The Philadelphia Phillies hosted the Florida Marlins in the final game of a four game series at Citizen’s Bank Park on Thursday afternoon. The game, played at 1pm, was the third game between the two teams in 24 hours, following a day/night double-header the day before. After blowout wins by the Phillies in the first two games of the series, Philadelphia was down to its final out on Wednesday evening, trailing by two. With runners on second and third, Shane Victorino knocked a hit up the middle to tie the game. The Phillies completed the comeback win in the bottom of the 10th inning on a walk-off hit by Carlos Ruiz.
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With the series sweep, and a six game team win streak on the line Thursday, Cliff Lee took the mound for the Fightins (opposed by the Marlin’s Javier Vasquez). Although baseball is a team game, this day would be all about Cliff Lee.
Teach Lee how to Dougy
Half way through the 4th inning, with the game still tied at zero, Lee drove in the first run of the game when he doubled to score Michael Martinez. Later, in the top half of the 5th inning (with two outs), Mike Stanton got the first hit of the game for Florida, breaking up Lee’s no-hitter bid. Heading into the bottom half of the inning, Lee had as many hits (1) and more RBI (1) than the entire Marlins team.
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In the bottom of the 5th, Ryan Howard connected on a solo HR to make it a 2-0 Phillies lead. After Lee allowed no hits in the top of the 6th, Jimmy Rollins doubled to right field in the bottom half of the inning to score Dominic Brown and increase Philly’s lead to 3-0.
Lee only gave up one more hit on the day (in the 7th to Logan Morrison), but also got another hit at the plate, on his way to a two-hit, complete game shut-out of the Marlins. He finished the day tied with the entire Marlins team in hits (2) and his one RBI at the plate was more than he allowed in 9 innings on the mound.
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With the win, the Phillies win streak extends to seven games as the team heads west to take on the Seattle Mariners in interleague play. Lee, who was traded from Philly to Seattle in his first go around with the team, will not pitch against the Mariners.
The Phillies hold the best record in baseball at 44-26. They are five games up on the Atlanta Braves in the division, and hold leads of 9.5, 10.5 and 11.5 games over the Mets, Nationals, and last place Marlins.
After returning home from a 4-5 road trip on which they lost series to the Nationals and Pirates, the Phillies won the first game of their series against the Los Angeles Dodgers by a score of 3-1 on Monday night. Looking to make it three straight wins for the Fightins, Roy Oswalt took the mound for the Phillies on Tuesday night to face off against Rubby De La Rosa of the Dodgers.
It was a sloppy game from start to finish for the Phillies. In the bottom half of the first, they made their first out at third, a baseball no-no.
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The Dodgers scored the first run of the game but the Phillies quickly knotted the score at 1-1. Philadelphia had the bases loaded with no outs but were only able to muster a single run when De La Rosa walked Placido Polanco with two outs and the bases still jammed. Earlier in the inning, Raul Ibanez was thrown out at home plate.
De La Rosa led off the third inning and Oswalt walked him on just five pitches. Walking the lead-off batter usually comes back to haunt a pitcher, walking the opposing pitcher to start off an inning, that’s just bad baseball. After singles by Dee Gordon (son of former Phillies pitcher Tom Gordon) and Casey Blake, De La Rosa scored to make it 2-1 Dodgers. After an error by Oswalt later in the inning (he threw to first base with no one covering, allowing Gordon to score) and an RBI single by Andre Ethier, L.A. was up 4-1.
The scoring ceased for both teams until the bottom half of the 7th when Chase Utley hit a triple that scored Shane Victorino from first. Ryan Howard stepped to the plate with a chance to tie the game with one swing but alas, he was unable to connect on a long ball or even score Utley from third.
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Michael Stutes came on to pitch the 8th inning for Philadelphia after J.C. Romero pitched a scoreless 7th in relief of Oswalt. Down 4-2, and with the Phil’s bats ice cold over the last several weeks, it was imperative to keep the Dodgers from scoring again. Unfortunately, with Andre Ethier already on first base, Matt Kemp hit a deep HR off of Stutes to extend L.A.’s lead to 6-2.
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Neither team would score again. With the loss, Oswalt’s record drops below .500 to 3-4. Jimmy Rollins, who had missed a few games after fouling a ball off of his knee over the weekend, pitch hit for the Phillies in the bottom half of the 9th.
