Pedro: 2005 Vintage

Facing some tough pitching and struggling offensively over the past week, the Phillies have needed to rely on their own pitching and defense to scratch out wins. Last night, starting pitcher Pedro Martinez and relievers Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge held up their end of the bargain as the team faced reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum. In fact, after his first pitch of the game, Martinez appeared to be the 2005 Pedro vintage.

"The Freak" proved to be tough competition as expected, limiting the Phillies to 4 hits and 6 total base runners over 7 innings, while whiffing 11 batters. The Phillies were able to take advantage of their limited opportunities against him, though. With one out in the second, Jayson Werth crushed a 3-2 slider that hung in the middle of the plate into the upper deck in left field to knot the score at 1-1. In the bottom of the 6th inning, Ryan Howard lined a double to right-center to score Chase Utley, who had taken a fastball in the shoulder with two outs.

But the real story of the night was Pedro as he out-dueled the Giants' young ace. The most interesting aspect, though, was the way he did it. He appeared to step back in time to his younger days, throwing riding fastballs past batter after batter. He consistently hit 91-92 mph on the radar gun, with good up and in movement coming from his three-quarters delivery, which was particularly nasty after he mixed in diving change-ups.

Fellow countryman Eugenio Velez jumped on Martinez's 88 mph, "get over" fastball to start the game and sent it into the left-centerfield stands. That appeared to spark Pedro, though, as he reeled off 7 strikeouts over the first 3 innings. Overall, he scattered 5 hits, did not allow any free passes and recorded 9 strikeouts over 7 innings. Although his pitch count was only 87, Charlie Manuel opted for a pinch hitter in the home 7th in an attempt to add on an insurance run.

The narrow 2-1 lead was now in the hands of Madson and Lidge. Madson set down the Giants in order in the 8th, and then Lidge did the same with the first two hitters in the 9th. With the count 0-2 and the crowd on its feet anticipating a game ending pitch, Winn got enough of a slider to bounce it into right field. A couple of Winn steals and a walk later, Lidge was able to seal the victory by getting dangerous pinch hitter Fred Lewis to ground into a fielder's choice.

The win allowed the Phillies to take 2 of 3 in the series against a team they could face in the playoffs. They were also able to do it facing lefty strikeout pitcher Jonathan Sanchez, the pumped up new addition Brad Penny and this year's NL All-Star starting pitcher. With the offense in a little bit of a lull scoring less than 2 runs per game over the past 7 contests, the series provided some very positive signs as Martinez continues to sharpen his skills, Cole Hamels tossed a 2-hit shutout and the team demonstrated the ability to rely on its own strong pitching to win tight games.

Phillies Hand Game to Braves, But Show Some Positive Signs

Yesterday, the Phillies handed a game to the Atlanta Braves that they almost surely should have won. This type of loss is especially stinging considering that simple execution on a number of occasions was likely the difference between victory and defeat. A couple glimmers of hope appeared, though, that might translate into success down the road.

After playing stellar defense that saved several runs over the first two games of the series to that point, the top defensive team in the National League let down at the most inopportune moment. Protecting a 1 run lead that should have been wider if not for squandering earlier run scoring opportunities, the Phillies fielding collapsed. With Brad Lidge on the mound in an attempt to record back-to-back saves, Chase Utley whiffed on a groundball that was ruled a hit, but a play that he makes 99 out of 100 times. Lidge himself compunded the situation by first bobbling a bunt (on which he may have potentially been able to cut down the runner at second), then throwing the ball into right field. It went in the books as a double error, allowed the tying run to score and put the winning run on third with no outs. After walking the next two batters (intentionally and semi-intentially) and striking out Ryan Church, Omar Infante bounced a weak chopper into left field for the game winner.

This was particularly painful considering that the Phillies were 1 for 12 with runners in scoring position, twice stranded runners on third with no outs and plated only one run in the 7th on a homer and two doubles. The inability to drive a flyball to the outfield or simply put balls into play kept them from providing a greater margin of error to their bullpen- and it cost them the game.

Amidst the frustration of losing, however, were a few positive signs. Until the last inning collapse, the defense continued to prove that it is integral to the team's success as Shane Victorino, Jayson Werth, Utley, Jimmy Rollins and Pedro Feliz made plays that kept runs off the board. Raul Ibanez showed signs of returning to his pre-injury form by ripping a couple doubles, the latter falling a few feet short of leaving the park. Cole Hamels battled to hold the Braves to 2 runs on 3 hits despite still not regaining his command. Lastly, although he took the loss and blew his 8th save of the season, Lidge looked more like the 2008 version. He had very good velocity and sharper break on his slider. Overall, he struck out Church with the bases loaded and the Braves did not hit the ball hard.

Lets hope these signs turn into trends, the frustrating loss is a catalyst to better execution in scratching out runs and Lidge sees the glass half full. Yesterday's game goes in the ledger as a loss, but building on the positive could lead to a good run.