Had it not been for Jayson Werth, the Phillies easily could have lost four in a row to the Cubs over the weekend.
The Cubbies tortured the Phillies bullpen in the first two games of the four-game set. The 'pen gave its best Mets impersonation (sorry Joe -- cheap shot!) by blowing two leads late. Suddenly, the Phillies found themselves two games back of the Mets after Friday...
Thankfully, the Phillies managed a split due in large part to Werth's performance. The Illinois native slammed three homers and drove in seven of the team's 10 runs Saturday and Sunday. The Phillies won those games, 5-2 and 5-3, and are only one game behind New York.
Werth has been red-hot recently and is carrying the Phillies up-and-down offense. He batted .538 against the Cubs and solidified his status as an everyday player. Werth platooned with free-agent bust Geoff Jenkins in right field most of the year. Jenkins is sidelined with a hip flexor strain and could miss the remainder of the season
The Phillies called up outfielder Greg Golson, catcher Lou Marson, and pitchers J.A. Happ and Adam Eaton for the September stretch run.
Golson and Marson are arguably the Phillies' top minor league position players.
Golson had struggled mightily since being drafted by the organization in 2004, but has come along nicely this year. The 22-year-old center fielder hit .280 with 13 homers, 60 RBIs and 23 stolen bases at class-AA Reading. He'll likely see action as a defensive specialist and in pinch-running situations.
Marson burst onto the scene this year. The 22-year-old is the Phillies' catcher-of-the-future after putting up strong numbers at Reading (.308, five homers, 46 RBIs). Charlie Manuel said he'll likely use Marson considering the Phillies already split catching duties between Carlos Ruiz, who has grossly underperformed, and Chris Coste, who can play no more than three days a week.
It appears Marson is the favorite to win the everyday job next season.
Happ will see more action out of the bullpen, where he's struggled. Happ did well as a spot starter and could spell oldie-but-goodie Jamie Moyer or Kyle Kendrick, who hasn't pitched well as of late.
Should I even comment on Eaton? He has no business on a big league roster. The Phillies had demoted him in July to class-AAA Lehigh Valley, where he posted an 0-5 record and an ERA above 7.00. How's that for quality?
J.C. Romero has emerged as the Phillies' new set-up man.
Romero did a masterful job of getting the team out of an eighth-inning pickle Saturday. He has the mindset to be the bridge to Brad Lidge and is no longer considered a situational left-hander.
Pat Burrell had a dreadful month of August.
Burrell batted .304 in July and was a steady middle-of-the-order presence throughout the season. However, his production suffered in August as he batted under .200. In the Phillies' marathon win over the Mets last Tuesday, Burrell was 0-for-6 and left 10 men on base. His problems continued against the Cubs.
Burrell, who is a free agent at season's end, better make a strong September push. Unfortunately (I'm a Burrell fan), Pat the Bat isn't doing himself any favors by playing so poorly. He's giving our thrifty management team more reason not to re-sign him. Sad, but true.
The Phillies acquired Matt Stairs from the Blue Jays this weekend for minor league reliever Fabio Castro.
Stairs, a power bat from the left side, fills the void left by Jenkins. He won't start many games, but could see some time as the slumping Burrell will likely sit a game or two against the Nationals this week.
Stairs can qualify for a postseason roster spot because he was acquired before the September 1 deadline.
Tom Gordon was moved to the 60-day disabled list, officially ending his season.
Gordon has had shoulder problems and will likely not return next season. There was a slim chance he'd return in late September.
3 comments:
Matt, are we the only ones writing?
Yes, and reading apparently. Take a look at the rest of the blogs. Other than the AL East, no one is writing much at all.
we should stop too lol.
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