Absent Offense Wastes Stellar Start

GAME RECAP: National Blank Phllies 3-0

Call Bryce Harper "the Natural," at least for Saturday night anyway. His three-run homer in the eighth inning proved to be the difference as the Nationals blanked the Phillies, 3-0, at Nationals Park. With the victory and the Mets' extra-innings loss to the Braves, the Nationals' magic number dwindled to 12 to win the National League East. The Nationals put runners on first and second with one out in the eighth to set the plate for the reigning NL Most Valuable Player. Harper got ahead in the count and smashed the 3-1 offering from Phillies left-hander Patrick Schuster into the second deck at Nationals Park. "I got pretty good wood on it. I felt good. I knew it was out of the yard," Harper said. "I showed a lot of emotions there. I was pretty fired up to get that W. Down the stretch you want to win as many games as you can and get this into the postseason, hopefully. We have to lock this thing up." The homer snapped a 10-game homerless drought for Harper, during which he was hitting .211/.279/.289. "Boy, that was a dramatic home run. That show you how strong he is mentally. After you strike out three times and you hit a home run," Nationals manager Dusty Baker said. "He had a rough night going up to then." The Phillies did get a strong start from right-hander Jerad Eickhoff, who hurled six shutout innings and struck out five Nationals.

PHILS PHACTS: 

• Eickhoff matched Scherzer, allowing five hits and two walks and striking out five in six scoreless innings. He followed strong performances Thursday from Alec Asher (six scoreless innings) and Friday from Jake Thompson (two runs in 5 1/3 innings) against the Nationals. Philadelphia acquired Eickhoff, Thompson and Asher in the July 2015 Cole Hamels trade with Texas. "Asher said yesterday it's kind of crazy to see all these Rangers up here," Eickhoff said. "It's a cool thing. We all kind of reflect and just look at each other and see how fortunate and lucky we are to have this opportunity to contribute at the big league level." 
• The Phillies had runners on first and second with one out in the first and runners on first and second with two outs in the third, but could not score. It is the fifth time in the past 18 games the Phillies have been shut out. They were shut out five times in their first 124 games. "No new news," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "We just lack offense."
• "It is tough. I'm very patient, but it doesn't mean I like what's happening. I don't have to be happy about it." -- Mackanin, on the Phillies' offensive struggles.
• In the fourth inning, Phillies center fielder Odubel Herrera threw Clint Robinson out at the plate, but Baker challenged the call, claiming that Robinson's left hand touched home plate before catcher Cameron Rupp tagged him out. But the call was confirmed, and the Nationals lost their challenge.

NEXT GAME:

Phillies left-hander Adam Morgan (2-9, 5.90 ERA) pitches Sunday afternoon in the finale of a four-game series at Nationals Park at 1:35 p.m. ET. Morgan has allowed three earned runs in 12 2/3 innings in his last two starts, including two runs in 6 2/3 innings of two-run ball Aug. 31 against the Nationals at Citizens Bank Park.

PHILS PHACTS:

Hamels Haul Paying Dividends – Jerad Eickhoff could reflect positively about any number of things Saturday night at Nationals Park. The right-hander threw six scoreless innings in a 3-0 loss to the Nationals, striking out five, including Bryce Harper three times on curveballs in the first, third and sixth innings. He has pitched six innings in five consecutive starts and six or more innings in 20 of 29 starts this season, essentially making him the workhorse of the Phillies' rotation. But it also had to feel good to follow strong performances Thursday from Alec Asher (six scoreless innings) and Friday from Jake Thompson (two earned run in 5 1/3 innings), considering they joined the Phillies in July 2015 in the Cole Hamels trade with Texas. "Asher said yesterday it's kind of crazy to see all these Rangers up here," Eickhoff said. "It's a cool thing. We all kind of reflect and just look at each other and see how fortunate and lucky we are to have this opportunity to contribute at the big league level." As the Phillies' season nears its end, it is fair to wonder how each will factor into the Phillies' rotation come Opening Day 2017. Thompson has pitched well in each of his last three starts after struggling terribly in his first four. Asher looked fine in his season debut Thursday, but both of those former Rangers prospects have more to prove. Eickhoff and Vince Velasquez seem to be the only locks at this exact moment, but only because Aaron Nola has not thrown a baseball since receiving a PRP injection in his right elbow last month. Nola said Friday, though, that the elbow is improving and he is anxious to begin his throwing program. Zach Eflin will be returning from a pair of knee surgeries, while Adam Morgan has pitched better lately, but he has to keep it up. The Phillies also figure to acquire at least a veteran starter or two, assuming Jeremy Hellickson rejects the Phillies' qualifying offer following the season. But Eickhoff has been one of the team's few bright spots this season. He is 10-13 with a 3.73 ERA, but his record is under .500 because he has received some of the worst run support in baseball. Eickhoff's 3.76 runs-per-start average is 78th out of 82 qualified starters in the big leagues. "I kind of expected him to be this type of pitcher," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "It didn't exceed my expectations. I expected him to be a pretty darn good consistent pitcher -- a workhorse type of guy. That's what we were hoping he was going to be and figured he would be, not only because of his stuff, but because of his demeanor. He's all business. He studies. He's always in the video room. He really pays attention and works hard at it. "He just looks like he's out there to beat you. He's mean."

