Game chat: Howard bats cleanup today vs. Braves

Adam Eaton is set to start, with the bullpen remainders likely to finish, when the Phils try to avoid an opening-series sweep at the hands of the Braves today at 3:05 EST. [Live Box]

Ryan Howard will return to his customary fourth spot with Chase Utley batting third against left-hander Chuck James, who quietly established himself as a mid-rotation threat last season. James pitched 25 games, 18 starts, going 11-4 with a 3.78 ERA in his rookie campaign, holding hitters to a .232 batting average.

Eleven years after being drafted by the Phillies, Adam Eaton makes his Philadelphia debut. The right-hander made 13 starts with Texas last year and went 7-4 with a 5.12 ERA, missing most of the season with a torn tendon in the middle finger of his pitching hand. His final spring performance was as mediocre as his new headshot, pictured right.

For the Phillies, Jayson Werth gets his first start and will bat second and play right field. Rod Barajas is back in to catch. With Tom Gordon and Ryan Madson pitching the first two, it's likely the Phillies will turn to the other half of the bullpen - Antonio Alfonseca, Clay Condrey, Zack Segovia, Joe Bisenius - in the later innings. The Braves go with their left-handed platoon of Ryan Langerhans in left and last night’s hero, Scott Thorman, at first.

Best of the press notes:
In the Phillies’ first two games of the season, starting pitchers Brett Myers and Cole Hamels combined for 14.2 innings and 17 strikeouts. It is the most innings by two Phillies starters to begin the season since 1996, when Sid Fernandez (7.0) and Mike Grace (8.0) combined for 15.0 innings.

Comments

[kdon]

It really shows Manuel like his routine that Werth is hitting second instead of Rowand. Why not change it up a bit Cholly, and see what Rowand can do in the two-hole.

[kdon]

In other bullpen follies, I just watched the Cubs cough up a lead with Bob Howry and WIll Ohman on the mound. These are both proven guys...sometimes bullpen's blow it.

[zach]

His final spring performance was as mediocre as his new headshot, pictured right.

That's just cruel. Funny as hell, but cruel.

That's how I reacted when I saw today's lineup kdon. From what I understand Werth is not exactly a baseburner.

[ZT]

Walk to load the bases....game's starting off great today!

[The Doctor]

I just heard that the Phils got Francisco Rosario in a trade from Toronto for cash considerations. I guess Bisenius or Condrey will go down.

[emerson]

Great start to the season for Eaton...

[ae]

hey, Rosario for cash? that's news.

[Tony]

francisco rosario is now a phillie for cash considerations per radio

[joe]

oh christ, shoot me now.

Hit, E, Walk.

[ae]

yeah, Eaton's not doing well, but remember that he should have been out of this inning after the third batter.

[ZT]

its news....

Pat the Bat shows his superiority on defense!

[Ribbies]

Can he be at the stadium by the third inning?

[That Dude]

The Adama Eaton era is off to an Andy Ashby Like Disaster!

[Scott Graham]

"They feel they should have won." - Larry Anderson on Radio. I need a nickel for everytime he says that this season.

[ZT]

Well to be fair, Eaton didn't look bad out there. That God awful play by Howard is what started all that.

[RickSchuBlues]

kdon, I agree. Rowand is simply not going to help this team offensively while batting seventh.

Of all the reactions to the lastest meltdown, I concur with clout's long-range perspective the most. Look at how the Braves were able to address their needs and build a top-notch bullpen - and why the Phillies weren't. The first two games truly illustrate a tale of two organizations.

This is just sad, sad, sad. Even if you dig for the silver linings of good starting pitching, it's still sad. It's not enough. That said, I guarantee you the Phils start playing better the second they hit the road. I predict they'll split the games with Florida and New York. A .500 April will surely be a challenge, but I don't think that means the team can't contend, or that Manuel should be fired. My question is why people thought anything would be different this year - why people are just so surprised it's the same old story. How has this team changed from what it's been the past few seasons? This is the pretty much the same roster that tanked down in DC when it was up against the wild-card. I can shake my head, but I'm not the least bit suprised. This team is built to disappoint.

[JZ]

Jason and others, I'll try to keep my cynicism in check and to not post every four minutes whenever I update the live boxscore.

