The More Things Change: Astros 5, Phillies 1
by WholeCamels on Sep 12, 2011 11:43 PM EDT
Email
PrintAs if by the powers of some evil Texas warlocks, the Phillies always seem to drop games in Houston late in the season. Apparently, even when the Astros are as godawful putrid as they are this season, and the Phillies are on their way to 100-plus victories.
The Phillies had a "dancing bears" kind of game, with multiple miscues in the field leading to a handful of Astros runs, and prodigal Phillies asshole Brett Myers kept the offense in check to the tune of a 5-1 Astros victory in game one of this three game series. Myers would go eight strong innings, allowing just the single run on six hits.
Roy Oswalt once again looked less like the "ace" he was in the past, allowing 11 hits and five "earned" runs in seven innings, striking out just two. The Astros would score their first two runs in the fourth on some creative defense on a soft fly/liner to left that was bungled by Raul Ibanez, and a misplayed grounder up the middle due to some Jimmy Rollins / Pete Orr miscommunication on what could have been a double play ball. Innings like this one are why stat-types like to discount Earned Run Average as a function of official scorer idiocy vis-a-vis errors. Two runs also scored on a big Carlos Lee home run with two outs in the fifth.
In good news, Joe Blanton pitched a scoreless eighth inning in his first appearance since May, striking out one and allowing one hit.
In other good news, the Braves and Cardinals lost, cutting the Phillies' magic number for the NL East to five, and a playoff spot to one.
Fangraph of Playing Out the String
64 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
I wonder how worried Braves fans are right now.
No one knows what it means. But it's provocative! GETS THE PEOPLE GOING!
by Eaglesadvocate on Sep 12, 2011 11:47 PM EDT reply actions
go read TC…it is hillarious
1/5/7 and counting...
by DirtyWaters on Sep 12, 2011 11:48 PM EDT up reply actions
I admit, this made me chuckle.
Michael Martinez at third base
I mean, it’s easy to beat a team when they’re beyond the point of giving a shit.
by Bronn on Sep 12, 2011 10:06 PM EDT
by Chutley's Impressed by Mac's Speed on Sep 13, 2011 4:15 AM EDT up reply actions
This team sucks
If something isn’t done soon the Braves will catch us & we’ll be fighting it out for a wildcard berth.
"Learning to eat soup with a knife"
Did anyone else hear the crowd near the end of the game start chanting overrated?…still not sure if it was Astros fans or sarcastic Phils fans…either way it was pretty funny
1/5/7 and counting...
I hate the Astros so much that even though this might be in jest, it still pisses me off.
What kind of plane is it? Oh, it's a big pretty white plane with red stripes, curtains in the windows and wheels and it looks like a big ol' Tylenol.
is it bad that I really didn’t care about this game, at all?
It's only gonna get funner
by VanceinmyPants on Sep 12, 2011 11:57 PM EDT reply actions
the only thing I was worried about was injury/death.
It's only gonna get funner
by VanceinmyPants on Sep 13, 2011 12:01 AM EDT up reply actions
they didn’t care either
1/5/7 and counting...
by DirtyWaters on Sep 13, 2011 12:01 AM EDT up reply actions
Oswalt doing his best to make Worley the game 4 starter
I re-watched some of the game tonight (I know, it’s lame)…Oswalt is simply not a great pitcher right now. His fastball is his best pitch and it has good life, but he struggles to locate it consistently. His array of secondary pitches (change-up, slider, curve) are all average at best right now and he can’t really locate those well either. He seems to be pushing his change-up and slowing his arm speed on his curve. I’m by no means ready to write off someone with his resume, but he needs to show me something to prove he is worthy of getting the starting nod over Vance.
1/5/7 and counting...
Depending on how Games One through Three go, I’d probably lean towards Oswalt for a couple reasons. First, he’s got playoff experience. Second, he’s not a rookie enjoying the Railroad of Dubious Sustainability. Third, he might be retiring, and I’d love to see him get more playoff starts (subject to the requirements of the service).
