rangers step up

A week later at the farm but the sign was still the same.

The Rangers tell the world they are here with a 4-2 win over the Giants last night. Colby Lewis the come-back-from-Japan guy was the winner and Jonathan Sanchez the loser.

Many of the signs in the stands in San Francisco were on the lines of 'player's name for governor'. More ho-hum in Arlngton, with the likes of 'Thank the Lord for Josh Hamilton'.

Let's hear it for Nolan Ryan, who has called for the designated hitter to go. Yes!

giants lead 2-0

Well, that was more like it, a taut game into the 7th, when Ranger starter C.J. Wilson left with a blister and all hell broke loose. But the turning point was in the 5th. In the top of the inning, Ian Kinsler smacked what could have been a home run but instead bounced off the top of the fence and back into play. Kinsler settled for a lead-off double and ended up stranded at second. In the bottom of the frame, Edgar Rentaria hit one over the fence to give the Giants a 1-0 lead.

Matt Cain has been to me the most impressive Giant starter of the post-season. He finally looks as if he has caught up to the hype. I don't know what the word was about the Ranger bullpen but they may want to look into the theory of throwing first-pitch strikes. Or were they fried from the night before? In the end it was the Giants 9 and the Rangers 0. I was outta there in the 7th.

The "Josh Hamilton drinks for free" signs appearing outside San Francisco bars are totally classless.

Blistered

Another warm night of baseball and the rains held off. Great boiling clouds overhead.

Unlike the first, this was a great pitching matchup until the late innings. Cain was dead calm and effective, CJ Wilson, unrattled by Giants' bats. Giants scored once in the 5th with a Renteria homer, and the game could have gone either way. Then the blister appeared on Wilson's finger in the 7th. He couldn't superglue it on the mound, so he was gone.

The Rangers' relievers came in, and the whole game unglued. Oliver got them out of the inning with only one Giant scored, but the 8th was a debacle. Holland loaded up the bases with walks and two Giants eventually walked home. Lowe wasn't any help. In the end, it was a 7-run Giants inning. We'll take it, but what a sloppy ending to a delightful pitching duel.

This game points out Washington's unfamiliarity with National League play - the late innings have been a disaster. If the Rangers don't turn things around quickly in their own park, this Series is over. The Giants have all the momentum after these two games.

Former Giant Jose Guillen's probe for HGH distribution again draws attention to the pressure players feel to excel at the superhero level in the Pros.

dobbs gone, moyer, too

Today the Phillies removed Greg Dobbs, for one year pinch-hitter extraordinaire, from the 40-man roster and Dobbs opted to file for free agency. Jamie Moyer, now pitching in winter ball in the Domincan Republic, will also file for free agency. Back-up Paul Hoover was outrighted to Lehigh Valley and he too has opted for free agency.

halladay wins players' award for outstanding pitcher

Roy Halladay has won the Players' Choice Award for NL Outstanding Pitcher of the Year. Congratulations, Doc! It couldn't go to a better guy. The award, which is voted for by the players themselves, gives Halladay $20.000 to donate to the charity of his choice. It will go, he says, to an organization in Philadelphia yet to be determined.

Cliff Lee IS Mortal

The biggest revelation of this first World Series game is that no matter how much confidence a team may place on their starting pitcher, the Ace cannot win the game alone. In the first inning the Rangers were all over Lincecum and he looked unnerved and frazzled. Lee, on the other hand, mowed the Giants down. It appeared this was going to be a game between "the kid" and the "super hero." Lee's confidence continued in the second inning, with an amazing 2-base run and eventually scoring. Lincecum made an odd fielding error. The Giants' bats were silenced. The fan next to me, a retired military man visiting from Salinas, exhorted the Giants to hit. He had bought our expensive Stubhub ticket and wanted to see his money's worth.

He got his wish: the third inning was a turning point. Renteria reached on an error, Torres was hit by the pitcher, and Sanchez and Posey started hitting against Lee. These small glitches, and Giants' success in taking advantage of them, turned the entire game's dynamics. Lincecum regained his composure in the following inning and Lee began to lose his. But this was not destined to be a game of dueling Aces. Lee was gone by the 5th inning, Lincecum by the 7th. The game was won by the Giants' bats. Final score: 11-7.

Riding BART home after the game, a beat writer from Seattle told me how he was caught unawares by the end-of-season surge by the Giants. An uncanny bunch of beards, but it is what it is.

More excitement to follow: the Rangers lost to the Yankees with lopsided scores in the Division Series and have come right back. Torture is forecast.

polanco to have surgery friday

Gnarly gourds hanging out at the farm stand I favor.

