PHL 5 - NYM 3

Again with the Utley Stuff

As mentioned in a previous post, someone caused Chase Utley to lose his 35-game hit streak last tonight, but we press on.


Quick About the Game

The Phillies won a tightly played match-up over the New York Mets last night, 5 - 3 with some surprising players stepping up. Randy Wolf, still recovering from Tommy John surgery gave the Phils 4 innings and nearly 100 pitches. He was quoted later as saying that his fastball was spot on, but he has not been able to control either of his breaking pitches with effectiveness. If he can locate either of those pitches, the Phillies will have reason to be optimistic with Wolfie.

Addition By Subtraction

The addition of David Dellucci to the everyday line-up has given the team a weapon they have not had since the end of the 2005 season, a table-setter in the 2-hole not named Chase Utley. Last season, the Phils had a CF platoon of Kenny Lofton and Jason Michaels hitting second, and combining for a .400 on-base percentage. This allowed the Phillies to hit Utley later in the line-up, behind Bobby Abreu and Pat Burrell, to give the team added RBI punch. The addition of Aaron Rowand (who I will rail about constantly, give me time) has taken that on-base machine of CF away from the Phils line-up.

Enter Dellucci. Carrying an OBP of .393 into today's game, Dellucci isn't just on in front of these guys in the short amount of time he has hit in the number 2 slot, he's slugging at a .628 clip as well. He's allowed Utley the opportunity to move into the three-slot (something Abreu would never have settled for) and lo-and-beyhold, the offense has picked it up.

Yesterday Dellucci scored two runs through a single that he motored home on a Hit-and-Run Double by Ryan Howard, and a late-inning game-winning home run. This potentcy in the 2-hole was available when Utley was there, but now with Chasey hitting third, we have a far more aggressive run creater than we did with Bobby Abreu. Look for Dellucci (or Looch as I've decided I want to call him) to continue being a positive addition to the Phillies lineup.

Jinx

This is a screen capture from a Phillies Season Ticket television ad last fall. See the guy on the left? He's a total jinx. And he's me.

Yesterday I launched this blog, and not coincidently my favorite player in baseball lost his 35-game hitting streak on the same day. I am a jinx, as I noted in my inaugural post, but I will press on, because the main theme of this blog is the Phils' unprecedented run to a futile playoff birth.

Harbinger?

Tonight, we have a big test for my theory with a surreal pitching match up. The Phils are venturing to the Big Apple, and they're sending former All-Star Randy Wolf to face the formerly good El Duque.

This is the kind of weird game that the Phils must win if their hopes of playing into contention will be met. They need some pitching, ANY PITCHING, to compete in the Wild Card race, and the phrase "Relying on Randy Wolf," is going to become a mantra for me.

Secondly, the Phillies offense MUST perform against crappy re-tread pitchers like Hernandez if they expect to almost get to .500 and win this thing. Too often, the Phillies will rip off 8 out of 10 like they have recently, only to falter against a guy who hasn't pitched well. As my father would undoubtedly say, "They're making this guy look like Cy Young."

Chasey Lain

I have a major man-crush on Chase Utley. Ever since I picked him up on waivers in my NL-only fantasy team, he has been my favorite player in the Majors.

Now Chase is on a 35-game hit streak, one off of the Phillies single-season record, and 3 off of their all-time record, held by his double play partner Jimmy Rollins.

We here at U5FSWCCP are firm believers in the record should be held by Uts. We are big J-Ro fans, no doubt, but Utley has got to become the leader of this team if they are to claim the most pathetic playoff birth in Major League Baseball history. What better way to take hold of the clubhouse than to continue this incredible streak? And more importantly, I can continue to swoon over him in ways that would make potential girlfriends extremely uncomfortable.

Start

Well, its another long-named blog, this time with a much wider time frame to cover...

Here's the idea, on Monday, July 31, I predicted that the Phillies would finish the season 80 - 82, and become the first ever Under .500 Fire Sale Wild Card Champs. After talk with some blogging impresarios, I decided to start this blog. Here's what I'll follow:

- Utley's hit streak, which I guess I just jinxed.
- The Phillies' performance on a less than day-to-day basis (I can't do everyday).
- My musings about how the team will undoubtedly tease me into purchasing $600 worth of playoff tickets, only to miss again.

Hope you all enjoy!