But really, this is one of those “good problems.”
This is not a “good problem”. This is a “lose games in the playoff if you’re wrong” problem. Oswalt’s not looked well, Worley has. Dubious Sustainability, he’s a rookie and the ones that do well do real well. Use that to your advantage. Not putting in pitchers who look worse for the sake of stats.
It's in his wheelhouse!!
Carlos Ruiz, My Nickname is Chooch.
by Dr. Steve on Sep 13, 2011 1:04 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
Determining which of two good pitchers to use in the playoffs is not a “lose games in the playoff if you’re wrong,” problem. It’s a “WIP has run out of things to talk about because the team is so good that we will talk about this now and manufacture an irrelevant controversy” problem.
*t will only be for one game per series, secondly there may not necessarily be a right or wrong choice. The Phillies may win or the Phillies may lose this game, and there will be other factors that come into play other than the Phillies starting pitcher. You’ve got the other team’s pitcher, the other team’s offense, the other team’s defense, the Phillies offense, the Phillies defense, etc.
The biggest knock on Worley is that he has his greatest success the first time through a line-up and does not generate a high amount of swinging strikes. Meanwhile Oswalt’s fastball continues to improve and probably deserved a little better fate tonight if I’m being completely honest. The Phillies defense and questionable decision making from the official scorer did Oswalt no favors tonight.
Writer at SB Nation's Philadelphia Union blog, The Brotherly Game. Follow me on Twitter.
Is game 4 less important than games 1, 2 or 3? Correct me if I’m wrong but, the point is to give your team the best opportunity to win every game and, I don’t think many people here would argue that “At this very moment” Worley is the better option. Now that could change if Oswalt finds his location & gets his array of 2ndary pitches working than he’s the superior pitcher but, unless that happens & fast than I can’t see a spot for him on the post season rotation.
"Learning to eat soup with a knife"
by h2o_34_35_44 on Sep 13, 2011 3:19 AM EDT up reply actions
Oswalt definitely pitched better than his line indicates. He really only allowed the two runs on that Carlos Lee bomb. Everything else, in my opinion, should’ve been errors.
Let's go eat...a triceratops. /velociraptor'd
by LeepinLizardz on Sep 13, 2011 9:55 AM EDT up reply actions
a Fangraphs post the other day referenced a Blogger Emeritus Matt Swartz BP article contending that “swinging strikes … actually don’t predict future strikeout rate any better than called strike percentage.” I’m not a BP subscriber, so I can’t read the full article, but the summary suggests that it’s not as cut and dried as one might assume.
by perfectdepth on Sep 13, 2011 9:09 AM EDT up reply actions
that quote might not be entirely clear—the point that the FG post & BP article were making was that there’s no (statistically significant) evidence to suggest that a high % of called strikes is a poor predictor of future performance.
by perfectdepth on Sep 13, 2011 9:10 AM EDT up reply actions
Well I’ll still take a swinging strikes in accessing skill over a secondary party judging the outcome to muddy the waters. Until scouting reports come back saying how batters struggle to pick up the ball or he’s repeated this a shit-ton of times, there’s not a whole lot about Worely to discount that some of his success is driven by teams intentionally taking pitches the first time thru to see whether or not he has control over the two-seamer. We will see.
Dude, you’re not even close to the Dubious Sustainability Train, it left hours ago. You’re on the Fail Train, or perhaps the Moron Train.
It IS a good problem. Would you rather pick between a former 20-game winner and a Rookie-of-the-Year candidate, or two never-was-beens as your FOURTH starter? Remember where we are.
Exactly. Most teams do not have anywhere near the depth the Phillies have in their starting rotation. Certainly not Arizona. There is a drop in Milwaukee once you get past Greinke/Gallardo/Marcum. Atlanta is relying on their youth for depth, St. Louis certainly does not have it, and San Francisco is out of it (although again, there is a drop off once you get past Lincecum/Cain/Bumgarner).
Writer at SB Nation's Philadelphia Union blog, The Brotherly Game. Follow me on Twitter.