Placido Polanco is scheduled for surgery on Friday to remove bone chips in his left elbow. He will also have his extensor tendon repaired. Polanco played through pain for much of the season and spent a stint on the DL the first half of July. If the suregery is successful, he should be ready for spring training.

slop by the bay

Eighteen runs, 25 hits, and six errors. No doubt Giants' fans will take the 11-7 win, but it was the kind of baseball I bail on. And I did. Cliff Lee gave up seven of the Giant runs and went 4.2 innings; Tim Lincecum gave up four runs and went 5.2. Neither starter impressed. We've seen Lee like this before, just not in the post-season. When Lee is bad, he's very bad. And very quickly bad. Last night it happened in the 5th. As for the play in the field, a lot of slop on both sides. Torture? That's watching Vlad Guerrero play right field. But I guess Ron Washington doesn't have a choice. Maybe we'll have some good baseball tonight.

what are words worth

All that is thought should not be said,
all that is said should not be written,
all that is written should not be published,
and all that is published should not be read.

Famous words from the Kotzker Rebbe (1787--1859), written before the advent of the Internet, blogs, and social networking.

making lace

Years ago Slovak contemporary artist Silvia Fedorova gave me this B&W print out of a bobbin lace-making demonstration. Silvia, who runs the wonderful Gallery X in Bratislava, uses traditional bobbin lace techniques to make jewelry, hats, accessories, and objets of wire, plastic, and nylon. I am working on a piece about Silvia and Iveta Mihalikova, another Slovak contemporary artist, who uses a different lace technique, that of needle lace, for making art.

phils decline romero's option

The Phillies declined today to pick up the $4.5 million option on J.C. Romero, who has become a free agent. Romero may return on a lesser deal but his departure is more likely. The lefty reliever, he of the beautiful hair, was key to the Phillies success in both 2007 and 2008, but since serving a suspension, warranted or not, for PED use, he was not the same. He also battled injuries and finally had surgery this off-season. Perhaps he will regain his form elsewhere.

Thus, the first shoe drops. Will Antonio Bastardo step up and take the job? He's got the talent. Does he have the moxie?

weird confluence

The Williamsport Crosscutters, the NY-Penn League affiliate of the Phillies, is holding its third annual World Series part tomorrow night at a hotel in Williamsport. According to the email sent me: "A special invitation is extended to gas industry employees cheering on the Texas Rangers in their first-ever World Series appearance." Go, Rangers, I guess. And support the flagging Pennsylvania economy.

The party, by the bye, is free and open to the public.

late harvest

Maybe I will drive out to the farms today. It's again warm here but pretty soon vegetables such as these will be gone.

amaro, halladay, and werth speak

Out and about running errands, I caught Ruben Amaro's post-season presser on the radio. Asked if the Phillies wanted to sign Jayson Werth and did they have the money to do so, Amaro immediately answered, "Yes." Will it happen? That depends, he said, on Jayson, his rep Scott Boras, and the details of amount and length. Ah yes, those details. Still it was a somewhat optimistic note. Amaro characterized the season as a successful one with a disappointing ending. Lots more was said, much of it about the state of the club now and going forward. I like Amaro and think he has done a good job, but the challenges never stop.

Let's hope he is not considering any of the names floated in a Jim Salisbury piece on csnphilly.com about possible 'replacements' for Werth, such as Burrell, Rowand, Matt Diaz, Jeff Francouer, and Marcus Thames. Was Salisbury joking?

I later caught some of the Roy Halladay presser on TV and was again impressed by the ace, who was looking cool in gunmetal blue. What a total team player. He and Utley epitomize doing whatever it takes to win for the team. Someone asked which of his several accomplishments this year, including the perfect game, the no-hitter, opening day, and a potential Cy Young award, meant the most to him. Halladay responded with one not named: the NL East clinching game, because it was winning for his team and then being able to celebrate that with his teammates.

The Werth presser which followed was quite different as the reporters wanted only to ask him over and over about his pending free agency and Werth was not really interested in talking about it in detail. Werth, wearing a black leather baseball cap backwards, is for sure an interesting guy with a quirky way of thinking and expressing himself. He knows what he wants, and does not want, to say. He too talked about what a remarkable team the Phillies have and how rare it is to be part of something like it, where the core of players have been together for years. Although Philadelphia is where Werth grew into his baseball identity, I got the sad sense that he has come to terms with moving on. Boohoo, boohoo.

high hopes dashed

Eight for 45 with runners in scoring position was all you had to know about this series. So it was probably fitting that the game ended with two men on and Ryan Howard, who actually went .303/.395/.424 yet did not have an RBI in the series, caught looking. With that the Giants won the game 3-2 and the series 4-2. It was an unlucky third that changed the game, with plays just missed or made ill-advisedly. That inning, so unlike the Phillies, was yet so frustratingly typical of the way they played this post-season. As has been famously said by many, post-season is a crap shoot.

The offensive inconsistency reared its head, as it had all year, in the NLDS. Still, it was an amazing year in many ways. At mid-season I was sure they had been derailed by all of the injuries (Rollins, Utley, Howard, Polanco, Ruiz, Victorino, Lidge, Romero, Moyer, Happ, Blanton, for starts), but they blazed their way past the competition to finish with the best record in baseball. But Red October is now over and done. Thanks a lot, Phillies, for a most memorable year! Here's to 2011.

