Game chat: Phillies open 4-game stay in St. Louis

Right-handers Kyle Kendrick (5-3, 4.44) and Blake Hawskworth (3-5, 4.73) are scheduled when the Phillies move on to a four-game date with the Cardinals. First pitch is 7:05.

Best of the press notes: Before the game, Ryan Howard was selected as the National League Player of the Week. Howard, who has been honored as the player of the week more than any Phillie in history (6), hit .400 with four homers and 8 RBIs form June 15-18. ... The Phillies are 21-9 in their last 30 games against the Cardinals and 12-5 in their last 17 games in Busch Stadium. Among the most memorable was a 20-run outburst in 2008 that preceded a long offensive drought. [Jump to the newest comments]

Comments

[G-Town Dave]

Old Phan: In the First Half of '09 (47,760 AB), NL teams hit a total of 1,317 HR. In the First Half of '10 (47,953 AB), NL teams hit a total of 1,309 HR. So that's 1HR/36.26AB in '09, & 1HR/36.63AB in '10. In comparison, the Phillies had hit 131 HR after 92 Games in '09, & have hit 98 HR after 92 Games in '10. That's a 25% drop.

[MG]

Just used the numbers off baseball reference for the season and assuming the current rate of HRs being hit in the NL and for the Phils will hold constant (which of course it won't). Still a useful exercise though.

[MG]

I didn't think the Phils would hit 200+ HRs before the season began mainly for the simple fact that Ibanez/Werth weren't going to hit 70 HRs again. I thought it was going to be around 45 HRs instead.

There are 20 now and there is a good chance that if even if both these guys are healthy & playing for the Phils everyday they don't finish with more than 35 HRs.

Corner OF power drop has been the single biggest issue on the team so far on a team that has had several offensive issues/limitations.

[The Truth Injection]

MG: You've now said Rollins, hitting with RISP, and the lack of power from corner outfielders are the single biggest issues over the past few weeks.

[NEPP]

I think our biggest problem is that oftentimes the opposing team scores more runs than us.

We should stop letting them do that.

[MG]

TTI - Over the past few weeks JRoll and hitting with RISP have been even bigger issues.

JRoll is hitting .187 now in 24 G with an OPS of .565. That's brutal.

Don't have the numbers for RISP in front of me but they said the other night during the broadcast in the Cubs' series the Phils were hitting .218 with RISP.

This offense is like house in the Money Pit. There are problems everywhere you look.

Over the course of the season though, it has been the lack of corner OF power production.

[MG]

.218 with RISP in July during the Cubs' broadcast. It is just .259 on the season (10th in the NL).

[denny b.]

Our biggest problem is our team just isn't very good in 2010.

The TEAM.

Offense. Defense. Baserunning. Bench. Starting pitching. Relief pitching. Closer. Manager. Coaching staff. GM.

We have looked like a .500 team most of the year. As Bill Parcells says, "you are what your record says you are".

Its not just Ibanez's fault. Or Werth. Or Dobbs. Or Rollins. Or Lidge. Or Blanton. Or Madson. Or Castro.

Its just about everyone. Some are more culpable then others. But night-in, night-out, it seems to be someone new. Tonight, Kendrick had a tough night. He's been pretty darn good most of the year. Last night, Halladay had a tough one. The plague is hitting everyone.

Hate to see this team fall apart, but its happened. Regroup and retool and come back strong and refreshed in 2011. Still should have a damn good team.

[Voice of Reason]

It's ugly: we're 24-31 since May 15.

[The Truth Injection]

MG: My point is maybe you are overusing the phrase "our single biggest issue." You can't have three single biggest issues.

[Old Phan]

The biggest issues are that Rube can't hit LHP and Cholly always swings at the first pitch. That and the Phils let Chris Coste go.

[The Truth Injection]

Old Phan: Oh great. Now davthorn's beeper went off and he'll be posting here again.

[king myno]

denny b - Wow. You summed up the season perfectly. But since this is Beerleaguer, we'll ignore every word you said and resume harshly blaming each team member for their own contribution to the mediocrity. More fun that way.

Oh, and Cliff Lee.

[Old Phan]

TTI, I started my stopwatch just to see how long it took for Davthom to post.

Cliff Lee.

[phlipper]

Well, look on the bright side. We'll all be able to get a lot more yard work done in October.

Cliff Lee.

[Old Phan]

"October is the Cruelest Month (when your team doesn't make the playoffs"

T.S. eLEEiot

[bay_area_phan]

A month ago, who would have ever guessed that getting more playing time for Greg Dobbs would become the cause that unites all Beerleaguers? I mean, at this time last month, I wanted Dobbs strapped into a rocket ship and launched 5,000 light years into outer space so he could never play for the Phillies, see his family, enjoy a sunrise, or share my oxygen again.

[Old Phan]

My brother declared Dobbs the Worst Hitter in the League. I wasn't willing to go that far, but let's face it. He looked like he couldn't hit a softball thrown at 10 MPH. Hmm, maybe playing time does matter.

[Jack]

Old Phan: "The Waste Land" is a pretty good description of the Phils' season so far.

Though some might be partial to Eliot's other famous poem, "The Love Song of Scott Proefrock".

