Philadelphia Phillies storyline: Heroes wanted

It will take more than Juan Pierre on the Philadelphia Phillies to make enough additional noise for serious October baseball. From the individuals on the roster, who do you think will make a big difference?

TAL’S HANDY CAPS

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Check out: Philadelphia Phillies storyline: Edge of the ledge

CAP-SIZE HINDSIGHT: 3-2 Triumph

TYPE	PLAYER	REASON
The Crystal Champagne Toast	Ryan Howard	Five-Star Performance
The Penthouse	Jimmy Rollins Chase Utley Ryan Howard	Led off The 1st With A HR For A 1-0 Advantage * Worked A 2-Out, 8-Pitch BB After A 1-2 Count In The 9th * Hit A Game-Winning 2-Run HR In The 9th With 2 Outs
The Whitehouse	Cole Hamels	Recorded The 200th of 202 K's In The 5th
The Outhouse	2B Ump	Missed A Very Close Play (SB) At 2nd, Which Transpired After A Pick-Off Throw To 1st In The 6th
The Animal House	Ryan Howard	* Launched A 2nd-Deck Rocket In The 9th

Above Asterisk ( *) = Corresponding Play And/Or Event

MASKED SEPTEMBER NUMBERS:

GB 2nd WC: 4.0
2ND WC Pos: 4
Elimination No: 10

The Rynosaur Christens The 2nd Deck With A 2-Run Missile In The 9th

NITECAP INSIGHT

The Short List:

The first place to look is the bullpen for the 8th-inning set-up. Phillippe Aumont has a 96-mph fastball with movement, and his off-speed stuff is excellent. That stated, he needs to control his curveball and split finger, which–if he does–he will reduce the load on Antonio Bastardo dramatically. Bastardo has been very consistent since the end of August, and–if that continues–he’ll take this team a long way. Jeremy Horst is a possibility for the 7th, while Josh Lindblom is nailing down the right side of that equation. Either Aumont or Bastardo could be the hero, while the other could play a strong supporting role.

J-Roll Strolls Around The Bases In The 1st

Magic Juan will not be a surprise with his .300 hitting and stolen bases. However, Dom Brown is a different story, as his name–recently–appears more often when the club scores. He could swipe an important bag, smack a game-deciding homer or triple before crossing the plate without an RBI hit. Then, there is Erik Kratz who returns to a backup job, and Kevin Frandsen with his stress-fractured limitation. John Mayberry Jr. could stay hot or Nate Schierholtz could become more visible otherwise. However, Ty Wigginton and Laynce Nix would have to be perfect off the bench for a noticeable influence. Kyle Kendrick has a decent shot at securing a big win, while Tyler Cloyd with the schedule won’t have much of a chance to do so.

Series 3:

TEAM	W - L	GMS	VERSUS
Cardinals	3 - 0	3	'Stros
Dodgers	1 - 2	3	@ Nats
Pirates	0 - 3	3	Brewers
Brewers	3 - 0	3	@ Pirates
D-Backs	2 - 1	3	@ Padres
Padres	1 - 2	3	D-Backs

The Game-Winning Trot

The most likely players to make a difference are Bastardo, Aumont and Brown. That doesn’t mean Pierre and Kendrick will not be big contributors, because they will need to continue their excellence. Without them the red pinstripes won’t need another huge surprise to sneak into the postseason. Meanwhile, Doc Halladay will have to provide a solid 7 frames in each effort, Ryan Howard will need more production, and Chooch Ruiz must smoke more important hits. They will have to chip in with more than they have done recently. Like an unexpected star, those 3 need to supply the occasional big-spot performance.

Thank you, Rynosaur.

2nd Wild-Card Teams:

TEAM	W-L (8/31)	W - L	GB	W-L (SEPT)
Cardinals	71 - 61	84 - 72	-----	13 - 11
Dodgers	70 - 63	81 - 75	3.0	11 - 12
Brewers	63 - 68	80 - 76	4.0	17 - 08
Phillies	63 - 69	78 - 78	6.0	15 - 09
D-Backs	66 - 67	78 - 78	6.0	12 - 11

Tyler Cloyd Hurls A Dart On September 13 In Houston

PRECAP PITCH

Tyler Cloyd:

He has lasted 7 innings in 1 of 4 outings with 2 short-lived debacles. Against the Mets in late August at home, his ledger read: 6 complete, 7 hits, 3 all-earned runs, 2 BB and 5 whiffs on 102 tosses.

