Tal’s Handy Caps: LF Oswalt Makes Final Out In 16th

August 25, 2010 by 1 Comment
 
 
 

The Handy Cap:

J-Roll Rollins delayed the inevitable in the 4-2 16-inning game of attrition.  J-Roll scalded a game-tying homerun with two outs in the ninth, but another umpire proceeded with game-ending involvement.  This time it was 3B umpire Scott Barry, who took offense at Ryno Howard’s heat-of-the-moment reaction on his checked-swing call, and after his display of glaring, he called an inning-ending check-swing strike in apparent retaliation, ejecting Ryno quickly thereafter.  This led to Raul Ibanez at first base, and Roy Oswalt in leftfield, because The Phillies were out of position players.  Two innings later the game was over, and with two on, two out in the sixteenth, Oswalt was up instead of Howard.
 
Cole Hamels was brilliant again, which he has been since May 1.  The leaned-on group of 6 in the ‘pen performed the best they have all year as a group.  I don’t include the Rule 5 hurler David Herndon, because he started the season as only a bonus.  The run is stalled at 22-9, Doc Halladay takes the hill tonight, and the returning middle-of-the-lineup warriors are ready for breakout performances.
 

 

Home Game 2 Nitecap:
 
 

Vic Steals 3rd In The 2nd

In the second Shane Victorino earned a two-out 6-pitch walk, was balked to second, stole third, and Chooch Ruiz worked a 7-pitch free pass from an 0-2 count.  Hunter Pence lined a one-out fourth-inning single up the middle, and Carlos Lee homered a changeup into the leftfield stands for a 2-0 lead.  J-Dub Werth stroked a two-out left-center single, I-Bomb Ibanez sixth-inning RBI doubled down the leftfield line, and Vic produced an infield single, putting runners on the corners in the 2-1 game.  Bud Norris worked 6 full on 108 bullets, allowing 5 hits and 1 run (earned) with 3 BB to 4 strikeouts.  J-Roll entertained a one-out 3-1 free pass, Polly Polanco waited out a 7-pitch base on balls, but Rollins was caught stealing 3rd on a perfect seventh-frame throw by a whisker.

J-Roll's Game-Tying 2-Out Bomb In The 9th

Hamels hurled 7 powerful frames on 101 fireballs, scattering 5 hits and 2 both-earned runs with 1 walk to 8 K’ed.  J.C Romero got an eighth-inning punch out, and gave up a bullet single at Chase Utley.  Chad Durbin threw a double-play ball with the assistance of a diving and flipping effort from J-Roll. Ibanez two-out scalded a right-centerfield gap double, and went to 3rd on a home-eighth fielding boot (E8).  Durbin threw 1.2 scoreless, giving up 1 free pass and a hit by pitch to finish the ninth.  Down to their final out, Rollins crushed a game-tying bomb deep into the right-field faithful’s hands.  Brad Lidge pitched a perfect tenth with 2 punch outs.  Big Truck Contreras got a running-on-the-play hump-back-liner double dip with triple-play potential, ending the eleventh.

The Big Piece With A Big Explosion In The 14th

Mad Dog Madson escaped a two-singles twelfth with 1 K.  Danys Baez pitched a clean 13th with 2 back-to-the-mound dribblers and 1 K.  Polanco laced a one-out right-field single, Utley earned a fourteenth-frame 3-2 walk, and both runners moved up on a two-out wild pitch.  Howard was called out on the third-base Ump’s second checked-swing strike.  The Ump’s stare after the first called strike indicated hard feelings, and the questionable call led to a quick hook for Ryno, sparking a volcanic eruption from the big piece.  The Phils were out of position players, which put Ibanez at first and Oswalt in leftfield.  The crowd roared on the first-out fly to Oswalt, and Ibanez made a diving-to-the-bag play, nipping Bourne for out three.

