After seven innings Saturday night it looked like another hard-luck loss in New York for Cole Hamels. Then down 2-1 in the top of the eighth the Phillies started another comeback. Rollins led off with a single, stole second, and was on his way to stealing third when Utley singled him home to tie the game 2-2. Utley then stole second, Polanco walked, and Howard doubled them in for a 4-2 lead. The Phillies added another run in the ninth, the bullpen did its thing and the Phillies won 5-2. With the win, a rarity for him in NY, Hamels went to 7-2. He went seven innings, gave up five hits, and struck out 10.
Things did not go anywhere near that way for Vance Worley today, who gave up four in the first and four in the second. Bye-bye, Worley. To be fair, a Rollins' error in the first led to three runs. But the Mets were tattooing the lad from the get-go. Since going to the bullpen, then back to the rotation, Worley has been less than sharp.
Today's line-up featured the Triple-A squad, from Worley to battery mate Sardinha, Mayberry at first for a rare off-day for Howard, Martinez in center, and Valdez at second. They scored one run in the third, then left the bases loaded. They threatened in the eighth, which Ibanez led off with a solo home run. The Phillies then added two more but, with Brown on third, the threat was foiled thanks to some overzealous base-running by Jimmy Rollins. (What is going on with him?) They got another in the ninth but fell to the Mets 9-5 on a hot, sticky day in Queens.