The San Francisco Giants, meanwhile, move on from a gut-wrenching series to face Cliff Lee and a Texas Rangers team that rolled over the Yankees. Should be interesting. One of the teams will win its first ever World Series.

On to the Rangers

All great games are full of torture and suspense. What an epic game last night. Every player on both teams played their hearts out. As a fan I could not wish for anything more.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

oh yeah, congrats to the rangers

That's right, the Texas Rangers defeated the Yankees last night to win their first ever AL pennant and to advance to their first-ever World Series. A lot of feel-good stories in this accomplishment and Cliff Lee rides again. But what a pale crowd at that park in Arlington.

A snapshot of NY baseball, as seen last night around 8 p;m. on 42nd Street: A Yankees clubhouse store lit up, stocked to the gills, and open for business. A couple of blocks later, a Mets store, dark and closed, with a homeless man camped outside.

halladay guts out a win in game 5

Roy Halladay pulled his right groin in the 2nd inning of game 5, then gutted out another four innings of gritty ball. It all looked shaky from the start as Halladay did the unthinkable by allowing a lead-off walk to Andres Torres, who eventually scored thanks in part to a Chase Utley miscue. Things could have been worse but Ryan Howard made a fierce diving catch of a ball smashed by Aubrey Huff, which changed the inning.

In the 3rd, it was the Giants' turn to fumble, as Huff clanked a ball hit right at him. There was also the foul bunt at the plate that wasn't foul, some gutsy base-running by Raul Ibanez, and some timely hitting, which gave the Phillies a 3-1 lead. in the 9th, Jasyon Werth tacked on an insurance homer to right--oh, how we will miss him--to make it 4-2. The bullpen was stellar, especially Madson, who struck out the heart of the order in the 8th, and Lidge, who breezed in the 9th.

Jimmy Rollins had a message for CBP fans for game 6: Let them have it. Let them have it. All of them.

beating themselves

All I needed to send me to sleep last night was Joe Blanton walking the first batter in the bottom of the 5th, right after the Phillies had rallied for a 4-2 lead. A lot more happened (Roy Oswalt getting the loss, for one) but all in all it was an ugly game and the Phillies, as they have done all along at AT&T Park, did nothing to help themselves. Instead, they are letting the Giants outplay them--and play them right out of the series.

So it's down to Roy Halladay tonight, another top pitcher with an inexplicably bad record against a mediocre offensive team. The stars are against a win! Poor guy. The Cliff Lee debate is no doubt raging already in Philadelphia, fueled in part by a weird ESPN report that Lee has Philadelphia at the top of his wish list. Puh-leeze. Why would anyone believe that?

Game 4 NLDS

The Play Ball kid was a girl in full beard.






An anxious game full of seesawing innings. After a sloppy 5th inning that drove Bumgarter from the game and gave Phillies the lead, Sandoval had a huge hit the next inning to bring back the Giants' lead. Then in the 8th, a huge hit by Werth tied thongs up again. Now pitching: the undependable Romo.



Sand in the end Uribe sacrificed Huff to win. Wow! The most exciting game so far!!

just another bad game by the bay

Baseball is often like the stars in the sky last night: cold, remote, and indifferent. Or like life.

I did see the stars some last night but was on the phone with an editor for much of yesterday's game, though I did hear the first three innings on radio. They let me know all I had to know. Cole Hamels deserved a better fate but the offense was dormant. The Phillies have long had Matt Cain's number but not yesterday.

It was in the end exactly the kind of San Francisco game that made me grit my teeth in that ballpark again and again. How many times have I sat there and watched the Phillies play as if they are under water? It's odd. All of the West Coast parks are so-called pitcher's parks but the Phillies have no trouble in San Diego or Los Angeles. San Francisco, though, is a bog for them. It's why I have had a fatalistic feeling about this series from the start.

The chances of Joe Blanton having a good game tonight are somewhat remote. I'm not dissing Joe. I think he should start. But he hasn't started a game since September 29. He says himself that he does better the more he throws. Oi vey. In the end it doesn't matter, though, if the Phillies do not hit. They are once again in one of the frustrating slumps that have typified this year. However did they manage to overcome the injuries and slumps to have the best record in the game?

Game 3 NLCS

Starts with the unfurling of the giant flag, flyover, fireboat fountains spouting and fireworks. Among the luminaries throwing out the ceremonial ball: Barry Bonds. He ran out onto the field in a cheerful outburst of enthusiasm never seem as a player. The fans gave him a wildly enthusiastic welcome.

Cain came up big with great pitching against a team he has lost to many times. And Ross continues to be the catalyst for the Giants. Renteria and Rowand also contributed, in place of Torres and Fontenot.

Crowds are rowdy and joyous. Unlike the regular season we are surrounded by avid fans who must have bought their stubhub tix at a premium.

run, baby, run

This father and son were hanging over the right field fence before the game, hoping for a ball from one of the Giants shagging during batting practice. Nothing doing, however. It is still amazing to me how many kids are always in that ballpark and how into the games they are.

