5-run 8th pushes Phillies into Wild Card lead

After a slow start, the Phillies managed to ruin Pat Burrell's return to Philadelphia. Burrell, likely pumped by the standing ovation the crowd gave him, spoiled things early for the Phils, hitting a homer in his first at bat in a regular season game at Citizen's Bank while wearing an opposing uniform. Starting pitcher Roy Oswalt settled down from there, though, mowing through the Giants while allowing 3 runs across 7 innings.

The Phillies offense came alive in the 8th inning when, while searching for insurance runs, the Phils nearly batted around, plating 5 runs off a usually strong Giants bullpen. The big inning allowed the Phillies to win the game 9-3 and take a one game lead over the Giants in the Wild Card.

While Burrell made some noise in his return to the Phillies, Chase Utley was fairly quiet in his first game back in several weeks. Utley finished the night without a hit, going 0 for 5, but he did look healthy, which is the most important thing. As for who supplied the offense for the Phillies, Placido Polanco was a big contributor, going 4 for 5 while increasing his batting average to an NL-leading .325. The rest of the offense came from all over the lineup as every Phillie besides Utley registered a hit and either scored a run or drove one in. Most impressively, the Phillies managed to score 9 runs without hitting any home runs.

While the Braves won again on Tuesday night to keep the Phillies 2.5 games back, having the Wild Card lead is a nice fallback for the Phillies. While their goal should be to win the division, simply getting to the playoffs any way possible is ultimately the most important thing. After all, with a 1-2-3 pitching rotation of Halladay, Hamels and Oswalt, it's not going to matter whether they are at home or on the road to start the playoffs.

Pat Burrell signs with the Rays

We knew this day was coming ever since Raul Ibanez signed with the Phillies. Pat Burrell, who spent 9 years in a Phillies uniform, signed a 2 year deal with the Tampa Bay Rays, the team the Phils vanquished in the World Series. Burrell signed for a relatively cheap 16 million dollars over the two years and will be the Rays designated hitter. That's a great deal for someone who will give you 30 homers and 90 RBIs a season.

Burrell's Philadelphia career is now officially over and it ended on the highest note possible. He went from longtime goat to World Series hero this season and will always be remembered for helping the city break its long championship drought. It's sad to see Burrell go even though we knew this day was coming. I personally am surprised at how little money he settled for, I would have thought the Phillies would have easily matched that amount. Burrell's replacement, Ibanez, signed for 10 million a year and he's four years older than Burrell.

So long, Pat the Bat, you went out a winner. Expect a huge standing ovation for Burrell when the Rays visit the Phillies on April 3rd and 4th for the final Spring Training games at Citizen's Bank.

Thanks for the memories Pat Burrell: Phillies sign Raul Ibanez

Pat Burrell's career in Philadelphia is over. The Phillies signed corner outfielder Raul Ibanez, formerly of the Seattle Mariners, to a 3 year, 30 million dollar deal today. He will replace Burrell, a free agent, in the everyday lineup.

Ibanez, 36, will add another lefty bat with some power to the lineup. He has topped 20 homers and 100 RBIs in each of the last three seasons. He also hits for solid average, hitting between .280 and .304 in the last two seasons. While his age concerns me, he's a professional hitter who was signed to a reasonable contract. The only issue I have with the signing is that Ibanez is yet another lefty. With Burell likely gone, the Phillies lack a big right-handed bat in the middle of the line-up.

Burrell ended his tumultuous Philadelphia career on the highest note possible. He's gone from one of the most heckled players to one of the cities most loved. Wherever he ends up next season, Phillie fans will be rooting him on and they will give him a standing ovation when he comes to town.

Good luck Patty B, thanks for helping us win a championship. Now we are going for the next one with a hitter that brings a little more to the table.

