Son of a bitch. This “rough spell” is like an expanding tar pit and the Phillies are getting stuck in it one by one like sabertooth tigers. I laughed when I saw Chamo’s tag but jesus god that was two weeks ago and it’s still true: DEAR GOD THIS IS BRUTAL.

With the Phillies all of a sudden having one of the farm systems most stacked with future stars, there has been plenty of alternative to watching the Frightenin’ Phils an hour and a half’s drive away in Reading and Allentown. The R-Phils are 45-33, good for second in the Eastern League’s southern division. Their rotation is loaded with Joe Savery, Kyle Drabek and now Yohan Flande, and Michael Taylor is mashing it to the tune of .349/15/59, with 14 stolen bases for good measure.

Up in the Lehigh Valley, the IronPigs are 39-40, trying to push above .500 for the first time in the franchise’s short history. Jason Donald is looking to return from knee surgery and maybe light a fire under J-Roll’s ass. Lou Marson is biding his time as the everyday catcher until Ruben Amaro realizes that two backup catchers in their late 30s should not be on the roster of the defending champions. Drew Carpenter is playing off that one ugly pro start with a 7-1, 2.75. And this guy?

He’s settling in. Carlos Carrasco was the #1 Phillies prospect in 2007 and 2008 according to Baseball America, and this year he’s 2nd, behind only Dominic Brown (who is nursing a fractured pinky in Clearwater).

The 22 year old Venezuelan was, along with JA Happ and Chan Ho Park, one of the finalists for Phillies fifth starter coming out of spring training, and with Antonio Bastardo injured (and probably not going to stay in the rotation anyway), he was strongly considered for a promotion to start tonight’s game against the Mets. His IronPig teammate and former Oriole/Rockie/Padre Rodrigo Lopez got this promotion, though, so Carrasco pushes onward in AAA till he gets the call.

Last night he shut down the Syracuse Chiefs (Nats affiliate) for his fourth straight victory after a glaringly shaky start to his season. The only major mistake he made was hanging one over the plate to former Bucco Brad Eldred, who smoked one into the woods beyond Coca-Cola Park. Otherwise, Carrasco was solid, scattering five other hits and striking out four over six innings, despite getting drilled in the ankle with a line drive. His fastball had good movement and hovered around 93 all night. His run support was good with a five-run outburst in the fourth inning, Miguel Cairo missing a grand slam by about five feet.

As the post-game fireworks were exploding overhead, the feelgood evening came to a screeching halt when we turned on the radio for the drive home, just in time to hear Ryan Madson’s latest meltdown. Goddamn.

beelove (a/k/a R. Bradley Maule) is the proprietor of the fantastic Philadelphia photography/architecture site, PhillySkyline.com. He went to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs game. He reported. He took pictures.

Some photos from the evening — IronPigs 5, Chiefs 1 — after the jump.

Read more »

CITIZENS BANK PARK

Read more »

To put it simply, it’s a lack of concentration.

While he’s slogging away in the NL East, swinging at baseballs, catching baseballs, throwing baseballs, other people are out there actually enjoying their summers. Oh sure, he has a good time yukking it up on the bench with Charlie, talking about anything but his most recent pop-out, but there is obviously something else he’d rather be doing – so many of his talents are going to waste as he toils endlessly at this hobby that he has somehow managed to turn into a career.

I’ve figured out, of course, what he’d rather be doing:

Read more »

What happened?

J.A. Happ was solid, but Ryan Madson’s struggles continued as the Phillies got swept for the third time in the last five series, falling into a first place tie with the Florida Marlins.

Who did what?

J.A. Happ gave up two runs in seven innings in the no decision. He gave up seven hits, walked two and struck out five.

Jimmy Rollins went 2 for 4.

Chase Utley went 1 for 4 with a run.

Greg Dobbs went 2 for 3 with two doubles (5) and an RBI.

Ryan Madson (2-4) gave up three runs on three hits in one inning.

Javier Vasquez gave up two runs in 5.1 innings on seven hits. He didn’t walk a batter and he struck out five.

Matt Diaz went 3 for 4 with a double (7), 2 runs and an RBI.

Garret Anderson went 1 for 1 with a homer (5) and two RBIs.

Casey Kotchman went 2 for 2 with a homer (3) and 2 RBIs.

Mike Gonzalez (3-0) earned the win with a scoreless eighth inning. He walked and struck out one.

Rafael Soriano pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save of the season.

What does this mean?

In times like this, I like to reflect upon the good, if sparse, fortune that befalls the Phillies. Lately, good fortune has been hard to come by, so whenever a glimmer of hope appears, I feel it’s necessary to talk about it. So shall be tonight’s recap.

After going nine shutout innings his last time out, J.A. Happ is very quietly turning into a big league pitcher. While many viewed Happ as a six inning pitcher that could keep the score clos, Younger James has proven to be much, much more than that. Tonight’s game was a perfect example of just how good this kid is. He got into trouble in the second and seventh innings, but escaped unfazed. He doesn’t have the the fanfare of a Carrasco or a Drabek, but what he does have is turning him into a legitimite threat in the rotation. Twice in the past week he has been asked to end a losing streak, and twice he has answered.

