Manuel Shrugs Off Criticism, Continues to Push the Right Buttons

Being a major league baseball manager can sometimes be a treacherous job. This is especially true when you are manager in a more discerning, passionate city like Philadelphia. Charlie Manuel does not seem any worse for the wear, continuing to follow his instincts, shrug off the criticism and ultimately push the right buttons.

No sooner had the Phillies won the NLDS series clincher against the Rockies in dramatic fashion, than did Manuel find himself answering questions about his managerial decisions and moves. Inquiring minds wanted to know why he went to Scott Eyre rather than Brad Lidge to start the ninth, or why he did not pull Ryan Madson in favor of Antonio Bastardo to face lefty Jason Giambi, or why he pinch hit Greg Dobbs for Ben Francisco? And, on and on- you get the idea.

Manuel had answers for all, and answers that made sense. The fact that his team was still celebrating one of the most dramatic wins in franchise history did not offer any grace or immunity. It is an occupation that can experience exhilarating highs, such as yesterday. But it is also a life in a public fish bowl, and as Manuel experienced yesterday, one that is subject to scrutiny even in the best of times.

Of course, these inquisitors would have taken the opposite position had he made the moves they suggested. If he had sent Lidge out to start the 9th, and he had run into trouble, Manuel would be answering questions about why he puts loyalty above results or why he didn't go with a lefty? If he had replaced Madson with Bastardo and the moment was too big for a wide-eyed rookie, he would have been squarely on the firing line. And, if Huston Street mowed down Francisco, he would have been criticized for not using one of his left-handed pinch hitters.

The bottom line is almost anything that does not go right could very well be scrutinized, and like yesterday, even some things that do. This is not lost on Manuel, and even though he sometimes can mildly bristle at such criticism, he has chosen to let the chips fall where they may. He simply refuses to manage scared of the outcome or the court of public opinion.

This courage and quality is recognized by his players. And, they reciprocate by reflecting the same tough minded and confident approach out on the field, in whatever situation they encounter. They do not question the manager, but rather simply resolve to execute on whatever they are asked to do in the best way possible.

As they have throughout the series, Charlie's moves worked out again yesterday. And, importantly, the very character that enabled the team to beat the odds and rally for a dramatic win, starts with the senior statesman with the "41" on his jersey.

Rocky Mountain High for the Phillies

A 7 1/2 inning pitchers duel ended in wild fashion with the Phillies showing tremendous resiliency to ultimately prevail in Game 4 of the NLDS . After leading the entire game behind another masterpiece by Cliff Lee, the Phillies found themselves suddenly behind heading into the ninth inning. The reigning World Series Champions were not about to let this game get away, though, and dug deep to counter the Rockies with an exciting rally to win the game and the series.

Lee and Rockies starter Ubaldo Jimenez battled on the mound for most of the game and the Phillies held a slim 2-1 lead heading into the bottom of the 8th inning.The Rockies used a little luck and a fluke play to get something going off of Cliff Lee. They followed through with a couple jubilant hits off reliever Ryan Madson to rally for 3 runs and jump to a 4-2 lead.

The Phillies responded with some dramatic hitting in the 9th off of all-star closer Huston Street to themselves rally for 3 runs with two outs to forge ahead 5-4. And, Brad Lidge came on to secure the win by striking out Rockies clean-up hitter Troy Tulowitzki and gain his second save in two days.

The Phillies 9th inning rally was one for the ages, and reminiscent of the 1980 NL Championship Series clincher in terms of drama. Ryan Howard crushed a dramatic double to deep right to drive in the tying runs with two outs, and then Jayson Werth lined a single to right-center to plate Howard. Moments earlier, it had looked like the Phillies would suffer a disappointing defeat and be forced to return home for a Game 5, but this is a team of tenacious players that always believe they can get it done.

Before the late game offensive explosion and excitement, Lee and Jimenez mostly took turns putting zero's on the scoreboard. Lee followed up his brilliant effort in Game 1 with a similar performance in Game 4, keeping the Rockies off balance and off the board with an array of pitches on the edges of the strike zone. Once again, he mixed his 92-93 mph fastball with a biting cutter, diving change-up and sharp slider.

On the other side, Jimenez was firing 96-99 mph fastballs along with a big hook and a nasty splitter to make things difficult for Phillies hitters. He kept them at bay except for two solo homers over 7 innings and 126 pitches. In the first inning, Shane Victorino turned on a 99 mph fastball and hit a line shot into the forrest behind the right-centerfield fence to make it 1-0. In the sixth inning, Jayson Werth put a picture perfect swing on a slider out over the plate and drove it 400 feet into Phillies bullpen in right-center.

The Rockies scratched out a run in the bottom of the 6th inning. Lee appeared to be squeezed a little by home plate umpire Ron Kulpa in walking Todd Helton. Tulowitzki followed with a double to left-center and Helton slid into home head first just ahead of the tag.

