Phillies Open Second Half With Loss

GAME RECAP: Mets Beat Phillies 5-3

The Mets opened the second half of their season Friday night tied for the second National League Wild Card. Of course, they want better than that, and New York hopes a 5-3 victory over the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park is the beginning of a run at the first-place Nationals in the National League East. Mets right-hander Bartolo Colon carried a perfect game into the fifth inning as Neil Walker hit a three-run home run in the sixth to give New York a 4-0 lead. The Mets trail the Nationals by six games. Juan Lagares reached base three times, including a solo homer in the third, and also stole a bag and scored two runs. He started in center field in place of Yoenis Cespedes, who is recovering from a strained right quad. "Two years ago we thought Juan was going to be an outstanding offensive player," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "He's done a nice job when he's been in there. Right now with Ces's leg, we've certainly got to take a look at seeing if Juan should see some more playing time." The rebuilding Phillies entered the second half hoping to make a long-shot run at a postseason berth. But despite cutting the lead to 4-3 in the sixth -- highlighted by Peter Bourjos' RBI triple -- they could not get any closer. "This is one of the better teams in the league and we compete with them every time we play them, so I feel like we can definitely do it," Phillies right-hander Jeremy Hellickson said. "We've just got to string some wins together like we did in the first half. Obviously it wasn't a good start today, but I absolutely think we can make a run at it."

PHILS PHACTS:

• Hellickson enters what could be his final couple of weeks with the Phillies. He is a free agent after the season, and the Phillies could trade him to a contender before the Aug. 1 non-waiver Trade Deadline. Hellickson allowed just one run through five innings before Walker hit a three-run home run to left in the sixth. "I felt great," Hellickson said. "I just got a little gassed at the end. Leadoff man on the last two innings, I was working way too hard." 
• Two of the reasons the Phillies' offense has picked up the past few weeks has been the hitting of outfielders Bourjos and Cody Asche. After Bourjos' triple in the sixth, Asche's bloop single to left later in the inning scored the Phillies' third run of the night. "We bounced back, that was nice to see," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said.
• "He's not the guy I wanted to see coming out of the break because he's such a good pitcher. He knows what he's doing. He just kind of stifled us for a while there." --Mackanin, on Colon.
• Mets closer Jeurys Familia passed Brad Lidge for sole possession of fifth place on the all-time consecutive saves list, converting his 48th straight and 32nd this season. Next up is John Axford, who converted 49 straight.
• Phillies third baseman Maikel Franco had his 10-game hitting streak snapped.

NEXT GAME:

Right-hander Jerad Eickhoff pitches the second game of the three-game series against the Mets on Saturday at Citizens Bank Park. Eickhoff went 6-10 with a 3.80 ERA in the first half, but don't let the win-loss record fool anybody. He might have been the Phillies' best and most consistent pitcher before the All-Star break.

PHILS PHACTS:

