Results tagged ‘ Erik Kratz ’
Kratz & Mayberry Propel Phillies to Win
Friday night’s Phillies – Braves game was a little uncomfortable to watch through the first 5 innings as ace pitcher Roy Halladay struggled. Sweaty and red in the face, Halladay looked like he might pass out more than a few times. He gave up 4 runs on 2 homers and 4 walks before being pulled after 4 2/3 innings.
Catcher Erik Kratz did everything humanly possible to help the ailing Halladay, including taking what looked like a heavy-weight title knock-out shot at the plate from Chipper Jones in the 4th inning:
John Mayberry Jr. made a great, on-target throw and, amazingly, Kratz held onto the ball. It was an unbelievable play…but neither Kratz nor Mayberry were done impressing everyone yet.
Down 4-5 going into the 9th inning, the Phillies were going to need a small miracle to get to Braves star closer Craig Kimbrel. But Kratz was again up to the challenge as he took Kimbrel’s fastball deep to left to tie up the game.
That home run sent the game into extra innings where Mayberry stepped in once more to help the Phillies win. Kevin Fransden provided the first spark, staring the 10th off with a single. Later that inning, Mayberry saw one pitch and sent in into the seats for a 3-run homer, handing the Phillies an 8-5 lead.
Closer Jonathan Papelbon nailed down the save, which was the 250th save of his career and 31st this season. The Phillies now sit 8 games out of the Wild Card race. Not that the playoffs are a real possibility at this point, but just thought I would mention it. At the very least, they should aim to make life more difficult for the Braves. Game time today is 4:05pm.
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Hamels Halts Phillies Losing Skid
Not much has gone right for the Phillies this year. But at least we know that when Cole Hamels takes the mound, they at least have a shot at a win. After dropping 3 straight, the Phillies collected a win last night over the Brewers, thanks in large part to Hamels.
Hamels cruised through 7 2/3 innings allowing only 1 run until 1 bad pitch in the 8th ran him out of the game. The Ryan Braun 2-run homer was 1 of 4 home runs Braun has hit in this series…so far. I am sure Braun, who was said to be in a slump prior to this series, was thrilled to see the Phillies come to town. And just think, he may not be done yet.
Despite that annoyance, Hamels had a very solid game. The 4-3 win was nailed down by closer Jonathan Papelbon, who got 4 outs to seal the deal. Manager Charlie Manuel was criticized for not using Papelbon in a similar situation on Thursday night. On Saturday, he did not make the same mistake again.
The Brewers had a couple base running blunders, which helped the Phillies out. One guy got caught in a rundown and another did something a bit unusual. With 2 outs in the third, Braun again smashed what should have been a double to deep left field. But Jonathan Lucroy, who was on first base, missed second base and then stood like a deer in headlights instead of stepping on the base and continuing to run. By the time Braun reached second, all he could do was throw his hands in the air at Lucroy who was still there, looking dazed. Braun was out; inning over. Oops.
As for the Phillies offense, John Mayberry Jr. knocked a 2-run homer in the 2nd, followed by a solo shot from Erik Kratz. Ryan Howard doubled in the 3rd to give the Phils the go-ahead run.
The Phils get one more shot at the Brewers this afternoon. And they will also get another look at wannabe starter Kyle Kendrick. Can he repeat his last performance of 7 shut-out innings against the Marlins last week? Game time is 2:10pm.
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Photo by Jenn Zambri Photography
Two-Straight Complete Game Shut-Outs for Hamels
After a couple of shaky starts after signing a huge contract, Cole Hamels is in the zone again. Last night marked the second straight complete game shut-out for the lefty with a 4-0 win over the Miami Marlins.
Hamels tossed 113 pitches, 85 of them for strikes. He allowed 7 hits and 1 walk, but no Marlin even crossed home plate. While playoff hopes for the Phillies are all but dashed, Hamels could still be in line for another big prize if he continues to pitch at this pace: the Cy Young award.
