The last member of the core four, Cole Hamels, will toe the rubber for the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night. The other main cogs will be behind him: Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard. Can they finish the year at 86-76 with a 9-game winning streak?
TAL’S HANDY CAPS
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Check out: Philadelphia Phillies storyline: Heroes wanted
CAP-SIZE HINDSIGHT: 2-1 Outcome
TYPE | PLAYER | REASON |
|---|---|---|
| The Crystal Champagne Toast | Kyle Kendrick | Four-Star Performance |
| The Penthouse | Darin Ruf Kyle Kendrick John Mayberry Jr. Jeremy Horst | Smoked A 2-RBI Triple To Open A 2-0 Lead In The 2nd During His 1 For 2 Night With An IBB Nursing A 2-Run Advantage, Punched Out Werth With A Runner At 3rd To End The 5th, & Escaped A Harper-At-3rd One-Out Jam In The 6th Fired 7 Scoreless, 4-Hit Innings Made A Superb Catch Of A Blooper In A Critical Spot During The 8th Ended The 8th-Inning Threat With A Called K On The 4-Hole Stick |
| House Call | Jimmy Rollins | Has A Calf Issue |
Above Asterisk ( *) = Corresponding Play And/Or Event
SEPTEMBER NUMBERS:
GB 2nd WC: 5.0
2ND WC Pos: 5
Elimination No: 5
The Only Earned Run Scored In The 2nd
NITECAP INSIGHT
Divine Intervention On Order:
Cholley’s boys have reached the end of the 2012 schedule, and now only the baseball gods can intercede before October 3. The Phils will need most of the breaks to achieve a 9-0 run, which means the margin for error has been used up. That said, if the powers beyond our grasp were to step in, they would start with the heart of the franchise on the field. The crew that raised the 2008 championship banner fills 4 of the positions on the diamond tomorrow night.
Ryno Can Still Hear Jamie Moyer’s 2-Hands Demand
Yes, 9 straight triumphs is possible for a postseason-tested group. St. Louis, on the other hand, would only have to go 4-5 for a 2nd wild-card tie with the locals at 86 W’s. That stated, they face the ‘Stros in Houston, where they have recently gone 6-3 against playoff-hopeful teams. They went: 1-1 (Reds), 3-1 (Phillies) and 2-1 (Pirates). That is the easy part for the Cards, who return home to face Washington and Cincinnati. Those 2 organizations will not want to go into the NLDS on a losing note against the Red Birds.
Series 1:
TEAM | W - L | GMS | VERSUS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 2 - 1 | 3 | @ Cubs |
| Brewers | 2 - 2 | 4 | @ Nats |
| Dodgers | 2 - 1 | 3 | @ Reds |
| Pirates | 1 - 2 | 3 | @ 'Stros |
| D-Backs | 3 - 1 | 4 | @ Rox |
Hope To See You In Atlanta Next Month, Chipper
St. Louis is 11-12 since August 30, which puts 4-5 within the realm of possibility. They are playing .500 ball and are not hot. Ergo, the breakdown is a cause for concern in baseball heaven, the city of the silver arch. The Cards were 7-2 with 3 victorious matchups over also-rans: New York, Chicago and Houston. However, they were 4-10 with a series record of 0-3-1 against stronger competition. They were swept 3-0 by the Pads, who only recently dropped out of the final-berth sweepstakes.
If you put San Diego in the other column, you get 7-5 and 4-7 marks. Against their more-in-the-hunt adversaries, the Red Birds went 1-3 (Washington), 1-2 (Milwaukee) and 2-2 (Los Angeles). So, they are in no way a lock for serious October baseball. Granted, 9-0 is imposing but not impossible.
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 |
King Cole Dials It Up On September 19 In Queens
PRECAP PITCH
Cole Hamels:
He is 6-3 with a 2.85 home ERA, which is 0.37 lower at the Bank. Against the Nats for 3 outings at both parks (2 away), his ledger reads: 2-1, a 1.17 ERA, 23 complete, 16 hits, 4 runs (3 earned), 5 BB and 25 whiffs.
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 |
John Lannan Unloads His Gun In The 2nd At Home On September 19 Against The Dodgers
John Lannan:
He was the 7th arm for a 5-man staff, which landed him back at Triple-A until Stephen Strasburg was shut down. He has worked 7 innings in 1 of 4 opportunities with 1 clunker. He, also, has a history of getting hit by the Phils.
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
HURLER | Cole Hamels | Nate Eovaldi |
|---|---|---|
| NUMBER | A One | A Five |
| CLUB SLOT | Two | Four |
| FOR 2012 | 3-Quarter Sidearm | Short Arm |
| '12 RANKING | 2nd of 5 Categories | 4th of 5 Categories |
| LAST START | Knuckleball | Slider |
| LAST HIGH OR LOW | 11th of 15 Categories | 7th 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 CLIFF LEE |
|---|
CLIFF'S LINE: 6 INN, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 7 K & 109 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 |
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Philadelphia Phillies: 2012 ERA for the NL East at game 153
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