Manny who? Utley, Burrell power Phillies past Dodgers in Game One

(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

With all the hype surrounding Manny Ramirez and all the amazing things he can do, I think people seem to forget he's just one man. He's a special player, but he can't win games all by himself. He did help the Dodgers get out to an early lead in Game One by doubling home a run in the first inning, but that was his only impact on the game.

The Phillies lack one superstar that carries the team, instead they feature a number of guys who are a threat to hit the ball out of the park at any time. Tonight, facing a 2-0 deficit in the bottom of the 6th, it was Chase Utley and Pat Burrell's chance to shine. Utley hit a 2-run homer that tied the game and Burrell followed with the game winning homer two batters later. Those two swings of the bat were all the Phillies needed to carry them over the Dodgers, 3-2, and to take a 1-0 series lead in the NLCS.

Of course, solid pitching also carried the day for the Phillies. Cole Hamels looked shaky at times and consistently allowed runners to get on base, but he still only allowed 2 runs to cross the plate and he still managed to get the big strikeouts when he needed them. After Burrell gave the Phillies the lead late in the game, the bullpen took over and did what it always does: protect a lead. Ryan Madsen needed only 10 pitches to zoom through the 8th and Brad Lidge remained perfect on the season with his first postseason save.

The Phils have taken an important first step in winning Game One. Not only have they protected their home field advantage, they have also taken the momentum away from the Dodgers. The Dodgers had been riding high following their sweep of the Cubs but with one game all of that momentum and good feelings have been erased. It's a quick turnaround to Game Two, so the Dodgers are going to have to quickly forget about this loss if they want to remain in the series.

For the Phillies, now is a great time to pounce and build a 2 game lead. They shouldn't get too excited about winning one game, they are supposed to win every time Cole Hamels pitches. Now it will be up to Brett Myers to be the Brett Myers from the second half of the season for the Phillies to take command of this series. With the 4:35 start time tomorrow, I have a feeling most Philadelphia businesses will be shutting down early. Let's hope the Phils give us something worth going home early for.

Bring on the Dodgers! Phillies on to the NLCS

(AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

The Phillies did something today that they hadn't done in 15 years: win a playoff series. For the first time since their magical run in 1993, the Phillies beat the Brewers and advanced to the NLCS with a 3-1 series win. The Phillies will now take on the Dodgers who are fresh off their sweep of the Chicago Cubs.

Sunday's series clinching 6-2 win featured lots of homers and great pitching by the Phils. All 6 of the Phillies runs came off homers as Pat Burrell hit two bombs and Jimmy Rollins and Jayson Werth each hit one. Rollins' homer was a leadoff shot and Burrell added a 3-run homer in the 3rd inning as the Phils jumped out to an early lead.

With the offense taken care of early, Joe Blanton cruised. Blanton dominated the Brewers, giving up 5 hits in 6 innings and striking out 7 batters. He gave up one run to Prince Fielder but was otherwise unhittable. The homer by Fielder was the only extra-base hit the Phils gave up the whole game.

Now it's on to the NLCS and the Dodgers. The Phillies will have the home field advantage for the series, meaning it will start in Philly sometime in the middle of next week. The Dodgers and Phillies split their season series 4-4 with each team winning all of their games at home, so having the extra game in Philadelphia is crucial. It should be a good series, but I have to give the early advantage to the Phillies. The Phillies pitching nearly matches up with the Dodgers staff and their offense, despite Manny, is better than the Dodgers'.

Anyway, we'll worry about the Dodgers later. Now is the time to celebrate!!

Phils win, Mets lose, Magic Number now at 4

(AP Photo/Tom Mihalek)

The Phillies just keep on winning, especially against the Braves. The Phillies won for the 10th time in 11 games, beating the Braves 6-2 to raise their record to 14-2 against Atlanta for the season. The win, coupled with another loss by the Mets, puts the Phillies 2.5 games ahead of New York in the NL East. The Phillies magic number now sits at 4, meaning that any combination of Phillie wins and Met losses that adds up to 4 will clinch the division for Philadelphia. With 5 games left, the division now looks like a lock, barring a Mets-like collapse by the Phillies.