The rubber match comes tonight when Cole Hamels (7-2) takes the ball for the Phillies. Hamels has arguably been the most consistent starter for Philadelphia this season. He will be opposed by Dodgers pitcher Hiroki Kuroda (5-6). With temps in Philadelphia today soaring into the high 90’s, it should be a hot one at Citizen’s Bank Park tonight. Hopefully some of the heat on the field will soak into the home team’s bats. Next up for the Phillies is a four game home series against the Chicago Cubs, followed by a four game series (including a double header on Wednesday, June 15th) against the Florida Marlins.
The Phillies had played forty six games in 2011 without all-star second baseman Chase Utley and managed to scrap their way to the best record in baseball during that time. For Phillies fans however, things just didn’t feel right. That all changed last night at Citizen’s Bank Park when the Phillies hosted the Cincinnati Reds in the first of a three game series. When Utley was announced in the starting line-up a roar went up from the crowd. When the Phillies took the field in the top of the 1st inning, things felt right for the first time all season.
Chase Utley's 1st AB of 2011
Cole Hamels quickly downed the Reds in order and after Jimmy Rollins led off the bottom of the 1st with a single, it was time for Utley’s first at-bat of the 2011 season. It was no surprise that he received a standing ovation from the sold-out crowd in south Philadelphia. A few pitches later, Utley drove the ball to deep center field but it was caught just short of the warning track. Fans continued to cheer, Utley was back, his first hit could wait.
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Moments later, Placido Polanco hit a two run HR to left field and, as Roy Halladay would say, things only got funner from there.
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With the score still 2-0 Philadelphia in the bottom of the 3rd inning, the Phillies bats got crazy hot. At the end of the 3rd, capped off by a three run HR by Jimmy Rollins, the Phillies had added another seven runs and held a 9-0 lead.
Jay Bruce hit a three run HR for the Reds in the top of the 4th to cut the lead to six runs but Raul Ibanez knocked a solo shot out of the park in the bottom half of the inning to put the Phillies up 10-3. There would be no scoring, by either team, in the final five innings.
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For the Phillies, the contributions were many. Carlos Ruiz had a 3-for-3 night at the plate. Ryan Howard added two hits as did Rollins, Ibanez, and Polanco who each had a second hit to go along with their HR’s.
Domonic Brown had a hit, as did John Mayberry Jr. who also added a pair of RBI. Even pitcher Cole Hamels got in on the action adding a hit and an RBI to the mix. Ironically, the only Phillies starter that did not record a hit, was Utley, who went 0-5 but continued to get the loudest cheers each time he stepped to the plate. The Phillies ended the game with 14 hits.
Reigning NL MVP Joey Votto went hitless for the Reds. Jay Bruce was the only bright spot for the Reds going 3-for-4. The rest of the team had just two hits total. Scott Rolen, who went 1-for-3, received his traditional Philadelphia round of boos when he was announced before the game and each time he came to the plate.
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Hamels finally got some serious run support and was in no danger of losing the game even after he surrendered the three runs in the forth. He pitched six innings total, earning his 6th win of the season. The Phillies bullpen looked sharp in the 7th, 8th, & 9th. Michael Stutes, Antonio Bastardo, and Danys Baez each pitched a perfect inning. None of them allowed so much as a walk to the Reds.
For the Reds, Bronson Arroyo was responsible for nine of the Phillies runs and was eventually pulled from the game, after the Rollins HR, with two outs in the 3rd.
The two teams meet again on Tuesday night as Vance Worley takes the mound for the Phillies against the Reds’ Johnny Cueto.
2010: One of The Phillies League Best 95 WinsRoy Halladay Delivers the First Official Pitch of 2010 Season
The Philadelphia Phillies finished the 2010 Major League season with a 97-65 record, the best in all of baseball. After winning the World Series over the Rays in 2008 and losing last year’s World Series to the Yankees, the Phillies seem poised to make another run into late October/early November.
Phillies Win Fourth Straight NL East Title
Up first for the Fightins is the Cincinnati Reds who made the playoffs for the first time since 1995 after winning the NL Central with 91 wins.
Ryan Howard
The Phillies closed out August and September in post season form going 41-18 in late summer. There are also many additions to this 2010 Phillies that make them more dangerous than the 2009 or 2008 clubs.
