roadtrip, including series wins in St. Louis and Atlanta. Standing in their way is Boggs, a right-hander who was called up to replace Todd Wellmeyer and has stuck around to fill in for the injured Adam Wainwright.

Yesterday, Pat Burrell went deep for the second game in a row. Pat the Bat has now reached base safely in 62 of 68 games he’s played this season. Otherwise, yesterday’s 3-2 loss was an excellent game to skip, and I don't feel any guilt in having used the time to clean our house. Kyle Lohse handled the Phils over eight innings, while the Phils managed just four hits. Adam Eaton (2-4) took the loss, but it qualifies as another quality start, his fifth in a row.

Comments

[Terry Harmon]

Re. Lohse's comments from yesterday about being happy putting it to the Phils.

Can someone please remind him that *he* turned down the 21 million.

It took the Boras-friendly Cardinals to come in and save the day for him. Good for them that he's pitching well. But let's not rewrite history. He could have worked out a deal with Philadelphia, but his agent was doing his usual b.s.

[Andy]

Reposted:

Last year, all year long, the Phils scored 3 runs or less in just 41 games (about 1/4 - .253). This year they've scored three or less in 25 out of seventy so far, (more than a third - .357). Despite the huge games, where they oblkiterate the opposition's pitching staff, they are, as Mr. Carson pointed out a few weeks ago, woefully inconsistent on offense this year...I know that we are gonna lose a few. I know that we cannot expect a lot of runs every day. But the numbers do speak. Having 35% of our games this year under 4 runs is not a sign of a great offense.

[EastFallowfield]

Yeah, I'd trade a regular season victory over the Phils for anywhere from a few million to 16 million bucks.

[Billy Mac]

Lineups

Phils
J Rollins SS
J Werth CF
C Utley 2B
R Howard 1B
P Burrell LF
G Jenkins RF
G Dobbs 3B
C Coste C
B Myers P

Cards
S Schumaker LF
A Miles SS
R Ludwick RF
R Ankiel CF
T Glaus 3B
C Duncan 1B
Y Molina C
M Boggs P
A Kennedy 2B

[king myno]

The 'starting center fielder' is starting!

[Andy]

And look - the Cards are starting one of their relief pitchers at short!

[Andy]

If I were Chollie, I'd be tempted to keep Vic in the line-up batting first, use Werth in right batting second and insert Bruntlett at short batting eighth.

[8th and pine]

non sequitor. not sure if anyone has brought this up yet....

if we make a deal for another starting pitcher before the trade deadline - until there's a significant injury to the starters, why not play out the season with a 6 pitcher rotation? Any reason why this "out of the box" thinking can't work?

[Andy]

8th St.
The main thing I'd look at is how the pitchers work with extra rest. They do not always do well - most of them get used to a pettern of rest and throwing through the week. The other problem would be the number of relievers. Sometimes you really need all seven RPs.

[Andy]

Let's see - Myers is starting on a get away day game. The Cards are starting a 25 year old with a career minor league WHIP of 1.4.

Get out the Rolaids.

[MG]

Glad to see that Cholly put in Dobbs and Coste today.

Benching JRoll for Bruntlett doesn't make sense even with JRoll's struggles. Bruntlett is what he is a - a moderately useful bench player because he can play multiple positions but is a .250 hitter with little pop. Plus, he doesn't have JRoll's speed. Bruntlett should probably give JRoll a breather at SS every few weeks (particularly if the Phils don't have an off day) but no sense to give JRoll a day off today.

[MG]

Andy - I think it goes back to this year's team is a bit slower particularly with the additions of Feliz and Jenkins in the lineup everyday (9th in the NL in SB with 46 SBs but a number of things effected this including most importantly missing Lopes) and their OBP is a bit lower so far this year because of Howard's struggles and the additions of out-machines like Feliz (.341 so far puts them at 4th in the NL vs. .352 which tied for 1st last year).

Basically, this team has more power than last year's lineup but last year's lineup was actually a more balanced and versatile group. There is a grain of truth to the comment that if the Phils don't hit HRs, they don't score this year.

[MG]

Food for thought:

- Phils are averaging 1.44 HR/game so far this year compared to 1.31 HR/game last season. If the Phils finish at that pace, they would hit 232 HRs this season which would be the most by a team in the NL since the '04 Cubs who hit 235.

Considering that HR are generally down a bit in the league this year, that would be a pretty impressive accomplishment.

[Andy]

MG -
You're right, Bruntlett's 11 for his last 38 is not thast much better than Rollins' 6 for his last 38. One rots but the other is not exactly mashing. So, yeah. I guess I agree that Rollins should be in the line-up. His defense is too valuable.

But I would consider this: Start Vic and Werth but bat Jimmy eighth. That way his 6/38 hitting won't hurt quite so much.

[Andy]

MG - I looked at but didn't compile a comparison of hits (2007 vs. 2008) too. There are a lot of games that they're not hitting as well. Last year, for instance, I think they had two hits in one game all year. This year they've done that already AND had a one-hitter against them. It's not just a failure to score base-runners - it's a failure to get on base in the first place as well.

