GAME RECAP: Red Sox Sweep Phillies 6-2
Call it deja vu for David Ortiz. The slugger went deep again Sunday
afternoon, inching closer to the 500-homer mark, and drove in three to back Eduardo Rodriguez's impressive start as the Red Sox
swept the Phillies, 6-2, at Fenway Park. Ortiz, who also homered Saturday,
smoked a two-run shot to right -- his 497th home run -- in the first for a 2-0
lead, though he later exited the game with right calf tightness and is day to
day. Jackie Bradley Jr.
added a two-run triple in a four-run fourth, his sixth extra-base hit in seven
games, and Rodriguez spun seven strong innings of one-run ball in Boston's
second three-game sweep. "He controlled his pitch counts, he was on the
attack -- great outing [that] kind of set the tone for us to do some things
offensively," Red Sox interim manager Torey Lovullo said of Rodriguez. Rodriguez
is 3-0 with a 1.73 ERA over his last four starts, but Lovullo said the southpaw
has an innings limit, which could mean shorter outings for the rest of the
season. Right-hander Jerad Eickhoff,
the third rookie trotted out by the Phillies in the series, surrendered six
runs, eight hits and a pair of walks over four innings in his first real
stumbling block. He had recorded quality starts in each of his first three
Major League outings. The Phillies are 3-10 in their past 13 games, and their
starters own a Major League-high 6.31 ERA on the road in 2015.
OTHER
NOTES FROM THE DAY:
- The 25-year-old labored mightily
through the second and needed 44 pitches to finish the inning. Even after
he erased a leadoff double by catching Rusney Castillo
trying to swipe third, Eickhoff's shaky command opened the door for Boston
to plate four runs on five hits in the frame. Bradley authored the biggest
blow when he smacked a 2-2 fastball to right for a triple. Eickhoff
settled down somewhat after that, working a perfect four-pitch third inning
and a scoreless fourth. "I think I just got back to what makes me
good as a pitcher," Eickhoff said. "Just located my fastball a
little better. I think I got away from that [early]. I kind of started hot
and heavy. But the last two innings I got back to that, what I do
best." "These young guys, they're taking their lumps,"
Phillies interim manager Pete Mackanin said. "But that's what this
year's about and that's what the first time through the big leagues, you
got to fine-tune it a little bit and get over the experience of being here
for the first time."
- Although the Phillies' offense
remained largely dormant, center fielder Odubel Herrera
stayed hot by recording his third multihit performance in six games, which
raised his average above .300 for the first time since May 3. His .302
mark is the Phillies' best among qualified hitters. "What a Rule 5
[Draft] pick, Herrera. Boy is he fun to watch," Mackanin said.
"And he's over .300 now. Playing super defense. I don't know if it
was [pro scouting director] Mike Ondo, but somebody did a heck of a job
getting that guy."
NEXT
GAME:
Right-hander Aaron Harang (5-14,
4.89 ERA) takes the mound as the Phils begin a 10-game homestand at Citizens
Bank Park, starting with Monday's 7:05 p.m. ET series opener against the
Braves. Harang hasn't won since he last faced Atlanta on July 30, when he
allowed one run over five innings. He carries a 0.95 ERA in three starts
against the club this season.
PHILS PHACTS:
Learning Through Adversity – Three times this weekend, the Phillies sent a rookie
starter out to face the Red Sox. And though all three occasions ended in
defeat, including Sunday's 6-2 loss
that completed a sweep for Boston, interim manager Pete Mackanin recognizes
that such struggles simply come with the territory of building toward 2016. "These
young guys, they're taking their lumps," Mackanin said. "But that's
what this year's about, and that's what the first time through the big leagues,
you've got to fine-tune it a little bit and get over the experience of being
here for the first time." On Sunday, right-hander Jerad Eickhoff took his turn learning just how
difficult the Majors can be, allowing six runs on eight hits over four innings.