While Happ was busy lowering his ERA, Jimmy Rollins was breaking out of his career worst 0 for 28 slump with two singles. It isn’t much, but life from Jimmy Rollins is nearly unquantifiable. While the Phillies have a far better record when Rollins is crossing the plate, just knowing that he is going to produce at the top of the lineup can do wonders from top to bottom.

What’s next for our heroes?

The New York Mets come to town for a three game set, with Rodrigo Lopez (No record) taking on Livan Hernadez (5-3, 4.04) in game one.

With all the sucking the Phillies have been doing lately, it’s kinda hard to pinpoint one sucky player as the reason for their recent downfall. Jimmy Rollins is 0-for-his last 27 with four walks since the 19th of June, Ryan Howard has just one home run in his last 15 games, Pedro Feliz had himself a nice 1-for-23 streak going on up until this week — and that’s not even mentioning any of the shiteous outings from our pitching staff during that time.

Well, all but one. The guy 95% of Philadelphians were ready to anoint as the new closer as soon as Brad Lidge started fucking up, Ryan Madson.

For some reason, ever since our eighth inning specialist was handed the closer’s role after Lidge landed on the DL with a “bum knee”, Ryan Madson been getting knocked around the park like he has “#57 Taschner” on the back of his jersey.

Check out his line since he blew a save against Toronto on June 16th (and I swear to God if any of you fucks talk about a small sample size, I’m gonna track you down by your IP address and punch you in the neck):

6 games, 0-2 record, an NL leading 3 blown saves (in six appearances!), 7.94 ERA, and a little over three baserunners allowed PER INNING. Meanwhile, opponents are batting .346 against him with a .485 OBP, .731 SLG%, and an insane 1.216 OPS.

The question remains though — WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED?

There are plenty of theories floating around, but if you ask me, Madson has to stop relying on his fastball so much — ESPECIALLY that cutter that hasn’t been cutting since the first month of the season — and get back to throwing the pitch that got him a spot on a major league roster to begin with, that beautiful changeup of his.  I mean, you have a pitch in your arsenal that was the most swung at and missed pitch (percentage-wise) out of any major league pitcher in 2008, and instead of putting hitters away with it, you choose to throw that flat fastball over the middle of the plate to say, a Brian Roberts (hypothetically, of course) with 2 outs and a runner on base while you’re up a run in the bottom of the ninth.

As a matter of fact, I’m sure that’s the reason.

Take a look at this little statistical nugget dug up by Jayson Stark courtesy of those pitch-tracking geeks over at Inside Edge:

Ryan Madson hasn’t gotten a single swing-and-miss on his fastball since Lidge was placed on the DL.

Read that again.  NOT ONE. That’s kinda pathetic.

So Ryan, pretty please, with a fucking cherry on top, start throwing more changeups and stop throwing so many cot damn fastballs.

Your pal,
meechie

While trying to cope with another rough Phillies loss, I decided to start flipping through the channel guide to find something decent coming on at 10PM in an attempt to numb my brain. Much to my surprise I found a show that on the guide was labeled "Victorinos". Then I realized it happened to be on the spanish channel and realized its immediate potential. Lo and behold this show actually exists, check out the Victorinos (Anything to avoid last night’s loss)…

Ningunas Preguntas Pidieron.

By now everyone has heard about the altercation between Phillies reliever J.C. Romero and Rays “fan” Robert Eaton after a game in Tampa Bay last Thursday. Eaton made some snide comments about steroids and got what any loudmouth drunk prick has coming to him.

I’m not saying it’s right or wrong. I’m just saying that some people don’t know when to shut up, and others are quick to grab people that don’t know how to shut up by their throats and choke a bitch. Sometimes these two kinds of people meet…

Enough with the opinions. As a superjournalist with superjournalistic powers such as superjournalistic integrity I must try only to report the facts. And it just so happens that I have nothing but facts to present today. Through my contacts and network of other superjournalists, I managed to procure a leaked copy of Robert Eaton’s 911 call to the St. Petersburg PD.

Read more »

What happened?

Cole Hamels got roughed up as the Phils lost their second in a row to the Braves to fall to 39-36.

Who did what?

Cole Hamels (4-5) took the loss, giving up seven runs in four innings. He allowed nine hits, two walks and struck out one.

Shane Victorino went 1 for 3 with a walk.

Jayson Werth went 0 for 2 with two walks and a run.

Greg Dobbs went 0 for 3 with an RBI.

Jair Jurrjens (6-6) went seven innings, giving up one run for the win. He allowed one hit, four walks while striking out six.

Martin Prado went 2 for 4 with a double (13) and two RBIs.

Chipper Jones went 2 for 4 with a double (13) and three RBIs.