Ignoring Trade Talks – Trade speculation is impossible to ignore these days, but the Phillies are trying their best. Two of the Phillies' more interesting trade candidates played roles in Friday night's 5-3 loss to the Mets at Citizens Bank Park. Phillies right-hander Jeremy Hellickson allowed one run through the first five innings before Neil Walker's three-run homer in the sixth. Phillies right fielder Peter Bourjos had an RBI triple in a three-run sixth inning. Both are free agents after the season. Both could be had at the right price before the Aug. 1 non-waiver Trade Deadline. "On most teams, everybody plays GM," Bourjos said. "Everyone is like, 'Oh, I'd do this, this and this.' Here we haven't been doing it. We've really been focusing on just playing and not worrying about it, which has been nice. But I know on some teams I've been on it seems like everybody is a GM and everybody sits around at dinner and tries to make trades. We should get this guy and whatnot, but here we've been focused and I think that's probably for the best." Hellickson and Bourjos could help contending teams, although returns for them might be relatively modest. Hellickson is 6-7 with a 4.03 ERA. But his experience, particularly his years pitching in the American League East, could interest a team looking to improve its rotation. "Yeah, it's on my mind," Hellickson said, "just when I see it on Twitter or talk to [the media] about it. But other than that, I'm focused every day doing what I have to do to get ready for my next start. Like I've said all along, I love it here. I'd love to be here the rest of the year, but obviously I've been through it before and know that side of the game." Bourjos has been one of the hottest hitters since the middle of June, hitting .404 (36-for-89) with seven doubles, four triples, three home runs, 10 RBIs and a 1.122 OPS in his last 26 games. Combine his hot bat with his Gold Glove-caliber defense and he could be attractive to a contender. "I don't know what's going to happen," Bourjos said. "You don't know what your trade value is. I've been swinging the bat well over the last month-and-a-half. Who knows what other GMs are thinking and what other teams need?" But while the Phillies are under no pressure to make trades like last year, they might have incentive to move a player or two, particularly in the outfield and on the mound. Phillies outfielder Aaron Altherr could be activated from the disabled list in the next few weeks. He opened Spring Training projected to be an everyday player before he tore a tendon in his left wrist. Triple-A Lehigh Valley outfielder Nick Williams could earn a promotion. He is the Phillies' No. 3 prospect and No. 56 prospect in baseball, according to MLBPipeline.com. If he is promoted before September, they certainly do not want him sitting on the bench. Triple-A right-hander Jake Thompson is angling for a promotion, too. He pitched seven scoreless innings Friday against Buffalo to make him 5-0 with a 0.64 ERA in his last eight starts. He is the Phillies' No. 2 prospect and the No. 48 prospect in baseball, according to MLBPipeline.com. "I don't even follow it anymore," Bourjos said of the trade speculation. "When I was younger I used to read probably every article. Since 2010, my name has been thrown in probably 100 different trade scenarios and I've only been traded one time. It's not even worth it to read them. I'm happy here. Hopefully I stay here and I continue to play well and if something does happen, obviously it's a good thing."

High Expectations – Phillies manager Pete Mackanin relaxed at the Jersey Shore over the All-Star break, but when he returned to Citizens Bank Park on Friday he took a look at the National League standings. He found the Phillies, while six games under .500, only six games behind the Mets and Marlins for the second Wild Card. "Why not?" Mackanin said about chasing a Wild Card. "Let's set our sights high. Wild Card? I mean, might as well." Of course, the Phillies are still a rebuilding team, which means they remain focused on 2017 and beyond. And that means they could trade players who could help them in their Wild Card pursuit. Possibilities include Jeremy Hellickson, Peter Bourjos, Jeanmar Gomez, David Hernandez, Cody Asche, Carlos Ruiz, Andrew Bailey and Andres Blanco. "I don't know how much interest, if there is any, in any of our guys," Mackanin said. "I would assume there would be. Teams need pitchers. Teams need players. I don't know what they would bring. If there is a deal to be made, I have confidence that [general manager] Matt [Klentak] will do it because it's a good deal, not just to make a deal. "There's no reason just to make a deal, because we still have a bunch of guys in the Minor Leagues that we're high on. It's different in that respect. You kind of knew that something was going to happen last year. This year, I don't know." It will be interesting to see how the Phillies handle the outfield moving forward. Odubel Herrera is going to play every day in center field. Bourjos has earned regular playing time in right field. Asche is trying to make his case in left. Rule 5 Draft pick Tyler Goeddel needs to play, too. "We see an upside [in Goeddel]," Mackanin said. "And he's going to play enough to stay here the whole year and we'll have rights to him." Asked if the same holds true for fellow Rule 5 Draft pick Daniel Stumpf, who just returned from an 80-game suspension for testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug, Mackanin said he did not know. But outfielder Aaron Altherr could be back in the next few weeks. He has been on the disabled list since March because of a torn tendon in his left wrist. Triple-A Lehigh Valley outfielder Nick Williams could see a promotion soon, too. Something will have to give to get Altherr and Williams on the field. "There already is a logjam because Williams is having a good year and [Double-A Reading outfielder Dylan] Cozens is on the radar, and a few other people and the guys we have here," Mackanin said. "That's a nice situation to be in. That's why it's important for all these guys, like an Asche, to have a big year this year, so he stays in that mix. "We still have to let guys play and find out about them. But we might as well play for something, have the target. But I still have to play guys and see what they are going to do. We still have to find out as much as we can so that next year we're closer."

