Phillies news & links — Andres Blanco pitched last night

When a headline touts a position player pitching, you know the game the night before had to be ugly. So let’s just rip the bandaid right off.

Andres Blanco pitched in a 14-1 loss

Yup. It was... great. And by great, I mean the opposite of great. What a way for a winning streak to end. (Read Justin Klugh’s recap here.) Jerad Eickhoff actually didn’t have a bad start, all things considered. It wasn’t good, but it wasn’t tragic. He gave up four runs over five innings, and he felt good. Here’s what he said to Jim Salisbury after the game.

"It's happening to me because I can take it," the wide-shouldered Eickhoff said. "I'm one of those guys that can handle it. I'm going to keep pushing on like I always do. I'm as stubborn as the next guy. I'm going to keep working like I always do. Honestly, this game felt like a building block. Out of the windup, I felt really good. In the bullpen, I felt really good. Things were flowing. I was executing pitches. For one pitch (the hanging slider to Swanson) to dampen that — I'm not going to let that happen."

Well at least that’s positive. Not positive? The bullpen completely imploded after Eickhoff left. That’s why Blanco had to pitch, and why he gave up a two-run home run. But it’s still a Phillies fun fact!

Ahh, memories.

Odubel Herrera is still on fire

Guys, Odubel Herrera hit two more doubles last night. Frankly, that’s insane, but it’s the wonderful, amazing kind of insane.

I don’t think anything else needs to be said.

Joely Rodriguez designated for assignment

And this means we’ll be seeing someone brand new!

Ooh, someone not on the 40-man roster! Who could it be? I don’t know. Pat Venditte? Hoby Milner? A mystery reliever? Soon we’ll know.

Pedro Martinez would go back and pitch 2009’s Game 6 all over again

Anytime I remember that Pedro Martinez pitched for the Phillies, I get super happy. And he talked about his last game in the big leagues, Game 6 of the 2009 World Series. (womp-womp) He talks about it in this article on CSNPhilly, and you should read it, because Pedro Martinez is just so incredibly awesome.

Pat Neshek: Phillies All-Star?

If that phrase makes you queasy, you might as well start getting used to it. There isn’t a single Phillies player more deserving of the Phillies’ lone All-Star spot than Pat Neshek. Matt Breen makes that argument in the Inquirer, but we at TGP have been talking about it internally for weeks. We’re fully in support of the best, most consistent Phillies player going to the ASG. We love you, Pat!

Tweet of the day

Oh, today is a good day here at tweet of the day. First, we’ve got David Price being so very, very done with the Boston media.

Honestly, the Boston media has treated Price like shit, and he’s under no obligation to talk to them other than on game days. And he doesn’t have to talk about anything but baseball. A deeper relationship between Price and the Boston media is a privilege, not a right. And they abused the privilege.

And hold on to your butts for this one.

That would be the wife of Cubs player Addison Russell, who posted that on Instagram while the Cubs were playing last night. Honey, if he’s been cheating on you, you should do a post like that every single hour, whether he’s playing or not. Honestly, more baseball players today should follow the Rollins-Jeter model of waiting until you’ve played through a decent part of your career before settling down. Here’s to new beginnings, Melisa.