Cliff Lee in 2009 NLDS
The first, and most obvious, is the starting pitching. Gone is Cliff Lee, the best pitcher the Phillies had last post-season. Instead the Phillies will turn to Roy Halladay (who will take the mound in game 1). Halladay is the front-runner for the NL Cy Young Award. In 2010 he became the first Phillies pitcher since Steve Carlton to record 20+ wins (finishing with 21). He finished the season as the team leader in wins, ERA, and strikeouts.
Phillies Ace: Roy Halladay
Roy Oswalt has been nothing short of spectacular since joining the Phillies. In his 12 starts since he joined the team Oswalt has a 7-1 record with a 1.74 ERA. His only loss came in his first game with Philadelphia just one day after being traded from Houston.
Finally, but no less important, is 2008 World Series MVP Cole Hamel’s return to dominant form. Hamels posted a career best 3.06 ERA this season while also setting a career best in strikeouts with 211.
Cole Hamels Returned to Form in 2010
With three legitimate number one pitchers, and no need to use a fourth starter in the NLDS, the Phillies are in very good shape.
Then there is the return of Brad Lidge to the Lights Out closer the Phillies can rely on in the 9th inning. Lidge finished the season with 27 saves in 32 chances and down the stretch he really looked like the guy that helped the Phillies win it all in 2008 (instead of the guy that made Phillies fans all hold their breath with nervousness last year).
Lidge is a Big Piece of the 2010 Phillies Playoff Puzzle
The pitching alone would give Phillies fans more than enough to be hopeful about this post-season, but wait, there’s more.
Placido Polanco
The Phillies added third baseman Placido Polanco before the start of the 2010 season and Polanco ended the regular season as the club leader in batting average (.298) and had a .988 fielding average committing just five errors.
Wilson Valdez
Last season the Phillies didn’t have a bench that was up to the task. In 2010 they head into the post-season with a much improved bench that boasts new faces like Ross Gload, Mike Sweeney, Domonic Brown, Wilson Valdez, and Brian Schneider. The only hold-over from last year appears to be Ben Francisco who ended the final few games of the season as hot as anyone on the team.
Raul Ibanez at Bat Against the Reds
Phillies Catcher Carlos "Chooch" Ruiz
Underneath all of the new editions and reasons for Phillies fans to get excited this post-season, is the best top to bottom line-up in baseball: Jimmy Rollins, Placido Polanco, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Jayson Werth, Shane Victorino, Raul Ibanez, and Carlos Ruiz. Ruiz, batting out of the eight hole, never ceases to amaze in October.
Ryan Howard: Big Man, Big Swing
Phillies 2nd Baseman Chase Utley
What does Cincinnati bring to the table?
The Big Red Machine: Joey Votto
The Reds were the only team in the National League to score more runs than the Phillies this season. First baseman Joey Votto is the front-runner to win the league’s 2010 MVP award (finishing with 37 home runs, 113 RBI, and a .324 batting average). They also have ex-Phillie Scott Rolen at third base who, along with outfielder Jay Bruce, chipped in another 45 long balls for the Reds (Brandon Phillips and Drew Stubbs contributed another 40 home runs).
Likely 2010 NL MVP Joey Votto at Bat
Brandon Phillips Batting Against the Phillies
The big question for the Reds is their pitching.
Cincinnati Long Ball
Bronson Arroyo led the team in wins with 17, Johnny Cueto was first in both ERA (3.64) and strikeouts (138), and game one starter Edinson Volquez finished the season on a high note (31 K’s, 8 BB, and 17 hits in over 27 innings of work).
The Reds Led the NL in Runs Scored in 2010
In the end, with their dangerous line-up and above average pitching, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Reds win a game in this short series but the Phillies are the more talented team and know what it takes to win in the post-season. The Phillies went 5-2 against the Reds in the regular season. Our prediction is Phillies win in 4.
Ryan Howard at Bat vs. The Reds
Make sure to check back as Independent Philly will be at Citizen’s Bank Park to capture the action this week and will also be making in-depth predictions for each round of the post-season as the Phillies attempt to capture their second World Series title in three years.
**UPDATE: Placido Polanco was forced to sit out game one with a back injury and Wilson Valdez got the start at 3rd base. In his first post-season appearance ever, Roy Halladay threw only the second no-hitter (first since the 1950’s) in MLB playoff history. The Phillies won the game 4-0 over the Reds**
Independent Philly 
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