Game Recap:
Arizona got five runs off of Kyle Kendrick in the fifth inning, and then nailed the bullpen for three more in the seventh and eighth to move past the Phillies and win the series.
What went right?
Ross Gload went 2-5 with an RBI and a run scored.
Greg Dobbs went 1-5 with a two run home run.
Ryan Howard went 2-4 with a run scored.
Jayson Werth was 1-3 with an RBI.
Carlos Ruiz was 2-4 with two RBI.
What went wrong?
Kyle Kendrick lasted just five innings, giving up five runs on eight hits. He walked four and struck out four.
Danys Baez gave up a run on three hits in 1.1 innings. He walked a batter and didn't strike anyone out.
David Herndon picked up the loss after giving up two runs on four hits in the eighth inning. He didn't strike anyone out, and walked one.
Game Analysis:
How does a team manage to bang out 12 hits and still lose? Well, if you're the Philadelphia Phillies, you have the pitching behind you to give up 15 hits and eight runs. Yesterday was an interesting game in many ways, but it was a game that the Phillies should have won.
Even with their Sunday game lineup in play (Ross Gload leading off? Really?), the Phils jumped on Rodrigo Lopez early, with Greg Dobbs putting them up 2-0 before Arizona even got to the plate in the first inning. The Phillies would tack on a third run in the top of the fifth, and with Kyle Kendrick spinning zeros and getting out of trouble, it looked like it was going to be another solid outing from a starting pitcher on this road trip.
Then came the bottom of the fifth inning. Kendrick started the inning by allowing a base hit to the opposing pitcher, then Kelly Johnson launched his fourth home run of the series to cut the lead to one. Then, the old Kyle Kendrick came out once again. This Kendrick panics when things get tough, and throws just about every pitch right over the heart of the plate. Guess what happened yesterday? Kendrick then gave up a triple to Stephen Drew and walked Justin Upton before grooving one right over the plate to Mark Reynolds, who might be the last person on that team you want to do that to. Sure enough, Reynolds hit a 458 foot blast into the center field seats to give Arizona the lead...and this was before a single out was recorded. Luckily, Kendrick got out of the inning without allowing another run, but his day was done.
Despite a two run sixth inning by the Phils to take the lead again, the bullpen would let them down. Danys Baez allowed Arizona to tie the game, and David Herndon gave up two in the eighth, and that was enough for the Diamondbacks. Chad Qualls shut the door in the ninth, and the Phils went down for the second time against Arizona. Now, I know the Diamondbacks have a good offense, but after getting such great pitching performances against the Braves in Atlanta, how can the Phillies have their pitching do a complete 180ยบ turn against Arizona? I don't get it, but that's how inconsistent most of the pitching has been for the Phillies this year. The bats will find themselves again, but, if they don't have the pitching to back things up, a lot of games are going to look like this one did. You can have 12 hits in a game and lose because of your bullpen. That's a problem, and something that the Phils are going to have to address soon.
The Phillies finish off their road trip with a three game set in San Francisco. Roy Halladay (4-0, 0.82 ERA) looks for his fifth win of the month as he takes on Jonathan Sanchez (1-1, 1.86 ERA).
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