Philliedelphia

Howard, Young, and Mayberry Homer in 8-3 Victory Over Mets

An ugly loss yesterday promised a brighter start in tonight's game with Cliff Lee on the mound against Dillon Gee and the Mets.

After a scoreless first, the Phillies put up four runs in the bottom of the second. John Mayberry doubled to score Michael Young and Domonic Brown, both had singled to get on base. Later, Cliff Lee singled to bring home Mayberry. Lee came home on an RBI double from Jimmy Rollins.

The bottom of the third was in interesting one for the Phillies. Ryan Howard kicked off the inning with a solo opposite field home run, his first of the year. Michael Young followed with a solo homer to right field, his first of the year, and as a Phillie. John Mayberry didn't miss a beat and sent one just over the wall in the corner of left field, making it a back-to-back-to-back homer inning. 7-0 Phillies.

In the top of the fourth with David Wright on base, John Buck mashed a homer to center field, making it a 7-2 ballgame. In the bottom of the inning, Michael Young brought the Phils up to 8-2 with an RBI triple. This made Young just a double shy of the cycle.

Jordany Valdespin tripled in the top of the fifth, and was able to score on a passed ball. 8-3 Phils.

Cliff Lee was looking at sharp as ever tonight, and would go 8.2 innings allowing just three earned runs on eight hits, walking none and striking out six. Mike Adams came in for the last out in the top of the ninth and closed it out and struck out Ruben Tejada. 

Tomorrow night, this series will go to the rubber match with Kyle Kendrick on the mound against Jeremy Hefner at 7:05. 

Doc's Struggles Continue in 7-2 Loss to Mets

Not much is working in favor of the Phillies these days. After dropping the first two series of the season, Roy Halladay looked to get his first win of the year against Matt Harvey and the Mets tonight, but would see no such luck.

Early on, Doc was struggling. In the top of the second, Marlon Byrd doubled to center with one out, then Doc hit Lucas Duda with a pitch. With two on, John Buck took Doc deep to right field, putting New York up 3-0.

Halladay walked two in the top of the third, and another run was able to score on an RBI single from Lucas Duda. 

In the bottom of the fourth, Ryan Howard made it a 4-1 ballgame after popping up a sacrifice fly to bring home Jimmy Rollins from third. 

Daniel Murphy led off the fifth with a ground rule double into the Phils' bullpen. After Doc tossed a wild pitch to move Murphy over to third, David Wright singled to bring him home. Ike Davis singled to put men on the corners, and that's when Halladay would get the hook.

Chad Durbin came in with nobody out and two men on, and struck out Marlon Byrd for the first out. Durbin walked Duda to load the bases, and Ruben Tejada made it a 7-1 game after sending a single to center to score two.

Since Chad Durbin (once again) allowed the inherited runners to score, Doc's line was complete after the inning ended, and it looked like this: 4 IP, 6 H, 7 ER, 3 BB, 3 K. 99 pitches, 59 for strikes. 

Jeremy Horst came in for the sixth and allowed just one hit, but struck out two. In the seventh, Horst had an easy 1-2-3 inning.

Meanwhile, Matt Harvey was dealing through the Phillies lineup. He tossed seven innings tonight, allowing just one run to score on three hits, walking two and striking out nine.

Erik Kratz hit a ground rule double in the bottom of the eighth, and was sent home on a groundout from Jimmy Rollins. 7-2 Mets.

After a scoreless top of the ninth from Raul Valdes, Josh Edgin stayed in the ballgame and closed it out for his team. Ryan Howard flied out, Michael Young flied out, then Domonic Brown ended it with a strikeout, looking. Mets win this one, 7-2.

Game two of this three-game series will be tomorrow at 7:05 with Cliff Lee on the mound against Dillon Gee.

Cole Hamels Shaky, Billy Butler Collects 7 RBI in 9-8 Loss to Royals

A rubber match game on a Sunday afternoon brought about a battle between Cole Hamels and James Shields. The Phillies looked to take the series from the Royals, and it wouldn't be an easy task.

The Phils looked hot in the bottom of the first after taking a 4-0 lead. Ben Revere, Jimmy Rollins, and Chase Utley singled to kick off the inning, Utley's single bringing home Revere. Michael Young singled to send Rollins home, followed by another single from Domonic Brown which plated Utley. Young was able to score on a sacrifice fly from Erik Kratz.

In the top of the third, Hamels started to struggle and allowed two runs to score in the inning; Chris Getz scored on a double from Alcides Escobar, and Alex Gordon scored on a groundout from Billy Butler.