With the Phillies still holding a 2-1 lead and Lee still throwing well, the real drama began in the home 8th. Red hot Carlos Gonzalez flied out to left, but Dexter Fowler worked a walk. Lee jammed Helton and he muscled a bouncer to Chase Utley. Fowler arrived about the same time as the ball, hurdled over Utley and got into the line of sight of Jimmy Rollins on Utley's flip. The ball ticked off of Rollins glove for an error and what looked to be a possible inning ending double play turned into both runners being safe.

With Lee having thrown 117 pitches and righty Tulowitzki coming up, Charlie Manuel opted to bring in Madson on a double switch, with Ben Francisco replacing Ibanez in left. Tulowitzki, of course, then hit a sinking liner towards Francisco, who made a spectacular diving catch to momentarily save the day. But, pinch hitter Jason Giambi dumped a soft flare into shallow left off the trademark sending home Fowler with the tying run. Playoff nemesis Yorvit Torrealba followed with a double to deep center and the Rockies found themselves suddenly leading 4-2 accompanied by the roar of the raucous crowd.

Rockies manager Jim Tracy, who made so many trips to the field over the series he could have been mistaken for a tenth player, tapped Street to close out the come from behind victory. He quickly struck out pinch hitter Greg Dobbs and jumped ahead of Rollins. J Roll showed great discipline staying off outside sinkers and grounded a single up the middle. After Victorino bounced into a force out, Utley came to the plate and worked a walk by staying off some tough pitches that tailed off the plate.

Street was now forced to face MVP candidate Howard with the tying runs on base. On a 2-1 count, Howard reached across the plate to get a sinker tailing down and away and cranked a ball to the right field fence. Watching the ball, Victorino missed third base, but went back to tag and scored just in front of a sliding Utley to knot the game at 4-4. With Howard on second, Werth served a 2-2 pitch to right center to send home the go ahead run.

Manuel brought in Scott Eyre, who injured his ankle a day earlier, to pitch the 9th knowing that tough lefties Gonzalez and Helton were coming up. After quick out, Gonzalez flared his 10th hit of the series to left. Fowler hit a soft liner to Rollins, before Helton lofted a single to center. At this point, Manuel came out of the dugout and motioned in Brad Lidge, who earned the save in Game 3. Lidge fed a steady diet of sliders to clean-up hitter Tulowitzki, and got him to wave weakly at a 2008 vintage hard diving pitch to strike him out to end the threat. Wow! What a game- an "Instant Classic" as coined by Eyre after the game!

The Phillies flowed onto the field to joyously celebrate a terrific, series clinching victory. The team moves onto to face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS, a rematch from a year ago. They do so with the confidence of knowing they are never out of a game and might just have the 2008 version Lidge back in the fold. And, importantly, the Phillies once again showed the tremendous heart and mental toughness that can fuel a championship run.

Phils Prevail in Gut Check Game 3

Last night's (and this morning's) pivotal NLDS Game 3 was played in temperatures closer to the "frozen tundra" conditions of NFL lore rather than typical baseball weather. While this is good for chronicling the rich history of the NFL and at least manageable in the game of football, baseball is a game of finesse and even touch that is affected in more subtle ways. With temperatures in the 20's, falling behind early and many tense moments throughout the game, the Phillies stayed focused and persevered to victory in the coldest game in post season history.

The Phillies demonstrated a mental toughness, similar to that displayed in last year's less than optimal World Series weather, to fight through the frigid conditions and tense game situations to prevail 6-5 in Game 3. This is a quality that is often overlooked on a team filled with talented, charismatic players, but once again they proved that this is an important part of their success. Look no further than their remarkable season end runs to win the first two of three consecutive NL East crowns, their World Series play a year ago in the wet and cold, and last night's body of work.

Of course, players have to execute on the field, but surely some of this tough minded approach starts with their manager. Charlie Manuel shrugs off adversity, infuses confidence in his players and refuses to play scared. Once again, he demonstrated that prominently in the way he managed throughout the game. As he has done all series long, he went against conventional wisdom to make some bold moves, following his gut and not worrying about criticism that could come his way. And, importantly, his moves paid off handsomely.

No sooner than a few minutes after the TBS announcers had indicated that the weather conditions would make the long ball difficult, Chase Utley staked the Phillies to 1-0 lead in the first inning with a 400 foot home run to right-center. Unfortunately, starter J.A. Happ struggled all night with his command and quickly encountered trouble in the bottom half of the first. He allowed 4 hits and escaped with only 2 runs being scored when Ryan Spilborghs lined out hard to center.

The Rockies extended the lead to 3-1 when Garret Atkins cracked a two out double in front of the 415 sign in center to score Todd Helton, who had walked. Happ continued to throw a great deal of pitches, and could not seam to get strike calls on the inside corner or low in the zone. Home plate umpire Jerry Meals appeared to have a moving strike zone all night, yet another condition for pitchers and hitters alike to fight through on this bone chilling night.