Today In Phils History – In 1948, following a notorious couple of seasons, Ben Chapman was fired as Phillies manager and replaced by Dusty Cooke. Ramiro Mendoza achieved a rare feat against the Phillies in 2001 when he retired the side (Eric Valent, Doug Glanville, and Jimmy Rollins) on 3 pitches.  

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are currently 42-49 this season putting them on pace to beat most preseason predictions. All time, the Phillies are 58-47-0 on this day. I expect the Phillies to finish in the bottom half of the division but not last in the NL East by finishing the season with a 77-85 record.

Phillies Edge Indians In Repeat Performance

GAME RECAP: Cardinals Crush Phillies 10-3

A three-run homer by Adam Wainwright ignited a power surge at Busch Stadium, which didn't end until the Cardinals blasted the five home runs off Phillies pitching en route to a 10-3 victory that snapped Philadelphia's winning streak at six. The Phillies actually led early in this one, peppering Wainwright for three runs on three third-inning hits. But Wainwright erased the deficit himself the next inning when he sent a Jeremy Hellickson fastball into Busch Stadium's Big Mac Land, giving the Cardinals' ace his second consecutive three-RBI game. "Right now, it's all about wins for me," Wainwright (2-3) said. "We have to win the game when I take the mound until I get 100 percent back ready to rock and roll like I'm going to. That seemingly woke us up a bit." The Cardinals, who entered the day ranked third in the Majors with 35 home runs, weren't done depositing balls into the seats either. Matt Adams and Aledmys Diaz took Hellickson deep in a three-pitch span to give the Cardinals their first set of back-to-back homers on the night. Yes, there would be another. Those came in the seventh when Kolten Wong and Randal Grichuk took reliever Brett Oberholtzer deep. "We haven't had one of those games in a while," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "They're bound to happen. Everybody has them."

PHILS PHACTS:

• Freddy Galvis' single in the third scored Hellickson and Peter Bourjos to give the Phillies a 2-0 lead. Maikel Franco followed with a sacrifice fly scoring Odubel Herrera to extend the lead. Galvis is hitting .306 (11-for-36) in nine career games at Busch Stadium with 6 RBI. "We'd like to have more offense obviously," Mackanin said. "Hopefully we're going to get better as the season goes on. … Freddy came up with a big hit. We just need to put them together."
• "He just didn't make good pitches. He made too many mistakes. You make too many, you're not going to get away with them. … I know Wainwright's a good hitter for a pitcher, but the ball he hit out was right down the middle." -- Mackanin on Hellickson's struggles.

NEXT GAME:

RHP Aaron Nola (1-2, 3.55 ERA) will make his first career appearance against the Cardinals as the teams play the second of a four-game series Tuesday at 8:15 EST. Nola is 1-0 with a 0.64 ERA in his last two starts. He has allowed six hits and struck out 14 during that span.

