Game 112 – Tuesday Night, August 6th in Philadelphia
Record - 51-61, Tied for 3rd Place, 17 games behind the Braves
One Sentence Summary: The Phillies squeaked by with a 9-8 win over the Cubs, snapping their five-game losing streak.
What It Means: The Phils looked good in this game, but it probably helped that they were playing the Cubs.
What Went Right: Despite starting pitcher Kyle Kendrick's best efforts to let this game get away, the offense came back from a 5-2 deficit thanks in part to key hits from Darin Ruf and Chase Utley. Ruf, playing right field for the first time in his career, had an RBI double in the third and a solo home run in the fifth. Utley had three hits, including an RBI triple in the fifth.
Jonathan Papelbon allowed three ninth inning runs in the non-save situation before finally retiring the Cubs to seal the win.
Featured Card: I'm typing up this game summary post on Wednesday night, while watching replays of Utley barrel into Cubs catcher Dioner Navarro at the plate and reading about Utley's new, two-year contract extension. I've always been a huge Utley fan, and the thought of him manning second base at least through the 2015 season brings a smile to my face.
This nifty parallel card from last year's Bowman set arrived recently from Brian, who has been known to appreciate a good Play at the Plate. Thanks Brian! Some Rangers cards will be on their way to you shortly.
Field Report: We were there! And we witnessed a win! I believe this marks the first time in my life that I've attended three consecutive home games, having gone to the games on Saturday and Sunday against the Braves. My personal record is now at 3-7.
It's always fun to watch your team get a win in person!
ReplyDeleteBe glad you didn't make it to 4 in a row (although yesterday was a nice pitching performance from Cole that was wasted).
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to see Utley stick around too--but let's hope he stays healthy to make this deal worth it. AT least it won't be the enormous albatross that the Howard deal is, or the pretty big albatross that the Papelbon deal is.
I have this feeling that Utley will be our first baseman in 2016. At some point, they're going to have to admit the Howard contract was a bad idea and ship him to an A.L. team to DH full time.
ReplyDelete