FOR INSTANCE
Look at where the Yankees will be slotting their ROY canidate.
It's only gonna get funner
by VanceinmyPants on Sep 13, 2011 7:34 AM EDT up reply actions
Where are the Game 2 starters of yesteryear?
by Wet Luzinski on Sep 13, 2011 5:55 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Such Memories
The link reminded me that even after Kendrick was shelled for two first-inning home runs that team was resilient enough to bounce right back and took a 3-2 lead into the fourth inning. And that it was Kyle Lohse, not Kendrick, who gave up the fatal grand slam. I wonder if that was a factor in letting Lohse walk as a free agent and keeping Kendrick as a starter for 2008. Starting pitching certainly wasn’t that team’s strongest asset.
by phillyinportland on Sep 13, 2011 5:18 PM EDT up reply actions
Thanks
Too bad for him, good for Joe Blanton, I guess.
by phillyinportland on Sep 13, 2011 6:40 PM EDT up reply actions
Rec’d for unintentional hilarity.
Let's go eat...a triceratops. /velociraptor'd
by LeepinLizardz on Sep 13, 2011 9:53 AM EDT up reply actions
It is a “Good Problem” because we know who the first three pitchers in our rotation are, and they are pretty awesomesauce. I am sure that the Red Sox and Yankees would love to have this problem. Further, there are some good reasons to go with Oswalt (with Worley ready in the ’pen to come out if Oswalt is not doing well). Worley is definitely the better suited to come out of the ’pen- Oswalt with his injury history should be allowed all of the time that he needs to warm up and be kept in a routine. Worley has shown in the past that he can come out of the pen.
"Valdez can pitch, Lee can hit... and pigs can fly."
___________________________________________]THE PLIGHT OF THE TWO SEAM FASTBALL
[ 
+ 
+ 
] -—
.[ 
+ 
+ 
] ≠
.
the Railroad of Dubious Sustainability
Vance Worley enjoys SEPTA Regional Rail?
by Wet Luzinski on Sep 13, 2011 5:51 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
Lol… After the last two weeks I don’t think it can even be called dubious (I was seriously thinking a call to the Vatican was in order on Friday when I made it to work in time to leave at a decent hour).
"Valdez can pitch, Lee can hit... and pigs can fly."
The fastball location could be his release point. If it still has the life on it that it had than that tells me his timing & mechanics are still on point. If he’s trying to change his arm speed for his secondary pitches (assuming he didn’t do this before) than his mechanics are off & at this point in the season I’m not sure if that can be fixed.
"Learning to eat soup with a knife"
by h2o_34_35_44 on Sep 13, 2011 3:12 AM EDT up reply actions
Or burn a hole in Hollywood’s jacket. One of the two.
Time is not made of lines. It is made of circles. That is why clocks are round.
-Michael J Caboose
by TheOrangeCone on Sep 13, 2011 1:24 AM EDT up reply actions
The only thing Hollywood about Hamels is that he produces… oh and does this:
by Cole_Hamels_Can on Sep 13, 2011 1:29 AM EDT up reply actions
I love the height disparity in this picture.
I’m the same height as J-Roll, I believe, so I’m glad he’s around to prove people of our height can be professional athletes, David Eckstein notwithstanding
by The Howling Fantods on Sep 13, 2011 6:58 AM EDT up reply actions
Figures.
I fall asleep and miss the return of Big Joe.
I was annoyed that I wasn’t annoyed about last night’s game. I don’t mind them losing every so often but losing with bad defense sucks. Oh well.
I thought it was interesting when Wheels and TMac were talking about how Charlie said earlier in the day that the team needed to get on a roll again. Not for nothing but the team had just won 6 in a row against two good teams, finally lost 1 and Charlie is already saying they need to get on a roll again. That said…can we get back to this winning thing, please? Losing is no fun, especially against the Astros. I really dislike them for some reason.
Ed Snider is a crotchety old fuck.
That is all.
