The scary thing is the Phillies could end up third in the NL East! The Braves are red hot and though the Phils just concluded a great 8-2 road trip, they have chosen the worst time to lose two in a row. With San Diego's dramatic ninth inning win yesterday, the Padres regained their one-game Wild Card lead over the Phils. Meanwhile, the Mets have done everything humanly possible to give the Phillies the NL East title but the Phils have failed to take full advantage of the Mets' "generosity".
Last night Jamie Moyer looked like a 43-year old pitcher, a game one, but nonetheless an aging and tired one, allowing nine base runners in 5.1 innings. He surrendered a three-run homer in the first to Mark Teixeira and though eventually the Phils came back and took the lead in the bottom of the fifth, Moyer couldn't hold it. Geoff Geary and Flash Gordon each gave up two runs in relief, the first time in a while the bullpen collectively faltered. Now, of course, is not the time to falter and the fans let Geary in particular know that.
Individual achievements, most notably Jimmy Rollins' 30th home run of the season, were lost as the Phils fell 10-6. If they do manage to sneak into the playoffs, Rollins deserves to be the NL MVP, but right now they aren't focused on individual stats and accomplishments. Five games aren't many, but they are enough to overcome the deficits the Phillies still face.
2 comments:
This is a good time to stop and acknowledge Rollins' 30-30. Did anyone ever imagine, in the earlier part of the decade, that Rollins would get this good? I thought maybe with time he'd start pushing 20 homers. Whether or not he wins the MVP - that will be especially tough now that Fielder has surpassed 50 homers and Holliday continues to put up triple crown-caliber numbers - he's solidified himself as one of the top players in the game, perhaps one of the top five in the NL. Certainly good enough to have made the damn All-Star team!!
And unlike Bobby Abreu, the last 30-30 and 'five-tool' player in Philadelphia, Rollins has a sixth tool working - leadership. Howard's moonshots are nice and all, but Rollins and Utley *are* Phillies baseball as far as I'm concerned. They are a joy to watch day in and day out.
David: I could not have said it better.
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