Good as it was to see the game Roy Oswalt had last night, it was also good to see the Phillies' usually excellent running game come back to life. Chase Utley had two of their three stolen bases, which included a double steal in the 7th. Thanks to Davey Lopes, a wizard at keeping those red shoes running!

oswalt dominates--and hits and runs, too

Roy Oswalt long tosses before the game.

The rally towels never get old. This was in the 9th.

Roy Oswalt pitched like his old self last night--and ran his career record at Citizens Bank Park to 10-0. He held the Giants to one run on three hits, that one run (and first hit) coming in the 5th on another homer by Cody Ross, who continues to torment the Phillies no matter what uni he wears. Oswalt gave him a bowtie but later sweetened it with a cookie.

Torment also describes what Oswalt did all night to Giant lead-off hitter Andres Torres, who struck out swinging in his four at bats. The last one was on a slow curve that came out of nowhere and could have driven Torres around the bend. Oswalt K'd nine on the night and went a strong eight innings.

The Phillies scored first, getting an unearned run in the 1st, when they loaded the bases on two wallks and an error. Jimmy Rollins then drew the third walk of the inning to force in the run. Starter Jonathan Sanchez, dominant for the Giants down the stretch, was not so much last night. He threw 35 pitches in the 1st inning and left in the 7th with 100 pitches.

After Ross tied the game in the top of the 5th, the Phillies immediate responded with a go-ahead run. Victorino led off with a double, Utley, who batted second last night, sacrificed him over, and Polanco sacrificed him in. But the 7th was the big inning. Oswalt, who in the 4th had a fabulous nine- or ten-pitch at bat against Sanchez and got the crowd really going, led off with a single,which drove Sanchez from the game. Victorino then bunted Oswalt to 2nd. After Utley was walked, Polanco hit the single that, unbelievably, scored RoyO. Another intentional walk to Werth loaded the bases. Jimmy Rollins then ripped a bases-clearing double to right center. He was serenaded with chants of J-Roll for minutes on end.

A stellar pitching performance was augmented by some offensive glimmers. Ryan Howard, against the tough lefty Sanchez, had a walk, a double, and a single. If they get it going, they will be, as Sarge says, "impossible". But will they get it going in San Francisco, not a place where the Phillies have thrived?

reading the signs

In the bottom of the 7th inning last night as the Phillies were padding their lead, I looked overhead just in time to catch this message from the blimp overhead: NO WORRIES. I laughed. I had just watched in disbelief as Roy Oswalt, looking like the slowest man in the world, had run through a stop sign from third base coach Sam Perlozzo and chugged home from second on a single to center. RoyO slid in safely but oh my gosh. Bless Aubrey Huff of the Giants for reading Perlozzo's sign and cutting off the ball at the mound. Oswalt said after the game that as soon as he saw the ball go over the infield, his only thought was to score.

Cutest sign of the night: Roys 'R Us.

The best one so far was a long banner cutting across several sections in left field and aimed at Pat Burrell: Pat...Elvis roots for the Phillies. Elvis, of course, is Burrell's English bulldog, the one that rode with him on the Budweiser wagon at the World Series parade.

Good Ending but Today - Who Knows?

Caught the Phillies/Giants match up while sitting through open studios yesterday. So much talk about the dream pitcher match-up didn't pan out. Instead, the surprise continues to be Cody Ross, the accidental pickup from the Marlins. He's been a dynamo, perhaps because he hasn't been with the Giants all season long and can play without huge expectations.

I think I will put out the Lincecum nude for open studios today.
Go Giants!!

halladay human, falls 4-3 to giants

The vaunted pitching match-up between Lincecum and Halladay was more dud than duel. Neither starter was particularly sharp and both suffered a floating strike zone from home plate umpire Derryl Cousins. Each went seven and each gave up two home runs. When I fell asleep it was 4-3 Giants. When I woke the game was over and the score the same. If the Phillies continue to play like this, they will soon be outta here. They had plenty of chances but did not move runners along, did not steal, and did not hit. Ryan Howard led off the 2nd with a double and was stranded. After that Howard was a cipher. Both Howard and Rollins have no timing. It's getting late fast, guys.

brown and kendrick on, dobbs off

Domonic Brown remains on the roster for the NLCS, while Kyle Kendrick replaces Greg Dobbs. Brown is on perhaps for his speed and versatility but it gives me pause that Kendrick is now the 11th pitcher.

Last night's Yankees-Rangers game proved again that in the play-offs little things (covering first, reading the bounce of a ball, not getting picked-off)mean a lot. Last night they added up to a stunning comeback for the Yankees. C.C. Sabathia was worse than in his first start but was again taken off the hook. The Twins gave the Yankees life for sure.

It is brisk and it is windy this morning. More of the same but colder this evening.

can't take it

Thank the gods for Zoo with Roy, the Zozone, and Ella Fitzgerald. This past week I have consciously tried to avoid Internet, TV, and radio. The amount of junk being spewed about the two LCS is mind-boggling. Much is not accurate and much is not interesting. What I heard driving home this afternoon from Mr. NY Arrogance on the FAN this afternoon made me want to scream. I understand that most sports talk radio is a gossip machine but yikes some of these guys take themselves so seriously.