[MG]

On the bright side, this defense for this team has been incredibly stellar the past month. Almost no errors and the number of unearned runs has really fallen too.

With guys like Moyer and Kendrick on this staff, you need very solid defenses behind them particularly in the INF. For whatever reason, the defense was pretty shoddy until about the middle of May. Since then (even Howard), seems to be making the everyday plays with the occasional stellar highlight too.

Doesn't get much attention but the improvement defense and the considered stellar job by the bullpen are probably the two biggest reasons this team has played so well the past month.

[Andy]

Yup. Just checked.
Last year, all year, the Phils had 2 games in which they only got 3 hits, one game in which they only got two. None that they got one. This year, we've had 1 with 3, 2 with 2 and 1 with 1. It's not just runs, it's hitting.

Sure it's nice when they score 42 runs in 3 days, but they're truly failing to hit completely on other days. And since those days coincide with some pretty marginal pitchers, it's not that they're being over-matched.

So far, this year, the Phillies are "offensively inconsistent."

[Andy]

MG - agreed on defense and BP.

Consistency is nice.

[Sam]

good to see chollyis going for some runs today

[Malachi]

For those that use mlb.tv.....so I'm studying in Italy for a couple of months, and though the feed worked at home in Ohio, the bottom of the silverlight player says error/closed in my apartment in Arezzo. what gives?

Also, this is my first time posting! I've been reading you guys comment for about a year though, and I really love the site.

[craig_one]

that 2nd star bangled banner was particularly painful to sit thru.

[redbeard]

atta boy, james!

[Whelkman]

Myers looking sharp as usual.

[redbeard]

batting practice myers

[Whelkman]

When do we start discussing Happ again?

[curt]

Another Myers 1st inning. Getting really old.

[Sam]

wow why is brett so bad

[Knight]

Myers is an embarrassment. Is that 3 doubles in the inning?

[curt]

Burrell doesn't look like he came to play - 2 miscues in 1/3 inning.

[thicketdan]

This guy disgusts me.

[davthom73]

Three doubles in the first inning -- all off 93-94 m.p.h. fastballs by Myers which were up in the zone -- with Myers having trouble getting his slider -- in an inning in which Myers could not get his curve, slider or change for a called strike. For whatever reason -- the guy's not sharp -- again. And although his fastball is 93-94 m.p.h. -- its up in the hitting zone middle-in to the hitters. Anbkiel hit a fat pitch.

[redbeard]

mabey seanez or condrey can pitch the first inning for myers starts

[curt]

That's one of the things I dislike most about him - he just won't learn to bunt.

[Sam]

man myers cant do anything right

[Sam]

we need to get runs, here lets go Jason

[Sam]

when you have myers pitching you must get runs when possible , come on

[lekh tizdayen]

What do you think Myers and the home plate umpire were talking about after that inning?

[Knight]

Utley has had 2 really hard hit outs this game. That's been the Phillies deal though recently I suppose.

[lekh tizdayen]

Howard is still so anxious at the plate, he used to hold his bat out and slowly pull it back before getting into his lower and more centered stance. He's sloppy at the plate. It's simply a matter of concentration.

[redbeard]

get durbin up

[Knight]

Sigh. Good old Myers.

Not getting any runs on that bases loaded 2 out situation is going to haunt us the rest of this game, since the Phillies lineup is going to make Boggs look like a Cy Young winner even though this is only his 3rd game in the majors.

[Andy]

In 2008, Eaton is the new Kendrick and Myers is the new Eaton.

If Myers name appeared on the 60 day DL tomorrow, I would not be terribly disappointed.

[Andy]

redbeard - At this point, even, call Durbin up - if you get my drift.

[Ruby Tuesdays]

This is making me sick.

[Knight]

Ugh. Just ugh.

Myers might as well be throwing underhanded for all the good it's doing.

[Andy]

Remember when I said consistency was a good thing. I did not mean compared to the most consistent kind of Brett Myers start.

Can we call him "Mash" Myers?

[85]

Good God, Myers has forgotten how to pitch. This is hard to watch.

[curt]

Who knew the Cards were among the league leaders in HRs.

[Sam]

dont want have to face the two toughest team's in the league after lossing two to the cards, wee need the offense to step it up

[clout]

If Myers does not have command of his curve ball, he's a fringe major leaguer because the rest of his stuff just isn't enough. His fastball is good only because of how he sets it up with the curve.

[davthom73]

Fat 93 m.p.h. fasball -- with no movement on it --by Myers to Glaus -- smack dab in the middle of the plate. Myers sure doesn't throw hard enough or with enough movement on his 93 m.p.h. fastball to get away with that pitch.

[Dull]

On his way to 20 losses. Will it be the first time a post season team does it with a 20 game loser? Can't take our ACE out of the rotation!

[Sam]

the cards pitcher isent even pitching that great

[IceMan]

These getaway Sunday games all feel the same, especially when Myers starts. You know it's a loss in about a half hour and you have to find something else to do with the rest of your day, even if it's against Mitchell F'ing Boggs.

