Game Recap:
Roy Halladay allowed four home runs, but it was Plaicdo Polanco's single, followed by Wilson Valdez scoring on an error, that gave the Phils their eighth win in nine games and pushed them past Milwaukee for the second straight night.
What went right?
Chase Utley was 1-4 with an RBI.
Ryan Howard went 2-4 with a home run.
Jayson Werth went 1-4 with a home run.
Carlos Ruiz was 3-3 and scored a run.
Wilson freaking Valdez sparked a rally in the seventh inning, walking on four pitches, and then scoring on an error by Ryan Braun that gave the Phillies the win.
Placido Polanco didn't reach base, but he did drive in the tying run with a sacrifice fly and allowed the winning run to score on an error.
Brad Lidge worked a perfect ninth inning for his 20th save of the season.
What went wrong?
Roy Halladay had some problems tonight. He ended up with the win, but he allowed four runs on four solo home runs in seven innings. He gave up seven hits, walked two and struck out six.
Game Analysis:
Sometimes, all it takes to win a game is one heads up play. Last night, Wilson Valdez made that play. When Placido Polanco flew out to Ryan Braun in the bottom of the seventh inning, Carlos Ruiz tagged up and came home. What looked like a close play ended up being an error on Braun when his throw went past the catcher and to the backstop. Valdez read the play perfectly and came home from second on the error. That run turned out to be the difference, as the Phillies took their second straight game over the Brewers and moved to three games up in the Wild Card hunt.
Before the seventh inning, the Phils hadn't done much on offense last night, save for back to back home runs from Ryan Howard and Jayson Werth. Dave Bush is not that great of a pitcher, so for the Phillies to struggle against him is a little discouraging. It still doesn't seem like the offense has gotten their full swagger back that they've had in the last few seasons, but at least they were able to push two runs across when they absolutely needed them last night. Howard does look like he's starting to get his swing back, hitting three home runs in his last five games, while Werth has been one of the best players on the team all season long. Hopefully, the offense can continue to get better as the season winds down, because they're going to need to. Last night, they even managed to bail out Roy Halladay, who had one of his worst starts of the season, and that's saying something.
Look, Halladay got the win last night, but he wasn't that great. The four home runs he allowed were as many as he gave up in the entire month of August, and he just didn't look all that comfortable on the mound at times. Yes, the strike zone was a bit of an issue last night, but things can't always be blamed on umpires, no matter how much fun that can be. A pitcher still has to hit his spots and get batters out, and last night, Halladay just couldn't do that all the time. The Brewers do have a decent offense, but not one that should be able to hit four home runs off of one of the best pitchers in baseball this year. It might be that the strain of throwing so many innings already has started to get to Halladay, but with his physical training, it's highly unlikely. It's nothing to worry about quite yet, but over his last three starts, Halladay hasn't looked as sharp as he did for much of July and August. The Phillies are going to need him down the stretch to keep playing up to the level that he's been at for most of the year. A slip now could cost this team a chance at the playoffs.
Right now, things are going the way that they have to for the Phillies. They're getting hot at just the right time again, the pitching is still looking very good, and the offense is doing just enough to push across runs at the moment. It's not perfect, not by a longshot, but you don't have to be perfect to get into the playoffs. You just have to be able to win games. That's what this team is doing right now. They're winning.
Today, the Phils finish off their series with Milwaukee. Kyle Kendrick (9-7, 4.72 ERA) will go for his tenth win of the season as he faces off against Randy Wolf (10-10, 4.76 ERA).
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