Meanwhile, Zoo with Roy is ending its hilarious Cole Hamels fist pump meme series. There were days when I scrolled through the offerings and howled. Laughter is sweet.

At Zozone, Todd Zolecki, one of my fave Phillie beat writers, caught the mood as well today with a great posting about the music played for each Phillie as he came to bat or warmed up to pitch, complete with links to each song. Now, that is insight.

Ella Fitzgerald, meanwhile, is lighting up the afternoon.

down to four

Pitching and defense are the post-season mantra and that was very much the case in the recent division series. Forget about the pathetic Twins and their nemesis, the Yankees. Until the Twins are able to beat the Yankees, they should enjoy their season-ending division titles.

The Giants-Braves series was pretty much over as soon as Billy Wagner got injured. That threw the Braves' bullpen, already running on fumes, into a tailspin. The Braves' defense was simply awful, much as it had been most of the season. The Giants' defense was not crisp either, but the Giants were able to outlast the shaky Braves. No wonder Pablo Sandoval disappeared from the starting line-up; the guy is a misadventure waiting to happen at third base. As for the pitching, Lincecum was outstanding in his post-season debut. I felt sorry, though, for Hudson and Lowe, who both pitched their hearts out for the Braves. But oh that brutal defense behind them.

The other ALDS, too, was about pitching and defense. Game 5 last night had it all: Cliff Lee at his brilliant post-season best for the Rangers and shocking defensive miscues by the Rays, who were schooled on the base paths. Elvis Andrus at 20 can no doubt run like a deer but there is no way Vladimir Guerrero should score from 2nd on an infield ground-out. It will be interesting to see if the Rangers abuse Posada and the Yankees in the same way.

All in all, there was some great pitching (Halladay, Lincecum, Lee, Hamels) in the first round but also some ugly, ugly baseball. The only offense clicking so far is, sigh, the Yankees.

charges dropped against tyson gillies

It was reported this weekend that the cocaine possession charges against prospect Tyson Gillies have been dropped. Gillies was arrested on August 20 for an alledged incident on June 11, when a bag of cocaine was found in the back of a police car in which he had been riding. Officers were reportedly giving Gillies a ride home after they had noticed him standing by the road waving his shirt. Gillies supposedly tested negative for any drugs in a test administered five hours after the alleged incident.

Start to finish, this story was a bit murky. All I can say is that Gillies, a touted piece in the Cliff Lee trade, does not seem to be the type of person who would squander his talents or the opportunity given him. It is just as likely that none of this would have happened had he not been injured and rehabbing in Florida.

happy 100th!

Shirahata Miyoshi, my former ragweaving teacher in Tono, earlier this year celebrated her 100th birthday. A friend in Tono sent photos from the party held to celebrate the event. I used one here against a throw I wove while studying with Miyoshi, who was also a nationally-known storyteller.

Tono is in Iwate prefecture, in northeastern Japan, and is known for its remarkable legends, collected by folklorist Yanagida Kunio, who visited Tono early in the 2oth century. One hundred years ago Yanagida published a compilation of the legends under the title Tono monogatari (The Legends of Tono). I often heard Miyoshi recount legends that she learned as a little girl sitting around the open hearth in her family farmhouse. She was an unforgettable storyteller and a local treasure.

Happy 100th to Shirahata Miyoshi and the Tono monogatari!

it's the giants

Saturday's game is sure to be the most over-hyped in either of the championship series, featuring Roy Halladay and Tim Lincecum. It's Jonathan Sanchez, though, who makes me nervous. The Phillies are still, I believe, the better team, but that doesn't mean they will win. I could easily see the Giants taking the series. H20 have pretty pedestrian numbers against the Giants, odd in that they are not much of an offensive team. On the other hand, neither this year are the Phillies. Maybe the 103.5-mph Aroldis Chapman offering that Carlos Ruiz smacked Sunday night for a ringing double is a portent. That was, supposedly, the fastest pitch ever hit.

phillies take the cole train to nlcs series

Thank you, Cole Hamels. I wanted a complete game shutout in Game 3 and that's exactly what you delivered last night. Hamels, who made his debut four years ago in Cincinnati, has always liked pitching there. Coming into last night's game, he had a 6-0 record and an ERA of 1.07 in seven starts against the Reds.

Last night was simply more of the same. Hamels, who was masterful, gave up five hits, struck out nine and walked none. Brandon Phillips led off the 9th with single to left, but Hamels then got slugger Joey Votto to ground into a doubleplay. That left former Phillie Scott Rolen. Hamels got him swinging on a 95-mph fastball to end the game and to send the Phillies to their third-consecutive NLCS series.

With that strike-out, too, Cincinnati offense: finis. Cincinnati defense: finis. The talented, upstart Cincinnati Reds: finis. The Reds were shut out in two of the three games.