In the16th Pence chopped a one-out infield single, Brett Wallace was hit by a pitch, and a wild pitch led to an intentional walk of Jason Michaels.  Chris Johnson got an infield-hit RBI with close plays at second and first, a groundout RBI on a dropped double-play throw by 1B Ibanez, and the pitcher was retired after an intentional walk to reload the bags in the 4-2 final.  After 2 scoreless innings, Herndon finished with 3 complete, giving up 3 hits and 2 both-earned runs with 2 BB to 2 strikeouts.  In the last of the sixteenth, Polanco waited out a 7-pitch two-out free pass, Utley was intentionally walked to get to Oswalt, who worked a 2-2 count before the 48th out by the hometown 25.

 

The Second Coming:

J.C. Romero worked 0.1 innings with a K, allowing an infield single, and for the 4th straight outing, he had no control problems.  J.C. has recorded 28 full, allowing 21 hits, 14 runs (12 earned), and 22 bases on balls to 20 punch outs for a 3.86 ERA.  He has a 4.09 ERA in 19 meaningful appearances for 11 total, giving up 9 hits and 5 runs (all earned) with 10 BB to 8 strikeouts.  Romero has 6 holds in 8 chances, and 3 saves in 4 opportunities.

 

Raul Beats Michael Bourne To 1st, Ending The 15th

 

Lights Out:

Brad Lidge hurled another 1-2-3 frame with 2 swinging punch outs.  Lidge has 17 saves in 21 opportunities (27 important games) for 24.1 innings with a 4.44 ERA, giving up 21 hits and 12 runs (all earned) with 13 BB to 31 K‘ed.  He is pitching more consistently–10 August performances–appearing in 10 of the last 21 games, and his control has been decent to excellent, depending on enough work.  He has 7 saves in as many chances for 7.1 scoreless August innings, scattering 3 hits without a BB to 8 punch outs with a 0.00 ERA.  He has recorded 30.1 total, allowing 24 hits, 13 runs (all earned), and 14 bases on balls to 38 punch outs for a 3.86 ERA.

 

 

 
Upon Further Review:
 
The Lidge control percentage going forward from my preview-reviewed article is 14 of 16 for 87.5%.  In other words, his control was at least adequate enough to do the job without luck, and he did save a game with less than that, doing it in the 12.5% category.  He had very good control last night.
 

 

The Big Truck:
 
Jose Contreras worked a scoreless eleventh, allowing 2 singles.  He has 10 holds in 11 chances (32 important outings) with a 2.08 ERA for 26 full, allowing 22 hits and 6 runs (all earned) with 8 walks to 26 K zones.  Contreras has 51 appearances for 43 total, giving up 42 hits, 16 runs (all earned), and 13 bases on balls to 45 punch outs for a 3.35 ERA with a 6-3 mark.  He has 3 saves in as many opportunities with a 0.00 ERA for a scoreless 2.2 frames, scattering 3 hits and 1 BB to 6 strikeouts.
 

Roy Oswalt With The Putout In The 15th

 

Mad Dog’s Bite:

Ryan Madson escaped a two-out, two-on jam of 2 singles with 1 punch out.  Mad Dog has a 2.76 ERA with 7 holds in 9 chances (16 important games) for 16.1 total, parting with 13 hits and 5 runs (all earned) plus 3 BB to 24 retired on strikes since returning.  He has 25 performances since exiting the DL, and is 3-2 with a 2.19 ERA for 24.2 innings, allowing 19 hits and 6 all-earned runs with 33 punch outs to 3 free passes.  Madson has a 3.48 ERA for 33.2 frames in 34 appearances, giving up 32 hits, 13 runs (all earned), and 5 walks to 43 in the K zone for the season.  He has 4 saves in 6 opportunities with a 7.20 ERA for 5 full, allowing 8 hits and 4 runs (all earned) with 1 base on balls to 5 strikeouts.

 

The Dandy Man:

Danys Baez fired a clean frame with 1 K.  He has a 4.60 ERA for 15.2 meaningful frames with 6 holds in 8 opportunities, allowing 15 hits, 8 runs (all earned), and 8 free passes to 8 in the K zone.  He has a 5.14 ERA in 44 outings for 42 total, giving up 50 hits and 26 runs (24 earned) with 21 bases on balls to 23 punch outs.

