Brad Lidge and Chad Qualls conspired to waste a terrific performance by Roy Oswalt last night, the former blowing his first save of the season when former Met Xavier Nady blasted a game-tying homer in the 9th inning of Pittsburgh’s 4-2 win over Houston. The funny thing is, I saw Nady’s HR and have watched the replay a couple of times, and Lidge isn’t kidding when he insists the X-Man hit a good pitch. This wasn’t anything like the ball Lidge grooved to Hunter Pence last week in Round Rock. When and if the Astros are finally ready to pull the plug on their closer, I’ll bet there’s someone out there (perhaps a man who won’t remove his windbreaker) who can straighten him out.
There’s at least one man in the Boston area who had a terrific time yesterday watching Curt Schilling get knocked around by the Royals.
The Philadelphia Daily News’ Sam Donellon is dismayed at Aaron Rowand being booed at the conclusion of Philly’s 5-3 loss to Atlanta Monday, and the caring, sharing Brett Myers did his best to mend the rift after the game.
“I just hope that they can stick with us all year,” Myers said in the Phillies clubhouse late yesterday afternoon. “Not every game is going to be pretty. There could be a stretch like last year where we had like 10 [losses] in a row and they’re all on our back. They just need to be with us through the good and the bad.”
“Like I said before, I feel like these fans are my family,” Myers said. “Family never gets on family.”
Well, you’d hope not.
I was at the Opening Day game at CBP yesterday. It was a gorgeous day weatherwise with a packed festive crowd. The booing at the final out wasnt directed at Aaron Rowand, it was just an expression of disappointment at a winnable game pissed away. It wasnt as much the loss as how it was lost and what it may have signified. Having scratched a 3-2 lead by the 7th and Smoltz done for the day, #2-3-4 in the Phillies order failed to bring in
at least one of the runners that were at 2nd and 3rd with no outs in the bottom of the 7th. Phillies April torpor has been going on for years and years now and the display of poor situational hitting the Phillies displayed yesterday to a homecrowd that is expecting Not The Same Old Phillies this year was too familiar as was Ryan Madson walking a runner on base and grooving a pitch to be smacked into the stands (Madson HRs given up are not of the cheap CBP-specific types, they are usually bombs). So, the frustration over the loss was palpable and warranted
Chuck,
Brett M. just called. He’s had about enough of your lip.
Gerard,
If Brett calls back, tell him I said job well done yesterday, glad things are going well with Kim and if the Phillies are going to put us through another year of stumbling out of the gate in April, hot streak in May and subsequent tanking that lasts until the break, dont be making any comments about frontrunners or bandwagons if some folks decide to tune the Phils out and check back in around the end of July…. Yesterdays loss wasnt even the worst news for Phillies fans as the once unthinkable as far as Phillies TV broadcasts is now reality. The reviled and ridiculed Chris Wheeler and incompetent newbie Gary Matthews Sr (incompetent as in “sounds like somebody pulled him off the street and stuck him in front of the mike) will be on *all 9 innings* of the TV broadcast. Poor old Harry Kalas will have to suffer these two during innings 1-3 and 7-9 while “Wheels” and “Sarge” do 4-6. Talk about having to take it “middle-in” eh, Phans?