The Phillies scored twice. Their first run came in the 1st, on yet another Reds' error. They scored their second in the 5th, on a Chase Utley homer that just crept over the wall. Utley now has more home run than any other second baseman in postseason history, with 10. And how could I forget the sparkling defensive play by Shane Victorino, on a hard liner by Brandon Phillips? Or that Hamels hit a long fly ball off of Aroldis Chapman in the 9th?

Up next, the Braves or the Giants, but that won't be till Saturday.

Freak Brings It

Great pitching duel but Lincecum came out ahead. 117 pitches, 14K's, 9 innings of beautiful ball. It was beautiful because Lincecum was allowed to finish the game.

That was Thursday night. Nothing like the festivities of post season with patriotic bunting lining the walls.

Fear the Beard

The Giants slogans for the post-season are "Torture" and "Fear the Beard." we got plenty of both last nite. After a first inning 3 run homer by former Phillies player Pat Burrell, he later made a fielding error that converted a single into a double that started the Braves rally. All it took was a huge blown save by Wilson for the rabid fans to be deflated like so many limp orange pompons. Deja vu from early in the season when Wilson blew a save to a gem pitched by Lincecum. As for the beards that all the relievers are sporting, especially the black dye job on Wilson, I say the beards aren't feared by the opposing team but the Giants fans themselves. This writer sported her own luxurious bush, only to learn that female fans were sporting panda heads, not beards.

reds unravel, phils pull the string

Game 2 on Friday night was a disaster for the Reds. Early on it was a dud for the Phillies. From the first pitch Roy Oswalt looked as if he had been invaded by space aliens. He said later it was rust, but I don't know about that. He was gone in five, having given up four runs. Red starter Bronson Arroyo was also gone in five, giving up two runs with a little help from some porous defense.

It turned into a bullpen meet and the Phillies prevailed. Between hitting men and walking them, the Reds kept the Phillies on the bases. Eventually they cashed in. Down 4-3 in the 7th, Chase Utley was 'hit' on the knuckles by an Aroldis Chapman blazer at 101 mph. Said Utley afterward of the pitch in one of the great lines ever, "I felt like I thought it hit me." Whatever Utley felt, he put his head down and headed straight for first. No one contested it. He was later called safe on a bang-bang play at second. In truth, Scott Rolen was ill-advised to throw to second in the first place. Then Jimmy Rollins hit a liner to right that Jay Bruce misplayed into a two-base error. Brandon Phillips added another circus touch by bobbling the throw to the infield. Utley stumbled rounding third (did he even touch the bag) and scored, with Werth on his heels. "It was hectic out there," said the deadpan Utley.

So the Reds went from a 4-0 lead in the 5th to a 7-4 defeat. Five of the Phillies' runs were unearned thanks to four Cincinnati errors, including the one by Bruce, two by Phillips and one by Rolen, all of whom are Gold Glovers. One of the funnier headlines the next day was in the Inky: "Bobble Reds, Cincy held giveaway night..."

Hitting and defense have been Cincinnati strengths, but in Game 1, the Reds did not hit and in Game 2, they did not field. The Phillies, meanwhile, did what they always do: capitalize on the opponent's mistakes. Chase Utley committed two errors early in the game and looked to be the goat. What he said later was, "What I have learned is when you make an error, you have to put it behind you. You can't change it at that point. All you can do is move on from there and try to improve on your mistakes."

game 2: bronson arroyo v. roy oswalt

Another postcard from the friends who went to Fan Appreciation Day. This one shows a bit of Oswalt's home debut as a Phillie, on August 11 against the Dodgers. The Phillies won it 2-0. After Halladay's no-hitter, Oswalt quipped that the only way to top it was for the offense to come up with 25 hits.

more from last night

Oh the happy faces at the end of last night's game. This father and daughter were next to me at the game and totally into every minute of it. They were also good, good people, and I'm happy they allowed me to take their photo. Lucky girl, lucky dad.

It was a blur of rally towels for most of the game last night.

Another note from last night: It was the first time the Cincinnati Reds had been no-hit since 1971.

It was a most happy day for Zoo with Roy. Do check it out at www.zoowithroy.com.

Late last night I heard a national talking nitwit say that after Halladay's no-no, Roy Oswalt was sure to get lit up tomorrow. It could of course happen, but the guy neglected to mention that Oswalt is 23-3 lifetime against the Reds. He is also 9-0 in his career at Citizens Bank Park.

halladay's historic, no hits reds

Any seat in the park last night was a good seat. I liked mine just fine but, seriously, I would love to sit behind home plate for one of Roy Halladay's games.

Unbelievable. At the start of the 8th inning, the man two seats next to me hugged his daughter, who looked to be about 13 and was wearing a softball jacket. I smiled at the guy and mouthed over the girl's head: Unbelievable. He echoed the comment and hugged his daughter again. At that point everyone was standing for every Halladay pitch. With each strike, each out, the roar of the crowd got, unbelievably, louder and louder. When Ruiz got the final out, the most frazzling out of the night, we all could have gone spinning off into space. It was an unbelievable night at the ballpark.