But way to come out, fellas! UR-GEN-CY! UR-GEN-CY! And so on and so forth.

[zach]

Much needed double play.

[ZT]

Rollins with a walk, I gotta say he has definitely been a bright spot these past few games.

[zach]

By the way, this new Gameday presentation is fantastic.

[joe]

rollins is a BB machine this year.

[emerson]

So thats why Werth is batting second.

[joe]

A sac bunt? Gosh, the phillies are capable of putting downa bunt. who knew?

[RickSchuBlues]

Francisco Rosario: 17 games, 6.65 ERA. This is a solution? Why not just hang onto Alfredo Simon?

[Bedrosian's Beard]

BTW: love the Beerleaguer live game commentary! Keep up the good work.

[Tom G]

I'm in Ft. Washington and there are snow flurries.... are there flurries at the game?

[ae]

Alfred Simon's 2006 AAA stats: 52 IP, 6.75 ERA, 1.83 WHIP, 6.06 K/9.
Francisco Rosario's 2006 AAA stats: 42 IP, 2.79 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 10.71 K/9.

of course Rosario is no Gonzalez, Soriano, or Wickman, but chances are he's an upgrade over almost everyone in our pen.

[kdon]

"My question is why people thought anything would be different this year - why people are just so surprised it's the same old story. How has this team changed from what it's been the past few seasons?"

I think you, and quite a few others, might be able to provide the answer. Remember after Abreu/Bell/Cormier/Lieby left? This board was filled with talk about the new era.

Abreu in particular was supposed to be the cancer, and J-Roll/Howard/Utley were the new guns, with a different attitude, or some other such bs.

Clout to his credit has always claimed the team's talent was lacking as opposed to some mystical "it."

Well, Abreu is gone, the old guard is gone, so who do we want to scapegoat now?

This team was built to score runs and have solid starting pitching. So far the latter has come true, and I don't think it will be long before the bats get going.

[RickSchuBlues]

I realize that Rosario is better than Simon, but my point is, here's yet another guy who's being coveted for his stuff alone, rather than any results that stuff generates. I'm not excited and I don't want to hear BS about this meaning that Gillick is "trying". This is too little, too late.

[zach]

It's official BTW. He's listed on the MLB site as playing for PHI.

[clout]

kdon: How deep into the season will you keep making excuses for the bullpen before you finally admit you were wrong?

[joe]

RSB:

There are 160 games left to play. It is definitely not "too late".

Maybe we should let Carson be the Drama Queen....

[kdon]

Rosario is nice pickup, and worlds above the Rule 5 guys. I would think Bisenius would go down unless they think Condrey can clear waivers; he's out of options.

[Bedrosian's Beard]

"too little too late"?!? Come on. Let's get a grip here.

[kdon]

Care to point out what "excuses" you're talking about, clout. I haven't mentioned the bullpen in this thread.

[ae]

RSB, I'm not saying that getting Rosario makes up for not fixing the bullpen in the offseason. (although Gillick did manage to get him without giving up anything from our thin bench or minor league system, which is worth something.) but he is a legitimate talent, not some Rule V castoff who managed to pitch well against nobodies in a summer league. you can't judge him based on 23 innings in his first ever big league callup.

[The Doctor]

Larry Andersen- "Rosario has some kind of good arm, just has some control problems". Great, add him to the steaming pile of s*%t we have in the BP.

[kdon]

And BTW, you might want to actually look at the two pitchers who have blown late inning leads this year: Myers and Gordon.

Find me the posts where you said these two would be the problem!

[RickSchuBlues]

"Well, Abreu is gone, the old guard is gone, so who do we want to scapegoat now?"

Um. Abraham Nunez?

I have little choice but to agree, definitively, that Abreu's departure alone has not caused and will not cause this team to get to the 'next level'. I personally do not miss him and never will, but I evidently overstated the significance of the Grand Dump of '06. The Phillies are still stuck firmly in the mud, with him or without him.

[clout]

"sometimes bullpen's blow it."

Sounds like an excuse to me.

[zach]

Chucky seems to be having some problems with his control in this one. Hopefully he gets worse.

[ZT]

Doc, that comment had me rolling!

