Game chat: Mets-Phils series finale; Sink or Schwim?

Sink.

Transaction: To make room for tonight's starter, Cliff Lee, the Phillies optioned Michael Schwimer down to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The 26-year-old right-hander appeared in five games and posted an 8.53, including a pair of salt-on-the-wound runs in Tuesday's brutal loss to the Mets, who've taken four out of five games from the Phillies this season. Schwimer, whose confidence appeared broken Tuesday night, allowed runs in four of his five appearances, which is right in line with the rest of the bullpen these days. As the pregame notes tell us, after posting a 2.01 ERA (10 ER, 31.1 IP) and a .233 (27-for-116) opponents average over its first 14 appearances of the season, the Phillies' bullpen has a 6.97 ERA (32 ER, 41.1 IP) over its last 15 games. They're last in bullpen ERA with a 4.95, which is almost .30 worse than the second worst team, Toronto. They may seem to be stretched thin because of the extra-inning games, injury and so forth, but they've tallied just 70 1-3 innings, which is the second lowest in baseball.

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Comments

[pleasesteak]

I do feel bad for a guy like Schwimmer. That step from AAA to MLB is such a big one to make for most and so much is at stake for the player - namely the ability to support one's self financially (at an obviously higher level than most people). Has to be deflating to be sent back down to the minors.

[GBrettFan]

Oh, now don't go making me feel sorry for him, pleasesteak.

But I actually do feel bad for him - when he pitched 2 innings without allowing runs, it would have been a great confidence builder for him (maybe only 1 would have been better) - but because it was an extra-innings game, he was mercilessly sent out for a 3rd inning, to fail.

[GBrettFan]

I just feel that everything has snowballed.

We have trouble putting men on base...or if we do, we have trouble scoring them...or if we do, we can't sustain the lead because 1) SP runs out of gas, sometimes inexplicably, or is having an off night and can't hold off the other guys, or 2) the Crap-To-Pap blows the lead. Meanwhile, we can't score again. We even add crappy defense sometimes (like last night), or bad baserunning.

I really hope this is a collective team slump that goes away.

I really hope Rollins isn't this bad, permanently, or Mayberry...that the whole team, collectively, can get hits in the clutch often enough that we can start feeling, once again: "With our starting pitching, we have a good chance to win on any given night."

[lorecore]

re: mariano duncan stopped switch hitting

I never remembered him switch hitting, but after Phatti mentioned it, he did back in 1985-1987 before he really was a regular player, so i'm not sure if thats a good example.

for what its worth, Victorino actually was purely a right handed batter in his first few callups before being picked up by the Phillies. If you take out his initial 66 PA as r/r, he's .315/.381/.631 in 21 PA since.

[GTown_Dave]

As mentioned previously, possibly no Chooch, Wigginton or Nix tonight. Luckily this Phils roster is so stuffed w/ big hitters that their potential absence won't matter.

[Scotch Man]

Schwimer is Zagurski all over again it looks like. Throws well in Triple-A. Fails in the bigs. Even worse, he's been given more opportunities too. I definitely think it's time for Diekman.

[The hook]

I don't feel sorry for this stiff. Guy has had plenty of chances. Time for diekman and hopefully Justin d can get right. Keep eye out on friend in AA and a few more that will be ready to,jump to AAA.

[Del]

Never liked how this org always would bounce pitchers back and forth between the bigs and AAA while switching roles too.

Seemed like a good way to screw a guy up

[annie savoy]

It's a long season and you gotta trust.

[Matthew Perry]

I do feel bad for a guy like Schwimmer. That step from AAA to MLB is such a big one to make for most and so much is at stake for the player - namely the ability to support one's self financially (at an obviously higher level than most people). Has to be deflating to be sent back down to the minors.

Posted by: pleasesteak

Add in the fact he lost the love of his life - Rachel/Jennifer Aniston - and you really got to feel for the guy.

[Allan Thornburg (AT), Chairman of the Fire Charlie Manuel and End Bunting Brainlessness and Bullpen Management Buffoonery Committee]

I missed something--why isn't Wigginton playing? Has he joined the DL Brigade?

[Dragon]

GBrettFan wrote: "We have trouble putting men on base...or if we do, we have trouble scoring them...or if we do, we can't sustain the lead because 1) SP runs out of gas, sometimes inexplicably, or is having an off night and can't hold off the other guys, or 2) the Crap-To-Pap blows the lead. Meanwhile, we can't score again. We even add crappy defense sometimes (like last night), or bad baserunning."

This is what last place teams do. So far the Phillies have no one to blame but
themselves. They have earned it. I, too, hope they can get it together before it's too late.

[pb]

is there a reason why Nix didn't play last night and isn't in the lineup again tonight? Besides wanting to get JMJ at bats because if that's the reason it's not a good one.

