Tuesday, June 5, 2012

2008 Chachi #25 Tom Gordon

Dodgers 4, Phillies 3
Game 56 - Monday Night, June 4th in Philadelphia
Record - 28-28, 5th Place, 4 games behind the Nationals and Marlins

One Sentence Summary:  Jonathan Papelbon gave up the lead in a non-save situation as the Dodgers and some questionable umpiring defeated the Phillies, 4-3.

What It Means:  The Phillies fell back to a .500 record after hitting the season high-water mark on Friday at three games above.

What Went Wrong:  Todd Zolecki offered this break-down of Papelbon's year-to-date performance via Twitter:

In 15 save opportunities - 15 saves, 0.00 ERA, 15 IP, 7 H
In non-save opportunities - 6.48 ERA, 8.1 IP, 11 H

With injuries to the bullpen continuing to mount, Papelbon is just going to have to figure out how to pitch in lower pressure situations.  And once again, the offense had their chances, but no one could come up with a clutch hit or a sac fly or even a ground ball to the right side when needed.

In more positive news, Chase Utley played in his first extended spring training game yesterday afternoon, going 3 for 4 with a home run.

Featured Card:  With the score tied 3-3, Dee Gordon greeted Papelbon in the ninth inning with a lead-off triple.  (Papelbon would argue following the inning that he should have struck out Gordon on a questionable ball call.  The home plate umpire - a Triple-A fill-in - was brutal all night to both clubs.)  Gordon would later come around to score the eventual winning run.

Dee's father, Tom Gordon, was in the middle of his third and final season with the Phillies when he learned that his son had been selected by the Dodgers in the fourth round of the 2008 amateur draft.  Almost exactly four years later, Gordon the younger would contribute to the Phillies latest loss.

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