J-Roll propelling Phils

Throughout this huge win streak, every peice of the team has been performing. But the main man during this stretch has been Jimmy Rollins. I was going to wait until after Tuesday night’s game to post but since it is currently in the 12th inning, I’m going to go ahead and do it mid-game.

Whether the Phillies can pull of a win Tuesday night against the Cubs or not, they are on a roll. Coming in having won nine in a row and thirteen of fourteen., the Phils have been clicking on all cylinders.

The starting pitching has been great over this stretch as well as key hitters like Raul Ibanez, Jayson Werth and Chase Utley, but the key reason the Phillies have won nine games in a row is simple. Jimmy Rollins is hitting.

His season statistics certainly don’t shine (Coming into Tuesday night’s game, J-Roll was batting .239 with 8 HR and 37 RBI as well as a .291 OBP). But the tough stretch of a few weeks ago turned around as soon as Rollins started to hit.

The Phils started winning on July 3rd when they swept the Mets at home. Since July started, Jimmy is hitting .375. But the even more important statistic in the case of a leadoff man is on-base percentage in which J-Roll has excelled this month at .461.

When J-Roll gets on base it sets up the rest of the lineup to succeed and that is exactly what they have done as the Phils have lost just one game since July 2nd.

We have all heard all of the trade rumors surrounding Toronto Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to see him in red and white (not St. Louis) come the trade deadline. But if J-Roll continues to hit like he has, and in turn the Phillies continue to win as they have, Halladay’s services may not be as important as they seemed a few weeks ago.

The potent Phillies lineup will be able to outscore any team.