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Starting Pitching has been a commodity for the Phillies
the past two years and this year’s been no different; Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee
and now Vance Worley have combined to give up two earned runs in 20 innings… if
only that were enough. For the second straight day, the Pirates came back to
beat the Phillies on a walk-off hit by a score of 5-4.
Worley played an outstanding game, allowing just one run in
six innings. He left the game with a 2-1 lead, which became 4-1 after a Juan
Pierre 2-RBI single following an error by Pirates second baseman Neil Walker.
The Phillies seemed to have the game in hand and replaced
Jim Thome and Juan Pierre in the bottom half of the inning for defensive
purposes. Ty Wigginton moved to first base and Placido Polanco and John Mayberry
came in to play third base and left field. Reliever Michael Stutes started the
inning with two strikeouts, but the second, to Pedro Alvarez, resulted in a
baserunner as Wigginton could not handle Brian Schneider’s throw after the third
strike hit the dirt. The end result of the inning was two runs and the Phillies
were looking at a one-run lead with two innings to play.
The Pirates scored again in the eighth to tie it up, and
third baseman Casey McGehee led off the ninth with a double. Centerfielder
Andrew McCutchen won the game with a two out hit to deep centerfield, scoring
pinch-runner Josh Harrison. McCutchen, or McClutchen, ended the game 3-4 with a
double, RBI, run and steal.
It’s still extremely early, but Phillies fans everywhere
are questioning the managerial moves by Charlie Manuel; he pitched to a hot
McCutchen with two outs and no one on first or second base in the ninth, he was
still as bunt happy as ever, even though the last two games have shown it’s not
a great idea, he left Brian Schneider in to bat in the top of the ninth instead
of using Carlos Ruiz as a pinch hitter, when he had Ruiz getting ready to pinch
hit for Antonio Bastardo in the inning anyway, losing a key opportunity and the
list goes on.
Why did David Herndon come in for the ninth inning? Why
did Kyle Kendrick start the eighth? He’s not the set-up man, is he? Where was
Papelbon? Just because he’s a closer doesn’t mean he’s a no-go in tie games…
Their best reliever should be out there in the most crucial situations.
As many negatives as there were today, there were some
positives to take away from today’s game: Rightfielder Hunter Pence had a great
game, finishing 2-3 with two RBIs, a double and a homerun, the team’s first
homerun of the year. Worley had a great game. Juan Pierre showed signs of his
old self, going 2-4 with a steal and two RBIs.
But the end result is all that will stick out in
everybody’s mind. It’s a game the Phillies should have won. They were up 4-1, in
the driver’s seat, and they crashed. Their offense is still a huge question
mark, their middle relief in in the same boat, and now Charlie Manuel’s
managerial decisions are being looked at under a microscope.
The season’s still incredibly young, but the start still
raises the question: Is this how it’ll be without Howard and Utley? Will
Charlie’s decisions continue to cost this team games? If, late in the season,
the Phillies are within one-two games of the division, or even a playoff spot,
considering the strength of the NL East this year, will these be the games fans
look back on? Only time will tell, but like I said: it’s still early. Hopefully
Phillies fans realize that, because if they get caught up over a 1-2 start,
there’s going to be a lot of disappointment forthcoming.
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