[bay_area_phan]

Schwimer actually pitched in 17 games over 2 seasons; Zagurski pitched in 37 over 3 seasons.

Sometimes it does take awhile for these guys to acclimate to the majors. Bastardo put up huge minor league numbers but pretty much stunk it up over 31 major league games in 2009 & 2010. Granted, he was still considerably better than Schwimer has been. But both had immense difficulty throwing strikes in the majors, even though both had pretty decent walk ratios in the minors.

I think Schwimer will ultimately get one more chance and probably deserves one more chance. When he came up at the end of last year, he struggled but showed some flashes and certainly didn't look completely lost, as he did this time. I suspect it had something to do with being thrown into a bunch of high-pressure situations, with no margin for error.

[bay_area_phan]

Of course, the other possibility is that we'll give up on Schwimer and he'll surface with some other team next year, at which point he'll turn into a solid reliever for the next 3 or 4 seasons. You know, kind of like what happened with Brian Sanches during the three-year period between his two stints as a fringe major league reliever with the Phillies.

[GBrettFan]

is there a reason why Nix didn't play last night and isn't in the lineup again tonight? Besides wanting to get JMJ at bats because if that's the reason it's not a good one.

Posted by: pb |
* * *

Yes, pb, there is a reason. He's got a sore calf.

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/phillies_zone/Ruiz-Wigginton-Nix-sidelined.html

[pb]

thanks, GB I was unaware

[SLO Phan]

Feels like a loss.

[Scotch Man]

I'm sorry we're on a losing streak and guys are complaining about being sore? F that! Man the hell up and play! God, these guys are soft. No wonder they suck.

This game has loss written all over it. Lee's on a 60 pitch count I heard? That's good for what, 5 if we're really lucky? Then what?

I almost don't want to watch but I'm sick like that.

[Fatalotti]

Excellent article on the idiocy managers display when they sacrifice bunt position players late in games. It's hard to believe that Mattingly and Wedge couldn't have worked this stuff out on their own, but it's likely that many managers don't put that much thought into these situations. They just follow "The Book". Hrm, I wonder if the Phillies employ anyone like that.

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/the-sacrifice-bunt-the-real-rally-killer/

[Iceman]

This is the first game in years that I am actively going to avoid, even though I have a free night at home. Work is lousy enough- I can't keep coming home and watching this stuff. It hasn't been this brutal in years.

I don't really care about the sellout streak. The fact that I don't even want to watch them at this point says more to me than anything else could.

[GBrettFan]

Don't worry, Scotch Man. It's reported that Chooch, Nix & Wiggy can still hit.

So, you know, if we are in the bottom of the 9th, they can come up to the plate - as long as they promise to get hits and win us the game...because otherwise, we'll have to get Worley, Hamels & Halladay to play catcher, 1B & some other position.

[Allan Thornburg (AT)]

I'm sorry we're on a losing streak and guys are complaining about being sore? F that! Man the hell up and play! God, these guys are soft. No wonder they suck.
------------------------------------
Posted by: Scotch Man | Wednesday, May 09, 2012 at 06:36 PM

If this is the way fans react to possible player injuries, no wonder "macho man idiots" (to paraphrase a favorite Beerleaguer term) like Utley and Pence prefer to play hurt.

[GBrettFan]

I hadn't read this. Just confirmation of what we see, but still depressing to see it laid out like this:

When ahead in the count, Phillies hitters have an .845 OPS. That is the worst in baseball; the league average is .960. Incredibly, in the 395 plate appearances in which a Phillies batter is ahead in the count, he has drawn a walk only 69 times. Those 395 plate appearances are more than 11 other teams. But their 69 walks are the second-fewest in baseball. Only the Pirates (66) have fewer.

With a three-ball count, the Phillies have an OPS of .780. That is the worst in baseball; the league average is .975.

With a full count, the Phillies have an OPS of .552. That is the worst in baseball; the league average is .815.

What we're talking about is a systematic failure to succeed even when the situation favors the hitter. The Phillies actually rank 18th in the majors with a .476 OPS when the pitcher is ahead in the count.

Read more: http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/phillies_zone/a-failed-approach.html#ixzz1uPopRLrP
Watch sports videos you won't find anywhere else

[MG]

Schwimmer is a better pitcher than Zagurski. Zagurski could throw up to 94 but he had crummy command & no MLB-caliber offspeed pitch.

Schwimer has had notably better command in the minors and his slider is a MLB-caliber off pitch. He has just had a couple of outings this year & last where he has lost focus on the mound in a couple of spots. Starts overthrowing or aiming the ball a bit. His command goes to hell in the process.

It's a shame because he is going to be buried on the depth chart now for the rest of the year.

[Scotch Man]

Scratch Hamels GBrett. He's suspended.