I wouldn’t have been annoyed at this lackluster game if it hadn’t been at the hands of Brett wife-beatin’ good ol’ boy Myers. smh
by perfectdepth on Sep 13, 2011 9:11 AM EDT up reply actions
Yeah that sucks a bit to considering Myers isn’t that good. I will be a bit more frustrated if they lose to Happ tonight who has been dreadful all year.
Ed Snider is a crotchety old fuck.
That is all.
Happ actually had two good starts since his late August recall:
In three starts:
vs. SF: 6IP 4H 2R 1ER 4BB 2K
Pitt: 7IP 3H 0R 0ER 1BB 6K
Pitt: 5IP 5H 4R 4ER 4BB 8K
Granted the last one was not all that good, but he is definitely capable of putting together a good game.
"Valdez can pitch, Lee can hit... and pigs can fly."
Against the worst and 4th worst offenses in baseball.
Ed Snider is a crotchety old fuck.
That is all.
Happ’s genuinely been pretty bad this year, although not as bad as his ERA. Nobody’s that bad. So he’s been unlucky too.
I guess the good news for Happ is that the main cause of his struggles this year has been a terrible walk rate. He was never exactly known for pinpoint control, not even in the minors where he was usually in the low 3’s in BB/9, but last year and this year he’s just been awful in that regard. The silver lining in that is that I think control is the part of a pitcher’s game that’s most under his, well, control. You can work on that and get better. Unlike with K’s – if you can’t strike people out, chances are you’ll never be able to strike people out (though there are exceptions). Happ is still striking people out at a decent enough rate.
The Way I've Always Rationalized our Suck against the Astros
The pattern seems to usually be:
- Series early on in the year: Win handily
- Series later on in the year: Get embarrassed
The way I’ve seen it, I just figure that when the Phillies and Astros play in the beginning of the season, technically they’re both playoff contenders (as no one’s really eliminated from contention when you’re only one week in). However, when we have a series against them later in the year, oh look, Astros have tanked another season. So the Phils go into thinking it’ll be a cakewalk or end up playing down to their level, and it thoroughly bites them in the ass. It’s annoying but between the Astros and the Marlins before the last two series, I think the Phils tend to look past the bottom of the barrel teams instead of whooping up on them.
He did say “rationalize”. When associated with bad to bizarre outcomes or behaviors I usually see that as a coping mechanism. Like addicts can have completely rational explanation for their use – it’s completely ridiculous or tragically misguided but nonetheless rational by defintion – it’s just not reasonable.
It wouldn’t feel quite so bad if the defense hadn’t fallen asleep and allowed that huge inning.
Not that it really feels bad anyway. Maybe we can beat the hell out of them tonight and tomorrow night, just for good measure.
Besides, while I would never condone laying down for any reason, we do have bigger Fish to fry coming up. It’d be nice if we could finish fifteen games ahead of the Braves.
You can say that there are bigger Fish to fry (and I would love to have a Fish fry on Thursday- for lunch AND dinner), but the fact is that every game counts equally- they could have been thirteen up on the Barves yesterday, and that would have been a wonderful thing. Let’s win tonight! I want the Phillies to get into the post season of their own doings.
"Valdez can pitch, Lee can hit... and pigs can fly."
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
Related FanPosts on The Good Phight
Related FanShots on The Good Phight
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recommended FanPosts
Recent FanPosts
Next Game
Philadelphia Phillies
@
St. Louis Cardinals
Saturday, May 26, 2012, 7:15 PM EDT
Busch Stadium
Clear. Winds blowing out to left field at 5-15 m.p.h. Game time temperature around 95.
In Association With
Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports
- Security!: Camden Yards guard collides with Royals’ Mike Moustakas
- The Juice: Nelson Cruz matches career high eight RBIs, Pujols stays hot in Seattle
- Benches clear at Fenway as Red Sox-Rays rivalry heats up
- Keeping good company: Albert Pujols becomes fourth-youngest player to hit 450 home runs
- Giancarlo Stanton misses cutoff man, and Logan Morrison is thankful he did (Video)