In Monday's game, the Phillies got another strong outing by J.A. Happ, his second in a row against Atlanta. While Happ didn't shut out the Braves like he did last week, he only allowed 2 runs in 6 and 2/3rds innings, striking out 5. Offensively for the Phillies, Jayson Werth drove in the game winning run on a groundout in the 8th inning and Pat Burrell followed with a 3-run homer to give the Phils a cushion to work with.

The Mets lost to the Cubs, their third loss in a row. The Mets are not only in danger of losing the NL East, but they only have a 1 game lead over the Milwaukee Brewers for the Wild Card. Are we really seeing another massive choke job by the Mets, their second in as many years? The Phillies have been amazing down the stretch, but they have certainly been helped by the Mets, who have won only 3 of their last 9.

Manny to Phillies update: Gillick says no

Rumors flew around the internet yesterday about the Red Sox wanting to part with Manny Ramirez and how the Phillies were his personal number one option. There has been plenty of speculation that the Phils have at least discussed going after him and that the Red Sox have inquired, but, according to The New York Times (article found via MLB Trade Rumors) GM Pat Gillick was quick to shoot down the possibility, saying "at this point, there’s no interest on our part, we have no place to play the guy."

Gillick is right, with Pat Burrell manning left field, the Phillies have no room for Manny. They can't move one of the two to right field and make the worst defensive outfield in major league history. So, despite FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal's rumor of the Phillies swapping Geoff Jenkins and prospect Lou Marson for Manny (which I would do in a heart beat), it looks like the Phils won't go after Ramirez. They will likely re-visit pursuing him in the off-season to replace Burrell, who will likely bolt via free agency.

Just for fun, here's what the Phillie line-up could look like if they got Manny:

Rollins
Utley
Ramirez
Howard
Burrell
Feliz
Victorino
Ruiz
Pitcher

That's scary.

Phillies upset on their off-day

The Phils have an off day after dropping back into a first place tie with the Mets, but there is still a ton of news and information to pass along:

*Manuel upset Charlie Manuel is upset with the hitters after not coming through with more offense to support Cole Hamel's good outing yesterday. He was especially upset with the clutch hitting, noting that the Phillies "situational hitting is absolutely terrible". The Phillies offense has been inconsistent all year, exploding for 20 runs at times and looking feeble at other times.

*Burrell also upset Any chance that Pat Burrell was going to come back to Philly next year is probably being ruined by Charlie Manuel. Manuel still insists on sitting Burrell in the late innings of any game where the Phils have the lead and Pat isn't happy about it, saying " "I'm upset, absolutely. I'm upset, and I have been for a long time. It's not personal. I don't want to ever come out of close games." Burrell is continually being taken out of games where he could have been up in a key situation later on so I can see why he is upset. While I understand the reasoning of removing a bad fielder during the late stages of a close game, Manuel is too quick with the hook in one run games. Losing Pat's bat is sometimes a bigger loss than any mistake he could make in the field.

*Big Mets series starts tomorrow The Phillies and Mets are once again locked into a tie for first in the NL East, but a three game series that starts Tuesday will give us a division leader, at least for now. Pedro Martinez is injured so he will miss his next start, so the pitching match-ups look like this for the series:

Tuesday: Joe Blanton vs. Johan Santana
Wednesday: Brett Myers vs. John Maine
Thursday: Jamie Moyer vs. Oliver Perez

Two interesting starts for the Phillies, with Blanton making his debut facing off against Santana and Myers making his return against a hot Mets team.

*Holliday rumors still circulating I think it's a bit of a non-story because everything I have read said the trade talks are off, but the Phillies have been rumored to be going after both Matt Holliday and Brian Fuentes of the Rockies in a possible blockbuster deal. The deal would gut the Phillies farm system, forcing them to give up Carlos Carrasco, Lou Marson and other top prospects, plus Shane Victorino. Seems like a bad deal unless the Phils can get Holliday to agree to a contract extension since he will be a free agent at seasons end.

