Game Recap:
Up 4-0 in the fifth inning, the Phillies were once again unable to hold onto a lead, and Bryce Harper's two run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning sent them away with their third straight loss.
What went right?
Cesar Hernandez was 1-3 at the plate with two walks and a run scored.
Tommy Joseph went 2-3 with a walk, an RBI double and a run scored.
Michael Saunders picked up an RBI single and scored a run.
Cameron Rupp went 1-4 with a two run single.
Aside from Edubray Ramos, the bullpen actually did well tonight. Combined, four pitchers went from the fifth through the eighth innings without allowing a run. Luis Garcia, Joely Rodriguez, Pat Neshek and Joaquin Benoit all pitched scoreless frames while they were on the mound.
What went wrong?
Odubel Herrera was 0-5 with three strikeouts.
Aaron Altherr walked twice, but went 0-3 at the plate around those walks.
Maikel Franco went 1-4 and grounded into a double play.
Freddy Galvis went 0-3 with a walk.
Nick Pivetta had four great innings on the mound, but fell apart in the fifth. He ended up allowing four runs on five hits in four and two-thirds innings of work. He walked four and struck out five.
Edubray Ramos pitched the bottom of the ninth inning, and allowed a walk-off home run to Bryce Harper. That's all that needs to be said about that.
Game Analysis:
Remember when the Phillies were 11-9, and it looked like this season might be better than what people said it was going to be? Well, since that high water mark, the Phillies have gone 2-11, and now sit with a record of 13-20 after tonight's loss to the Washington Nationals.
This recent stretch of bad play for the Phillies is very telling, and it shows fans a lot of ways that the team is just not simply ready to compete. First and foremost, their starting pitching is struggling at a level that I can't even remember seeing. The starting pitchers are hardly making it through the fifth inning in most games, and when they actually do make it, the Phillies are still losing. The problem with the starters not going longer into games is very simple. Every major league team has a weakness with their pitching staff: the middle relief. While some teams are able to handle it better than others, the innings between the starters and the setup men are the weak underbelly of any club, and the Phillies have it tougher than a lot of them. Tonight, the middle relief pitched well, but tomorrow, with a doubleheader on the horizon, it's unclear how many of these pitchers will be ready to go in one, if not both, games. When Zach Eflin, who started the year on the disabled list, is your best option for going deep into games, there is a serious problem with the rotation, and it needs to be fixed.
There are also some glaring issues in the batting order as well. Most importantly, Odubel Herrera looks completely and totally lost at the plate at the moment. Tonight, he struck out three times, which gives him 34 strikeouts in 33 games this season. While Odubel has struck out a lot in the last two seasons, the pace that he's on now is very telling, and the way he's swinging the bat is just bad. In the ninth inning tonight, Herrera saw seven pitches. Not a single one was in the strike zone, and yet he still struck out. If that doesn't tell you about his plate discipline right now, nothing will. He needs to get back to being more patient at the plate, but I'm not sure if he can at the moment. He's more focused on trying to hit a home run every time he gets to the plate, and that's not what he's up there for. Last year, he was much more patient, and was able to generate much more success on offense. His defense is still solid, but he needs to take a few games off right now to get his head straight.
One of the other big issues is Maikel Franco. While it looked like he had started to turn a corner a few weeks ago, since the last road trip, he's struggled, and tonight was no exception. Franco is swinging at a lot of outside breaking pitches right now, and the only thing that swings like that are going to do is end up leading to double plays. That happened again tonight, as Franco grounded into another double play early in the game. With the Phillies struggling in the starting pitching department, the last thing they need is less chances to score runs, but Franco's swings are doing just that. Much like Herrera, Franco needs to get his head back on straight and see what kind of potential he can still tap into. There are glimmers of what Franco can be, and that's what makes his poor showing so far this year even more painful. Everyone knows that he can be great, but he needs to get there.
As for the Phillies right now, the first thing that they need to do is to stop pitching to Bryce Harper in the bottom of the ninth inning. Twice this year, they've decided to throw to him, and twice this year he's hit walk-off home runs. If the situation arises again, the best thing to do will be to walk the man. He's one of the best players in baseball, and the last thing you want to do is give him a hanging pitch across the middle of the plate. That's happened twice this year in the ninth inning. Let's not have it happen a third time.
This afternoon, the Phillies have a doubleheader against the Nationals. In the first game, it'll be Jeremy Hellickson (4-1, 3.49 ERA) up against Gio Gonzalez (3-1, 2.64 ERA). In game number two, it's Vince Velasquez (2-3, 5.94 ERA) versus Max Scherzer (4-2, 2.59 ERA).
Happy Mother's Day, everyone!!
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