Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Posted: 10 p.m.Updated: April 7, 12:15 a.m.
By Jim Salisbury
CSNPhilly.com
BOX SCORE
Ryan Howard is a little like Rocky Balboas boss, Mr. Gazzo. He hears things.
Over the winter the hype machine built up the Phillies starting pitching rotation to mythic proportions. Howard will be the first to admit that it was all justified. He loves playing behind this ace-laden staff, the last two nights notwithstanding.
But there was a flipside to all the offseason chatter about how good the Phillies pitching was going to be. Questions were raised about the teams offense, which was held to two or fewer runs in 51 games last year and would be without Jayson Werth in 2011. Those questions intensified in spring training when Chase Utley went down with a knee injury. Even manager Charlie Manuel wringed his hands a little, occasionally mentioning Werths departure and Utleys absence late in spring training.
Howard knows the doubts that existed about the offense. You dont think he hears things?
MLB
I think a lot of people counted us out, he said, referring to the men who swing the bats.
Five games into the season, offense has been just as big a reason for the Phils 4-1 start as pitching. Offenseand some pretty nifty work by the bullpenbackboned the teams 10-7 win over the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park on Wednesday night.
The Phils had a season-high 16 hits, including homers by Howard and Ben Francisco, in the game. They have averaged 13 hits and 7.8 runs in their four wins.
Were just trying to put up runs, Howard said. And the more hits you get the more runs you can score.
The Phils needed a big bat rack to cover up for the sins of starting pitcher Joe Blanton in this game. He threw away a seven-run lead in the fourth and fifth innings. Losing a lead like that can demoralize a ballclub, but the Phillies, loaded with veteran know-how, never blinked. They rallied for two runs with two outs in the bottom of the fifth and put the Mets away with a long homer by Francisco in the sixth.
The momentum changed in the top of the fifth, but we were able to come right back, said Howard, who singled, homered and doubled twice in the game. That says a lot because its how you respond to that momentum shift.
Shane Victorino started off the two-run rally in the fifth with a two-out, check-swing double to left.
Manuel likes to say a team needs luck to win. Victorinos check-swing hit certainly qualified.
Im taking that right to the bank, Victorino said.
He needs to keep that in his repertoire, Howard added.
After the double off pitcher Blaine Boyer, Victorino quickly scored the go-ahead run on Placido Polancos third hit of the night. Polanco, who had three RBIs, moved to second on a walk and alertly scored from second when Howards hard-hit single struck Boyer and rolled toward first base.
The Phils were in position for a quick-strike comeback thanks to the work of lefty reliever Antonio Bastardo, who entered a difficult one-out, bases-loaded situation in the fifth. Bastardo allowed an RBI single, but, more importantly, limited the potential damage by retiring two of the three batters he faced in the inning.
After his team took a two-run lead in the bottom of the inning, Bastardo stayed on for a scoreless sixth. That shutdown inning helped him earn the win. J.C. Romero, Ryan Madson and Jose Contreras took it the rest of the way.
With Brad Lidge out and Madson and Contreras holding down the eighth and ninth innings, the Phils are looking for a bridge to the late innings. Bastardo will certainly earn another look.
Of course, the Phillies probably should never have been in a situation where this game was so close. Blanton started off well, pitching out of trouble in the first inning, and getting seven runs of support before heading to the mound in the third inning. He allowed a two-run homer to Angel Pagan in the fourth, but that wasnt a killer. In the fifth inning, Blanton got the first out then allowed seven straight baserunnersfive hits and two walksas the Mets rallied back into the game.
It was a quick and shocking unraveling for Blanton, and it came one night after Cole Hamels allowed six runs in 2 23 innings. Clearly, the back end of the Phils vaunted rotation is not off to a good start.
It kind of happened quick, Blanton said. I kind of went out trying to throw a lot of strikes early and they ambushed me and it snowballed on me. Before I knew it, stuff had hit the fan and I couldnt turn it around.
Blanton couldnt turn around the momentum, but the offense did, and the bullpen made sure it stayed that way.
And five games into this season of great expectations, the Phillies have four wins.
E-mail Jim Salisbury at jsalisbury@comcastsportsnet.com
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