PHILS PHACTS:

Another Off Night – Two streaks for the Phillies came to an unceremonious end Monday night: their six-game winning streak and Jeremy Hellickson's road dominance. After being staked to an early 3-0 lead, Hellickson was victimized by a familiar nemesis. The right-hander gave up three home runs, including a three-run blast from pitching counterpart Adam Wainwright, in a 10-3 loss to the Cardinals. "Just couldn't find the zone," Hellickson said. "I didn't throw too many first-pitch strikes and I couldn't get myself back into counts with off-speed. Just a lot of balls up. A lot of balls early in the count." Hellickson (2-2) entered the game with a 2-0 road record this season. Through his first three road starts, he had a 0.96 ERA and had held opponents to a .127 batting average. According to Elias, since earned runs started being kept in 1912, the only other Phillies pitcher to have an ERA and an opponent's average that low through his first three road starts was Dick Ruthven (0.76 ERA, .127 BA) in 1979. Wainwright changed that with a 408-foot home run into the upper deck in left field, which erased the Phillies lead. "Games like this happen," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "He just didn't make good pitches. He made too many mistakes. You make too many, you're not going to get away with them. You make one or two sometimes you get away with them, sometimes you don't. He didn't get away with them. "I know Wainwright's a good hitter for a pitcher, but the ball he hit out was right down the middle." Going to a 3-1 count against Wainwright put Hellickson at a disadvantage. "I fell behind," Hellickson said. "I don't want to walk the pitcher. I just got to get ahead. I think that was the story in general. Just beside the first inning I fell behind way too many guys, got too many three-ball counts, too many walks." Matt Adams and Aledmys Diaz led off the sixth with back-to-back homers to give the Cardinals a 5-3 lead. "One curveball I think was up," Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz said. "That curveball was a little different than the first three innings, a little sharp, he hung that one. The next one was a changeup. Nothing you can do about that, when you leave the pitch up, you're in trouble." Hellickson's night ended two batters later after a Randal Grichuk pinch-hit single. Grichuk, who entered the game on a 0-for-20 slide, scored on a Stephen Piscotty single off of Brett Oberholtzer. The three Cardinals home runs pushed Hellickson's season total to 7 in 26 1/3 innings. So far this season, 19.4 percent of the fly balls Hellickson has given up have left the park. The Phillies winning streak ended at a season-long six games. The streak was their longest since a seven-game winning streak from Sept. 5-12, 2012. "We haven't had one of those games in a while," Mackanin said. "They're bound to happen. Everybody has them."

Is This Really happening? – For now, Phillies manager Pete Mackanin isn't getting tired of being asked repeatedly whether his surging club is for real. "Every time we play somebody, I get the same question, but it's a good question because of course we do," Mackanin said. "We played the Mets, we played them well. We just got done sweeping the Nationals and that was one of those teams where we wanted to gauge how good we were. "Cleveland has got some pretty good hitters over there. At least through the first 25 games, we've held our own against contenders. I choose to believe that we'll be competitive the rest of the year because of our pitching and defense." The Phillies figure to face another test in their four-game series at St. Louis. The Cardinals have been to the postseason for five straight seasons and won five of seven from Philadelphia last season. But this is not the same club as the 2015 Phillies. "It is quite a different from last year when we were out of so many games so early and climbing out of a hole," Mackanin said. "And I don't want to say misusing the bullpen, but trying to piece together a full game to cover innings. Now we've got a little bit of a plan." That plan includes excellent pitching and stellar defense. The Phillies entered Monday's game with a 15-10 record and winner of their last six games despite scoring just 82 runs, which according to Elias ties the team with the 2012 Nationals for the fewest runs scored in the expansion era by a team that won at least 15 of its first 25 games. "The players should feel proud of what they've done so far this season, no matter what happens down the road," Mackanin said. "The biggest thing for me was how we reacted after going 0-4 at the beginning of the season. What have we gone 15-6 since then? It's a good feeling."

