Man, the Phils are on a lifeline here. Their loss leaves them 5.5 games out first at the end of the night, a blown chance to gain on the later playing Braves.
Well, sad to say, this was probably Joe Blanton's best start of the season. 7 innings and 3 earned runs, despite the fashion allowed, is a bright spot on a season where the hefty Blanton is sporting a 6.21 ERA. Even worse, Madson's allowal of the game winning run actually runs his ERA higher. The pitching is a mess and without Polanco and Utley, this offense isn't slumping, its pedestrian.
The Phils only managed 4 hits, 3 runs were scored on these hits, skewing the scoreboard. 14 of the 27 outs were strikeouts. The lone bright spot? For the second time in a row, Ryan Howard went yard, giving him 20 homers and 71 RBI. The big man is trying to carry you guys, help him out a bit. Victorino hit his 15 of the year...which by the way is a career high. He had never hit more than 14 home runs in a year and is now on track for 27 this year. Hopefully, the return of Planco can give the Phils some flexibility and play him at 3rd or 2nd.
Tomorrow the Phils begin the uphill climb of splitting the series as Cole Hamels takes on Randy Wells tomorrow at 1:05.
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