Brian McCann went 2 for 5 with two RBIs.

Matt Diaz went 3 for 5 with a homer (4) and 2 RBIs.

What does this mean?

Jimmy Rollins isn’t hitting.

Cole Hamels isn’t pitching.

And the Phillies aren’t winning.

What’s next for our heroes?

In the series finale, J.A. Happ (5-0, 3-0) takes on Javier Vasquez (5-7, 3.04).

Bonus baseball!

On Sunday, I took a trip to scenic Cooperstown, New York to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame. I’m ashamed to say that it was my first trip to Baseball Mecca, and I can safely say that it won’t be my last. They were showcasing the Phils and their 2008 World Series run that weekend, so I saw a lot of Phillies fans on the premises, which made me forget that I was in Mets and Yankees.

It was great to see Blanton’s home run bat, Werth’s spikes and Bruntlett’s winter-cap. (Unfortunately, his beard wasn’t on display.) I even got to sit on some seats of the old Connie Mack Stadium. Very cool. However, the coolest part of the weekend was running into a Phils’ fan who was adorned in one of The Fightins dot com’s finests – The Matt Stairs tee. I had literally just parked and got out of my car, and this guy was the first person I see. I shot him a “I like that shirt, man” and went on my way.

So, Fightins dot com reader/patron/cool guy, it was nice to meet you.

How did Derek Lowe end up in this position you ask? Allow me to explain…

Read more »

What happened?

The Phillies rallied late, but the bullpen couldn’t hold the lead as their lost their first game in Atlanta since 2007.

Who did what?

Joe Blanton gave up three runs in five innings in the no-decision. He allowed eight hits, three walks (two intentional) and struck out three.

Jimmy Rollins went 0 for 5 with two strikeouts.

Shane Victorino went 1 for 5 with a run.

Chase Utley went 2 for 5 with a homer (17) and an RBI.

Ryan Howard went 2 for 5 with a double (19) and an RBI.

Pedro Feliz went 3 for 3 with a homer (5) and an RBI.

John Mayberry Jr went 1 for 1 with a homer (4) and an RBI.

Ryan Madson blew his fourth save of the season, giving up an unearned run in the eighth.

Chan Ho Park (3-2) took the loss, allowing one run in two-thirds of an inning.

Derek Lowe gave up two runs in six innings on seven hits, three walks (one intentional) while striking out four.

Gregor Blanco went 3 for 5 with a triple (1) and two runs.

Martin Prado went 4 for 5 with a double (12) and four RBIs.

Jeff Francoeur went 2 for 5 with a double (9) and an RBI.

Peter Moylan (2-2) took the win. He pitched two-thirds of an inning and didn’t give up a run.

What does this mean?

In their first game against the National League since taking two of three from the Mets, the Phillies find themselves on the losing side of a 10-inning game in Atlanta, where they were undefeated in 2008.

Early on, things looked good for The Fightins. They took an early lead on Howard’s two-out double, and again on Utley’s solo shot. But the Braves came back to tie it both times, while taking a lead after the latter. Back-to-back homers from John Mayberry and Pedro Feliz in the top of the 8th gave the Phillies the lead for the third time of the night.

However, a throwing error in the bottom of the frame set up an unfortunate series of events, allowing the Braves to tie the game. With two outs and a runner on first, Ryan Madson’s errant pickoff throw to first allowed the runner to move to second. This caused Ryan Howard to play off the line, which put him just out of reach of Martin Prado’s triple down the line. If Howard keeps the ball in front of him, or if Madson’s throw was on line, or if there wasn’t even a pickoff throw, then Howard is in position to make the grab and end the inning.

That is just pointless conjecture, as the Braves would go on to win it in 10 after the Phillies failed to get a runner past first base after the back-to-backs in the 8th, sending the Phils to their seventh loss in their last 10 games.

Although Blanton wasn’t as sharp as he has been, and although the offense probably should have put up a few more runs, and although the bullpen needs to (and will be) better, the biggest concern has to be Jimmy Rollins’ oh-fer on the night. He didn’t get a hit in five at-bats, while striking out twice. He is now 0 for his last 24, with just one run in that stretch.

The Phillies have a great opportunity to take a commanding lead of the National League east in the coming month, but Jimmy Rollins has to be better if they want to do that. They’ve gotten by with mediocre pitching and a streaky offense, but that isn’t going to last all season. As Jimmy goes, so doth the Phils.

And it’s about time he starts going.

What’s next for our heroes?

In game two of the series, Cole Hamels ( 4-4, 4.44) takes on Jair Jurrjens (5-6, 2.93)

• PhiPhan5648 on On Carlos Carrasco and the JV Phillies
• Lynniemac on On Carlos Carrasco and the JV Phillies
• Pete Roast on On Carlos Carrasco and the JV Phillies
• PhiPhan5648 on On Carlos Carrasco and the JV Phillies
• Tug Haines on On Carlos Carrasco and the JV Phillies