Phils Name Honorary Bat Girl – Linda Duaime is the winner of the 2016 Honorary Bat Girl Contest for the Phillies. The contest recognizes baseball fans who have been affected by breast cancer and who demonstrate a commitment to supporting the fight against the disease. Duaime was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer in August of 2014. Duaime's treatment started in September 2014 and included two types of chemotherapy as well as radiation, ending in late Spring 2015. She's been positive throughout her fight, even when two bouts with blood clots pushed back her final surgery. Duaime's diagnosis has influenced others to be checked and a breast cancer fundraiser in her honor raised enough money so she could donate back to her surgeon's support foundation for other breast cancer patients. The Honorary Bat Girl program was introduced in 2009 to raise additional awareness and support for the annual "Going to Bat Against Breast Cancer" initiative celebrated on Mother's Day. Going to Bat Against Breast Cancer is a Major League Baseball initiative supported by MLB charitable partners, Stand Up To Cancer and Susan G. Komen. This initiative raises awareness about the breast cancer cause, while also raising funds to support breast cancer research.

Today In Phils History – Some days there a numerous events and games that bear mentioning while other days, like today, have little to offer those interested in the history of the franchise. In 1979 Mike Schmidt hit a home run off Rick Sutcliffe. He would go on to hit the team’s next seven homeruns. 1994 saw another oddity as Andy Carter was ejected from his Major League debut after hitting 2 of the first 3 batters he faced.

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are currently 15-11 this season putting them on pace to beat most preseason predictions. The Phillies finished the spring exceeding most expectations compiling a record of 15-11-3 (18-11-3 if you include the exhibition games against Reading and the University of Tampa). All time, the Phillies are 54-40-0 on this day. I expect the Phillies to finish in the bottom half of the division but not last in the NL East by finishing the season with a 77-85 record. Let the rebuild begin!

Young Phillies Ready For The Spotlight

PHILS PHACTS:

One In, One Out – After fracturing his right thumb in a bunting drill last week, projected starter Jerad Eickhoff said his injury wasn't anything serious. Apparently it's not. Eickhoff returned to Phillies camp on Thursday to throw a bullpen session, and he was happy to be back. "Absolutely, just to get back on that slope was a great feeling. Wish I could have threw more," Eickhoff said. "I just wanted to get that feel back." Manager Pete Mackanin was encouraged by the quick return. "Very much," Mackanin said. "We know that he's gonna be ready for the season. I'd like to believe it would be in that first rotation. He's set back a little bit. It was unfortunate, but I think he's going to be fine." Eickhoff felt great, but he admitted the injury scared him at first. "A little bit," he said. "I was pretty nervous obviously the day it happened. It's been a good feeling. All the trainers and coaches have been real supportive. They said, 'Don't rush back by any means. Just make sure you get that thing healthy before you get back.'" Asche out: Cody Asche is listed as day to day in camp after getting hit by a pitch and tweaking his oblique. Mackanin says it's simply a precautionary measure, as Asche doesn't want to risk making it worse and should be back soon. On the clock: Major League Baseball is making big efforts to speed up its games, with the latest measure a 30-second stadium clock counting down each mound visit. The clock begins the moment each coach leaves the dugout. "I'm going to have to keep my legs loose so I can jog out to the mound," Mackanin quipped. Mackanin doesn't have a problem with the new mandate, as he says most trips are quick, unless a manager needs to bring his infielders in to make them aware of a certain play. "I think it can be done in 30 seconds."

