Four in San Francisco, a place where the Phillies rarely fare well, had all the makings of a disaster. On Thursday, though, it was all Cliff Lee, who dominated in a complete game shut-out. Hunter Pence and John Mayberry, Jr. went back-to-back, then Pence singled in another run in the 3-0 victory.
If I had to predict a brawl between the Giants and the Phillies, I would have put Jonathan Sanchez and Chase Utley at the middle of it. Sanchez, after all, has plunked Utley four times in the past three years. But it was reliever Ramon Ramirez who drilled Shane Victorino. A scrum ensued, but like most baseball dust-ups it was more beanbag than beanball. (Both are intensely distasteful to me.) Giant catcher Eli Whiteside looked like a demented bunny in it all. He should also consider getting some of the shoe polish Brian Wilson uses on his beard to do something about his hair. Rookie Vance Worley was solid in a 9-2 Phillie win.
Saturday afternoon it was role reversal in a match-up from the previous week between Cain and Hamels. This time the Phillies got the two early runs and made them stand up. Hamels, like Lee on Thursday, was dazzling. His complete game shut-out was ruined by a Pablo Sandoval solo homer in the ninth. Hamels went the distance in a 2-1 win, the same score that Cain had won by a week earlier.
Roy Oswalt made his return from the DL on Sunday afternoon, went seven, and gave up single runs in three consecutive innings. The Phillies scored early on Tim Lincecum, but once he was given a lead, it was pretty much over.
Carlos Beltran had two cents to say about the brawl. Beltran always has two cents to say about something.