Phillies enter All-Star Break clinging to First Place

(AP Photo/Tom Mihalek)

It took some late heroics, but the Phillies were able to hold on to their slim lead in the NL East heading into the All-Star break. With the Mets streaking, winning 9 straight, the Phillies have watched their NL East lead dwindle as the team played inconsistently.

After a poor performance on Saturday that I had the unfortunate opportunity to see first hand, the Phillies needed a late Pat Burrell homer to get past the D-backs, 6-3, on Sunday. With the game tied 2-2 in the 8th inning, Burrell connected on a three-run shot to put the Phillies up for good. Cole Hamels had another solid outing and the Phillies are able to go into the break on a solid note, although they are only 1/2 game up on the Mets:

So why isn't Pat Burrell in the All-Star Game??

Burrell fails to make All-Star game, doesn't like what the Phillies are offering

While his numbers show he should be an All-Star, in the end, Pat Burrell didn't get enough fan support and therefore won't be participating in the All-Star game. Burrell finished third behind the winner, Corey Hart of the Brewers, and the second place finisher, David Wright of the Mets. Evan Longoria of the Rays won the final spot in the American League.

There is no word on how far behind Burrell finished but Hart did receive 8 million votes. Here is a comparison of Burrell and Hart's numbers through July 10th, you tell me who deserves to be on the All-Star team:

Burrell: 22 HR, 54 RBI, .279 AVG, .412 OBP, .581 SLG, .993 OPS
Hart: 15 HR, 57 RBI, .292 AVG, .332 OBP, .510 SLG, .842 OPS

While Hart has the higher batting average and a few more RBIs, Burrell is better in every other category. I guess the fans in Milwaukee did a better job stuffing the ballot boxes than the fans in Philly.

In other Pat the Bat news, according to Jayson Stark of ESPN, this will be Burrell's last year in Philadelphia. After Brad Lidge signed an extension with the Phillies last week, Stark had this to say:

"...don't expect the Phillies' other impending free agent, Pat Burrell, to be the next to sign. We're hearing that the Phillies' extension conversation with Burrell's agent, Greg Genske, was short and not real sweet. It's hard to envision the Phillies offering more than two years and around $20 million to Burrell. And that's not even close to what Burrell and Genske have in mind. "

Sound like this will be Pat's farewell tour in Philly.

Utley, Lidge are in, Burrell needs our help to go to the All-Star Game

The All-Star teams were announced today, and two Phillies are going to New York: Chase Utley and the man with the new contract, Brad Lidge. Utley was voted in by the fans to start at second base and Lidge was selected by NL manager Clint Hurdle. Both are very deserving all stars who are at the top of their respective positions.

Another Phillie having a standout year, Pat Burrell, was chosen as one of the "Final Vote" players, meaning the fans get their say on who will fill out the roster. Burrell goes up against Corey Hart, Carlos Lee, Aaron Rowand and David Wright for the honor. Click here to go and vote for Pat the Bat.

Click here for the complete All-Star roster.

Phillies go back to back to back against Cardinals

The Phillies offense is exploding again tonight (13 runs through 4 innings), including back to back to back home runs by Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Pat Burrell in the first inning against the Cardinals:

Add in a 9 run 4th inning where 15 players stepped up to the plate and you have the makings of a huge night. More on the game later.

Burrell wins game for Phils with walk off shot in the 10th

More evidence for the affect a contract year has on a player's performance: Pat Burrell's 2008 season. Burrell, who has been putting up consistent numbers year in and year out for the Phillies, continues to crush the ball this season better than he has in his entire career. In tonight's game against the Giants, he continued his torrid streak with a home run at the most dramatic moment. With Chase Utley standing on first and the Phillies trailing 5-4 in the bottom of the 10th inning, and a count of 3 balls and 2 strikes, Burrell hit his 9th home run of the season to win the game for the Phillies, 6-5.