This ace already has a World Series ring, a World Series and a NLCS MVP award plus 3 All-Star nods. All Hamels has left to accomplish is the Cy Young…and of course, one more World Series ring.
Supporting their teammate, the Phillies offense produced 4 runs, which was plenty considering how Hamels was pitching. Juan Pierre had another 3-hit night, including a triple and an RBI. Domonic Brown, John Mayberry Jr. and Kevin Fransden had 2 hits each while Chase Utley and Erik Kratz both knocked in one run each.
As for the bullpen…there was no bullpen as Hamels went all 9 innings. This could be the best bullpen performance all year long! Way to sit on the bench guys; nicely done. With the way this year has gone, I am sure the relievers were as relieved with this turn of events as anyone.
The Phillies have another shot at the Fish tonight. Kyle Kendrick, despite being awful lately, will get yet another chance at being a real starter. This is beginning to feel like Pinocchio trying to be a real boy…it’s never going to happen. I could be wrong; what do you think? Will Kendrick ever be consistent enough to be a starter? Feel free to leave comments below.
Game time is 7:10pm.
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Photo by Jenn Zambri Photography
Walk-Off In Extras Nails Series Win for Phillies
The Phillies annual Alumni Weekend came to an end today with a huge series win against the World Champion Cardinals. The 11-inning, 8-7 walk-off win was the cherry on top of a great weekend at Citizen’s Bank Park.
Vance Worley took the mound again, despite needing elbow surgery for bone chips. The injury appears to be taking a toll on the Vanimal who struggled again, going 5 1/3 innings with 4 runs allowed.
The Phillies offense started off strong with 3 runs in the 1st on a triple from Chase Utley. In the 4th, Ryan Howard added a solo homer. But each time the Phils scored, the Cardinals answered and they took a 4-4 tie into the 8th.
With 3 errors in the game, the Phillies still had some nice defensive plays, and others that fell short. The play at the plate below where Matt Holiday is called safe was a real bummer:
More disappointment was to follow as Michael Schwimer turned a 4-4 game into a 7-4 deficit for the Phils in the 8th, allowing the 3 runs on 3 hits and a walk.
But just when it looked like the game was over, Erik Kratz got up to his new-old tricks again. With 2 runners on and 2 outs in the bottom of the 8th, he smashed a home run to left to tie the game up again.
But Kratz was not done yet… In the 11th, he started off the inning with a double. Sadly, the double was erased when Jimmy Rollins, who had the day off prior pinch hitting in the 8th, hit into a fielder’s choice. J-Roll later redeemed himself by stealing 3rd, which turned out to be the key to winning the game. Juan Pierre hustled down the 1st base line to beat out an infield single which scored Rollins for the walk-off win!
Pierre has been one of the few bright spots for the Phillies this year. It is hard to imagine not resigning him in the offseason, but that drama will play out later…
As for the Alumni in attendance, they had a lot of fun, especially Mike Schmidt who shot hot dogs into the crowd. You will have to see it to believe it:
There were many other appearances as well, including John Kruk announcing the line-ups, Dick Allen and Tony Taylor changing bases, and eight former Phillies, including Larry Andersen, Gary Matthews, Ricky Jordan, Ricky Botallico and Von Hayes singing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” on the field during the seventh-inning stretch.
Botallico, always an amazing sport, even wore the Phanatic’s jersey to entertain the crowd.
Here is the full Photo Album from the game.
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Photos by Jenn Zambri Photography
Hamels Ends Losing Streak Against Braves
It appears that Cole Hamels has found his groove again, and just in time to end a long Phillies losing streak against the division rival Braves. Prior to Tuesday night, the Braves had won 7 straight against the struggling Phils.
But once Hamels snapped out of his pitching slump, he made easy work out of Atlanta’s line-up. He pitched a 5-hit, complete game shut-out with 6 strike outs and no walks allowed. Yes, Super-Hamels has returned to his $144 million dollar form.