[Andy]

When Pickett led his troops to their slaughter on the third day at Gettysburg, the Union troops were chanting "Fredericksburg! Fredericksburg!"

Today, with Myers on the mound, no doubt the Cards are chanting "20-2! 20-2!"

[sam]

why can the phils not play that well in day games! they cant score

[Andy]

One out! Whoop!!

[Andy]

And now, with starts like these, the phils will not even be able to trade Myers at the deadline. Really; is there any team in MLB who would seriously want him?

[Andy]

Hey! 1-2-3.

I guess he figures five runs is enough to get his loss.

[Knight]

Gasp. A 1-2-3 inning. Well, Myers will just have to give up a couple more homeruns next inning to balance it out.

[Sam]

wow just realized its 5to1 myers is so bad its sad lol

[redbeard]

i think a team that really needs a closer would entertain the thought of a myers trade

[Andy]

redbeard - find them quick. We can use the bag of donuts they'd offer!

[Dull]

Laat year our HOF GM signature move was picking up sore armed Freddy Garcia for Floyd and Gio. Floyd has been the reason that the White Sox have been in first place in their division. This year our HOF GM's signature move was moving Home Run Myers back to the starting rotation and renting a closer for one season in return for the league's leadings base stealer who will be around for many years into Houston's future.

[Sam]

so it looks like were going to be 3 games ahead of the fish

[curt]

I guess Cholly is saving his well-rested BP for the next series.

[Andy]

Woo-hoo! Good for something. (Not pitching, but what the hey!)

[curt]

Never doubt the gut

[clout]

Sam: Boggs is not an elite prospect, but he's no Zack Segovia either. He throws mid-90s 4-seamer, a low 90s 2-seamer and one of the better sliders in the minors.

His control comes and goes and his minor league K/BB ratio is rather unimpressive, although his K/9 is solid. He projects as a 4th or 5th starter although if he can stop walking so many people he'll be better than that.

[Andy]

Was Myers hurt on that take-out slide?

.

.

Oh. No? Too bad.

[Sam]

ya its not that he is pitching great our offense just cant do anything

[scattamoosh]

Myers disgusts me. When is he going to stop being a dumb pitcher. He believes that he can strike out everyone. He needs to understand that his mediocre fastball may become a good fastball when he learns how to use his other pitches timely. I believe that most of the Card's hit today were off of fastballs. He is a dumb pitcher. Often we see him sitting in the dugout on his dayoff, talking with Eaton and/or Moyer. You would think that he could learn how to be a smart pitcher from Moyer. I dont understand him. He is trade bait and I would move him for the right player.

[Sam]

lol andy, chast get a hit here!!!

[Andy]

Sam, surely you're not indicating
"Heartbreak of Offensive Inconsistency?"

[Sam]

Ryno step up here!!!!

[Andy]

Double digit HBPs for Uts. Again.

[Andy]

Howard with RISP.

[clout]

The Phillies have 6 LOB thru 5 IP. Not good.

[Sam]

there we go ryno nice hit lets get some more, i swear they have a computer in the dugout lol

[Steve Jeltz]

Dull: The "league's leading base stealer" is batting .234 with a .603 OPS. He wouldn't sniff the starting lineup in Philadelphia.

There's plenty of moves of Gillick's to criticize, but that's not really one of them. Not sure if you've noticed but Lidge (and not coincidentally the bullpen as a whole) is having a pretty decent season.

[Andy]

Yeah. That's what I'm talkin' about.

[mike cunningham]

Good job Ryno. Howard flat out rakes in St. Louis.

Can we trade Ryno straight up for Pujols and that tough Reliever Miles. :)

[curt]

Myers set all that up with his first hit in 3 years.

[IceMan]

Odds Myers gives those runs back in the bottom of the fifth?

[Sam]

wow, why a pitching change already is he hurt?

[Andy]

The Phillies have 6 LOB thru 5 IP. Not good.

Posted by: clout

Did I miss two outs somewhere?

[clout]

Phillies 10-11 in day games before today.

[Sam]

um about 80% ice lol

[Andy]

Ice man, I'd say 3 - 1 for.

[Knight]

Ryno! Good thing the bases were loaded cause an overshift would have killed that. But hey, I'll take it when I can get it. Doubly so since it moves us into the Cardinals bullpen. Hopefully we can take advantage of it.

Speaking of taking advantage of it, Pat the Bat!

[Sam]

here we go guys nice hit pat!

[Andy]

*smirks*
Great. Now the bases are all clogged up!

{Good job, Manchine!}

[redbeard]

clout: you got the split on home/away day games?

[Andy]

*Dobbs pretends he's coming out in the ninth to pinch-hit for the pitcher.*

[Sam]

nobody swing lol

[Sam]

lest go costey!

[Andy]

Swung at ball 3.

[Andy]

McClellan's killing a lot of worms today.

[IceMan]

Ugh, wtf Coste.

[clout]

Andy: My bad. 9 LOB thru 5 IP.