Game Recap:
Roy Oswalt pitched his first complete game shutout for the Phillies, who took two out of three from the Mets over the weekend.
What went right?
Shane Victorino went 1-3, walked twice and scored a run.
Placido Polanco was 1-4 and scored a run.
Chase Utley was 2-3 with an RBI.
Ryan Howard went 1-4 and drove in a run.
Raul Ibanez went 1-4 with a solo home run.
Wilson freaking Valdez was 2-4.
Roy Oswalt pitched a complete game, giving up just four hits through nine shutout innings. He walked a batter and struck out six.
What went wrong?
Jayson Werth was 0-4 with three strikeouts.
The Phillies left eight men on base.
Game Analysis:
It's been said time and time again since he got to Philadelphia, but Roy Oswalt is everything that the Phils could have hoped for, and then some. Today was just another example of that, as he shut down the Mets for nine innings, keeping them from scoring a single run as the Phillies took the final game of their three game series against New York.
Oswalt has simply been terrific so far for the Phillies, and looks like that missing piece that the team really did need. He was sharp all day long against the Mets today, and raised his record with the Phillies to 6-1, and lowered his season ERA to 2.94. What else can you ask from this guy this season? He done everything that the Phillies wanted, and he's given the team a third ace at the top of the rotation. Plus, he kept the bullpen from entering the game today, so it was just a good day all around for the Phils. Oswalt's pitches were spot on the entire game, and it looked like the Mets had no idea what they were swinging at. New York didn't have a batter reach second base, that's how good Oswalt was today.
The offense wasn't that good, but they did what they had to do to get a win. Against Jonathon Niese, the Phils had their chances, but struggled to get men across the plate. They did manage to push two across in the early innings, but then Niese settled down and the offense went back to sleep. The bats had Niese on the ropes early, and they needed to finish him off, just like they did against other pitchers earlier in the season. The Phils at the beginning of the year were a patient team that would make opposing pitchers throw to them. Today, it looked like more of the recent trend, which is the Phillies swinging at early pitches and allowing opposing pitchers to settle in without much of a problem. That's something that needs to be fixed, even with the recent success that this team has had.
With that aside, it was another good win for the Phillies today. When you look at this series against the Mets, the two pitchers that were supposed to win managed to do just that, while Kyle Kendrick was...Kyle Kendrick. Hopefully, the back end of the rotation can pick things up, and the Phillies can continue towards another trip to the playoffs.
Tomorrow night, the Phils open up a three game series in Miami against the Marlins. Joe Blanton (6-6, 5.15 ERA) will pitch for the Phillies against Andrew Miller (1-1, 6.16 ERA).
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