Monday, June 6, 2011
Posted: 10:10 p.m.Updated: 11:45 p.m.
By Reuben Frank
CSNPhilly.com
BOX SCORE
Cliff Lee has never been a strikeout pitcher. And now that hes become one, hes not too happy about it.
Lee, who never struck out 10 or more batters in a game more than twice in his first nine major-league seasons, fanned 10 Dodgers in seven shutout innings Monday night, and the Phillies opened a season-long 11-game homestand with a 3-1 win over the Dodgers at Citizens Bank Park.
Lee, who has never fanned more than 185 batters in a season, now leads all of baseball with 100 strikeouts in just 87 innings.
At 31 years old, is he turning into Nolan Ryan?
MLB
He hopes not.
I really dont want to strike guys out, Lee said after the Phillies won their second straight game following four straight losses. I want to get them out in the first couple pitches. Its good to strike guys out, but that means youve got to throw more pitches.
Lee struck out 10 or more batters nine times in his first eight seasons. Hes now done it six times in 13 starts this year.
Why? Lee has no clue.
I think its just them swinging and missing more, he said. Ive always tried to throw strikes and pound the strike zone. For whatever reason, theyve swung and missed more this year. Im not going to try to figure out the reason, Im just going to continue to try and do what Im doing.
Lee bounced back from two subpar outings with one of his best of the season. In his last two starts, he allowed 10 earned runs in 13 13 innings.
This one didnt start too well, either. Lee allowed base hits to the first two Dodgers he faced before getting Marcus Thames to hit into a double-play. Seven of the first 19 batters he faced reached base. But he began using his curveball more in the later innings and worked his way out of every jam he got into.
Honestly, I felt like I didnt have that great command early in the game, and the deeper I got in the game the better the command came around, Lee said. I just got lucky that the spots I missed didnt happen to be down the middle, and the hits they got werent big hits, singles.
They made me throw a lot of pitches through the first three innings. I had 50-something pitches through the first three innings, and thats a lot, and youve got to credit their offense for working and fouling balls off and making me work, but as long as I put up zeroes, thats fine.
Obviously, Id want to be more efficient with my pitches, but they made me work early. After that, I was more efficient.
Lee, now 5-5, lowered his ERA from 3.94 to a more characteristic 3.62. He said he threw more curveballs than usual because he was able to locate it better than usual.
I think I threw, shoot, six or seven curveballs in the sixth inning alone, he said. I could tell it was good for me today, and I went to it.
Weve talked in the past about how I need to use it more and get me off fastballs and cutters, and Carlos Ruiz and I both agreed I do need to use it more. Ive been told that my whole career, but for whatever reason I still dont use it as much as I should, but I did tonight, and the results were there.
For me, its a hard pitch to command. There are days its going to be there more than others, and tonight was one of those nights I felt like I had more command than others. Therell be nights Ill use it less, because I do want to throw strikes, and I dont want to throw that pitch so much I end up getting behind in the count a lot.
Lee left the game after throwing 117 pitches. Thats the flip side of striking out a lot of batters. You throw a lot of pitches.
More strikeouts, more walks, and those kind of go hand in hand, he said.
Manager Charlie Manuel said Lees increase in strikeouts is a direct result of his using his breaking stuff more.
When he goes to the breaking ball when he gets ahead, thats the ball they really chase, Manuel said. When he uses all four of his pitches, thats when hes really good.
In his last start, Lee allowed six earned runs in just 5 13 innings in a loss to the Nationals.
Any time you have a bad start, you want to come back and get back on track, Lee said. I feel good about having a good outing after the way I pitched last time. Hopefully, I can keep it rolling.
Placido Polanco and Ryan Howard had RBI hits in the third inning, and Carlos Ruiz added a run-scoring double in the eighth.
The Phillies, despite going 15-15 in their last 30 games and coming off a 4-5 road trip, have now opened up a season-best four-game lead in the NL East. The Marlins have now lost five straight and are just four games over .500.
We kind of had a little bit of a rough road trip, but were back on the right track, Howard said. We werent playing good ball. Luckily for us, they werent playing good ball, either. Its four games now, and weve just got to keep it going.
Related: Phils select slugger Greene 39th overallVIDEO: Who's the fifth starter?
E-mail Reuben Frank at rfrank@comcastsportsnet.com