Sunday, April 17, 2011

2011 Topps #267 Jose Contreras

Phillies 3, Marlins 2
Game 14 - Sunday Afternoon, April 17th in Philadelphia

One Sentence Summary:  Ryan Howard scored the go-ahead run on a Carlos Ruiz sacrifice fly in the eighth before Jose Contreras wriggled out of trouble in the ninth, closing out the game for the Phils.

What It Means:  Following last night's rain-out, the Phillies split the abbreviated series with the Fish.  They're now 10-4, with a two game lead in the N.L. East.  The 7-8 Brewers come into town tomorrow night for a three-game set.

What Went Right:  Cole Hamels pitched seven strong innings, but he left the game with the score tied, putting him out of contention for the win.  He allowed seven hits while striking out seven.

The Phils got on the board first with a first inning solo home run from Placido Polanco.  Polanco had three hits on the day, raising his average to .327.  Later in the first, Raul Ibanez drove home Jimmy Rollins with an RBI-single.

In the eighth, Howard reached on an error by left fielder Logan Morrison.  He'd eventually come around to score the winning run on Chooch's sac fly.  Despite walking two men in the ninth, Contreras held the Marlins scoreless and secured his third save of the season.

Featured Card:  He threw almost as many balls as strikes, but Contreras managed to escape his own self-created jam to seal the victory.  This is Big Truck's first Topps base card since 2009, when he was with the White Sox.

Other Stuff:  This is my last "live" game summary post for a few nights due to my work schedule.  The Phillies Room will be on auto-pilot for a little bit, as I've scheduled series preview posts in advance.  I've also scheduled the posting of 2011 Chachi cards #9 through #15 throughout the week.  Go Phils!

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