He fell victim to David Ortiz's 497th
home run in the first inning, a two-run blast to right field, and then
surrendered four runs in a 44-pitch second. After that, however, Eickhoff went
on to work two scoreless innings, including a perfect third on four pitches. "We
were going to see if he would get away from his fastball and start being real
fine with his pitches," Mackanin said. "Actually, I think he was
trying to be too fine early in the game. When that happens, you end up making
mistakes. And then after the damage was done, he went right back to his
fastball and started making pitches. He reacted extremely well. So it was good
to see." The shaky performance came after Eickhoff recorded quality starts
in his first three games. But the 25-year-old took the tough game in stride,
adding that he was glad Mackanin let him continue pitching after the second. "I'm
as stubborn as they come," Eickhoff said. "And I want to come up
here, and no matter how bad it's looking or how bad it is, I want to go out
there for my team and try to get as deep as I can." To give his staff of
youngsters some needed rest, Mackanin revealed that the Phillies plan on moving
to a six-man rotation starting Wednesday against the Braves. However, the club
has not announced who will take the open spot. "We've got a limit on
pitches for [Aaron] Nola, and you got to be careful with Eickhoff and [Alec]
Asher," Mackanin said. "For everybody, it's good this late in the
season, especially the young guys who haven't pitched. Unless they're going to
get extra days in between. Because they're not used to going this deep into a
season. They're not used to playing in September. So the inning totals are
going to be important to keep an eye on." For Eickhoff and his fellow
rookies, they at least have the benefit of relying on their shared experiences
while continuing to break into the big leagues. "Going through what I went
through today, I would've bounced that off other pitchers and just see what
they would've done differently, what I could have done instead of doing this,
things like that," Eickhoff said. "So I think it's a good reference
point, for sure."
Embracing Veteran Role – As Jeff Francoeur scanned
the Phillies' lineup card Sunday morning and found his name, he joked that
interim manager Pete Mackanin had made him the designated hitter by default.
Francoeur's reason? Most of his teammates are too young to DH. "It's kind
of new," Francoeur said. "A lot of teams I'd always played on --
Chipper [Jones], [Carlos] Beltran and those guys -- whenever we played, they
would DH. I guess now I'm the old guy on the team to DH." Following the
midseason departures of Cole Hamels, Chase Utley and Jonathan Papelbon, the 31-year-old Francoeur suddenly
finds himself in an unfamiliar role as one of the club's elder statesmen.
Sunday's lineup featured six players under the age of 26 and rookie starter Jerad Eickhoff on the mound. "It's definitely
been weird. But I enjoy the grind of it," Francoeur said. "I enjoy
helping some of these younger guys. Odubel [Herrera], Aaron Altherr, and just teaching them the game the
best I can." Sitting around in between at-bats is also a fairly fresh
experience for Francoeur, who played just his fifth career game as the DH. "Honestly
for me, it's just stay in the game, stay focused before each at-bat,"
Francoeur said. "It can get tough sometimes. It's more just trying to lock
in and concentrate the best you can. It's almost like pinch-hitting a little
bit. You kind of sit around and relax. I'll come up [in the clubhouse] and
stretch, swing a little bit." Now on his seventh team in 11 seasons,
Francoeur's up-and-downs leave him well-equipped to assist a clubhouse as young
as Philadelphia's. He counts this season in particular as a personal triumph
after playing almost all of 2014 with Triple-A El Paso, a Padres affiliate. "It's
a humbling thing. I think you ask any guy, growing up, you never would have
thought you would play for 11 seasons," Francoeur said. "But at the
same time, it shows how hard you work. Especially for me after last year.
Spending some of the year at Triple-A, then getting to come back and put a good
year together was something that meant a lot to me."
THE BEGINNING:
The
Phillies have returned to their lackluster ways and regained their grip on last
place in the NL East with a record of 53-84. Given the departures, aging stars,
injuries, and bipolar performances this season, this could still end up
being the worst team in franchise history… at least that is something to hope
for this year! All time, the Phillies are 55-65-1 on this day.
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