Besides the solo home run, Rockies pitcher Jason Hammel was cruising until the 4th inning. Shane Victorino lead off with a walk and Utley lined a single to right. Ryan Howard roped a single to right-center, plating one run and sending Utley to third. Jayson Werth and Raul Ibanez then showed great discipline to work walks, forcing in the tying run. With the bases loaded and still no outs, Pedro Feliz bounced to Hammel for a home to first double play. Carlos Ruiz picked him up, though, sending a single to left after a tough, 8-pitch at bat to make it 4-3.

With Happ having already thrown 76 pitches and showing no signs of getting locked in, Manuel opted to pinch hit for him after Ruiz in hope of putting some more runs on the board. Joe Blanton took the mound in his place, and surrendered a game tying home run to red hot Carlos Gonzalez.

Ruiz struck again in the 6th, singling up the middle to score Ibanez and give the Phillies a 5-4 lead. The Rockies mounted a rally in the 7th inning when Gonzalez ripped a double to center to lead off the frame. After Dexter Fowler bunted, pitcher Scott Eyre rolled his ankle and fell to the frozen turf, allowing everyone to be safe and sending him to the training room.

At this point, Manuel made the gutsy move of calling on Ryan Madson with the heart of the Rockies order coming up, rather than keep him for a save situation that might never occur if things blew up in the 7th. Madson proceeded to strike out Todd Helton on high heat. After blowing a couple similar pitches past Troy Tulowitzki, he left a cutter in the middle of the plate that was driven to left for a sacrifice fly. Madson then struck out pesky Yorvin Torrealba to end the threat.

The Phillies threatened with one out in the 8th with an Ibanez walk and Feliz double. Rafael Betancourt was able to strike out Ruiz and pinch hitter Matt Stairs, getting the benefit of several strike calls that appeared to be well off the plate.

After Chad Durbin threw an excellent 1-2-3 8th inning, closer Huston Street was called upon to face the Phillies in the 9th. Jimmy Rollins singled to center and Victorino bunted him over to second. Utley then bounced a swinging bunt, bolted from the box and was called safe when a close throw appeared to pull Helton off the bag. Replays appeared to show the ball ticking off Utley's leg, which would have made it a foul ball, but umpires did not see it. Howard then proceeded to jack a sacrifice fly to deep center to give the Phillies a 6-5 lead.

Manuel summoned Brad Lidge to close the pressure packed game. He quickly got Brad Hawpe to ground out, but then walked Gonzalez after fighting back from a 3-0 count and several foul balls on 3-2. Gonzalez stole second before Jason Giambi fouled out. Lidge pitched very carefully to Helton, who hit .325 during the regular season, and eventually walked him. With the crowd looking for a late winning rally like the Rockies have been delivering throughout the second half of the season, Lidge was able to get Tulowitzki to pop out to shallow left to preserve the victory.

It was a tough game in tough conditions, truly the gut check type of game that champions need to win. The Phillies, from Manuel through the entire team finishing with Lidge, they proved up for the challenge. Now its back to Cliff Lee in Game 4 today as they attempt to advance to play the Dodgers in the NLCS.

Happ to Start Postponed Game 3 for Phillies

The inclement weather has already impacted the NLDS without a pitch being thrown. With the schedule pushed back a day due to cold and snowy conditions, Charlie Manuel has decided to forego Pedro Martinez in favor of J.A. Happ to start Game 3 against the Rockies. The move had been speculated as a possibility and Manuel confirmed it late yesterday afternoon.

The decision does not reflect a lack of confidence in Martinez, but rather previous seasonal results and trends. Happ tossed a gem against the Rockies in early August, registering a 4-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts. Additionally, the Rockies are less effective against left-handed pitching with greater reliance on lefty hitters. Happ has also overcome a knee contusion that he suffered in Game 2 and indicates that he feels fine.

Martinez could not have been more gracious in accepting the change. He supported the decision, indicating that it was the most reasonable thing to do, and hopes to get called upon in a relief role if needed.

Manuel also announced that Cliff Lee will get the nod as the Game 4 starter on Monday. Cole Hamels could get the assignment if the series goes 5 games, but Manuel has yet to make that determination. Depending on who he calls on out of the bullpen over the next two days, he could also tap Martinez or Joe Blanton. The current pitching decisions along with the ongoing flexibility are reflective of Manuel's courage to make bold moves rather than be constrained by fear of criticism.

Rockies manager Jim Tracy has decided to stick with right-hander Jason Hammel. In two games against the Phillies this season, Hammel was 1-0 with a 4.82 ERA, allowing a .359 batting average.

Although it will be cold tonight, the Phillies hope to heat things up with their bats. It is encouraging that Jayson Werth, Raul Ibanez, Ryan Howard and Shane Victorino swung the bats well in the first two games of the series. All the team's scoring has occurred in the fifth inning or later, though, so they hope to put some runs on the board early to give Happ some cushion.

The weather still may be somewhat of a factor due to the evening start and temperatures projected to be 38 degrees at game time. There is a good chance that the temperature will drop below the previous post season record low of 35 degrees during the game. These are surely not ideal weather conditions for any game, but especially for the pivotal third game of the NLDS.