I'm not going to lie. I didn't do the Phillies recap last night because of how disgusted I was with that game. Not only did the Phillies lose to Atlanta for the second game in a row, but they did so in a game that shouldn't have started until much, much later in the night. Cole Hamels gave up a three run home run in the first inning, and he would only last two-thirds of an inning because of rain. The Phils got 10 hits in the game, but the bullpen couldn't keep Atlanta from scoring, and they ended up dropping a 7-3 loss to the Braves.
Then we get to today. As has been the case for so many games during this last stretch, the Phillies wasted a great effort by a starting pitcher. As much as I've said about getting Kyle Kendrick out of the starting rotation, today he was great. When you only allow a single run through seven innings, then you're doing something right. He was on point with his pitches today, striking out four and walking just two in seven innings of work. His only run allowed was in the first inning, and then he kept the Braves from doing anything through the next six innings. It was one of his best starts of the season, and yet it was ruined by the offense and the bullpen.
Jose Contreras picked up his second loss of the season by allowing a run in the eighth inning after he pitched himself into trouble that he couldn't get out of. Walking two batters and allowing a hit while recording just two outs is a good way to keep yourself in the bullpen and not on the pitcher's mound, and Contreras should have stayed there today. He didn't have his best stuff at all, and couldn't do anything that he needed to do. Contreras only threw nine strikes in 23 pitches, and anyone on the Braves could see that he wasn't the same pitcher that had been almost lights out for the Phils so far this season. Yes, one of his walks was intentional, but that's not the point. When you walk someone to get to another batter, you need to retire that batter. Contreras did not do that, and that's one of the biggest reasons that the Phillies lost today. The bullpen is there to either keep their team in the game or save a lead, and they couldn't do the latter against Atlanta.
There is no straight answer for what's going on with the offense right now. In the games since the Phillies have been shutout in five of 11, they've scored a total of 12 runs. That's as many runs as they scored in a single game two weeks ago against Pittsburgh, and they've done that in two weeks. In that time, they have a total of one home run in the past eight games, and Charlie Manuel has gone through countless lineup switches. Nothing seems to be working. No one is hitting, and it's costing this team games. Jayson Werth got his first RBI since May 21, but that was the only high point for the Phillies today. Chase Utley went 0-4, dropping his average to .270, which is lower than Ryan Howard, who isn't hitting much better than Utley right now. There is no way that Jimmy Rollins' second trip to the disabled list has caused a team-wide slump, so there's really no good answer for what has happened over the last two weeks. This offense was one of the best in the baseball, and now, they look like one of the worst.
I wish there was an easy fix to what's going on with the Phillies right now, I really do. However, there's nothing like that at the moment. This team is much, much better than how they've been playing at the moment, but it's not showing in the results. Instead of taking wins against teams thanks to good efforts from starting pitching, the pitchers are having efforts wasted because this offense can't do anything to get out of their own way right now. There's just nothing working at the plate for this team. There's no other way to say it. They came into this series with the Braves up by half a game in the National League East, and they left down two and a half games. This is what the Phillies have done to teams in the last three years: they've faced big moments, stared them down and just kept going. That's not the case right now. I'd love to say that this team can turn everything around, but at the moment, I don't know about that. Nothing seems to be working, and the Phillies just can't get out of their own way.
What else is there to say right now? The only good thing about this whole slump is that it's not happening in September, when it would really, really hurt. A two and a half game hole in June is nothing. It's when it comes down to the end of the season that it really matters.
The schedule doesn't get any easier for the Phils, as they take on the best team record wise in the National League when they face the San Diego Padres for a four game series. Roy Halladay (7-3, 1.99 ERA) tries to follow up his perfect game against Matt Latos (5-3, 3.08 ERA).
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