Game 110 - Wednesday Afternoon, August 3rd in Denver
One Sentence Summary: Roy Halladay battled through seven innings and Ryan Howard drove in four runs to negate his two first inning errors, as the Phils beat the Rockies, 8-6, and completed the three-game sweep.
What It Means: The Phillies won their sixth game in a row and swept their second consecutive series, improving to 71-39. They open a key four-game series in San Francisco late tomorrow night.
What Went Right: By his own admittance, Halladay (14-4) wasn't working with his best stuff this afternoon, but he kept the Phils in the game by allowing five runs (four earned) on eight hits while striking out seven. Surprisingly, Brad Lidge received the call in the ninth to save the game. He pitched a perfect inning to record his first save of 2011, and the 100th save of his Phillies career.
(After the game, we learned that Ryan Madson was unavailable as he's currently away from the team on paternity leave. It looks as if Scott Mathieson will be added to the roster in time for tomorrow's game.)
Howard's day started poorly as he struck out with the bases loaded in the top of the first and then committed two errors on the same play in the bottom of the inning. He rebounded to drive in four runs, including a two-run home run in the sixth, his 24th of the season.
Featured Card: I decided to go with one of Lidge's cards, in honor of his 100th save with the Phillies. It's unlikely he'll be back in 2012, so he most likely won't have a chance to advance much further on the career saves list. Jose Mesa tops the list with 112 saves, followed by Steve Bedrosian with 103 and Mitch Williams with 102. It boggles my mind that Mesa recorded 112 saves for the Phillies.
Other Stuff: Matt Stairs, after being released by the Washington Nationals early this week, has decided to retire. Stairs became a folk hero in Philadelphia after his heroics in Game 4 of the 2008 N.L.C.S. He'll always be welcome back in Philly.
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