So this is what Roy Halladay did in his post-season debut, after starting 320 games in the majors. He faced 28 batters, walked one, on a close call at that, gave up only one hard hit ball, to pitcher Travis Wood, threw 104 pitches, 79 for strikes, (25 of them for first-pitch strikes), struck out eight, and made it all look effortless from start to finish. And he did it all against the Cincinnati Reds, who led the National League this year in all offensive categories. He made them look feeble.

Driving down to Philadelphia, I was thinking about Cliff Lee's postseason debut in last year's NLDS, an electrifying performance that ended in the 9th with the whole park chanting, Let's go, Lee! And thinking about Hamels' dominating performance in the 2008 NLDS against the Brewers. Then I heard that Polanco had been scratched for the day's game with a back problem and hoped it was not an omen.

After the 1st inning, though, you had to have the feeling that the Phillies had the game. Halladay retired the first three Reds on 10 pitches, and I thought, hey, he could do that another 24 times. But it was Shane Victorino who sealed it. With one out in the 1st, he doubled, stole 3rd, then scored on an Utley sac fly. Shane was obviously in his post-season form. Little did we know that it was ball game over right there. However, with two outs, the Phillies added three more in the 2nd, one coming on a Halladay RBI single. Gosh.

Reds' starter Edinson Volquez didn't make it through the 2nd. The Reds bullpen came in and did a sterling job but it was too late. The Phillies had a 4-0 lead and that indeed was the game.

In the 4th, I wondered briefly if Halladay would pitch another perfect game. After he walked Bruce in the 5th, on a full count, I thought, OK, the perfect game is gone, it's a no-hitter. By the 6th, the no-no was on everyone's mind. In the 8th it was standing room only while Doc was on the mound. In the 9th, the joint was rocking to chants of Let's go, Doc! Pretty soon it was all over and the park erupted. An unbelievable game, an unbelievable postseason debut.

Yet, until the weird little dribbler off the bat of Brandon Phillips in the 9th, I never thought it was in doubt. But Ruiz made a quick recovery and threw Phillips out at 1st. I was at the Millwood no-hitter at the Vet and remember feeling as nervous as a cat till the last out, and that was against the offensively-challenged Giants.
Memorable as that game was, last night's was awesome to the nth degree.

Friday will be the 54th anniversary of the only other no-hitter in baseball post-season history, Don Larsen's perfect game against the Brooklyn Dodgers. That happened in the World Series, in the days when the WS was the play-offs. Another big difference, while Larsen was a journeyman pitcher, Halladay is an ace.

One of the best quotes afterward came from Scott Rolen, "I never thought I would look forward to facing Roy Oswalt." Oswalt and Hamels have their work cut out for them. Halladay, meanwhile, is proving Ruben Amaro to be a genius. Red Doctober, indeed.

h2o and let's go

At Charlie Manuel's presser today, someone asked how hungry Roy Halladay was to be in the post-season. Charlie could barely answer for laughing, "I think he's real hungry, I think he's starving." And the room cracked up. He was also asked about having Halladay and Sweeney, two veterans who have never been to the post-season, on the team this year. Sweeney, he said, was high energy, vocal, one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet,--and he can still hit. "As for Halladay," said Manuel, "I could sit here and talk about him forever."

There was a lot more in the presser. To those who listen, Charlie Manuel has a lot to say. He keeps reminding me of various Zen 'masters' I knew in Japan, who gave these little talks that went drifting by until days or weeks or months later you suddenly twigged to what had been said. Or maybe you never did.

No matter what happens in tomorrow's game, it's been amazing watching Halladay pitch this season. H2O: Halladay, Hamels, and Oswalt. What continues to be wonderful about the Phillies is that they are above all else a team. They have their share of stars, but their stars don't act like stars. They never put themselves above the team. It's really something special to watch.

H2O will take the Phillies far or not. In a five-game series, though, anything can happen; luck and timing are as big as anything else. The best team, and coming into the post-season the Phillies are certainly that, sinply does not always win.

Just now, with temperatures in the 50's and a steady rain falling, it's hard to believe there will be a game tomorrow. I'm thinking it's good that my seat is under cover. H2O, let's go!

it's the reds

A postcard from friends from this year's Fan Appreciation Day.

Specifically, it's Halladay, Oswalt, and Hamels against Volquez, Arroyo, and Cueto. And it all starts at 5:07 on Wednesday in Philadelphia. The forecast is for cool weather and showers, probably much like today, which this morning is feeling chilly. Not exactly Charlie Manuel's 'hitting weather', but I do hope the Phillies are in an offensive frame of mind. The Reds are sure to be.

Carlos Ruiz says he is sore but hopes to be ready for Wednesday. X-ray results were negative but he will see team doctors today. J.C. Romero, who left yesterday's game with a back problem, says that he will be ready to go. Here comes Antonio Bastardo!