Billy Butler came through for the Royals in the top of the fifth. After Hamels loaded the bases on a double from Getz, a single from Gordon, and a walk to Escobar, Billy Butler took Hamels deep for a grandslam to the flower beds in left field. It was ruled a double before the play went under review and Butler was awarded with his first career grand slam. 6-4 Royals.

After Alex Gordon doubled in the top of the sixth, Charlie Manuel took Hamels out. 106 pitches and 5.2 innings of work combined with eight earned runs (two came after being taken out) on nine hits, four walks and six strikeouts makes for a shaky day for Cole Hamels.

With two men in scoring position, Chad Durbin walked Escobar to load the bases. Billy Butler made it an 8-4 game after sending a single to center. 7 RBI today for Butler.

Tim Collins came in for the seventh to relieve James Shields and struck out the side consisting of Rollins, Utley, and Howard. Ugly.

In the top of the eighth, Jeremy Horst allowed a run to score; Gordon singled to bring home Jarrod Dyson from second. 9-4 Royals. 

Phillippe Aumont loaded the bases in the top of the ninth with a hit and two walks, but struck out Getz to end the inning. 

Ezequiel Carrera walked to lead off the bottom of the ninth, followed by a single from Ben Revere. Jimmy Rollins made it a 9-7 ballgame after launching a three-run homer to the seats in right field. It was Rollins' first homer of the season. 

Chase Utley and Ryan Howard combined for back-to-back singles, and Laynce Nix came through with an RBI single, brining them within one. A wild pitch to Kratz put Utley and Nix in scoring position, but Kratz struck out swinging to end the ballgame. Royals win, 9-8. 

The Phillies and Mets will meet for the first time this season starting tomorrow at 7:05 at Citizens Bank Park. Roy Halladay will take the hill against Matt Harvey. 

Frandsen Sends Phillies to 4-3 Walk-Off Victory with Bases-Clearing Double

John Lannan made his Phillies debut tonight at Citizens Bank Park against the Kansas City Royals. In game two of this series, Lannan looked sharp while the Phillies lineup seemed to be up to a whole lot of nothing.

Through the first four innings of this game, John Lannan was perfect. Luis Mendoza was nearly perfect, he gave up just one hit through four, a single to Michael Young in the second inning. 

In the fifth, the Royals put up two runs. Lorenzo Cain scored on a groundout from Miguel Tejada, then Elliot Johnson singled to bring home Jeff Francoeur.

In the bottom of the inning, the Phils cut the Royals' lead in half after Ben Revere singled to bring home John Mayberry from second.

Tejada brought home another run in the top of the seventh after he doubled to plate Francoeur. After seven, Lannan's night was done. His line: 7 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 K.

Mike Adams came in for the eighth inning and allowed one hit and struck out one. Through eight, the Phillies had collected just two hits. 

Greg Holland came in for the Royals to close it out, and walked Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, and Michael Young to start the inning. Domonic Brown and John Mayberry struck out to follow, leaving it to Kevin Frandsen.

With one, swift swing, Frandsen lined one to right-center, splitting the gap and clearing the bases with a walk-off double. Phillies win this one, 4-3. 

Tomorrow, this series will wrap up with Cole Hamels and James Shields squaring off at 1:35.

Watch the walkoff on the Phillies website.

Phillies Lose An Ugly One on Opening Day, 13-4 to Royals

Today marked Opening Day at Citizens Bank Park, and it couldn't have gone much worse. 

In the bottom of the first, Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard combined for three straight singles, Rollins was able to score on Howard's hit. 1-0 Phils.

Domonic Brown led off the bottom of the second, and took Royals' starter Wade Davis yard for a solo homer to right field. After Laynce Nix flied out, Erik Kratz hit a solo bomb of his own to left field. Kyle Kendrick followed with a single to left which was only a few feet short of a home run. 3-0 Phillies after two.

Chase Utley laced a double to the gap in left, and later stole third base with Howard up. Howard sent Utley home with an RBI single making it a 4-0 game.

Kyle Kendrick got into a jam in the top of the fifth after the Royals loaded up the bases with singles from Chris Getz, Miguel Tejada, and Alex Gordon. With two outs, Eric Hosmer brought home two runs with a line drive to right field. Kendrick finished the inning with a groundout, but the Royals had cut the Phillies' lead in half.

In the top of the sixth, the Royals loaded the bases once again, this time with a single from Mike Moustakas, a double off the bat of Getz, and an intentional walk of Billy Butler. After that, Charlie Manuel took Kendrick out for Jeremy Horst. Horst served up a fastball to Alex Gordon who drilled one to the gap in right-center, sending everyone home with a bases-clearing triple. 5-4 Royals.

Kendrick was charged with the runs that Gordon brought home. His line from this afternoon: 5.2 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 K. 

