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Belated Recap: Now it's a series

Written by Mike Mariano | 09 October 2009

Sorry for the delay, but it's been a hectic one thus far and I am just now finding time to write some words about yesterday's 5-4 loss to the Rockies.  Honestly, I didn't get to watch the game but I listened to most of the game on the radio including the dramatic, yet disappointing finish.  Here are my thoughts:

1. Can we really fault Cole?

I don't know.  I'm decidedly on the fence on this one.  Yeah Ol' King Cole wasn't very effective and seemed to be in his own world during a playoff game.  However, the fact that his baby was potentially being born while he pitched is one of the few excuses that I'm willing to accept.  So yeah, I think he deserves a little bit of a pardon for his subpar effort.

2.  Now's the time for Yorvit to break his homerless slump?

The guy hasn't homered since May and now he finds his power swing in what is one of the biggest home runs of the Rockies season.  Come on.  Hamels wasn't pitching great, but serving one up to Yorvit is a sad thing.

3.  Now, the series has begun.

The old saying is that it isn't a series until one team wins on the road and the Rockies accomplished just that.  Now the Phillies have to go to Colorado and take at least one.  This isn't the most daunting of tasks, however sweeping the opening games at home would've made a Rockies comeback nearly impossible.

4.  I really thought it was going to be a walk-off win.

Listening to the game you could hear the excitement in the stadium and I was sure that somebody was going to get it done.  Stairs battled and walked and then Jimmy got on base.  With Shane at the plate, I really thought magic was about to happen and Mets fans everywhere would puke knowing that their Most Hated Phillie drove in the winning runs.

5.  Chris Berman announcing baseball sucks.

I don't know how in the world Chris Berman got the assignment to announce the game, but it was a nice of telling Phillies and Rockies fans to shove it.  The back-to-back day games is bad enough, but having to listen to Chris Berman announce it was a direct kick to the groin.  Most of the time it was a struggle to have any idea what was going on during the game.  It's not entirely Berman's fault, how is he supposed to have a feel for baseball play-by-play he never does it.  Why take chances with weird booth combos in the playoffs of all times?  It makes no sense.  Stick to what works.

6.  Pedro is on the hill for game 3.

This isn't so great, as Benny pointed out, because it might be snowing and that can't be good for an old tired arm.  However, the cold will only make it more difficult to hit and Pedro's old guy stuff should be that much more difficult to hit.  Saturday night should be a good low scoring game.  But if the homers start flying you didn't hear that from me.

Lee gives complete effort and the Phillies cruise

Written by Mike Mariano | 07 October 2009

Charlie an LeeWell that was easy.  Cliff Lee went out and nearly threw a compelte game shut-out.  Also, the offense put togther a strong 5 runs on extra base hits all over the field.  Jayson Werth had a triple and Ibanez, Howard, and Victorino added doubles combining for 3 of the 5 runs.  Carlos Ruiz and Ibanez added the other two runs on singles.  Howard's double might've hit Ashburn Alley in dead center if not for a wind blowing it straight in.

More on Cliff, he retired the first 16 batters he faced and was a strike away from the elusive shut-out.  Cliff had it all working and the little pressure he faced didn't seem to bother him at all.  Lee was the beneficiary of 2 blown calls early in the game, but we'll just file that in the lucky us department.  One being Jayson Werth throwing out a runner at third who was actually safe.  The other was rather unorthodox.  Cliff stole second after a solid base knock, then was picked off by Ubaldo Jimenez but the ump called him safe.  This play was much closer, but he still should've been called out.

Most impressive about Cliff's outing was his fastball control.  From the first inning to last Cliff was delivering knee high fastballs for strikes on both sides of the plate.  As a hitter that is obviously one of the hardest pitches to hit and it inflates the opposing offense when you start down 0-1 because that's not a desirable pitch to hit on the first offering.  Lots of Rockies hitters were taking the low fastball and looking back at the ump after a strike call.  However it seemed that they were more in disbelief that he could continuously do it, not so much mad at the ump's call.  Impressive throughout.

Cliff's outing also reflects very, very brightly on Chuck's decision to start him over Hamels despite the fact that Hamels is technically our ace and has been in the past.  The choice made perfect sense when you factor in days rest.  This start gave Cliff an extra day rest and keep Cole on track, whereas a swap would leave Cliff on 7 days rest and Cole on 4.  That factor makes it a simple decision and Manuel chose wisely.  Then again if Cole sucks tomorrow, people might be second guessing the whole thing again.  However, I don't think that'll happen, nor will it be warranted to bash Charlie if it does.

Analyzing the Phillies playoff roster

Written by Mike Mariano | 07 October 2009

Pitchers Hitters
Cliff Lee
 Carlos Ruiz
Cole Hamels Ryan Howard
Joe Blanton Chase Utley
J.A. Happ Jimmy Rollins
Brad Lidge Pedro Feliz
Ryan Madson Raul Ibanez
Brett Myers Shane Victorino
Scott Eyre Jayson Werth
Chad Durbin Paul Bako
Antonio Bastardo Miguel Cairo
Kyle Kendrick Greg Dobbs
Pedro Martinez Matt Stairs
Ben Francisco

I didn't see the leaked roster until this morning while cruising the Phillies blogosphere.  The Good Phight has the projected/leaked/reported roster and it looks as seen in the table on the right side of the screen.

