All in all, it was a decent (yet disappointing) week for the Philadelphia Phillies. They were 5-3 since last Monday, but considering they were mostly playing the Washington Nationals and the New York Mets (who are a combined 113-174 right now), that isn’t too much to write home about.
Add in the fact that they have been 7-7 for the month of September and they continually give up tons of runs late in games, then you have a prescription for a collective upset stomach for die-hard fans.
I know there are only 20 regular season games left, and that this Phillies’ team has a 6 1/2 game lead in the NL East, but I feel no confidence in them whatsoever. That’s probably because the Phils have made a habit of blowing leads all season, so why should the playoff run be any different?
Let’s break down some of the numbers of the close four-games series that featured the Mets winning once by one run and the Phillies winning three times by only four total runs.
THE PHILS SCORED EARLY
Philadelphia scored 19 runs in the four-game series, and nine of them were in the first, second and third innings. For the most part, Philly came out hot and broke open early leads. Great. Fantastic. That’s all you can ask from your team, except...
THE METS SCORED LATE
I realize Philly won three of four games, but it could have easily gone much differently. Philly could likely have swept, just as the Mets could have won all four, as well. After all, the Philadelphia bullpen indeed seems allergic to scoreless innings a majority of the time.
The Mets scored 16 runs in the four games, and 12 of them were during the seventh, eighth and ninth innings.
Let’s look at the difference between the starters and the bullpen from Philadelphia for the series.
THE STARTERS ROCKED
Pitching a total of 29 innings (of a possible 36), the starters were pretty damn solid overall with a 2.48 ERA. That kind of performance should lead to a sweep. Of course, it didn’t because...
THE BULLPEN GOT ROCKED
The relief pitchers for Philly gave up more earned runs (8) than total innings pitched (7). That translates to an abominable ERA of 10.29. The Mets scored in the ninth inning during three of the four games. Those gawdy numbers suggest that the Phils were very lucky to come away with three wins.
The Lidge/Madson/Meyers Three-Headed Closer Monster Experiment is simply not working and if it doesn’t get resolved in three weeks, then whoever faces Philadelphia in the first round will be extremely confident even if they find themselves down by a couple of runs in the ninth inning.
This team is too good to go down unceremoniously in the first round, but Philly has had all season long to rectify the problem and it’s only gotten worse. (By the way, the answer is simple: Madson in the eight and Meyers in the ninth.)
Let’s look at the difference between the starters and the bullpen from Philadelphia for the series.
THE STARTERS ROCKED
Pitching a total of 29 innings (of a possible 36), the starters were pretty damn solid overall with a 2.48 ERA. That kind of performance should lead to a sweep. Of course, it didn’t because...
THE BULLPEN GOT ROCKED
The relief pitchers for Philly gave up more earned runs (8) than total innings pitched (7). That translates to an abominable ERA of 10.29. The Mets scored in the ninth inning during three of the four games. Those gawdy numbers suggest that the Phils were very lucky to come away with three wins.
The Lidge/Madson/Meyers Three-Headed Closer Monster Experiment is simply not working and if it doesn’t get resolved in three weeks, then whoever faces Philadelphia in the first round will be extremely confident even if they find themselves down by a couple of runs in the ninth inning.
This team is too good to go down unceremoniously in the first round, but Philly has had all season long to rectify the problem and it’s only gotten worse. (By the way, the answer is simple: Madson in the eight and Meyers in the ninth.)
In the meantime, looks like Philadelphia fans should buy antacids in bulk because the playoffs will feel ten times worse than this Phils-Mets series that left many fans riddled with anxiety until the final out.
BONUS EXTRA NOTE:
The Phillies ended the 2009 season series against the Mets by winning 12 of 18 games. There were definitely some classics, but I think one of the oddest games of the year was Saturday’s 10 to 9 Mets’ win.
BONUS EXTRA NOTE:
The Phillies ended the 2009 season series against the Mets by winning 12 of 18 games. There were definitely some classics, but I think one of the oddest games of the year was Saturday’s 10 to 9 Mets’ win.
During that game, at least one run was scored by at least one of the two teams in every inning but the fifth.
Overall, both teams gave up more runs in that game than the other three games in the weekend series combined.
The Phillies would certainly like to forget that fiasco considering they gave up 15 hits and 10 runs (five of which were in the final two innings for a dramatic come-from-behind by the New York David Wrights.... er, I mean Mets.)
Another oddity of the game is that the Phils did not walk a single batter, nor did they strike any Mets’ player out. When was the last time you recall seeing that happening?
Overall, both teams gave up more runs in that game than the other three games in the weekend series combined.
The Phillies would certainly like to forget that fiasco considering they gave up 15 hits and 10 runs (five of which were in the final two innings for a dramatic come-from-behind by the New York David Wrights.... er, I mean Mets.)
Another oddity of the game is that the Phils did not walk a single batter, nor did they strike any Mets’ player out. When was the last time you recall seeing that happening?
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