Game Notes 5-3-07

For some reason that rung in my head watching this game. I know it's almost absurd to ask... but given that stat is almost every game a must win to stay at most 4.5 back?

anyway, a few more game notes.

• What's so frustrating about Eaton is that for at least a few hitters every start, sometimes more, I see why the Phils went after him. He has some nasty stuff, most obviously a 93 mile fastball with movement. It just seems like he has a dumb approach, or loses focus, or loses location, or all of the above. He reminds me of Padilla (though I doubt Wheels has made any of those bigoted implications yet). Maybe more disturbing is that for a guy who's been in the bigs six or seven years, he still has the approach of a rookie, and a dimwitted one at that.
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• Howard at this point is a mistake hitter. That's it. He can't hit good pitches right now. No question he should be dropped in the order until he finds "it."
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• In happier news, there might not be a better top third of the lineup anywhere right now than Rollins, Victorino and Utley. Seems like two of them get on in the first inning every night. Jimmy's first triple last night was a fantastic at-bat in which he laid off some close ones, got ahead, and then smoked one.
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• I wish Madson would trust his stuff more. His fastball and change are enough to retire the batter seven times out of ten. But way too often he gets ahead in the count, then gets cute, then loses the hitter.
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• Werth might be the embodiment of the GIllick-era Phillies. Obviously talented, seems to have no clue about how to actually play the game. At least he draws walks--a sentiment that could be the epitaph for the Gillick/Manuel Phillies.
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• I feel weird writing this, but Alfonseca looked really sharp last night. His pitches were moving, and nobody hit him squarely. He even struck a guy out.
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• Once again, 44 year-old Jamie Moyer needs to save the bullpen tonight after overpaid offseason additions Garcia and Eaton failed to record any outs in the 6th inning. He's done it thus far, and maybe he'll be okay against the fairly weak-hitting Giants (though you figure a lineup full of older hitters might have a better approach against Moyer's slop than, say, the Nationals or Marlins), but eventually he's going to get knocked out early. As much as Howard finding his stroke or anything else, the season might rest on Garcia and Eaton finding a way to pitch much deeper into games.