Game chat: Phillies, Phillies JV open four-gamer

Once and forever Phillie Brett Myers (8-7, 3.11) makes his first Citizens Bank Park appearance since Game 3 of the 2009 World Series tonight when the Astros and Phillies open a four-game set in Philadelphia. Joe Blanton (5-6, 5.54) deals for the hometown nine.

Preview: Myers has been a revelation for Ed Wade's motley crew of unwanted Phillies. Myers, who signed a two-year extension with a club option third year at the deadline, set a Houston franchise record by lasting at least six innings in each of his first 25 starts, and lately he's rewarded egghead Eddie's generous offering with a 3-1 record and 2.26 ERA in his last nine outings. Myers may be best known in Philadelphia for his at bat against CC Sabathia and the Brewers in the 2008 NLDS. Otherwise, his eight-year career was a series of highs and lows that included flashes of the type of front-line pitcher he would eventually become with the Astros, a fairly successful transition into a closer and an embarrassing demotion to the minor leagues. ... Turning to the Phils, Charlie Manuel again passes up a chance to use his opening day lineup for the first time since May 21. Placido Polanco is experiencing some minor soreness in his left elbow and is scratched for Wilson Valdez, but Manuel told reporters before the game that Polanco's situation it was no big deal. The Phils are hoping for more workman-like results from Blanton, who is 2-0 with a 4.06 ERA in his last five starts. The Phils have won their last seven series at home and eight of nine overall.

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Comments

[Unikruk]

I don't know that he was sighing when signing that extension :)

[Little Ollie]

Maybe it's stating the obvious, but probably the best part about having a team regularly reaching the playoffs is all the great memories. Myers' AB against CC is forgotten the next day if it weren't at such an important time, and the same can be said for Burrell hitting the wall, Stairs' colossal shot, Mr. Lee's shutdown of the Yanks (in spite of the rest of the Series), Lidge's "perfection" in 2008, Rollins smacking the gapper against Broxton, etc. Here's hoping we as fans have many more memories coming this fall.

[awh]

Unikruk, true. Any "hope" that he had of returning to Philly after posting good numbers in Houston got signed away when he inked that deal.

Money talks.

[Mick O]

Well said Little Ollie

[Sophist]

Myers biggest contribution was in 07 as a closer:

http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/media/player/mp_tpl_3_1.jsp?w=2007/open/tp/archive09/093007_wasphi_myers_reel_tp_350.wmv&pid=mlb_tp&gid=2007/09/30/wasmlb-phimlb-1&mid=200709302241881&cid=mlb&fid=mlb_tp400&v=2&id=602980

[Sophist]

Myers was the Phils opening day starter 07, 08, 09.

[Little Ollie]

As I recall, he was opening day starter in 2009 either for convenience or to avoid upsetting his fragile ego, not b/c he was considered #1 on the staff.

[Fatalotti]

Sophist, 3 things:

1) Myers has always had a beautiful hook.
2) Say what you want abuot Burrell, but he was always the first one out of the dugout to celebreat. He loves the game.
3) I miss Harry.

Thanks for posting that video.

[Chris in VT]

Looking forward to putting a beating on Myers...I think it would be totally appropriate for his 6 IP per start streak to end against his former team.

[Little Ollie]

Yes, thanks Sophist, forgot about Nunez and I'm sure a few others.

[CJ]

I rooted for Myers while he was here, and I certainly appreciated some of his important contributions (particularly his role as closer and his big AB vs. CC), but I won't look on him like I do Pat the Bat or some other Phillies. I was turned off by Myers' off the field issues.

[bay_area_phan]

Myers will no doubt be pumped up to be back in Philly for the first time. At least when he was with the Phillies, a pumped-up Brett Myers always seemed to translate to a bad Brett Myers, who relied too heavily on his fast ball & would invariably give up a bunch of meatballs. He's obviously pitching a lot better this year, but my money still says that Meathead Myers shows up tonight & he has one of his worst outings of the year.

[Little Ollie]

While I'm sure Myers will get a nice reception when he steps on the mound, I would not be at all surprised if he's the butt of a few insults as the game progresses.

[rauls grandpa]

Bad news: Some of Brett's Phila friends got in a barroom brawl this afternoon. He, of course, was not there but mysteriously some of his kid's toys were left around his hotel room, he tripped over them and got a black-eye, a bruised rib and some kid of elbow mark-looking injury to his forehead.

[Fatalotti]

Remember when everyone was dubbing Brett Myers as the "X-Factor" last year, in light of Lidge's struggles? Everyone thought he would come back on a steed, take over the closer's role, and he and Lee would singlehandedly walk us back to a WS victory. That never materialized.

[Mick O]

Maybe if Blanton played the first inning on Playstation MLB in the clubhouse before heading out, it would help.

Couldn't hurt?