Burrell's hot start has helped to mask Ryan Howard's struggles (0 for 5 with 3 strikeouts tonight) and Jimmy Rollins' injury (20+ games missed and counting). Burrell is now hitting .33o on the season and is on pace to hit 49 homers and drive in 151 runs, numbers that would shatter his career highs. Between Burrell and Utley, who hit another home run tonight to stretch his league-leading total to 12, the Phillies have two guys who are in the Top 15 in the National League in batting average, homers and RBI's. If the big guy hitting in between them ever heats up, this team will be unstoppable.

As for the rest of tonight's game, the Phillies bullpen finally showed they were human tonight. Ryan Madson gave up the runs in the 7th to allow the Giants to tie the game up and J.C. Romero gave up his first earned run of the season in the 10th that allowed the Giants to take a lead. Kyle Kendrick pitched adequately, although two of the runs that Madson gave up in the 7th were runners he allowed on base.

Tonight also marked the return of fan favorite Aaron Rowand to Philadelphia. Rowand got a nice standing ovation for his first at-bat of the night and the Phillie Phanatic had some fun re-enacting his infamous crash into the wall. Rowand had a great night, going 2 for 5 and hitting what could have been the game-winning home run in the top of the 10th, but Phils fans should remember that the reason Rowand left town was to chase the money. For all the praise he gets as a clubhouse guy, he sold out to go to the crappy Giants instead of staying with a team he could have won a championship with. The Phillies made him an offer that was pretty substantial but the Giants offer was much more, so Rowand took the money and left town.

The Phillies play two more against the Giants this weekend, including a must-see pitching match-up between Cole Hamels and Tim Lincecum on Sunday afternoon. Whoever actually scores a run off those two will win the game.

Video of Pat Burrell's walk-off homer via Comcast SportsNet:

Burrell leads Phillies past Brewers

(AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Pat Burrell looks like he wants to cash in this off-season. Burrell's contract runs out after this year, and while many Phils fans couldn't wait to see him go, he is silencing all the critics and putting up huge numbers this season. With the score tied 1-1 in the 8th inning of today's game with the Brewers, Burrell added to his league-leading RBI total by hitting a 2-run double that gave the Phillies a 3-1 win. Through 23 games this season, Burrell is hitting .355 with 8 homers and 25 RBI's. If he keeps up this current pace, he will shatter all of his career high numbers. How many people think Burrell, who is making just over 14 million this season, is overpaid now?

Burrell's hot start masks the further struggles of Ryan Howard, who didn't start today's game but entered in the 8th inning as a pinch hitter and got two at-bats, striking out both times to lower his batting average to .176. Every day I worry more and more about Howard and his ability to recognize pitches. While he goes into a funk every season that he eventually works his way out of, it's worrisome that the slumps seem to be getting longer every season.

In today's game, the Phils also got a solid pitching performance from Jamie Moyer, who went 6 innings and, despite giving up 8 hits and walking 3 batters, allowed only one run. The bullpen was lights out once again, with Tom Gordon, J.C. Romero, Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge combining for 3 shutout innings. Lidge was the only one of the relievers to give up a hit.

The Phillies, who are now back above .500, go to Pittsburgh next to take on the Pirates in a three game series. With the way Pat Burrell and Chase Utley (3 for 4 today) have been swinging the bat lately, if the Phillies don't take 2 out of 3 it would be disappointing.

Phillies over .500 after sweep of Rockies

The Phillies overcame a poor start by Brett Myers to pull out their second come-from-behind win over the Rockies in as many days, winning 8-6. Myers gave up 6 runs in 7 innings and left the game with the Phillies trailing 6-4. The offense then pulled out the win, with Pat Burrell being the hero following a bases loaded double in the top of the 9th inning that put the Phillies ahead for good. Brad Lidge came in and pitched a perfect bottom of the ninth to earn his 4th save and keep his ERA at 0.00.

