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The Phillies and Giants have only been playing against each other for two days and two games, but it feels like an ETERNITY. Each game is its own little hell. First, the Phillies are losing. Then, they stage a comeback! And then they can't quite seal the deal and everyone goes home sad.
But we cannot forget the lone highlight of yesterday's depress-fest: JEFF FRANCOEUR HIT A GRAND SLAM.
WATCH THE VIDEO AND DESPAIR, GIANTS FANS. HE DID THAT WITH THE PHILLIES AND NOT WITH YOU. I KNOW YOU WON THE WORLD SERIES LAST YEAR AND WHAT SOME JOURNEYMAN OUTFIELDER DID WITH ANOTHER TEAM DOESN'T MATTER TO YOU, BUT LET US HAVE THIS ONE. PLEASE. JUST PRETEND TO BE JEALOUS FOR MAYBE A MINUTE. THAT'S ALL WE ASK.
(I'd like to note that I could embed that video if MLB Advanced Media would let me, but they won't. They won't let me embed a video of Jeff Francoeur being good, because... well, it's obvious. I repeat, MLBAM thinks that the video clip of Jeff Francoeur's grand slam is so valuable that they won't let anyone embed it nearly 24 hours later because they want to REAP ALL THE TRAFFIC. That is at once sad, brilliant, and then sad again but for different reasons.)
But on to today's game.
WHAT, JEFF FRANCOEUR ISN'T IN THE LINEUP THE DAY AFTER HITTING A GRAND SLAM?! I DEMAND A REFUND! A REFUND OF... SOMETHING!
It makes a little sense, though Francoeur has never faced Ryan Vogelsong. And of the Phillies in the lineup today, Revere, Utley, Howard, Asche, and Rupp have all seen Vogelsong before. (Teensy weensy sample size alert!) Revere has had three plate appearances against him with zero hits. Asche and Rupp have two PA against Vogelsong with two and one hits respectively. Both Chase Utley and Ryan Howard have seen him the most and have the most success. Howard has eight plate appearances (seven official ABs) and three hits, and Utley has five hits in nine plate appearances. In fact, with this extremely tiny sample size, Utley is hitting .556/.556/.556 against Vogelsong. For those who like a symmetrical triple slash, it doesn't get much better than that.
It's a good thing Utley and Howard have been so successful against Vogelsong, because Sean O'Sullivan is taking the mound today. After a half-decent start to the year, O'Sullivan has had two crappy outings in a row. Let's hope he can stop the trend today and keep the Giants at bay so the Phillies can avoid the sweep.
Discuss the game in the comments below.