Bako to get first start behind home; Howard has flu

Game chat: Following another embarrassing loss at home, Charlie Manuel will make a major lineup shake-up tonight by using three bench players.

According to the Phillies press corps, catcher Paul Bako will make his first start in a Phillies uniform, Greg Dobbs will start at first in place of Ryan Howard, who reportedly suffered through a 104-degree fever last night, and Matt Stairs will start in right. The lineup will go like this: Rollins, Victorino, Utley, Stairs, Werth, Dobbs, Feliz, Bako, Happ, according to CSNPhilly's John Finger.

Comments

[timr]

I usually like shaking up lineups when the team is slumping, but I'm not so sure about this one.

[loctastic]

Finally, the Bako era begins! I can't wait to see how well he grounds out!

[bay_area_phan]

In all honesty, I don't know whether to root for Bako or against him. Of course I want the Phillies to win and, if Bako does well, it would help that cause. On the other hand, if by some wild chance he happens to get a couple of hits or hit a homerun, he'll probably have earned himself a spot on the team for the next 2 months. Those taking the longer view should probably root for an 0 for 4, 3-strikeout performance, 4 passed-ball performance.

[bay_area_phan]

Another reason to root for the 0 for 4 scenario: you're very likely to get what you're rooting for.

[J. Weitzel]

BAP: Bako will go 3-for-4 with two RBIs because you wrote that.

[Corey R]

What happened to Luo Marson being the catcher of the future?

[deal]

Werth in LF I assume??

[bay_area_phan]

jw: Ugh. I forgot about the BL Reverse Jinx. I would revise my prediction, but I know that would never work. The Reverse Jinx knows an insincere prediction when it sees one.

[Jack]

Corey R: When you have a stud like Bako, middling prospects like Marson don't matter.

[tg082]

I have a feeling Werth will stay in right from here on out. Also, b_a_p, Bako he gets two hits tonight, I think he'll earn a spot for two years, not two months. As evidence, I present you Eric Bruntlett.

[MG]

Unleash the 37-year old journeyman catcher!

[MG]

Loading up the lefties vs. Bergesen actually has slighty better splits against left-handed bats this season.

I know it is an odd lineup because of Howard being out but that is the look of a sub .500 team

[G-Town Dave]

I'd rather see Bako than Rollins at this point. Shaking up the order by moving him down in the lineup is the easiest move in the world, & Charlie refuses to do it. It's beyond infuriating.

[MG]

RHP who the Phils have seen before who is heavily with the sinker/offspeed stuff and a mixed lineup to boot?

Phils lose tonight 6-4 to make it 5 straight Ls and 7 of 8. Boo birds will be out tonight more than at any point this season so far.

[Dorothy Gayle]

Cholly Manuel explains tonights line-up shake up to Chris Wheeler on the pre-game radio show

"I could while away the hours, conferrin' with the flowers
Consultin' with the rain.
And my head I'd be scratchin' while my thoughts were busy hatchin'
If I only had a brain."

[AL]

Bako should lead off to make sure our lowest Avg and OBP remain in the top spot

[Dorothy Gayle]

Cholly was going to bat Bako lead-off but Davey Lopes talked him out of it.

[goody]

Stairs has played a lot at 1B, so I assume they consider him a better OF than Dobbs. I know Matt has very limited range, but he has looked good on balls that he gets to.

[king myno]

goody - I agree, I'd say he defines the oft-used phrase "steady 41-year-old outfielder".

But in all seriousness, I do agree.

[MG]

In Cholly's defense:

- With Howard is out due to illness, Cholly is basically make the best of poorly dealt hand. Makes some sense to stack the lineup with lefties off the bench and he actually did break them up somewhat.

- Bigger question is how does Happ respond to working with a guy (Bako) he has never worked with before?

I think you get another night of middling results with Happ though who has almost universally avoided criticism on here but has been really struggling with command on his fastball and leaving a ton of stuff up.

Unfortunately, I see Happ giving up another 2 HRs tonight and only making it into the 6th because of command problems again. Let's say his line is 5 2/3 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 4 K. Another so-so outing with a likely L

[EastFallowfield]

Anyone see the All Star ad on Fox...looks like Jack Taschner makes an appearance in the ad, but not one of the players sucked into the magnetic field of the St Louis arch.

Ryan Howard one of the featured stars, which is interesting seeing how he usually doesn't make the team.

[thephaithful]

along with fever, vomitting, and diahrea, hitting sub mendoza line vs LHP is now a sign of the swine flu.

[aksmith]

Sad I can't watch the game for too long. Going to see Todd Rundgren in Vegas. But putting Stairs in left with Happ pitching? That might make Mayberry look like Clemente.