For the third straight inning, the Royals loaded the bases after Horst walked Hosmer and gave up singles to Salvador Perez and Moustakas. With nobody out, Chad Durbin replaced Horst.

Durbin first gave up a sac fly which allowed Perez to score, then made it a 9-4 ballgame after Chris Getz tripled past a diving Domonic Brown in left to clear the bases. 

Raul Valdes took the mound in the top of the eighth, and allowed a solo homer to Alcides Escobar to start the inning. Hosmer singled, Moustakas hit a ground-rule double into the 'pen, then Lorenzo Cain singled to make it an 11-4 ballgame. 

With Valdes still in for the ninth, the Royals added two more runs to the board. Escobar doubled to bring home Gordon, followed by a double from Hosmer which scored Escobar. 

The Phillies' lineup was up to a whole lot of nothing, which carried into the bottom of the ninth inning. Luke Hochevar closed it out for Kansas City, sending his team to a 13-4 victory over the Phils.

Tomorrow, John Lannan will make his Phillies debut against Luis Mendoza. They will square off at 7:05. 

Cliff Lee Tosses Eight Strong, Fans Eight; Phillies Shutout Braves, 2-0

A chilly, rainy night in Atlanta turned out to be a dominant night for the Phillies in what would be their first win of the 2013 season. Cliff Lee took the mound against Kris Medlen for his first start of the year.

The Phillies got the ball rolling first in this ballgame. In the top of the second, the bases were loaded with nobody out for Ben Revere. Revere grounded one up to Dan Uggla at second base, Uggla tagged the base to get Cliff Lee out, but bobbled the ball leaving Revere safe at first, and Laynce Nix scored safely. Later in the inning, Erik Kratz was able to score on a sacrifice fly from Chase Utley. 2-0 Phils.

As for the Braves, zilch. Cliff Lee was breezing through the Braves' lineup, allowing just two hits through eight innings, walking none and striking out eight. 

In the bottom of the ninth, Jonathan Papelbon came in to relieve Lee and close out this ballgame. Papelbon sealed the deal with two strikeouts, sending the Phillies to a 2-0 shutout.

The Braves took two of three in the opening series of the 2013 season, but the Phils ended it on a very good note. Tomorrow at 4:05, the Royals and Phillies will square off for Opening Day at Citizens Bank Park. Kyle Kendrick will take the mound for the Phillies, Wade Davis for Kansas City. 

Phillies Drop First Game of 2013 Season to Braves, 7-5

Happy Opening Night, Phillies fans! Cole Hamels was your Opening Night starter tonight for the first time in his career. Hamels faced Tim Hudson on the mound.

Atlanta hopped ahead to an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. With Jason Heyward on base, Freddie Freeman brought him home with a two-run homer to right field.

In the bottom of the second, Dan Uggla hit a bomb of his own, a solo shot to the seats in left. Andrelton Simmons was sent home by Freeman in the bottom of the third, making it a 4-0 ballgame.

The Phillies got a run back in the following inning after Chase Utley sent a ball deep to center field for his 200th career home run.

Chase Utley made it a 4-3 game in the top of the fifth with a two-run single (stretched into a double) which scored Cole Hamels and Ben Revere. 

In the bottom of the inning, Justin Upton extended the Braves' lead to 5-3 with a solo shot to center field.

After five, Cole Hamels' evening was done. Hamels allowed five runs to score on seven hits, walking one and striking out five. Chad Durbin would come in to relieve him.

Durbin walked Uggla to start the inning, followed by a double to Chris Johnson. After Gerald Laird singled to score Uggla, Durbin was taken out for Jeremy Horst. Later in the inning, Reed Johnson grounded into a double play which allowed Chris Johnson to score. 7-3 Braves.

In the top of the seventh with one out, Chase Utley tripled to center field, and was later sent home by Ryan Howard on an RBI grounder.

Jeremy Horst pitched a scoreless sixth (all runs were charged to Durbin) and seventh tonight, allowing just one hit and striking out two.

In the top of the eighth, Erik Kratz shot a line drive to center which sent John Mayberry home from second base. 7-5 Atlanta.

Phillippe Aumont tossed a scoreless bottom of the eighth walking one and striking out one. 

Craig Kimbrel came in to close it out for the Braves tonight. After getting Rollins to strike out swinging, Utley and Howard both popped-up. 

So after losing the last game of the 2012 season, the Phillies drop the first game of the 2013 season. The plus side? 161 games left after tonight!

The Phillies and Braves will continue the first series of the season on Wednesday night at 7:10 with Roy Halladay on the mound against Paul Maholm. 

Phillies End Spring Training with 10-4 Loss to Toronto

The Phillies and Blue Jays squared off one more time this afternoon in the final game of spring training. Kyle Kendrick took the hill for his team with Josh Johnson on for Toronto.