[Willard Preacher]

Don't discount the whole "Phillies struggle against unfamiliar pitching" conundrum, though. Who, in tonight's lineup, has faced Myers previously?

[Sophist]

It's a great video. Remember exactly where I was that day.

[aksmith]

Anyone believe that Michael Bourn will not be on base to start the game?

[Fatalotti]

WP, Polanco, maybe? Did Jayson Werth ever see him when he played for the Dodgers? And he may have faced Ibanez once or twice. Those are my guesses.

[Willard Preacher]

We should be fine tonight, assuming the lineup can put up just one more run than the total of:

- the crooked number HOU puts up in the first (~3?), plus
- the run or two that Romero gives up in the 7th, plus
- the run that Lidge gives up (via a lead off walk) in the ninth

Not sure why I feel so damn confident in these projections....

[Sophist]

Schneider has a ton of AB against Myers. Werth, Oswalt, Ibanez and Vic have 16 PA all together. Werth the only one with a hit, 1-6.

[NEPP]

****I rooted for Myers while he was here, and I certainly appreciated some of his important contributions (particularly his role as closer and his big AB vs. CC), but I won't look on him like I do Pat the Bat or some other Phillies. I was turned off by Myers' off the field issues.****

THIS...that said, I would probably take him back in the right situation. Kinda like a Mets fan liking David Cone I would think.

[Willard Preacher]

aksmith, as the magic 8 ball would say, "It is certain."

[aksmith]

If Ed Wade had a stroke and offered Myers for KK, Mathieson and Worley, I dare say anyone with a brain would do that.

[NEPP]

I'm gonna go out on a limb and predict a Myers Perfect Game tonight.

[Willard Preacher]

Sophist, I love tossing out obscure questions like that just KNOWING that you'll be the one to reply with exactly what I was wondering. Thanks!

[bay_area_phan]

Great. Here we go.

[NEPP]

And it begins.

[Fatalotti]

Well, that's a run. No clean first inning for Blanton today. Maybe next time.

[NEPP]

This Bourn guy is pretty good...wish we had a speedy guy like that.

[bay_area_phan]

I'm already hoping Blanton can limit the damage to 1 run.

[Willard Preacher]

aksmith, I forgot that AFTER Bourn inevitably reached that we'd have to hear Wheels slurp all over him for the next 20 minutes or so.

[aksmith]

Bourn on second? Who would have guessed it? Flabbergasting.

[NEPP]

I'm kinda surprised that Bourn only has 41 SB so far...that's pretty weak out of a guy with his SB skills.

[Roy]

Lead off "double" off of Blanton is unfortunately not surprising.

[aksmith]

Wheels should slurp over him. He has killed the Phillies. Of course, with Blanton out there, who hasn't killed the Phillies?

[Willard Preacher]

"Of course, with Blanton out there, who hasn't killed the Phillies?"

The pizza delivery man?

[NEPP]

How the hell was Bourn held at 3B? Is Steve Smith the Astros 3B coach?

[dlhunter]

So far, ao good.

[Willard Preacher]

BAP, I'll be ok if Blanton can limit the damage to 3 in the first. Not sure what the hell this says of my expectations for KYJ.

[aksmith]

And Blanton's greatness continues. Don't know why I'm watching this game.

[Willard Preacher]

I think the question about Blanton should be whether or not his issues are particular to THE first inning, or HIS first inning.

[NEPP]

I hate 2010 Blanton.

[NEPP]

He is the man.

[Fatalotti]

Joe Blanton should wash Chase's car....forever.

[Kutztown fan]

There's a really good rerun of "The Office" on channel 57.

[NEPP]

I suppose with that arm we could probably toss Utley in LF at some point if his other defensive skills decline. Pretty impressive.

[Willard Preacher]

Extra fielding practice because it's a KJY start??? They really picked his fat butt up there!

[Sophist]

Great plays by Ruiz and Werth. Happy to be out of the first with 1 run damage honestly.

[bay_area_phan]

Well, that was certainly a strong inning of defense. Unfortunately, I can't say the same about the pitching.

[Fatalotti]

For all the bad luck Joe Blanton has supposedly had this year, he just got it all paid back to him that inning.

[NEPP]

Those defensive gems would not have happened if not for Joe Blanton...he's single handedly improving our team defense.

So he's got that going for him...which is nice.

[The Truth Injection]

Nice job by the Phillies defense to bail Blanton out there.

[Kutztown fan]

Wow. That could've been MUCH worse. Blanton better buy some steaks for Utley, Vic, and Werth.

[aksmith]

Wow, Blanton saved from himself by the defense. That's a three run inning, as per usual, without great defense all around. I'm not sure what Blanton does in warmups, but he should stop immediately.

[Willard Preacher]

Is anyone seriously surprised that Blanton had a bad first inning?

Will they also be surprised when he turns in one of his patented ugly "quality starts?"