	STARTER	RECORD	TM	STARTER	RECORD	DAY & TIME
3	LHP Cliff Lee	06-08, 3.12 ERA	@ Nats	RHP Edwin Jackson	09-11, 4.13 ERA	Wednesday, Day

Jeremy Hefner Loads Up At Home On September 8 Against The Braves

Jeremy Hefner:

He has worked 8 frames in 1 of 10 opportunities with 4 monstrosities. He is 1-3 with a 5.72 home ERA, which is 1.44 lower on the road. His log against the Phils in Queens for 2 appearances (1 relief) is: 7.1 innings, 11 hits, 6 all-earned runs, 0 walks and 4 strikeouts. However, he was 1-0 with a 4.50 ERA in the 6-frame start.

DELIVERY = PITCHER’S 2012	DEFINITION OF SEASON
Over The Top	Excellent
3-Quarter Sidearm	Good
Sidearm	Above Average
Short Arm	Approximately Average
Submarine	Below Average

Starters’ photos, not described otherwise, are in the 1st inning.

Quality number of the pitcher: 1 – 5

Slot on his club: 1 – 5

Ranking is 1 to 5 & 15 for the less adventurous.

*** = Approximately equal to after plus-and-minus computation

* = As a starter

HURLER	B.J. Rosenberg	Gio Gonzalez
NUMBER	A Five	A Two
CLUB SLOT	Five	One
FOR 2012	1st Start	Over The Top
'12 RANKING	-- of 5 Categories	1st of 5 Categories
LAST START	1st Start	Changeup
LAST HIGH OR LOW	-- of 15 Categories	8th of 15 Categories

	PITCH	INN	ER - R- H		PITCH	INN	ER
1	Gyroball	9 (CG)	0 - 0 - 3	10	Screwball	6	4
2	Fastball	9 (CG)	0 - 0	11	Knuckleball	5	3
3	Cutter	9 (CG)	3	12	Forkball	0 - 4.2	Monstrosity
4	Split Finger	7	2	13	Eephus Pitch	0 - 2.2	Disaster
5	Curveball	7	3	14	*Palm Ball	Ejected
6	Sinker	6.1	3	15	*Spit Ball	**Ejected+
7	Slider	6	2		*Breaking Ball	Injured
8	Changeup	6	3		*Fosh	Rain Interrupted
9	Slurve	5	2		*Knuckle Curve	Pitch Count
	** = Suspended				* = A 2nd Pitch Also

STATS APOCALYPTIC HORSEMEN COLE HAMELS
COLE'S LINE: 7 INN, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K & 99 DARTS

ACE	W - L	ERA	INN+	CONV	CG - SO	BAD	INN	ER	BB - IBB	SO
Total	34 - 23	3.48	6.1	59 of 86	2 - 2	12	582.2	225	114 -2	557
Hamels	17 - 06	3.05	6.2	21 of 31	2 - 2	03	215.1	073	050 - 2	218
Lee	06 - 09	3.16	6.1	23 of 30	0 - 0	02	211.0	074	028 - 0	207
Halladay	11 - 08	4.49	7.0	15 of 25	0 - 0	07	156.1	078	036- 0	132

20TH RIDE OF THE HORSEMEN:


ACE	W - L	ERA	INN+	CONV	CG	SO	BAD	INN	H	R	ER	BB	IBB	SO
Total	2 - 0	2.84	6.1+	2 of 3	0	0	1	19.0	14	6	6	4	0	20
Halladay	1 - 0	7.20	6.1+	0 of 1	0	0	1	05.0	06	4	4	3	0	07
Lee	0 - 0	1.29	7.0+	1 of 1	0	0	0	07.0	03	1	1	0	0	05
Hamels	1 - 0	1.29	7.0+	1 of 1	0	0	0	07.0	05	1	1	1	0	08

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