The Phillies have won three games in a row and are over .500 for the first time all season. They continue to get good bullpen work, as even Ryan Madson chipped in a scoreless inning tonight. Although his home run streak ended, Chase Utley continued his hot hitting, getting a pair of hits, including a two-run double. Burrell also continues to be on a tear, getting 3 RBI's to jump to the NL leader in that category.

Despite sweeping the defending National League Champions, not everything is going perfectly for the Phillies. Ryan Howard continues to struggle, going 0 for 4 with two strikeouts, lowering his batting average to .190. The big guy just can't get going and just continues to look clueless as to what to expect from pitch to pitch. He is making the Phillies look smart for not jumping at the chance to sign him to a long term deal.

The Phillies are having a great April by their standards, and they will look to continue it in another two game series with the Milwaukee Brewers. Cole Hamels takes the mound tonight looking to stretch the Phils winning streak to four.

Pat the Bat leads the Phillies over the Cubs

I'll admit that I spent most of my evening watching the Flyers fall to the Capitals, but I also spent a fair amount of time checking in on the Phillies. After falling behind 2-0 in the first inning, the Phils battled back to earn a much needed win over the Cubs 5-3.

With Jimmy Rollins sitting out yet another game, the Phillies needed someone else to step up, and Pat Burrell was the man today, collecting two hits and knocking in three runs. Burrell started the scoring for the Phillies with a two-run bomb in the 4th inning, and he also finished the scoring by notching the game winning RBI on a double in the 6th. Burrell has been a real bright spot for the Phillies this season, collecting 4 home runs and a batting average of .400.

On the pitching side, after a rocky start, Brett Myers settled down to give the Phils 8 solid innings. He gave up three solo homers but very little else. Brad Lidge came in and pitched well to lock down his second save of the season. The Phillies were able to do their damage offensively off of Carlos Zambrano, widely considered one of the top pitchers in the game.

Highlights courtesy of Comcast SportsNet:

Pat Burrell could be the key in 2008

There is an interesting article today at Philly.com by Todd Zolecki discussing Pat Burrell and his future with the Phillies. Burrell is in the final year of the $50 million dollar contract he signed back in 2003. Zolecki speculates that Burrell could be in for a big year as he looks to cash in as a free agent one last time, whether it is with the Phils or another team.

Burrell is overpaid, but he isn't useless. He made 13.25 million last year, and hit 30 home runs and drove in 97 runs. While he continues to strike out too much (120 K's last year), and hit for a low average (.258 lifetime), he had a career high OBP last season of .400. He's a bit of a stiff with the glove, and Charlie Manuel doesn't hesitate to pull him out of games in the later innings for a defensive replacement. Nonetheless, if the Phillies can get that kind of offensive production again from Burrell, they will be happy.

Pat Burrell might be the key to the Phils lineup. Burrell figures to get a ton of RBI opportunities batting fifth, after Ryan Howard and before the Geoff Jenkins/Jayson Werth combo. More importantly, Burrell figures to be the Phillies main source of power from the right side of the plate. That is why he is so important. Burrell is a streaky hitter, either crushing the ball like he did last July and August, or completely stinking up the joint, like in May and June of last year. If Burrell can find some consistency, it will help the Phils as a whole be consistent. When Burrell is on, Manuel will even bat him fourth against tough lefty pitching, which allows the Phillies to break up their left handed hitters.

While Pat Burrell is hardly a fan favorite, the guy has been here through it all. He's played for the Phillies since 2000, and he has been through the low points and been with the team as it rose to the top. In what will most likely be his final year with the Phillies, Burrell could make or break his legacy in Philadelphia. If he helps to lead this team to the World Series, it would go a long way towards silencing all of the boos.