[Fatalotti]

Was there one poorly hit ball in that inning?

[Willard Preacher]

The best thing going for the Phils against Myers is that contract extension...

[NEPP]

Theory on what Blanton's "Warmup" consists of:

2-3 Whiz Wits from Pat's Steaks.

[Old Phan]

Donut is lucky the 'Stros didn't score 5 runs that inning.

[Roy]

What's a Blanton QS? 4ER in 5+ innings?

I'm glad only 1 run was given up there.

Anyone have any idea on how many lead off batters score on Blanton to start the game?

[NEPP]

Good AB by Shane regardless of how it ends.

[Fatalotti]

Good AB by Shane.

[aksmith]

Anyone notice that Oswalt was throwing in the outfield the day after going 7 innings?

[Andy]

15.2 inch break on the hook. Nasty pitch.

[Willard Preacher]

Funny how they flash up Brett's stats as a starter in Philly and they closely resemble the earlier expectation for a #5 (slightly over .500, with an ERA under 5.00).

It says a lot that he used to be our ace. We've come a long, long way.

[Andy]

That was ball 3 to Uts. Bad call.

[f4f]

tmac, referencing madson's "years as a starter".

follow the team much?

[NEPP]

He just froze Utley...damn.

[The Truth Injection]

Utley got caught looking for a fastball there

[Old Phan]

Stood there like a house by the side of the road and watched that one go by.

[aksmith]

Well, that was an impressive inning for the offense. Good to see Utley is as sharp as ever. Two pitches down the gut and never got the bat off his shoulder for either one of them.

[NEPP]

At least they made Myres throw a bunch of pitches.

[Fatalotti]

Well, for a no hit, no walk inning, they at least saw a fair amount of pitches. Hopefully they're just measuring him up. No one measures Blanton up, they just hit him right ouf of the gates.

[bay_area_phan]

This is the part of the game where Blanton usually straightens himself out & pitches pretty well -- up until about the 6th inning when he implodes again.

[aksmith]

Hey, that Barret Loux kid has been declared a free agent as of Sept. 1. I wonder if the Phillies are going to do their due dilligence and make an offer.

[fooman]

Scoop!

[NEPP]

Glove save and a beauty!

[bay_area_phan]

Valdez is an excellent 2nd baseman & a good shortstop, but he hasn't played a whole lot of 3rd base. Fortunately, Howard bailed him out with a great scoop there.

[Fatalotti]

The Phillies should play 5 outfielders in the first innings for Blanton, and then revert to normal defense from the 2nd on. He was a totally different pitcher that inning. Crazy.

[aksmith]

Blanton threw some awful pitches in that inning. 87-88 mph fastballs right over the heart of the plate. And he got away with it. Better to be lucky than good.

[Andy]

Joe's pitching much better now that he finished that box of Krispy Kremes in the dugout after the top of the first. Let's hope Mackanin gets back with the dozen pretzels before the top of the third.

[aksmith]

Fatalotti - He got away with garbage that inning. He was certainly not a different pitcher. The hitters were different hitters.

[The Truth Injection]

completely different pitcher there in the second

[aksmith]

So, the strategy seem to be to take the fastballs. That makes sense.

[Fatalotti]

I wouldn't say it was gargage, he threw a couple nice breaking balls. Hard to argue with two Ks.

[Fatalotti]

Myers seems locked in. Working quickly.

[bay_area_phan]

This is a pathetic display of offense even by the Phillies' low standards.

[timr]

Its more than a little annoying that, after a Phillies career filled with mental inconsistency, Myers appears totally focused in this one.

[Fatalotti]

Who called the perfecto? He may have been on to something.

[f4f]

born-again myers + expanded strike zone = long night for phils' batters

[denny b.]

Myers is out to kick the Phils ass.

[Willard Preacher]

For a majority of the season, injuries have been a good excuse for Philly offensive ineptitude (although that abyssmal two months was next level stuff).

Now, we can use "rusty" for a couple of the guys. Barring any more injuries, how much longer do we have to wait?

[NEPP]

Prediction: 9 IP, 24 Ks out of Myers tonight.

[Andy]

As I watch Myers work over the Phils, I keep thinking, "Don't worry. You're not gonna be able to watch this whole game anyway."

[aksmith]

Get used to this. Myers has been focused all year. Look for a complete game from him, especially since the Phillies seem flumoxed by his 89 mph fastball. Wait until he mixes in more curves.

This is the guy Rube Jr. replaced with Fat Joe or KK. Think about that as the hitters flail or fail to swing completely.

[Willard Preacher]

Myers always did enjoy being a rockstar closer. I guess he has designs on turning out the lights tonight.

[Fatalotti]

They have some big money announcers doing the little league WS elimination game. Sounds like John Anderson and Bobby Valentine.

[Sophist]

Myers has only thrown 3 fastballs