[bay_area_phan]

Ben Sheets actually pitched his third strong game in a row tonight -- 6.2 IP, 2 runs allowed. I mention this because he looks like the leading candidate to be the Phillies' trade deadline acquisition. I have no idea which of our 3 No. 5 starters he would replace. All 3 have stated pretty compelling cases in the past week.

[raul's grandpa]

I just want to say I talked to my "grandson" tonight and he said he is not responsible for this teams woes.

[Bedrosian's Beard]

Maybe the A's will throw in Michael Taylor.

[Hugh Mulcahy]

. . . and the "extraordinarily mediocre" Mark Ellis.

Brutal outing. After Kendrick walked the first two guys in the second, following the tightrope he walked in the 1st, I thought - 'they'll probably need to score 7 tonight'. Was 9. I thought the lineup would score more, honestly, and it wasn't for lack of hitting. As usual, it's a lack of timely hitting.

The ump called maybe one strike at the bottom of hte knee all night. He made Kendrick get the pitch up to Craig that went out. He can't succeed in that situation.

I'm just glad they lined up the rotation so Halladay gets a start against a good team like St. Louis. .. wait.

[Ed]

Wheels really was negative towards Treve Miller last night accusing him of getting Francona fired. A little strong I thought.
Too bad he's not more constructively critical of guys when they are on the team, he waits until they are on another team to unload.

[phanatic's brother]

VOR- **It's ugly: we're 24-31 since May 15.**

http://www.denverpost.com/sports/ci_15074235

[phanatic's brother]

The other night Joe Morgan said he ask Cholly about the teams issues and Cholly sai to Joe over and over "we had it" "we had it"

To me that sounds like a statement of resignation. Thats what I think bothers most fans. Not the fact that they are losing. But the impression that they arent playing how they should be and no one is changing it.

[Sophist]

Phils offense had 17 baserunners last night, everyone getting a hit besides Valdez (0-2 w RISP). The 3-4-5 hitters went 6-12 with 2 BB. The Phils only scored 4 runs and lost anyway. Why?

A combination of missed opportunities and, mostly, Kendrick. The other thing that stands out in my mind is that the Cards walked Kendrick twice, and it didn't seem to lead to much damage with the 7, 1-2 batters going 2-14 with 0 BB.

Against RHP Ruiz needs to be higher in the order. Feels like the Phils have been wasting his quality AB for half a season. The team hitting since Utley went down now stands at .233/.296/.398.

On the Kendrick topic, I said this last night but Kendrick has had his share of starts like this one even this year. Going into last night, he had a 3.64 ERA in his last 17 games but in 4 of them he allowed 5 or more runs (4 or more in 6 of them). I suppose this is what you'll get from Kendrick, but - with Utley out and Werth not hitting much - the Phils can't afford to have their starters pitch the team out of games.

I still think a Sheets-Ellis move is ideal.

[Sophist]

Sorry, meant to say that the 6,8, 1-2 batters went 3-18 with 0 BB.

[Heather]

What bothers me most is not bad players playing bad. That happens from time to time.

It's our good players not stepping up at crucial points with RISP or the game on the line.

It's our manager not making good game decisions that could help the team win games. Instead seemingly he puts them in a position to lose.

The manager and the majority of players on the team seem to be sleepwalking through the game and seem to be pretty numb to each loss.

This isn't a team 5 games out that thinks it can win. Right now, this is a team already resigned to losing and retooling next year.

It doesn't have to be that way. But right now, I'm not sure where that change is coming from.

That's just my $.02. People on this site claim I'm not very positive about the team. That's true. Then again, this team has not given me very much to be positive about. If I thought I was truly seeing this team's capability reflected in their record, and they were laying their hearts out on the field every night, fine.

But instead I'm seeing a team that has all the potential in the world, and outside of a few exceptions, are just mailing it in. I'm negative because I'm disappointed, and frankly, I think I have every reason to be.

[Meyer]

Sarge made a point about KK's low sinker not getting called a strike. "He can't throw it any higher". Bombs away when he tries to get it up or throw it harder. Of course the low strike was called on Valdez and a few other Phils.

[phlipper]

People on this site claim I'm not very positive about the team.

No!

Someone actually posted that you're "not very positive?"

Outrageous!

[Heather]

'Someone actually posted that you're "not very positive?"

Outrageous!'

My feelings exactly.

[kuvasz]

Heather, you won't see any changes until the park starts showing empty seats and by then it will be too late.

If Phillie past is prelude, management will do little to improve its product until it starts losing customers. Baseball is like any other business in that ownership will produce excellence only as a by-product of the pursuit of profits (and not vice versa); in other words, they don't care if they produce $hite as long as their business is profitable.

With all the troubles the Phillies have had recently, the worst thing to stomach are the team's seemingly constant supply mental errors, Ruiz throwing to 2nd that let in the runner from 3rd, Rollins constantly swinging at the first pitch with a guy on base, etc. The team is not playing sound, fundamental baseball and after a while that reflects bad coaching not simply bad luck. There are times when I think that the players have just given up on the coaching staff and don't trust their judgment.

Charlie Manuel is not a bad human being but he doesn't seem to know much about how to manage pitching staffs. He did last night almost exactly the same thing he used to do with Adam Eaton in '07-08. The guy just never seems to learn. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the players begin to voice their own concerns about how this club is being managed.

[EastFallowfield]

Yo, newer thread