Giants Clinch!!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

braves escape 8-7

Billy Wagner almost blew it in the 8th, giving up three runs, but in the end he got Raul Ibanez swinging with the tying run on base. Danys Baez did blow it, in the 4th. Cole Hamels looked good in his two tune-up innings, while Roy Oswalt did not seem quite tuned in in his one inning. John Mayberry hit a two-run blast to give the Phillies a brief lead. Werth also hit a two-run homer but by then the Braves had eight on the board. Is this bye-bye, Baez, for the play-offs? Please say yes. Bobby Cox did the beleaguered Brooks Conrad a service by playing him at 2nd today. Conrad made one error but was key in the Braves' offense. Redemption is sweet.

And someone please plunk Tim Hudson. Seriously. Hudson nailed Carlos Ruiz on the elbow in his first at-bat and almost took him down. Ruiz looked to be fighting back tears. Hudson is the one who did the same to Placido Polanco in April, putting him on the DL and causing all kinds of elbow problems throughout the season. Polanco, who had his 4th cortisone shot on Wednesday, has been playing through pain all season and will have surgery this winter.

I doubt that he does it on purpose but Hudson seems to have a talent for hitting Phillies on the elbow. I would like to think that Roy Oswalt would have plunked Hudson in his next at-bat were it not for the circumstances. Next season will be time enough. Ruiz left the game and there is still no word on his condition.

The Phillies finish September/October with a 23-7 record. Their season record of 97-65 is the best in baseball. Since July 22, the turnaround point of the season, they are 49-19. Under Charlie Manuel, the Phillies have been the best second-half team in the National League since 2005.

Looks like it's going to be the Reds in Philadelphia on Wednesday.

Game 81

Game begins with over excited fans. We must win today.

Third inning Sanchez sends Sanchez home, then Huff sends Sanchez home. 2-0 Giants.






Top of the 6th Sanchez is replaced by Casilla. Is this a smart move?

phils blank braves 7-0

Vance Worley, in his second start in the majors, faced down Tommy Hanson, going five strong innings and giving up just one hit. OK, the Braves are not looking like offensive giants but they are fighting for their play-off lives. The Phillies on the other hand are pretty much playing loosey-goosey--and it shows.

Both starters were lifted after five. The Phillies, who littered the bases each inning, finally broke through in the 7th, again aided by a Brooks Conrad error. (Poor guy, he has definitely been the goat so far.) Chase Utley had two hits, scored two runs, and stole two bases--a good, good afternoon. What starting regulars there were again started to give way to the bench after the 5th. Bastardo, Baez, Madson, and Contreras each threw an inning of scoreless ball. It was the 21st shutout thrown by Phillies' pitchers this year.

So far the Phillies have, almost without trying, put the kibosh on Bobby Cox's retirement weekend. The Padres, meanwhile, again silenced AT&T park. Depending on what happens tomorrow in Atlanta and San Francisco, the Phillies could face the Reds, the Giants, or the Padres on Wednesday. It's even crazier for the Braves, Giants, and Padres.

It was the day the Braves and their fans honored Bobby Cox, who would, if the roles were reversed, probably play things pretty much as Charlie Manuel is doing this weekend. At the end of his speech, Cox saluted Manuel and the Phillies for winning the NL East. Pretty classy. The entire Phillies' team stood throughout the 35-minute ceremony. That, too, was classy.

phillies clobber braves

What was billed as a big weekend for two teams last week turned into an afterthought for one. For the Phillies the final season series with the Braves is tune-up time. The priorities are staying sharp and staying healthy. For the Braves it's a chance to win the Wild Card and to honor the retiring Bobby Cox.

Last night in the 6th, Jimmy Rollins broke the game open with a line-drive grand slam on the first pitch he saw from tough reliever Peter Moylan. The slam was set up by a crucial error by third baseman Brooks Conrad and a savvy at-bat by rookie Domonic Brown. Again, regulars started then gave way to the bench guys. Kyle Kendrick was (smaller case) ok, giving up two runs in six innings. Watching his opponent Brandon Beachy was more interesting. The Phillies kept hitting every chance they had and waltzed away with an 11-5 win. After Rollins hit the slam, the Braves' dugout looked depressed. Vance Worley goes today against Tommy Hanson.

phanatic around town raises more than $250,000

Detail from one of my favorite Phanatics, called "Phanatic Phans". By Max Mason, who did several of the murals at Citizens Bank Park, it was installed at the Philadelphia airport.

The auction is over, the results are in. The Phanatic around Town project raised more than $250,000 for Phillies Charities. The lead Phanatic was, no surprise, the "Phillie Phanatic", created by team illustrator Melissa Maani and signed by all members, here and gone, of the 2010 team, including manager and coaches. It garnered $50,400. I wanted to see the popular statues about town but had to settle for the Walk in the Park.

kurt landes again il executive of the year

For the second year in a row, Kurt Landes, general manager of the IronPigs, has been named the International League's Executive of the Year. In their three years of existence, the 'Pigs have drawn a whopping 1,889,273 fans. This year they set a franchise record of 645,905. A capacity crowd at Coca-Cola Park is just under 9,000. Despite the dismal economy, the IronPigs have continued to draw fans at a record rate. What would happen if they ever fielded a decent team?