[RickSchuBlues]

I don't mean 'too late', as in, 'the season's over' - but too late as in, this should have been properly addressed in December, not desperately addressed on April 5.

[kdon]

I was talking about the Cubs, clout, if you would care to read the entire post. Just thought I would provide some context.

[RickSchuBlues]

Phils are going to win this game.

[zach]

Two DP's for Eaton so far. Nevermind those two earned runs.

[GM-Carson]

I pray to God that Francisco Rosario is better than Ryan Madson, but the Phils will probably option Joe Bisenius to make room for him, and Bisenius has a chance at becoming the best option in the bullpen. Yes, that's how bad our bullpen is, if I'm referring to a guy yet to throw a MLB pitch as having the ability to be better than all our other relievers.

Game thoughts- our offense is piss-poor right now. Goes to show spring training doesn't mean a thing.
Ryan Howard's defense is pitiful. 14 errors last year, 2 already this season. I know his bat will make up for it some time, but right now his D is hurting us. Should be 0-0.

[davthom73]

ae -- you said "Gillick did manage to get Rosario) without giving up anything from our thin bench or minor league system, which is worth something."

I say Coste goes to Toronto for "cash considerations" or for some throw-in after Cote gets off the DL. I think this deal was in the works last week, and was the reason why Gillick delayed in putting Coste on the DL.

[kdon]

I'm glad you're over blaming the Abreu for all the Phils ills, but I still don't see what you think is the problem.

I think the Phils from 2003-present have had the talent to win 85-92 games, and that they have performed at the lower level primarily due to Bowa and Manuel being sub-par managers, though for completely different reasons.

What I don't get is that you constantly see a problem of attitude, or whatever, but that you don't look towards the manager. I don't want to scapegoat Cholly either, but he has been the constant through a lot of the problems the Phils seem to have.

[zach]

They better RSB. This will be a long April if they allow themselves to get swept in their opening series. At home no less.

[Lister]

"This team was built to score runs and have solid starting pitching. So far the latter has come true, and I don't think it will be long before the bats get going."

This here Mets fan thinks your man AE is a whole lot closer to the reality of the situation than the people ready to jump off a bridge.

How aggressive do you guys think Gillick was in trying to move Lieber as soon as it became clear he was the odd-man out of the starting rotation? If the deals weren't there, that's fine, but it seems to me that the Front Office would have been behooved to try and be creative and move him for, dare I say it, a left-handed arm for your bullpen? What sort of projection do you guys have for Matt Smith this year?

[kdon]

"I'm referring to a guy yet to throw a MLB pitch as having the ability to be better than all our other relievers."

Come the f*ck on. Why on earth would you believe Bisenius is better than Gordon or Geary?

[kdon]

That was actually me, Lister.

Pretty sad, the only support I get is from a Muts fan. Didn't Jason like block you guys or something?

[The Doctor]

ZT- Glad I could liven up the day for you.

Tom G.- I'm in Paoli and it snowing sideways out here.

RSB- Phils are due for some good luck today, I agree that they will win. I wonder how long Eaton makes it today.

[Tray]

I hope they don't send down Bisenius, he's not much less an accomplished pitcher than Rosario. Let Condrey go, or even send down madson for a bit. And in favor of Eaton, the stuff seems to be there, he's gotten a lot of swings and misses. Unfortunately at this rate he's going to be done in six innings or less.

[Lister]

er I think kdon said that before. my bad.

[ae]

not sure it's a good thing to be complemented by a Mets fan... :)

[GM-Carson]

Kdon- calm down. Key word in my statement- "ability". Seriously, Gordon seems washed up. Madson sucks in my opinion and the numbers back my statement. Geary is good, I love Gas-Can. But I stick by my statement- Bisenius has the ability, aka "stuff" to end up being our most effective reliever. What's wrong with what I said?

[ae]

whew.

[zach]

I like the idea of sending down Madson... to "think about it". After all they've been messing around with this kid mentally since day one. It would send a message to the rest of the team that this sort of start is not acceptable. If you think that sort of thing works.

[Lister]

I have been nothing but respectful, my man. No need to ban me.

[joe]

I'm pretty sure that Madson has to be released outright, he's got to be out of options, he's been in the league like 4 years.

