Phillies blast Yankees as pitchers turn heads

TAMPA -- With the offense pounding out 10 runs for a second game in a row, it was the Phillies' pitchers who were most impressive during Friday's victory over the Yankees.

Roy Halladay says he is throwing his curveball, which is a very goos sign. Typically, the Phils' ace said, he doesn't throw his breaking pitches this early in the spring. But there he was at George M. Steinbrenner Field during the 10-5 victory firing that curve at the Yankees' hitters.

“I never really threw curveballs and cutters in spring training, so it was kind of new for me to be mixing them in right now,” Halladay said.

In all, Halladay threw 44 pitches (26 strikes). But the fact that he was throwing his curveball at all this early in the spring was important. If he’s throwing his breaking pitches, it means he feels pretty good about his fastball.

And everything else, too.

“I feel good physically and conditioning-wise,” Halladay said. “Really, I think that is ahead of everything else and it’s just a matter of fine tuning pitches.”

The Phillies' hitters pounded out nine singles and a double and drew seven walks in improving to 3-3 this spring. Jimmy Rollins went 1 for 2 with a two-run double and a pair of walks, while hot-hitting Dom Brown drew three walks. John Mayberry Jr. also contributed with three RBIs.

But more impressively, righthanded reliever Phillippe Aumont pitched his second straight scoreless inning of the spring. The big righty routinely touched 95-mph on the radar gun and threw 11 of his 12 pitches for strikes.

Though it's still just the early spring, manager Charlie Manuel thinks Aumont was holding out a little bit.

“He has more there," Manuel quipped. "Every once in a while I want to see him get mad and show how much he’s got. Seriously, there’s more in there."

We'll see more from Aumont in the World Baseball Classic where he will pitch for Team Canada. Meanwhile, the Phillies return to action on Saturday afternoon when they take a short bus ride to Dunedin to take on the Blue Jays at 1:05 p.m.

Comments

[Muuurgh]

b_a_p: Gee, isn't it incredible when science and baseball collide?

[bay_area_phan]

Muurgh: If only they taught this stuff in high school classes, there might be a whole lot more kids who want to grow up to be scientists.

[Conway Twitty]

I'm padding my stat for making the last post before a new thread. You can look it up. (Formerly posted as goody.)

[cut_fastball]

This just in...

...213 ERA+

Two. Hundred. Thirteen.

Posted by: Fatalotti | Friday, March 01, 2013 at 01:31 PM

As usual, Fata nails it.

Stark made a case for Martinez being uniquely better than any other pitcher of any other era – if I recall correctly, it was before widespread adaptation of ‘Sabermetrics’. I agree.

Martinez was a MONSTER talent (flame alert). You could make the aurgument Koufax dialed it up once in a while. However, Pedro rocked the baseball world when PEDiots™ ruled the world.

[NEPP]

Pedro was the best pitcher I've ever seen.

[MG]

So Cholly goes out of his way to say Papelbon is fine & isn't worried at all and Dubee says he has 'less than zero' concern.

Usually when people overemphasis stuff when asked if it is not a problem, that is when they are lying.

Still want to see what Papelbon's velocity though is at over his next 2-3 outings. If it still at ~90 MPH, then Cholly/Dubee weren't telling the truth today.

[Hugh Mulcahy]

goody - speculation as to your demise revealed as greatly exaggerated.

Agree with MG's paranoia about categorical denials. Better to say 'next question'.

[rolo]

jrfinger, you, and the creators of the two threads before you, need to pay more attention to detail.

It is customary on BL to highlight in red the player who's picture you use.

Stop the madness and get with the program.

[rolo]

MG, I agree on the issue of Pap's velocity unless he learns to be a completely different kind of pitcher who relies more on guile, location and secondary pitches.

We'll see.

[rolo]

NEPP, you must be young.

[rolo]

Haven't looked at too many others, but probably the only pitcher who had a streak like Pedro's - if ERA+ is the measure - was Walter Johnson in the 19-teens.

["Pedro's lucky midget"]

He is a great one.

[Andy]

rolo - you don't recognize the Canadian death stare?

[Fatalotti]

jrfinger, you, and the creators of the two threads before you, need to pay more attention to detail.

It is customary on BL to highlight in red the player who's picture you use.

Stop the madness and get with the program.

Posted by: rolo | Saturday, March 02, 2013 at 12:02 AM

Grow up, dude. It's a f8cking sports blog that you can access freely.

[The Truth Injection]

I would venture there is something to the fact that closers feel a different type of intensity depending on what situation they enter a game under. I would venture that it isn't the same for all closers.

I would also venture that because it isn't something that can be quantified in a study people will never believe it as if baseball players are automatons that are not partially fueled by emotion like every other person in the world.

[lorecore]

Aldrelton simmons is starting st ss over both bogaerts and schoop for netherlands. pretty telling that braves have a really good one on their hands.

[Zed]

Papelbon blows goats.

[ramsey]

I don't think anyone is questioning that some players handle pressure better than others. It just is that this is generally second-order compared to ability for most pro athletes.

Also, close situations don't perfectly correlate with the highest pressure situations anyway, and the idea that closers are somehow uniquely INCAPABLE of pitching in NON-close situations is fairly ridiculous.

[NEPP]

Yeah I was a little young to remember Walter Johnson.