Hard Luck For Hamels

I’m trying not to get too hung up on the Phillies 2-0 loss on Sunday to the Seattle Mariners, but it sure was disappointing to watch this game after such a great win last night.

Apparently if you’re going to beat the Phillies, it isn’t going to be with a fastball.

The Mariners starter Jason Vargas held the Phillies to just three hits in a complete game shutout using an array of off speed pitches.  He threw his stuff well though, tossing 84 of his 119 pitches for strikes.  66 of them were off-speed.

Surprisingly though Ryan Howard accounted for two of those three hits.  Say what you will about Howard, but he’s currently averaging an RBI a game and he’s raised his batting average by almost 20 points in the last 10 games.

Hamels took it in stride.

“I feel like I did my job,” said Hamels, who scattered seven hits, walked none and struck out six over 6 1/3 innings. “I have to take it in stride. It’s not the World Series. If it was, people would want to scream, but I get to go out there again in five days. I’ll take all the positives from today and go from there.”

It’s tough to think that the Phillies flew all the way to Seattle to lose 2-3 to a team that’s barely .500.

Oh well.  We can’t think too hard about this one I suppose.  Monday is a travel day, and then the Phillies are going to face a St. Louis Cardinals team that looks to be playing without Albert Pujols, and who has lost seven of their last ten.

Oh yeah… And Roy Halladay is starting for the Phils.  Cool.

Worley – Phils Face King Felix

If there was a way for Vance Worley to look at his match up tonight against the Mariners, it’s that he’s facing the Mariners and their .229 batting average, not King Felix.  Facing Felix is the job of the other eight guys in tonight’s lineup.

Felix Hernandez is 7-5, with a 3.30 ERA, but is totally beatable thanks to his lack of offensive support.  The Phillies were kept off the board for most of Friday night, but showed late in the game that they still had some life.  They got a late start on Friday.  Some of that may be attributed to their previous four game series, and travel, but starter Michael Pineda was very good, too.

They key to success for tonight is to find a way to scratch out a few funs off Felix, and to keep Ichiro Suzuki off base. Ichiro had three hits, and scored three of the Mariners four runs on Friday.  He’s plenty older and slower then he used to be but is still, very much a  play maker.

If the Phillies can do this, and Worley pitches like he can, this is a verywinnable game.

Streak Ends at Seven

After four games in close to 48 hours with the Marlins, the Phillies shipped cross country to face the Mariners and their tough right handed rookie. I wondered before the start of this game if the Phils would have enough energy to contend against Seattle’s Michael Pineda. I can’t say that the Phils didn’t compete, but Pineda was just nasty, holding the Phillies hitless until the sixth inning.

Shane Victorino broke up Pineda’s no-no, and the Phillies proceeded to load the bases in the sixth but couldn’t manage to bounce Pineda who looked poised for a meltdown.

Oswalt wasn’t exactly effective either. Roy surrendered eight hits and four runs in 6 1/3 innings. Roy hasn’t quite looked the same since his return from the disabled list just over a month ago. His durability is there, but the late life on his fastball is not. Charlie Manual isn’t worried, so I guess I’m not either… Maybe just a little concerned.

“I think about that sometimes,”Charlie Manuel said. “I think there comes a time when the fastball – not all of it is there. But I think he’ll come out pretty soon and his fastball will be where it was. It’s just a matter of time before you see his fastball jump up. There’s nothing wrong with the way he’s throwing. I think that’s going to come.

But is Oswalt still having fun?

“Yeah,” he said simply.

Let’s hope he’s right.  The Phillies will surely need Oswalt if they aim to take a serious run at the title.

Could Durbin Come Back?

People are whispering about Chad Durbin.  

Yesterday Peter Gammoms hinted in a Tweet that “Chad Durbin may head for Clearwater Thurs. if Rays, Rangers don’t move.  Still intrigued by Boston offer as a starter.”  Other sources are starting to mutter a similar story. 

Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer echoed Gammons in his blog this morning saying “If Durbin’s hand is forced because there are no major-league offers on
the table, the source said his preference would be to come to the
Phillies and compete for a job as a non-roster player.”

Durbin has also been linked to the Mariners, but it’s rumored he only desires to play for a contender.

Chad had been seeking a multi-year deal and an increase from his $2.125 MM salary he earned in 2010. 

Chad has been a very reliable piece to the Phillies bullpen.  He posted a 3.80 ERA with 8.3 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 42.4% ground ball rate in
68 2/3 innings last year. Durbin has averaged 65 appearances and 75
innings in three seasons. 

At his original asking price the Phillies wanted nothing to do with him, but if the Phillies can add him for substantial discount then I’m alright with this.  I was hoping that the Phils would start to infuse some of their younger arms into the pen this year. He’s supposedly going to make up his mind in the next 48 hours…. He might want to do so because it seems his value is getting lower the longer he waits.

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