Soft tossing lefty vs pull hitters. Yeah, Charlie. Todd might be getting hit with the ricochets here in Veags.

[AFish]

I found it a little disturbing that Howard was at the ballpark (which I infer by Scott Lauber's twitter post). All the team needs is a swine flu epidemic.

[NEPP]

Forfeiting is not an option apparently?

[bigmyc]

Disagree. I like this lineup with Stairs at cleanup. Bako would surprise me if he actually got on base tonight.

[NEPP]

Seriously though, Paul Bako will have at least 1 big hit tonight.

[bay_area_phan]

I would never dispute the power of the Reverse Beerleaguer Jinx, but there are a few players who are so transcendently bad that even the Reverse Jinx doesn't help them. Bruntlett is a classic example. With all the angst that is directed at him on Beerleaguer, he should be an All Star by now. I suspect Bako is another one who is immune from the Reverse Jinx.

[Dave X]

8-9-1 Black hole tonight. Both Coste and Ruiz have been, over their careers and in this current season, far better hitters than Bako versus RHP. Just because you hit lefty doesn't mean you still don't suck versus righty pitchers

[redbeard]

ah nuts, there goes the no hitter.

[MG]

Considering that Bako hits an overwhelming amount of balls on the ground (53.0%) for his career, who wants to bet he doesn't get it out of the INF tonight. I say that is at least a 50/50 chance.

[AL]

JA not looking great so far..leaving things up a lot

[MG]

All things considered, it has been amazing how many HRs the Phils staff has allowed this year (99 HRs).

Baseball Reference gives a detailed breakdown of each's pitcher HR allowed but doesn't tell you the pitch.

If I had to make a documentary so far about the Phils' pitching staff this year, it would be "Season of the hanging changeup" or something to that effect.

That is why I was surprised at the stupid post-game commentary on Bastardo that didn't mention the simple fact that he kept the ball in the park last night which is a considerable feat for a Phils starter this year.

As many HRs as Blanton and Moyer have given up, they still are only on pace to surrender 40 HRs. That is alot but not quite near the club record of Eric Milton's excellent 43 HRs allowed in '04 (another excellent Ed Wade pickup).

[That Dude]

i feel like the ump is squeezing us a bit.

[G-Town Dave]

His name may be "JA", but that inning has me thinking "NEIN". :-(

[bay_area_phan]

There is much to like about Happ, but his command is just atrocious. If he ever learns to throw strikes he could be an above average pitcher. If not, he'll have a hard time keeping his job as a major league starter.

[Jack]

This ump squeezed Happ but is now giving Bergesen anything within a mile of the plate.

[bay_area_phan]

Jack/Dude: I didn't see too much squeezing going on. I just saw a pitcher who couldn't throw strikes.

[Jack]

bap: No doubt he struggled. But there were a few borderline calls I thought Bergesen got that Happ didn't. Just my opinion.

The way Happ is pitching right now, and the way the Phils are hitting, I don't think the ump is gonna make a whole lot of difference.

[Jack]

Bako already making his case for player of the game. Love it.

[G-Town Dave]

Andino's pic on Gameday looks like a mug shot. Also, Bako is AWESOME! ;-)

[bay_area_phan]

That play probably just earned Bako 2 more starts over the next week.

[redbeard]

play the game right and hit the damn cutoff for petes sake.

[bigmyc]

But, does Mayberry have a better arm than Werth? I'm not sold that he does. That was as good of a throw as you are gonna see from mid rightfield. Unfortunately, it allowed the runner to second....but, no harm done, no one scored.

Get to it, Phillies.

[bay_area_phan]

Considering how bad his command is, Happ is lucky this game isn't 4-0 right now. I credit Paul Bako's peerless pitch calling skills for saving those 4 runs.

[AFish]

The Phillies deserve to have the whole team sick, in light of their decision to have Howard in the dugout.

[redbeard]

yea, i dont get having a guy with the flu around.

[RSB]

McCarthy is at his very most irritating during the trivia question interplay. It's difficult listening to someone who thinks they're witty despite the plain fact that they aren't.

[RSB]

Well, the Phillies are making everyone else sick with their play, why shouldn't they experience a little of it themselves?

[Jack]

Happ with a very Kendrick 07-esque performance so far. He needs to pitch better.

[redbeard]

thanks, rays.

[G-Town Dave]

Mets lose to Tampa Bay, 3-1. :-)

[RSB]

Rollins has one good game per week, then goes right back to popping up everything in sight.

[G-Town Dave]

Lidge At Reading: 1 scoreless inning, 2 Ks, 15 pitches (11 for strikes).