[GBrettFan]

Oops, how could I forget Hamels can't play. It's worse than I thought, then - Blanton will have to play 1B.

[gjs]

Phrases I'm tired of hearing: "...salvage a series win," "1,2,3 go the Phils," "...couldn't hold the lead."

[büro mobilyaları]

nice post

[GBrettFan]

Nice catch, Pence!

[GBrettFan]

Welcome back, Cliff Lee!

[Hugh Mulcahy]

GBrett, those pitch count OPS figures are depressing.

[GTown_Dave]

Werth tries to make that play & he's out for 12 weeks. Just sayin' ...

[Fatalotti]

Good to see Lee pitching again. If we're going to have a sh!tty offense and bullpen, might as well get to see as much ace-starters as possible.

[GTown_Dave]

Vinny Rottino? Isn't he getting sued for flogging the bishop all over a male massage therapist? Step right up & beat the meat the Mets?

[Fatalotti]

If Brian Schneider faced a shift every time he batted, he'd probably be unable to crack a BA of .100.

[GBrettFan]

I agree, Fata, it's a pleasure to watch Lee pitch. Although less so if it's wasted.

[Muuurgh]

Starting off with some vintage 2012 RFD--the groundout version, that is. There's also that strikeout incarnation.

[Fatalotti]

And just as I say that...

[Fatalotti]

Maybe the third best hitter to come to the plate with RISP.

[GBrettFan]

Lee's up with RISP. Yay...?...

[Fatalotti]

I love you Cliff Lee.

[GTown_Dave]

Cliff Lee. Whatever.

[Jbird]

Lee should probably be batting 5th in this lineup

[Cliff Lee]

Cliff Lee drives in his own runs~

[GBrettFan]

Ha! Take note, regulars! Sucky Schneider, Galvis and a pitcher are showing you up. Score one for Lee in the pitchers' hitting contest.

[bay_area_phan]

At least someone can deliver clutch hits.

[Muuurgh]

Oh hell yeah. Quick! Let's trade him!

[Cyclic]

There really could be an argument made for not batting Lee 9th.

[Scotch Man]

I know Rollins was nobody's power hitter but he has no power at all anymore.

[GBrettFan]

Who was it that said Franzke doesn't show any excitement? He just made me think that ball was going out or going to hit the wall.

I wish.

[SLO Phan]

Well, that should do it for the offense. Time to take the rest of the game off.

[GTown_Dave]

Or for not batting Rollins at all.

[GBrettFan]

Lee at leadoff? Whoa, that would be a first. An amusing first. (And I know that would be dumb and would never happen.)

[Fatalotti]

When Lee's command is on, there's probably no better command pitcher in the game.

[GBrettFan]

I really like watching Galvis play his position. Chase's position, actually.

[Scotch Man]

There's an argument for batting Lee clean up if you ask me.

[GTown_Dave]

GBrettFan: word.

[GBrettFan]

Lee is playing heads-up baseball. Although I was afraid Jimmy would be unprepared for that move. Good job by Jimmy to hang on to the bag. Nice job by Mayberry quickly ducking out of the way of Lee's throw, in my opinion.

[GBrettFan]

Rat turd.

[GTown_Dave]

Murphy is a real pest this season.

[Scotch Man]

There goes the ballgame.

[They Call Me King of The Bop]

Another run allowed with 2 outs I AM GETTING STEAMED!!!!

[GTown_Dave]

Vic's been pissin' me off lately. His ABs seem even more random than usual, as if he's casting about wildly hoping something sticks.

[bay_area_phan]

To listen to the Phillies' announcers, as they nightly describe the opposing pitcher's brilliant performance, you'd think that the Phillies must be the unluckiest team in baseball history. Every night they just so happen to run into a future Hall of Fame pitcher.

[Willard Preacher]

BAP, to be fair to Sarge and TMac, they just delivered a very in-depth analysis on the Phils' struggles and even offered up a very good solution: "The Phillies need to play better."

These guys should be working on the cure for cancer, why are we wasting their time having them call baseball games?

[NEPP]

I wonder if our SP get tired of this crap offense.

[bay_area_phan]

WP: The most troubling part of that analysis was that they were actually quoting RAJ.

[Willard Preacher]

Good point.

[bay_area_phan]

If Murphy had just gathered himself, planted his feet, and thrown, rather than trying to throw against his body as he fell into CF, the ponderously-slow Polanco would have been out.

[wes covington's ghost]

why isn't schneider bunting?

[Fatalotti]

I'm glad that Mayberry got a single there, but when did he friggin turn into Juan Pierre?

The most disturbing aspect of Mayberry's year so far isn't the unseasonably low BA and OBP. It's that he has a .045 ISO, when he's never posted an ISO under .240 in the majors, and even in his mediocre 2010 season in AAA, he still had an ISO of .45. He's generally always been above .200. Where is the power?