[RickSchuBlues]

kdon, you cannot possibly have more opposite managerial styles than Larry Bowa and Charlie Manuel. That makes it extremely difficult to point to the manager - either of them - as the primary cause of the team's ills, while the team's record has flatlined through both of their tenures. The team didn't really play any fundamentally better - or get off to better starts - under Bowa's high-intensity regime.

I've tried my best to explain why the Phillies don't win, no matter how much talent they accumulate. I don't think the Phils are necessarily short on character, heart, or talent. But for whatever reason - I can't claim to define it - this baseball team *cannot handle pressure*. Cannot handle pressure situations within games, cannot handle big games or big crowds in general. Cannot beat the better teams with consistency, cannot get the big hits. Sam Donnellon has a decent column today which touches on the subject:

"Last season the Phillies played in 45 one-run games, winning 22 - an oddly high number for a team that led the league in runs scored. And only the Dodgers had a worse record than the 5-11 mark the Phillies recorded in extra-inning games.

Here's what's also alarming: They were outscored in the ninth inning at home, 53-16. From the seventh inning on, they surrendered 36 more runs than they scored at Citizens Bank Park. On the road, the Phillies outscored their foes by 68 runs from the seventh inning on.

They want to please so badly, they get in their own way a lot."

[zach]

Atta boy Chase! That double courtesy of Abreu being absent from the roster. (j/k)

[clout]

kdon: You said the bullpen was fine, was not a problem. RSB, myself and numerous others said it wasn't fine. I absolutely singled out Madson, said he shouldn't be the setup man and several of us singled out Gordon, saying he was unlikely to stay healthy all season and we had no fallback.

[clout]

Eaton has a pretty good slider.

[zach]

YEAH

[GM-Carson]

Someone needs to inform Ryan Howard that being the 2006 NL MVP doesn't mean jack-sh*t in 2007. He needs to step his game up in all aspects. I know he'll be fine, I have confidence in his abilities, but he seems like a big sleepy oaf right now.

[ae]

who had April 5th in the "when Philly fans turn on Ryan Howard" pool?

at this rate, he'll be the next Pat Burrell before the end of the year.

[joel]

Re: outscored from the 7th inning on. Does this consider blowouts where the bullpen can afford to give up a few runs? I could restrict this stat to games where the run differential was 4 or less.

[Tray]

Mr. Donnellon's stats merely show that our team's bullpen was a lot worse than other teams' bullpens. That would explain getting outscored in the 7th-9th innings. And yeah, Bowa and Manuel have different styles, but that doesn't prove that neither is to blame. Charlie's a pretty inept tactician and we all know that someone with a little more savvy could get a few more wins out of this club.

[Josh M]

Looks like Burrell used up all his speed for the year when he scored from 1st on day one.

[clout]

For all those who hate Charlie Manuel, be careful what you wish for. When Jimy Williams managed the Red Sox, he was absolutely awful. Not as bad as Grady Little, but not much better either.

[GM-Carson]

I'm not turning against Howard. I'm just holding him accountable for poor performance thus far.

Hey, go figure, man on 3rd with less than 2 outs and Phils hitter can't even produce a productive out. Sounds familiar.

[RickSchuBlues]

ae: the honeymoon is definitely nearing an end for Howard. Unfortunate but inevitable. No one's ever seen him struggle. It's going to be a rougher road for him this year.

[kdon]

"They were outscored in the ninth inning at home, 53-16. From the seventh inning on, they surrendered 36 more runs than they scored at Citizens Bank Park."

This may be the epitome of a misleading stat!

You don't think the fact the Phils, you know, don't bat in the ninth at home when they win might affect this stat?

Sorry Carson, I'm only interested in who can help the team the most, and Bisenius isn't there yet. Ability, as I define it, means the ability to do it now, and there isn't enough in Bisenius's record to indicate he is anywhere near as valuable a player as Gordon or Geary.

You're right clout, you did single at Madson as being a poor set-up guy, but the only problem is that in neither game has he been in there to hold a lead.

Lister, just kiddning with you man.

[clout]

Tray: That's exactly the way I interpreted that column.

[AWH]

Watching "Black-Hole" Barajas hit is painful.