[Kool Earl]

The last Phillies offemsive collapse lasted two months (late june thru late aug 2008). The Phils just dont have the pitching right now to withstand a similar tanking

[curt]

Pheeble Phils.

[G-Town Dave]

Has it reached the point yet where 1-0 constitutes an insurmountable lead? If not, 2 or more runs most certainly is.

[curt]

These AL hitters just stand there and watch our marginal pitchers try to nibble. The result has been a ton of pitches, a ton af walks, and a ton of losses. If the NL teams follow suit, it will be a long summer.

[RSB]

They're going to explode one of these innings.

[That Dude]

say what you will about HAPP, but he has onlyu given up 1 run thru 5IP. Aint nuthin wrong with that.

Joe Savery with another gem in the making tonight....

[Kool Earl]

After the Mets series and thus far against the Phillies, Orioles fans must be fantasizing
about realignment where they would be in a divison where they were one starting pitcher away from seriously competing

[gm-carson]

This new lineup is awesome. 1 hit, 1 goddamn hit!

[bay_area_phan]

True, Dude, but runs don't always tell the story. Bastardo allowed 4 runs yesterday and pitched well. Happ has allowed only 1 run (oh wait . . . now 2) today and he's pitching horrendously.

[bay_area_phan]

GM: Don't worry. We have Bako, Bruntlett, & Rollins coming up next inning.

[curt]

That's quite a trio. Will be interesting to see if any of them sees a single ball.

[Tk]

This is sad

[Alex]

Bako is our best hitter.

[bay_area_phan]

6 innings, 2 runs, 14 base runners allowed, and a 65:44 ball/strike ratio. I'd have to say that was about the most un-quality quality start that I've ever seen in my life.

Still, it's a quality start, which means this pending loss is 100% on the offense.

[curt]

So Happ's WHIP was what, 2.50? Remarkable.

[bay_area_phan]

If they score a run tonight, I'll be shocked.

[Alex]

Too bad the Phils don't play Washington at home again until Sept 15th.

[Kool Earl]

Its hard to digest the feeling that a 2 run lead against Baltimore is feeling pretty insurmountable.

[Kool Earl]

...'scuse me... make that 2 run deficit

[Alex]

Can tomorrow please get rained out so this team can get out of town?

[That Dude]

just call up savery/drabek, starts their clocks and cross our fingers lol

[Alex]

Can Savery still play 1st base? Might need him in the everyday lineup.

[Kool Earl]

Looks like the Orioles will get at least another insurance run.

[TK]

Where is Charlie to argue that and fire up his team?! Wow, good leadership. Manny Acta would be proud.

[rossdawg]

Geez now Durbin gets hit. I hope that is not his tweet-ing wrist. I would miss his amazing descriptions of off day activities and looking forward to movies and other entertainment on game nights, not to mention his scouting business.

[G-Town Dave]

Baltimore Lead = Officially Insurmountable.

[kart racer]

13 hits vs 2, the score should be 10-0.

[That Dude]

MIchael Taylor with a Grand Slam 2nite and Savery is mowing them down

[RSB]

Trembley waiting way too long to hook Bergeson.

[bay_area_phan]

Durbin is easily the most maddening guy in the Phillies' bullpen this year. A .203 BAA. 36 strikeouts in 38 innings. But almost 6 walks per 9 innings, and more homeruns allowed than he had all of last year. Plus, in close games, he has been like gasoline on the fire. Bring him into a game where we're behind but within striking distance, and he almost invariably makes things worse.

[TK]

Well BAP, I'd argue one Brad Lidge has been the most maddening. But yeah, Durbin's in the top 3.

[TK]

Wow Ryan Howard back from the hospital!

[RSB]

Howard with the flu = unstoppable.

[TK]

How can anyone not like that guy.

[redbeard]

SICK MAN GOES YARD!

[clout]

That one's for you, Jack.

[G-Town Dave]

I like being wrong ... BIG MAN!!!!!!!!!!!! :-D

[NEPP]

Its like they had a script or something...spectacular!

[curt]

That was predictable.

[redbeard]

EVERYONE needed that. thanks howard.

[RSB]

I believe I called that explosion. Not necessarily the pinch-HR. But you knew it couldn't go on like that forever.

[NEPP]

The team really needed that. clutch.

[clout]

BTW, a terrible call by McCarthy on the biggest play of the game. He had no clue it was going out until last minute.

[Spoilt Victorian Child]

Well that was pretty cool.

[petey]

and that's why we all keep watching.

[Kool Earl]

Still the task of holding a 2 run lead for 2 innings.