Ryan Howard also channeled his younger, healthier self with a 2-run bomb in the 1st inning. The Big Piece is indeed still in there somewhere, which is a very good sign for next season. Once his Achilles is fully healed, Howard should be getting right back to making opposing pitchers cry.
And Domonic Brown continues to show he belongs in the majors, along with a few flashes of why it has taken so long. Brown hit a double in the first, right before the Howard homer, and he also worked a walk later in the game. Brown played solid defense, but also made some base running errors. The double was really a single that he stretched out, but he would have been thrown out if the fielder had not dropped the ball. Brown also failed to tag on a long fly ball to center in that same inning. So there are still some growing pains, but overall, things are looking up for Brown.
And of course, Erik Kratz continues on his torrid pace at the plate. With 2 hits again last night, Kratz is now hitting .406 in 32 at-bats so far.
So while 2012 is a wash, the future may potentially be looking a bit brighter. Game 3 with the Braves starts tonight at 7:05pm and Kyle Kendrick will pitch.
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Photo by Jenn Zambri Photography
Howard Turns Boos to Cheers in Walk-Off Win
Since returning after spending half the season on the DL, Ryan Howard has not had much luck getting his bat going. He struck out 3 times in today’s Phillies - Diamondbacks game and each time, the boos got louder. But in the 9th, Howard would redeem himself with a walk-off single to hand the Phillies a 5-4 victory and the series win.
Prior to that, Howard was not the only one hearing the boo birds. Cliff Lee had a rough 2nd inning where he gave up back-to back homers to guys at the bottom of the D-Backs line-up. His battery mate, Erik Kratz, tried to help him out with 2 hits and an RBI in the game, but Lee is becoming notorious for these odd ups and downs.
In case you missed it, catcher Carlos Ruiz is on the DL with a partial tear due to plantar fasciitis in his left foot. So we will be seeing a lot of Kratz in the next 4-6 weeks.
The rest of the team sprinkled some offense here and there. Chase Utley smashed a solo homer in the 5th. And Domonic Brown went 2-for-4, which is a very good sign.
Brown also took flight on his way to 2nd base for a double. It is not a bird or a plane, it is Super-Dom:
The Phillies also took advantage of D-Backs errors while managing to avoid most of their own recent blunders.
A run scored in the 8th to tie the game, which was the result of a D-Backs throwing error. That set up the walk-off from Howard in the 9th. Here is the full Photo Album from the game.
Tomorrow the Braves come to town, and although the Phillies have little to play for right now, a little revenge from the sweep last week may be in order. Vance Worley will pitch; game time is 7:05pm.
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Photos by Jenn Zambri Photography
New Phillies Fitting in Fast
The newest additions to the Phillies after a few call-ups and trades are fitting in well with this team. In some ways, that is very good. In other ways, not so much.
Here are a few 2012 Phillies bad habits exhibited in last night’s game against the Nationals that they will need to get out of quickly:
- Kevin Fransden, a call-up, commited an error at 3rd base, becoming the 4th different Phillies player to do so at the hot corner this year. The 3rd base error total is now 13.
- Both Fransden and the newly acquired Nate Schierholtz left a runner stranded on 3rd base with less than 2 outs in the inning.
- Josh Lindblom, acquired from the Dodgers, gave up a hit to the 1st batter he faced.
- Domonic Brown, called-up from Triple-A, went 0-4 on the night.
But luckily, the bad habits did not break them. In fact, each new player had at least one very nice moment as well:
- Fransden recovered after his error and played good defense.
- Schierholtz went back-to-back with Jimmy Rollins for his first home run as a Phillie. Rollins had 2 homers in the game.
- Lindblom struck out the 2nd batter he faced.
- Despite going 0-4, Brown had a good day in the field. He threw out a runner going home with a very strong toss.
Another guy who had a great day was Erik Kratz…again. This guy is making a strong case to be the back-up next season. Kratz took that toss from Brown and created a brick wall in front of home plate to save a run. He also threw a runner out who was trying to steal second and caught a very tough foul pop-fly. At the plate, Kratz recorded 1 hit and a walk.
