Game Recap:
Kyle Kendrick allowed just two runs, but he only lasted five innings, and the offense couldn't get much going off of Mike Pelfrey as the Phils dropped back into a first place tie with the Atlanta Braves.
What went right?
Shane Victorino batted leadoff again and went 1-4 with an RBI.
Ryan Howard was 1-4 and drove in two.
Placido Polanco went 1-4 and scored a run.
What went wrong?
Jayson Werth went 0-4.
Wilson freaking Valdez was 0-4.
Kyle Kendrick gave up just two runs, but they were two early runs. He pitched just five innings, giving up five hits to go along with those runs. He also walked two and struck out one.
The bullpen struggled. Jose Contreras allowed two runs on two hits in one and a third innings. He walked two batters and struck out one.
J.C. Romero sucked again, allowing those two runs that got charged to Contreras to score. He faced just two batters, and gave up hits to both of them.
Ryan Madson had to come in and pitch...again.
Game Analysis:
This wasn't a pretty game by any definition. The Phillies couldn't figure out Mike Pelfrey, and Kyle Kendrick may have just pitched himself out of the starting rotation in Philadelphia for the last time this season. When the dust cleared, the Phils are now sitting in a first place tie with the Braves with just 19 games left to play in the regular season.
This has to be the last time the Phillies use Kyle Kendrick as a starter this season. The way that the schedule is set up coming down the stretch, the Phils only need a fifth starter two more times, meaning that Kendrick really isn't needed at all. Hell, put Vance Worley in there for those two games. He'd be a better option than Kendrick at this point. Kyle hasn't made it into the seventh inning in his last five starts, and he's been getting worse and worse as time has gone along. Yesterday, he wasn't as bad, but he got lifted after just five innings, meaning that he didn't do his job. The bullpen had to come in and try and finish things off, but they couldn't do that, either.
It's getting old, but these are the two biggest problems with this team right now. The back end of the rotation isn't good at all, and the bullpen is weak, at best. Even Ryan Madson didn't have his best stuff yesterday, but that might be because he's been pitching almost every damn time the Phillies play a game right now. Madson needs to rest for a few days, but the rest of the bullpen isn't making it easy. Plus, when you have Kyle Kendrick giving up two early runs, as he did yesterday, the Phillies are going to be in a hole from the start, and that's not how you want to play a baseball game.
Yesterday wasn't all on Kendrick, though. The offense struggled to do anything against Mike Pelfrey until the eighth inning, and by that point, the Phils were already down by four runs. They managed to get three of them back, and Ryan Howard knocked in another two runs, but it wasn't enough. Jayson Werth struck out with Howard on first to end the inning and the last threat the Phillies would have. The offense has looked better lately, but they still need to find that consistency that they've had through the last few seasons. That's what they need right now. If they can find that, then these holes in the back of the rotation and the bullpen might not look as bad as they do at the moment.
For now, the Phillies just have to dust themselves off and get ready to play again today. They have one last game with the Mets, and Roy Oswalt (11-13, 3.09 ERA) is on the mound. He'll be facing Jonathon Niese (9-7, 3.85 ERA).
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