[goody]

Not a hockey fan, but 2 reasons I'm sorry to see the Flyers season end:
1) No more Phils games flipped to channels I get.
2) 2 innings of JJ on the radio.

[Fatalotti]

Christ, Sarge finally shut up. It was a nice moment of levity when he and TMac stopped talking for about 5 seconds there. And here they go again...

[NEPP]

Woohoo...we took the lead.

No worries on holding it.

[can_of_corn]

The more Freddy has some success at the plate, the more likely it is that Mr. Orr may be the next on a bus back to the Pigs.

[bay_area_phan]

"why isn't schneider bunting?"

Because he is a lousy bunter and would have ended up either striking out or hitting into a force out and wasting an out. And, as it turned out, he swung away & got the exact same result as a successful bunt, which sometimes happens. That AB was actually a textbook illustration of why NOT to bunt in that situation.

[wes covington's ghost]

bap- i was being flippant..i know exactly why he wasn't bunting...

[bay_area_phan]

wcg: Ah. Well, never mind then.

[SLO Phan]

Praying for rain to wash out out the rest of the game and give the Phils the win.

[lorecore]

props to pierre if rollins didnt have a good jump on that hit/run

[GTown_Dave]

I'm surprised Pierre's arms didn't leave his torso on that swing.

[Fatalotti]

After my Mayberry post about his lack of power, and Jimmy's single there on what was otherwise a good swing, I was wondering where our team's ISO ranked in the majors. The results: scary.

We have a team ISO of .113. The Mets and Padres have a team ISO of .111. And that's it. Everyone other team is better.

So we have no power. But, it actually gets worse.

Our BB% of 5.9% is the worst in the league.

We're "surviving" because we have the 8th best K% in the majors (17.9%) and the 8th best BAbip at .293.

This offense needs a healthy and productive Howard/Utley more than it can imagine. Walks and power are SORELY needed.

[lorecore]

Pierre 2012 vs RHP: .407/.470/.441
Pierre 2012 vs LHP: .200/.250/.200

[GBrettFan]

Somebody has to come through in the clutch!

When Freddy Galvis and Cliff Lee are doing better than your 1-4....Sad.

[bay_area_phan]

Good AB by Pence. One of the pitches he swung at might have even been a strike.

[Fatalotti]

In light of Pence striking out on a pitch that was eye-level, I'll also note this:

The Phillies are leading the league (in the bad sense) at swinging at pitches outside the zone, swinging at ridiculous 34% of balls outside the zone. Out swinging strike percentage among the best in the league, as we are the 5th best team at making contact when we swing. Unfortunately, swinging at and hitting non-strikes means you are going to, you guessed it, ground/fly out weakly, or hit a fluky single.

[They Call Me King of The Bop]

wot de 'ell were those ABs? Pierre, Victorino, Pence.....BUMS!!!! I AM NOW OFFICIALLY STEAMED

[GTown_Dave]

Yup. Really pissin' me off.

[Fatalotti]

lorecore: Pierre has 16 PAs against LHP.

Disastrously bad play by Victorino.

[MR]

Dom would fit in great in this outfield.

[bay_area_phan]

How stupid can these outfielders be? That's like the 3rd or 4th time this year they've let a harmless single turn into extra bases.

[GTown_Dave]

And that is scored a Triple only because Vic didn't make contact w/ the ball, to which I say "Bullshit!"

A pitcher shouldn't be held responsible for a stupid decision on the part of the fielder.

[Fatalotti]

Sarge, for once, is right on the money. The marginal difference between an out and a single is much smaller than the difference between a single a triple there. With the way Lee is pitching, a leadoff single isn't the worst thing in the world. A leadoff triple, and Lee can record 3 straight outs, and still give up that run.

[Fatalotti]

Thanks Vic. Why didn't you dive for that one as well?

[GBrettFan]

I'm not happy with Vic after that - was already not happy about his last AB.

[GTown_Dave]

Nice comeback outing for Lee, Vic's usual boneheadedness notwithstanding.

[Fatalotti]

Ugh, why do I keep looking at these numbers?

Phils are the 4th worst in the majors at line drive percentage, at 18.4%. Hard to get XBHs when you're not hitting line drives. We are in the middle of the pack at hitting fly balls, but have the 4th worst HR/FB%. Again, simply no power on this team.

Just a sh!tty offense. For as bad as they've been so far, they're probably actually worse. With that kind of batted ball profile, and that kind of lack of power and walk ability, it's a shock we ever score more than 2 runs.

[Scotch Man]

I hope Amaro (assuming they don't fire him) throws a 20 year deal at Josh Hamilton next winter.

[bay_area_phan]

It's hard to believe our outfielders can make so many bone-headed plays when we have a world renowned defensive expert like Juan Samuel there to coach them.