And Vance Worley survived the 1st inning blunders and wound up having a great night. He pitched 7 strong innings without allowing an earned run. Looks like the Vanimal is back!
So the big question now is, can this new-look, last place Phillies team actually SWEEP the 1st place Nationals? After the last 2 games, it looks like they actually have a shot. Game time tonight is 7:05pm.
And in case you missed it, here is the full-page ad Shane Victorino took out in the daily news to thank Phillies fans:
No Shane, thank you!
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Streaking & Signing: Things Are Looking Up for the Phillies
It is officially a streak – the Phillies have won 4 games in a row and all 4 came during their final at-bat. In the 3-game sweep of the Brewers, every game also ended in the exact same score, 7-6.
Tuesday’s improbable win included a 6-run rally in the 8th inning which was started by a 2-run homer from 2nd back-up catcher, Erik Kratz. To that point, Kratz had exactly 3 major league hits and all 3 were home runs.
Then today, Kratz doubled his major league hit total even while abandoning the long ball. He recorded 3 hits including an RBI and a double in extra innings to once again set the Phillies up for a late-game win. Chase Utley also had 3 hits today plus 3 RBI. Jimmy Rollins got the game-winning hit today and also in Sunday’s walk-off win.
As for the pitching, Cliff Lee was not great on Tuesday, giving up 6 runs. But the Phillies offense got all 6 back for him in that 8th inning. Then today Vance Worley had an ok outing, allowing 3 runs in 5.1 innings. Kyle Kendrick kept him from further damage with 1.2 scoreless innings.
The bullpen has, with one exception, found it’s groove in these last 4 games. Only Antonio Bastardo faltered with a 2-run homer to Ryan Braun today that almost cost them the game. But the late-inning magic bailed him out, even despite another Ty Wigginton error at third base.
But the HUGE bang for the Phillies came earlier today when the Phillies announced they finally signed ace pitcher Cole Hamels to a long-term deal. A collective sigh of relief was heard around the city.
Hamels got 6 years for $144 million, which is the second biggest contract ever behind only CC Sabathia of the Yankees who got $161 for 7 years back in 2008. It is the largest contract ever for a Phillie.
It appears then that the Phillies have not given up just yet. The Hamels signing should be a big relief for guys like Lee, Rollins and Roy Halladay who chose to come to or stay in Philly with the promise from the front office that they would continue to try to win in the long-term. And these last 4 wins which happened in the most unlikely ways should also light a fire under the entire team.
The Phillies are off tomorrow for the annual Phestival and they will then fly to Atlanta for 3 games with the Braves. Those 3 games will be very telling as to whether this team can stage an improbable comeback and make a run at a Wild Card spot.
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Photos by Jenn Zambri Photography
Together Again, Phillies Sluggers Turn Back Time
After a very unusual start to the 1st inning in last night’s Phillies and Brewers match-up, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard reunited in a way that appeared to turn time back to better days. They went back-to-back with solo home runs and just that quickly, it was like old times again. Ah, together again…
In fact most of this previously lame Phillies squad is back off the DL and as a result, they are starting to turn things around. Last night’s walk-off win was the second in row for the Phillies and also their first comeback win when trailing after 8 innings this season. Prior to this, they were 0-42 when losing after 8 innings.
This game began in a very odd way though. Roy Halladay was not his normal, studley self. He gave up 2 runs in the first inning before Howard and Utley countered with their solo blasts.
Even stranger was what happened to Shane Victorino before those home runs. Ex-Phillies pitcher Randy Wolf hit Victorino in the funny bone with a pitch; because he turned his shoulder to in an attempt to get out of the way, the 1st base umpire apparently got confused and called him out on strikes. Replay showed that Victorino came nowhere near to swinging at the pitch.
Both Victorino, in obvious pain, and manager Charlie Manuel argued his case to no avail. Once again, an idiot umpire would cost the Phillies a base runner and, after the homers, it cost them an extra run. Even worse, Victorino’s hand went numb after the hit to the elbow and he had to be removed from the game. He says he is fine now and should be able to play tonight; the ball just struck a nerve in the wrong place.
