Another ticket that went by the wayside. A horrific accident closed I-78 all day and totally snarled local traffic. The day's brutal heat and humidity were just more reasons to pass up a two-hour drive to New Jersey. Last night's make-up game with the Rockies was classic Coors Field: 23 total runs, 35 hits, and 14 pitchers used. It went almost four hours, which probably did not thrill either team. The Phillies were stopping over in Denver on their way home from the West Coast; the Rockies were flying in from San Francisco, then heading immediately for San Diego. The Rox led 4-0 early, then 6-3 in the 5th, tacking on another run in a 6th inning marked by miscues and a missed call at first. At 7-3, it was feeling sort of futile. Then came the surprise 7th, when the Phillies sent 12 men to the plate and scored nine runs on nine hits. Ryan Howard hit a two-run homer and Jayson Werth followed him with a solo shot. Chase Utley started the scoring that inning with an RBI single and ended it with a grand slam to put the Phillies up 12-7.
But it was still Coors Field. In the 8th, the Rockies got three off of reliever Chad Durbin. Brad Lidge yielded another run in the 9th, which started with a Howard error and devolved from there. In the end, a ground-out to Polanco ended the game at 12-11. Whew!
I never had any doubt that Lidge would get the save. Is it time to start feeling the magic?
Congratulations to the GCL Phillies, who yesterday beat the GCL Rays to win the Gulf Coast League title in a best-of-three series.
