phrustrated philly phan

It is a shame when 23 of 25 guys show up with a playoff intensity and perform. It hurts when those two players that don't are your starter and your closer. That is exactly what happened tonight for the Phillies. The offense scored enough runs and the middle relievers pitched admirably but it was not enough. Scott Mathieson and Tom Gordon were too much to overcome tonight for the Phillies. The Phillies lost 9-7.

Mathieson lasted just 3.1 innings tonight after his short 3.2 outing on Sunday night. He surrendered seven hits and six earned runs but did manage to strike out six. His second consecutive poor outing obvioulsy begs the question of whether he should remain in the rotation. The only replacement I can think of is Justin Germano who was recently acquired from the Reds. The closer, Tom Gordon, pitched 2/3 inning giving up 4 hits and 3 earned runs. He also walked one but was continually pitching behind batters and for the second straight night walked the leadoff hitter on four pitches. If he can't right himself immediately the Phillies wild card chase is over. The Phillies scored seven runs tonight but couldn't hit Chris Michalak who was promoted from AAA today. Michalak only surrendered Howard's 40th home run.

This team is clearly taking the personality of its leader, Chase Utley. They have a never say die attitude that I have not seen for a while. Down by three runs in the bottom of the ninth, the Phillies never gave up. Even after the first two batters were retired the continued to battle with Jimmy Rollins second homer of the night, a Mike Lieberthal single, and a Utley hit by pitch to bring up Howard. Utley understood the importance of giving Howard a chance to win the game with one swing of a bat and leaned into an inside pitch. Howard had a great battle with Eddie Guardado fouling off numerous pitches before striking out on a high fastball. The Phillies fought until that final out and that is something to build on but saying that it hurts to lose a game by having your closer implode. If Gordon pitches a scoreless ninth, Rollins homer in the bottom of the inning would have been a game winner. Rollins has really taken off in August adding his 16th, a three run shot, and 17th home runs tonight. David Delluci also added his 10th, a 2-run first inning shot after Rollins walked to lead off the game. Pat Burrell was 1-3 with a walk tonight with a double. Abe Nunez had a nice defensive play in the ninth, leaning over the railing to make the catch and record the second out of the inning.

Tip of the Cap- Aaron Fultz, Geoff Geary, and Ryan Madson for throwing a combined 4.2 scoreless innings in relief of Mathieson. They allowed only two hits and struck out four. Geary was especially impressive pitching three innings.

Wag of the Finger- Scott Mathieson and Tom Gordon who in 4 combined innings allowed nine earned runs and eleven hits. I hate to say that certain players are responsible for losses since it is a team game but these two cost the Phils big time tonight.

Tomorrow's Game- These two teams square off in the rubber game as the Phillies look to pull back within two games of the wildcard. The Phils send their best pitcher to the mound in Brett Myers who will look to recover after two subpar outings. The Reds will counter with former Phil, Eric Milton. Milton is 8-7 with an ERA around 5. This is a game the Phillies need to win especially after the way they lost tonight. Game time is at 1:35. The crowds the last two nights at Citizens Bank Park have been loud and into the game and that is great to see support for these players as they make a run at the wildcard.