The umpire idiocy did not end there either. Howard’s obvious solo shot was initially ruled a double after the ball bounced back onto the field out of the left field flower beds. They had to go to replay to get the call overturned. But it was quite apparent to the naked eye that the ball left the yard. I guess the umpire went temporarily blind; an affliction which seems to be contagious. And all that happened in the first inning.
By the 4th inning, things were getting out of hand as Halladay continued to self-destruct and allowed 4 more runs for a 6-2 Phillies deficit. But for the second day in a row, the bullpen came through and held the score there. And that set up the Phillies 1st comeback win after 8 innings all season long.
With 1 out in the 9th, the Phillies were still 4 runs behind and down to their final 2 outs when suddenly, the clock turned backwards again. The Phillies offense began channeling their 2008 selves. Jimmy Rollins drew a walk followed by a Juan Pierre single. Utley walked; Howard singled in 2 runs; Carlos Ruiz singled in another and Hunter Pence followed with another walk.
With still only 1 out in the inning and a man on third, all the Phillies needed was a sac fly. Most of the year, the Phillies have been unable to accomplish this seemingly routine task. But on this throwback night, Ty Wigginton summoned his inner super-Wigginess and sent a line drive to left which scored pinch-runner Erik Kratz.
And just like that, the Phillies have found themselves on the comeback trail. Like J-Roll said after Sunday’s win, it is time to start streaking…
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Photos by Jenn Zambri Photography
Lehigh Valley Train Keeps Rolling as Phillies Finally Win a Game
Falling behind fast in the NL East, the Phillies were more than due for a team shake up which began on Thursday. Over the course of almost 3 days here is who is in and who is out:
COMING IN FROM LEHIGH VALLEY:
LHP Jake Diekman, 25 years old (no major league experience), LHP Raul Valdes, 34 years old (2 years in majors, 6 in minors), Third baseman Hector Luna, 32 years old (parts of 7 years in majors out of 11 years total), 2nd and 3rd baseman Mike Fontenot, 31 years old (6th season in majors out of 8).
OUTTA HERE:
LHP Joe Savery (to Lehigh Valley), RHP Michael Schwimer (to Lehigh Valley when Cliff Lee came off the DL), RHP Brian Sanches (to Lehigh Valley), Catcher Erik Kratz (to Lehigh Valley), Outfielder Laynce Nix (to the 15-day DL with a strained left calf), Oufielder Scott Podsednik (to the Boston Red Sox for cash).
Is your head spinning yet? Here is an analogy for you: Remember years ago when people joked that McDonalds chicken McNuggets were “pieces parts?” You had no idea if you ate one what exact part or grade of chicken you might be getting. That is now the Philadelphia Phillies. They are going to toss out onto the field some “pieces parts” and see what happens. Just call them the “McPhillies.”
Last night’s version of the McPhillies actually tasted ok. Thanks to 3-RBI nights and home runs from both Carlos Ruiz and John Mayberry Jr., things worked out well and ended in a 7-3 win. Freddy Galvis added an RBI as well with a double in the 6th inning.
It appears that Galvis is getting a little better at the plate everyday, which is great news. And Mayberry has a 4-game hitting streak going, which means maybe he is out of the slump. That would be huge for this team because Mayberry can add some real power if he keeps going well.
Vance Worley had a quality start with 3 runs allowed in 6 innings. So the bullpen was going to have to hold the Padres to those 3 runs, which they have been unable to do in many games now. But magically, both Antonio Bastardo and Chad Qualls decided they like their jobs and pitched pretty well. I say magic, but perhaps it was the oncoming lights of the Lehigh Valley train that inspired them?
Whatever it was, it’s a win and we’ll take it. Can the new McPhillies pull off 2 wins in a row? We shall see…game time tonight is 7:05pm.
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Photoshopping by Jenn Zambri Photography
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