The Phillies are running on all cylinders right now. An overpowering offense ranked near the top of the NL. The defense with the most outfield assists in the majors. An effective bullpen, with ace closer Brett Myers about to return to action. The best ballpark eats in MLB. A dominating starting rotation, featuring a blend of youth and experience.OK, I tried to sneak that last one by you. Probably with about as much success as Luis Ayala had last night in sneaking a third strike past Aaron Rowand. Rowand deposited Ayala's offering over the fence in left, breaking a 3-3 tie, and sending the Phillies to a 4-3 victory over the Nationals. With the nearly invincible Antonio Alfonseca ready to close the door in the 9th, the game was over with that swing. Alfonseca picked up his eighth save, reducing his FSR (fingers to saves ratio) to 1.50, and increasing the home teams' winning streak to four games.
The Phillies relied on Rowand (3 XBH and an OF assist) and the previously mentioned effective bullpen (Romero, Madson, and Alfonseca combined for 3.1 shutout innings on only one hit) on a night when the rest of the team didn't do much (four combined hits). Rookie starter Kyle Kendrick was wild (46 of 82 pitches were strikes), but managed to get through 5.2 innings with only three runs allowed, all on a bases-clearing triple by Nats catcher Brian Schneider. Kendrick's record remained at 4-1, with his ERA increasing to 4.44. Not bad for a guy who was pitching in AA not too long ago. Pat Burrell continued his blistering hot July (.404/.538/.702) by going 1 for 1, with a pair of walks and a game tying sacrifice fly. He's become the Phillies' answer to Ichiro. Just a step on two slower. Teams are likely clamoring for Rowand and Burrell right now, offering top prospects (Buchholz?) and ace starters (Bedard?) in packages for either of the pair. But with Kyle (Snappy Nickname TBA) Kendrick and J. D. (The Real Deal) Durbin solidifying the rotation, the Phillies don't need to make a deal. Well, except for trading Rod Barajas to the highest bidder. Or, any bidder.
Philadelphia looks to make it five in a row, with Cole Hamels (11-5, 3.69 ERA) facing some guy named Chico. (No, not former Flyers goalie Chico Resch. A different Chico. I think.)
It's Cole Hamels Bobblehead Night, so you can take it to the Bank that Cole will win tonight. Actually, you can pretty much assume he's going to win every time he pitches. Sure, he lost his last start, but he only gave up one run. Plus he was facing Chris Young, in San Diego. Young, of course, is a robot. And we all know what happens when humans, even superhumans (ex. Hamels) face off against a robot. But will the Phillies win tonight? Affirmative.
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