This bad:
- In 21 games, Phils starters have gone 112.3 innings and allowed 83 earned runs, for a collective ERA of 6.65, worst by far in the NL.
- They're averaging less than 5 1/3 innings per start.
- They've allowed 29 home runs, again worst by far in the NL.
- And while I can't honestly say how this compares to the rest of the league, what really blew me away was that in the 21 games, Phlis starters have combined to throw a grand total of 25 1-2-3 innings.
I have to admit that when I started to look at these numbers, my thought was to point a finger at the deeply frustrating Chan Ho Park--because we all pretty much knew he was going to be lousy, and he was again tonight, and it has seemed watching him that his innings take forever. But Park stands second on the staff in 1-2-3s, with six on the year (four of them in his relatively strong outing against the Marlins on April 25). Brett Myers has seven, though in one more start than Park. Jamie Moyer, who has earned three of the total four wins notched by the starters, has five 1-2-3s; Joe Blanton has four, and Cole Hamels three.
To say this isn't sustainable would be putting it mildly. The bullpen's collective 4.28 ERA isn't spectacular, but on the whole they've gotten good work (and did again tonight) from Clay Condrey and J.A. Happ, and Ryan Madson has been effective more often than not. Condrey already has pitched in 14 games, though, as has Chad Durbin; they're not going to hold up under that workload.