[GM-Carson]

The Phils are anti-situational hitting. They believe in long balls and scoring from 1st. To hell with acutally scoring with a man on 3rd via sac fly or a groundout...who ever actual wins that way anyways?

[RickSchuBlues]

kdon- true, it's somewhat misleading, but it doesn't obscure what's being said. You're focusing on one flawed element of what is being presented and discarding the rest of it.

[kdon]

Sorry, but are people actually taking Donnelon's ridiculous stat seriously.

Again, for those of you new to the game: The home team doesn't bat in the bottom of the ninth if they have the lead.

The numbers are probably still a little bit in the road teams favor, but not to a ridiculous degree.

[clout]

kdon: You're right, Madson's failure was not in the role that Manuel has designated him for. And the season is 162 games. But so far, you are dead wrong about the 'pen, no matter how you spin it.

[Bridoc10]

I was about to comment on how Eaton has really settled down...

...and then he walks the pitcher.

GUH!!!

[kdon]

It's incredibly misleading RSB, to the point that it is meaningless. If Donnellon got off his ass and adjusted for this contingency - say look at only the 7th and 8th innings of close games, then I would look at the stat.

When people say things like "lies, damn lies and statistics" its crap like this they are talking about.

[kdon]

Yes clout, I agree that through 2 games, Madson and Gordon and have underperformed my expectations.

Happy.

[AWH]

What an idiot. Has a hitter who can't catch up with his fastball and he throws a slider.

Where is Barajas' vaunted game management.

[Lister]

As Charlie Brown once said, "Tell your statistics to shut up."

[Jon]

A walk to the opposing pitcher almost always bites you in the ass...

[bloodstripes]

Damn these braves homers.

Cmon Phils pick it up

[curt]

Man, I though Eaton had a chance to earn his salary today. That walk to their pitcher was a killer.

Can't wait to see the mutts from the back end of our BP.

[Bridoc10]

Is it just me, or have the Braves taken advantage of EVERY mistake the Phillies have made in this series?

Christ, the guy was 0-fer the season and he raps a two-run shot after Eaton walks the pitcher!!!

[timr]

Here it comes... 5-1

[GM-Carson]

The Phillies hate me, the Phillies hate you, the Phillies hate their fans.

I was so incredibly amped up for this season. I'm not having any fun...this actually sucks. I love baseball and it brings me joy, but this season is joyless thus far.

[J. Weitzel]

Rosario: I don't disagree with adding a power reliever to the mix. Six innings of Moyer followed by heat, while the weather and hitters are still cold? Tough. Those at bats yesterday against Gonzalez and Soriano, pitchers with zip, are tough right now.

But obviously, Rosario isn't close to their level. Gillick probably watched Soriano in spring training and said "I need to add a pitcher who looks just like Soriano." They're the same hight, age, everything. All except the pitcher part.

2006 Prospectus - old desk copy: Beloved by scouts for his velocity, Rosario was climbing up the prospect lists before blowing out his elbow in late 2002. After taking 2003 to recover, he looked good in limited action in 2004, flashing the same mid-90s fastball, but also improving his command as the year went on. Last year, he didn't quite keep up. While his ERA was good, he gave up a few too many souveniers while failing to overpower experienced Triple-A hitters ...

[RickSchuBlues]

5 runs in 4-plus innings for Eaton...about on par...

[JZ]

GM-Carson, I'm right there with you.

And I'm livid that throwing my brand new stain resistant hat into the dirt whenever the Phils eat it means I can't have a dirty hat, no matter how often the Phils eat it.

Which, at this rate, is practically every effing inning.

[Tim]

i haven't commented on yesterdays game because, well, what can you say? there is no verbal response to attempting to steal third in that spot. everything after that is justice by the baseball Gods.

i am happy to see rosario here. calvary is here. let's hope he's worth a damn.

victoria is sitting - that's good. this game though, is not good.

[GM-Carson]

sounds like Bisenius will be making his MLB debut...right now! good debut Eaton. Gillick is pure genius!

[Ribbies]

Looks like Madson and Gordon are getting a rest in this one.

[kdon]

What the hell was that? Did Delluci just traspose his arm into Werth's body?