So after that Pirates series and the first game of the Marlins series, I was feeling the worst I've felt in a very long time about our beloved Phillies. We knew coming into this season that runs might be hard to come by, but I really did not expect it to feel as bad as it did. I was up in Pittsburgh for a long weekend with Kelli, and there was some serious concern on her part over how to deal with me over the course of a season that would include countless 0- and 1-run efforts by the Phils. I honestly felt pretty bad for her knowing how bad of a mood I can be in after a bad game. I don't even want to think about what kind of mood I would be in after a bad month or 2.
But that all changed with Wednesday night's game. I know that one game shouldn't completely reverse my opinion on our offense, but I can't help it. It's not just about the 5-run inning...that stuff can happen for any team. It's not just that every starter had a hit...they're all bound to get hits at some point. It's not just because we were facing Josh Johnson...every pitcher has an off day.
No, it is much more than that. Our offense actually looked like a real offense to me. It looked like one that could last for more than just one inning or game or series. And the main reason for all of this? Get ready for it...
Juan Pierre.
Seriously? Yes, seriously. It has been well-documented in the past that I am not a huge fan of Jimmy Rollins as our leadoff hitter. I preferred Shane Victorino, sure, but even he wasn't that great as a leadoff guy. Juan Pierre, though, is wonderful. The number one thing I love about Pierre is that he simply puts the bat on the ball. He hits mostly line drives and grounders, and they may not always be hit the hardest or in the best spot, but they are at least giving him a chaynce. Every time he puts the bat on the ball, there is a chaynce he ends up on base. That's the type of optimism I want to have when it comes to our leadoff hitter. Polanco does much of the same out of the 2-spot. Then we get to Rollins, Pence, and Victorino, and they are the only 3 players that most would agree we can rely on in some way. After that we have Mayberry, and there are rumors circling that I actually have a giant homosexual crush on him. Then Chooch bats 7th, and he has proven that he can be a solid bat at the back of our lineup. Round out that batting order with Freddy Galvis, the greatest offensive 2nd baseman since Chase Utley, and I don't feel bad about our team at all. We can hit! We can run! We can score!
Now here's hoping that Uncle Chuck decides to actually use that lineup more often than not, and this weekend against the 4-2 Mets would be a great time to start.
Game 1: R.A. Dickey (1-0, 3.00 ERA) vs. Cliff Lee (0-0, 1.50 ERA)
R.A. Dickey still has a hilarious name, and for that reason I cannot take him all that seriously as an opponent. That and the fact that he plays for the Mets. (Do you like how I referred to them as the "4-2 Mets" as if that might imply that they are in any way good or threatening? It just adds to the suspense of the blog. No, suspense is not the right word, but it's late and I'm trying to get this done.) Cliff Lee only had 2 starts against the Mets last season, but he went 1-0 with a 0.64 ERA. Jason Bay and David Wright pose the biggest threats to him in their lineup (.273 and .286 averages, respectively), but Bay is batting just .158 so far this year and Wright has missed a few games with an injury. Probably still recovering from drowning in his own tears when he didn't get traded to the Phillies this offseason.
Prediction: Phillies 5 Mets 1
Keep an eye out for: Shane Victorino hitting for the cycle. He needs to get started on leading the league in triples, and his 3 hits against Dickey are all for extra bases.
Game 2: Jonathon Niese (1-0, 4.50 ERA) vs. Vance Worley (0-0, 1.50 ERA)
There is just so much stuff to make fun of about the Mets, and their starting pitchers are right at the top of that list. Jonathon Niese is most famous for starting to go by Jon instead of Jonathon after I made fun of the spelling of his first name so heavily that he actually peed his paynce. He also can't handle The Cit, going 0-3 with a 10.05 ERA there last year. Worley, on the other hand, pitched very well against the Mets last season. He appeared in 5 games, 4 of them starts, and compiled a 3-1 record with a 3.13 ERA. He also struck out 22 in 23 innings. Expect much of the same from both of them.
Prediction: Phillies 6 Mets 3
Keep an eye out for: a home run for John Mayberry. He hit 3 against the Mets last season, and 2 of them were off of Jonathon.
Game 3: Mike Pelfrey (0-0, 4.76 ERA) vs. Cole Hamels (0-1, 5.06 ERA)
Pelfrey also sucks pretty hard against us. There was almost a time when people thought this majoke was good, but it he made it very clear over the course of many starts against us that that is just not anywhere close to true. Unfortunately, Hamels does not exactly love facing the Mets. His ERA against them last year was up close to 7.00, and they have a few guys that can hit the ball around on him pretty well. It's rare that Hamels strings together several bad starts in a row, but I think this is our best chaynce at a loss in this series.
Prediction: Phillies 6 Mets 5
Keep an eye out for: early exits from both pitchers but solid outings from the bullpens. (Scoring runs AND good bullpen innings? This is NOT the Phillies we watched in the first 4 games this season)
No comments:
Post a Comment