More Options – Phillies manager Pete Mackanin has a few more players to squeeze into games before the end of the season. The club announced Saturday it had recalled outfielder Cody Asche and right-handers Luis Garcia and Phil Klein from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. They also selected the contract of left-hander Joely Rodriguez and designated infielder Taylor Featherston for assignment. The Phillies could see Double-A Reading catcher Jorge Alfaro and outfielder Roman Quinn join the club before the end of the season, too. "At this point it's flip a coin," Mackanin said of finding playing time for everybody. "I don't want to sound down about it, but we've got so many guys, and who do I play? I don't know. It's a guessing game. "But when it comes to something like that, I'm going to play the best defense. Peter Bourjos is hard to take out of the lineup because he provides that defense." It should be a little easier to see Rodriguez, whom the Phillies acquired from the Pirates in a December 2014 trade for Antonio Bastardo. The left-hander went a combined 7-0 with a 2.35 ERA in a combined 53 appearances with Class A Clearwater, Double-A Reading and Lehigh Valley. The Phillies need left-handed relievers, so Rodriguez and Patrick Schuster will have an opportunity to prove themselves in the season's final weeks. Left-hander Elvis Araujo had a 5.60 ERA in 32 appearances with the Phillies. He finished the season with Lehigh Valley but was not recalled. "We want to get a look at Rodriguez," Mackanin said. "We've seen Araujo quite a bit and we know what he's capable of doing. We want to see Schuster, too. We're going to try to run him out there as much as we can." Schuster entered Saturday's 3-0 loss in the eighth inning to face David Murphy and walked him. He then served up a game-winning three-run home run to Bryce Harper. "It wasn't a good audition," Mackanin said. "At least you've got to throw strikes. That situation was meant for a left-handed situational guy."

Losing Patience – Remember when Phillies center fielder Odubel Herrera was walking and seeing more pitches than just about anybody in baseball? Well, he got away from that. He ranked fourth in baseball in walks (33) and sixth in pitches per plate appearance (4.37) through June 3. But Herrera ranks 133rd in walks (21) and 91st in pitches per plate appearance (3.79) since. Asked what has happened to Herrera, Mackanin offered a more philosophical answer. "Rather than look at the game of baseball in little spurts, the test is about six months," he said. "Gene Mauch once said, 'You're going to hit what you're supposed to hit.' If you're a .250 hitter and you're hitting .280 with a month to go, you're most likely going to hit .250. What it's all about is consistency over the course of six months. It's not looking at a guy with a hot week and getting excited about him. What you need is consistent at-bats over the course of six months, and those guys are hard to find. "Everybody is streaky to a point, but the really good ones we're looking for don't have prolonged slumps. Regardless, I don't really care what happened to him after the All-Star break. I'm not saying he's a good first-half player or not. Last year, he went through that issue where he was down to .250 near the All-Star break, but he rebounded to hit .297. For example, if he goes off and gets a ton of hits and ends up hitting .297 again because he gets hot, that's great. "But the last six weeks have not been helpful to win games. You're looking for that guy that's consistent on a daily basis, quality at-bats."

Today In Phils History – Despite Eddie Freed going 4 for 5 with 2 doubles and a triple in his 1942 MLB debut, the Phillies lose the game to Cincinnati. In game 1 of a 1955 double header against Milwaukee, Phillies pitcher Fred Weheimer had a shutout through 8 innings before surrendering a 2 out, full count, grand slam to Del Crandall and taking the loss 5-4. Game 2 saw the debut of Freddy Van Dusen who was hit by a pitch in his only career plate appearance. The Phillies set 2 franchise records on this day in 2004 by using 20 pitchers in the 13 inning matchup with the Mets and Todd Pratt’s homerun in the 2^nd breaking the old record of 186 homeruns in a season set in 1977. Other debuts that took place on this date include Ed Sixsmith (1884), Dick Young (1951), Mel Clark (1951), and John Vukovich (1970).

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are currently 63-79 this season putting them on pace to beat most preseason predictions. All time, the Phillies are 52-57-0 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.

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!