Uncommonly, there are some surprises.  Namely, Eric Bruntlett has been left off the list.  I'm on the fence about the move.  TGP seems to be in favor of it and I can certainly understand their logic.  Bruntlett is a crappy hitter and isn't a stellar enough defensive guy to warrant being in the lineup.  My only question is, how much of an upgrade is Miguel Cairo?  Bruntlett may not bring a ton to the table but he's a smart veteran who understands his role and the game.  Yeah, I guess Cairo does too so it doesn't really matter.  Moving on.

Bastardo and Kendrick are also surprising additions.  Bastardo is a nice choice because he is an interesting lefty who should give the Rockies trouble.  Party because of his South Paw orientation and partly because they haven't faced him this season.  Kendrick on the other hand, well it sucks.  Phillies fans have less faith in Kendrick than they do in Lidge.  And that is saying something.  Tyler Walker and Clay Condrey got left off and I think either of those guys would be better choices that Kendrick.

Only one more day until we can stop chatting about what may or could happen and we get to see it all play out on the field.  Cliff Lee takes the mound for the Phillies in game one.  The title defense hits full gear, starting today at 2:37 p.m. E.T.

Rockie Road for Phillies in Round One

Written by Mike Mariano | 06 October 2009

Phillies vs. Rockies should be a good series, however it appears to be getting the short end of the tv schedule stick presumably because the people up top think that the Phillies are going to roll over the Rockies and into the next round.  I'm not that confident, however I can see where they're coming from.  On paper, Hamels and Lee trumps Cook/Marquis/Jimenez any day.  Also, their lineup doesn't have half the star power that the Phillies have.  So that's why we've got back to back games at 2:37 p.m. which sucks because who's home every day at that time?  Not this guy.

Let's dig a little deeper and break down this matchup a little more.  The Phillies play the same style of baseball they did a year ago.  Play for the long ball and out slug everyone.  The better the pitching, the easier that strategy is, but at this point no one knows what the Phillies will get from their starters or bullpen right now.  Lee and Hamels have been up & down recently and most of the season.  The bullpen has been shakier than Parkinson's and is a crapshoot at this point. One thing that allows for some confidence is that this is a team full of guys with rings.  Everybody already knows what it takes to win the big one and everyone has played on the biggest stage in baseball and succeeded.

The Rockies on the other hand are a strange case.  This is a team that swept the Phillies in the 2007 NLDS like we were a AAA-team.  The lineup and pitching staff is solid from top to bottom.  There may not be anybody on either side of the ball who strikes the fear of god into you, but if the Phillies take them lightly (like in '07), they're going to get smacked (like in '07).  Many of the lesser known pitchers in Colorado have put together much better stats in the last few weeks of the season.  Also, the Rockies are playing considerably better baseball than the Phillies are coming into this match-up.

My prediction: the Phillies win in 5 games.  That's just my gut reaction.  I think the Phillies come out flat in game one.  Win both 2 & 3, then suffer the let down in game 4 to send the series to a final fifth game.  In that game I think the Phillies will rise to the occasion and push themselves into the next round.  It won't be pretty, but it'll do.  No matter what happens, it's great to be back in the playoffs and great to watch October baseball again.

Phillies-Rockies Reading Material

Written by Mike Mariano | 05 October 2009

It's playoff time and the NL East Champion Phillies have drawn the Colorado Rockies as their NLDS matchup.  I was going to write a little preview on the matter and most likely will tomorrow, however to tide you over here is some great Phillies/Rockies stuff from around the net:

Reasons why the Phillies will and won't win it all this year from The Good Phight: They’re gassed. Rich Hoffman has noted it,  as has Ken Rosenthal. And you’ve seen it too: Chase Utley’s weak swings, Shane Victorino’s disappearing strike zone judgment, Pedro Feliz’s regression, Jayson Werth’s flails and corkscrews. No lineup in baseball has been worked as hard as this one, and it’s shown in their September hitting performances. A few days of rest and the adrenaline boost of the playoffs will help—but the accumulated fatigue of eight solid months of baseball can’t be argued away. Facing some of the best pitchers in the game, the Phils hitters might also have to battle the limitations of their own overtaxed bodies.

Series preview from Recliner GM:  Bottom Feeders Jayson Werth / Pedro Feliz / Carlos Ruiz vs. Brad Hawpe / Clint Barmes / Yorvit Torrealba This might look like a easy category for the Phillies as Jayson Werth was one of only 8 players in the NL with 35 HR and 99 RBI this season, but there is more to it than that. Not only did both Hawpe and Barmes drive in more than 75 RBI this season, but the Rockies have several players (seen below in the bench category) that can be inserted into these spots in the order based on match-ups. This gives the Rockies slightly better depth on any given day because they can play to the opposing teams’ pitchers’ weaknesses. For those looking to argue that Feliz also knocked 80+ RBI, keep in mind that that was primarily because of the number of people on base in front of him. His .694 OPS ranks 69th out of 76 eligible NL players. Slight edge to the Rockies.

The most extensive series preview you're going to find at Crashburn Alley:  Four of the Rockies’ top-five hitters are left-handed and the same goes for the Phillies if you count switch-hitter Shane Victorino. The Phillies will throw out two lefty starters against the Rockies’ lefties gaining the platoon advantage while the Rockies will use two righties against the Phillies’ lefty mashers. In the batter/pitcher match-ups, the Phillies have a nice advantage here.

20 Things about the Rockies from the Daily News: 1. The Rockies started the season a paltry 18-28, prompting general manager Dan O'Dowd to replace Clint Hurdle with Jim Tracy. The move paid immediate dividends as the team rallied around its new skipper. Colorado went an astounding 74-42 under Tracy, becoming the first team in major league history to go from 10 games under .500 to at least 20 games over, and making him the favorite to be named NL Manager of the Year.

 

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