The Jays jumped ahead to an early lead in the top of the first after Jose Bautista went yard to left field for a solo home run.

In the top of the third with Kendrick still in, Toronto scored four more in the inning. Jose Reyes doubled to score Henry Blanco, Melky Cabrera singled to score Reyes, then Edwin Encarnacion doubled to score two. 

After three, Kendrick's afternoon was done. He was charged with five earned runs on six hits, walking one and striking out four.

In the bottom of the third, John Mayberry put the Phils on the board with a solo shot to left field. Later in the inning, Erik Kratz was able to score on a sac fly from Chase Utley. 5-2 Jays. With Ben Revere and Jimmy Rollins on base, Michael Young made it a 5-4 game with a two-run double to deep right field. 

John Lannan came in for three innings of work and allowed one run to score on three hits, walking none and striking out five. The run came from a groundout from Colby Rasmus which sent Bautista home. 6-4 Jays.

 Chad Durbin pitched a scoreless seventh, walking one. Antonio Bastardo replaced him in the eighth and after allowing two hits, he loaded the bases with a walk. With one gone, the Jays scored one on a sac fly from Emilio Bonifacio. Zach Miner came in with two outs to finish the inning. 7-4 Jays.

Mike Nickeas doubled in the top of the ninth to score two runs, making it 9-4 Toronto. Later, Nickeas scored on a single from Adam Loewen. 10-4 ballgame.

Unfortunately the Phils could not come back in the bottom of the inning, wrapping up 2013 spring training with a loss to the Jays. 

The Phillies have the day off tomorrow in preparation for Opening Night at Atlanta on Monday. Cole Hamels is your Opening Day starter at 7:05! 

Phils Shut Out By Buehrle, Blue Jays in 1-0 Loss

Photo courtesty of Monica on Twitter

Cliff Lee made his final spring training start this evening at Citizens Bank Park. The Blue Jays are in town for two nights to wrap up this spring in an on-deck series. But of course, with an On-Deck series comes shananigans such as Cole Hamels and Cliff Lee launching hot dogs into the crowd, because why not?

Lee looked terrific tonight in four shut-out innings. He allowed just one hit while striking out five. Phillippe Aumont replaced Lee for one inning and struck out one. Aumont also allowed a solo homer to J.P. Arencibia which gave Toronto a 1-0 lead in the top of the fifth inning.

Jeremy Horst tossed a scoreless sixth and seventh inning tonight and allowed one hit, walked one, and he struck out two. 

Mark Buehrle tossed five scoreless for the Jays tonight, allowing just two hits and striking out five. Brett Cecil followed with one scoreless inning, then another scoreless stretch for Aaron Loup.

Mike Adams tossed a scoreless top of the eighth followed by a perfect top of the ninth for Jonathan Papelbon. Down 1-0, the Phillies could not come back in the bottom of the ninth, dropping this one to the Jays, 1-0.

Tomorrow is the last day of spring training. The Jays and Phils will square off tomorrow afternoon at Citizens Bank Park at 1:05. 

Lannan Lit Up by Blue Jays, Phils Crushed, 13-4

With one week left of spring training, the Phillies and Blue Jays squared off once again this afternoon in Dunedin. John Lannan took the hill, and did not have an easy outing.

Lannan had no alibis for giving up a dozen. "Got my butt kicked. Gotta move on." Good plan.

— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) 

There's the gist of it. In four innings today, Lannan gave up 12 earned runs on 14 hits. He also walked one and struck out two.

Toronto scored eight runs in the second inning. In order, here are the scoring plays:

• Mark DeRosa RBI single, J.P. Arencibia scores.
• Rajai Davis RBI single, DeRosa scores.
• Jose Reyes two-run triple, Colby Rasmus and Davis scores.
• Melky Cabrera RBI single, Reyes scores.
• J. P. Arencibia three-run homer, Cabrera and Bautista score.

In the bottom of the third, Reyes brought home another run on an RBI single. Arencibia smacked another home run in the bottom of the fourth, a two-run homer to right. If you're keeping up, it was 11-0 by the fourth inning.

With Zach Miner in for the fifth inning, Melky Cabrera took him deep for a solo homer to center field. After Miner's inning, Mike Adams, Phillippe Aumont, and Kyle Simon kept it a 13-0 ballgame.

The Phillies finally scored a few runs in the top of the ninth inning. Laynce Nix scored on a single from Steven Susdorf, followed by an RBI double from Kevin Frandsen. Erik Kratz singled two plate two more runs. 13-4 would be the final this afternoon.

The Phils will face the Rays tomorrow afternoon in Clearwater at 1:05.