 

Home Precap:

Doc Halladay has already had his clunker this month, which means you can expect a 3rd straight solid outing.  He didn’t allow any runs in those 2 efforts for 8 and 7 innings respectively.  It will be interesting to see how he does with Michael Bourne to keep him off the bases, and what he does with him if he’s a base runner.  Jay Happ will make his first start at his old home, and his numbers are a bit deceptive.  He has a 2.94 ERA in his last 3 outings, and 7 of his 13 earned runs came in his 1-inning effort, while he has given up 6 earned runs in the other 24.1 frames for The ‘Stros.
 
 

 
 
 

Doc In His Last Gem On August 20 At Home

 
 
The Phillies:
 
Halladay is 16-8 with a 2.16 ERA in 26 starts for 200 total, parting with 181 hits and 54 runs (48 earned) plus 25 walks to 180 punch outs.  He hurled a 116-pitch, 7-shutout affair last time out, scattering 8 hits with 3 BB to 5 strikeouts.  He faced The ’Stros in Houston–1-0, 0.00 ERA–for a complete game on 111 bullets, allowing 7 hits and 1 run (unearned) without a free pass to 8 in the K zone.  He is 4-0 with a 1.86 ERA in 4 appearances this month for 29 full (36 tops), giving up 26 hits and 6 all-earned runs with 5 bases on balls to 31 punch outs.  He has gone 6.1 frames or more in 23 of his 26 outings for 200 innings (230 maximum), and he has 3 shutouts in his 8 complete games, including a perfect one plus a 9 scoreless incomplete game.
 
 
Last month Doc was 3-1 with an 1.54 ERA in 5 contests for 41 total (44 CG), limiting the opposition to 28 hits, 8 runs (7 earned), and 3 BB with 37 retired on strikes.  He went 2-4 with a 3.27 ERA in June’s 6 performances for 44 frames (52 achievable), allowing 54 hits and 17 runs (16 earned) with 5 free passes to 42 K‘ed.  He was 3-2 in 6 May efforts with a 2.15 ERA for 46 full (54 possible), giving up 37 hits, 14 runs (11 earned), and 9 bases on balls to 37 strikeouts.  In April (5 ballgames), he went 4-1 with a 1.80 ERA for 40 innings (44 maximum), spacing out 36 hits and 9 runs (8 earned) with 3 walks to 33 punch outs.
 
 
 

 

Game 3:  RHP Doc Halladay (16-8, 2.16 ERA) vs. LHP Jay Happ (3-2, 3.54 ERA) on Wednesday Night
 
 

 
 
 

Jay Happ In His Last Outing In Miami On August 20

 
 
The ‘Stros:
 
Happ is 3-2 with a 3.54 ERA in 8 starts for 40.2 total, allowing 31 hits, 17 runs (16 earned), and 29 free passes to 33 strikeouts.  Since joining Houston, he is 2-2 with a 4.62 ERA in 5 contests for 25.1 innings, handing over 18 hits, 13 all-earned runs, and 17 bases on balls to 24 K’ed.  He lasted 6.1 frames once in 8 appearances, but 1 of his last 3.  His last time out he went 6 full on 101 bullets, giving up 5 hits and 3 all-earned runs with 2 BB to 6 punch outs.
 
 
Happ is 1-2 with a 6.05 August ERA in 4 ballgames for 19.1 total, surrendering 16 hits, 13 all-earned runs, and 13 walks to 18 retired on strikes.  Last month he went 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA in 2 outings for 11 complete, scattering 6 hits and 3 all-earned runs with 8 free passes to 10 in the K zone.  In his 2 opening-month efforts, he was 1-0 with an 0.00 ERA for 10.1 innings, parting with 9 hits, 1 run (unearned), and 8 bases on balls to 5 punch outs.
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Long Story Short:

There was more to the Werth pickoff than was revealed on Monday night.  Brett Myers stuck his tongue out at him, got him laughing, and unknowingly obscured his view.  Nate Robertson was signed to a minor-league contract, will join Triple-A Lehigh Valley, and the lefty may be called up in September for a spot start with one extra game scheduled:  19 games in the next 18 days.

 
 
 

 

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