Ready For Round Two – He's only 22, yet Aaron Nola is quickly checking all the boxes. First-round Draft Pick? Check. Successful big league debut? Check. Opening Day starter? ... "It's all of our dreams to be an Opening Day Starter if you haven't been one," Nola proclaimed Thursday at Phillies camp. The young right-hander is the odds-on favorite to start for Philadelphia on Opening Day on April 4 in Cincinnati, but don't mistake his confidence for cockiness. He's not brash or boastful. Nola is humble, and the proof lies in the priority he puts in getting along with his teammates. "Forming those relationships when I was up in Philly this past year definitely has helped me this Spring Training so far, and I feel it's going to continue to help me." It also helps he earned the respect of his teammates by living up to all of the hype last season. Nola entered the big leagues and acted every bit the seventh overall pick of the 2014 Draft, going 6-2 with 68 strikeouts and 19 walks in 13 starts. Nola wasn't content with his debut, so this offseason he fine-tuned his repertoire. "I put a lot of work into my changeup, trying to get my changeup where I want it to be, have it be a strong pitch in my arsenal this year." Nola's teammate, Jeremy Hellickson, can relate to building off a great Major League debut. Hellickson was an American League Rookie of the Year Award winner with the Rays in 2011, and the new Phillies righty compares Nola's stuff to his former Tampa Bay teammate, James Shields. "I think he's handling it great," Hellickson said. "I don't think much gets to him. He works extremely hard." Nola may be young, but he's wise enough to know big league hitters will be ready to make adjustments this season. "They put whatever I did to them into like a computer in their brain, and I try to do the same," Nola said. "At the end of the day, it's about making adjustments." Learning and adjusting? Check and check. Nola seems to have all the bases covered.

It Could Be A Ruf Year – Entering his eighth year in the Phillies' organization, the past four in the big leagues, the time is now for potential-packed slugger Darin Ruf. "He's at a point, he's [29] years old, he's got to put up or shut up this year," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. Ruf feels the urgency and also understands to reach his potential, he's going to have to compete with fellow first baseman Ryan Howard for at-bats. Entering this spring, Ruf endured yet another offseason of Howard trade talk, which Ruf admits has become quite the broken record. "We've been hearing those rumors for like two to three years now, and nothing has happened," Ruf said. Ruf insists the obvious: both players want to be starters, but the relationship off the field remains a friendly one. "We have a great relationship," Ruf said. "We try to help each other all the time, on the field and off the field. We get together as much as possible, get dinners, lunches." Ruf is certainly the yin to Howard's yang. While Howard has struggled against lefties, Ruf has thrived. His OPS vs. lefties was an eye-opening 1.107 last season, which would have tied Nelson Cruz for the Major League lead if Ruf had enough at-bats. Playing strictly against lefties is a role he has mastered. "I might have the coach throw lefty and work on a little bit more fast-slow things in the cage," Ruf said. "It's a point of emphasis for me." This spring, Ruf is poised to break out of his comfort zone and face more righties, against whom his OPS was .483 last year, compared to Howard's .770. "Yeah I hope so," Ruf said. "I'm going to have to earn those and show I can regularly throw quality at-bats out there. You have more of a comfort level the more years you do it. [It's my] fourth big league Spring Training now. I know how it works." He wants to take playing time away from Howard, a player Ruf has great respect for on the field and the way the veteran has carried himself off of it. "I just try to watch him the way he goes about his work habits," Ruf said. "If there are things I can pick up, implement in the kind of person I am, the way I treat my fellow teammates, coaches, I think it will lead to a long career." It's a career at a crossroads this season, where for Ruf, the time is now.

Today In Phils History - In 1914, baseball was quite a different sport so when the Phillies spring training camp in Wilmington, NC was delayed due to weather manager Red Dooin held an indoor practice at the local YMCA. 40 years later the game had changed to the point that Robin Roberts signed a then NL record contract worth over $40,000 for the season ending his hold out. Of course, we must also remember a couple of players from the early days who have birthdays today including Ed Sixsmith (1863) who had only two plate appearances in his career and Hall of Famer Pete Alexander (1887) who is still one of the greatest pitchers to have ever played the game. 

THE BEGINNING:

With the Phillies having finished the 2015 season with a spectacularly awful record of 63-99 it will be interesting to see what kind of team new President Andy MacPhail and GM Matt Klentak put on the field. At the same time I am definitely looking forward to the games against Boston with former GM Ruben Amaro on the field. Given the departures, lingering contracts, a history of injuries, bipolar performances, and unproven talent, it should, at the very least, be an interesting season for the Phillies. Who knows, maybe they can avoid 100 losses... hopefully by more than one game!