SB Nation Philly - Phillies Blown Out in Chicago Again, Lose Series to Cubshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48987/philly-fave.png2010-07-18T23:25:38-04:00http://philly.sbnation.com/rss/stream/13371072010-07-18T23:25:38-04:002010-07-18T23:25:38-04:00Phillies Lose Big, Lose Series Against Cubs
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<p>Chicago, IL (Sports Network) – Alfonso Soriano and Geovany Soto each hit a two-run homer off Roy Halladay, as the Chicago Cubs routed the Philadelphia Phillies, 11-6, in the finale of a four-game series.
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<p>Derrek Lee added a three-run double and Starlin Castro went 3-for-4 with an <span class="caps">RBI</span> for the Cubs, who won three games in the series and rebounded from Saturday’s loss. Chicago took a 1-0 lead into the ninth inning Saturday before the Phillies scored four runs off Carlos Marmol.</p>
<p>Sunday, the Cubs took the victory against the Phillies’ ace, Halladay (10- 8), who gave up six runs (five earned) on seven hits in six innings. The right-hander had given up just one run in 18 innings over his last two starts.</p>
<p>Cubs starter Tom Gorzelanny (5-5) took the win after limiting Philadelphia to three runs (two earned) on five hits and five walks in 6 2/3 innings.</p>
https://philly.sbnation.com/2010/7/18/1576174/phillies-lose-big-lose-seriesGeoffrey Detweiler2010-07-18T17:44:01-04:002010-07-18T17:44:01-04:00Preview: Halladay Up As Phillies Look to Equalize Series
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<p>(Sports Network) – The Philadelphia Phillies needed some late heroics to stop the Chicago Cubs yesterday afternoon and hope that the momentum will carry over into this evening’s finale of a four-game series from Wrigley Field.</p>
<p>The Phillies trailed 1-0 with two outs in the top of the ninth inning before scoring four runs to take the lead for good. Placido Polanco, who was activated from the 15-day disabled list prior to the game, had an <span class="caps">RBI</span> single and Ross Gload scored on a wild pitch. Jayson Werth later walked with the bases loaded to plate a run and Raul Ibanez put a lid on the scoring with an <span class="caps">RBI</span> single for a 4-1 edge.</p>
<p>Closer Brad Lidge allowed a walk in the bottom of the ninth before recoding his seventh save of the season. Cole Hamels was sharp through seven scoreless innings, as he allowed seven hits with five K’s and two walks. Chad Durbin worked a scoreless eighth inning to grab the win.</p>
<p>“It’s tremendous,” Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said of the win. “We gotta win some games. Every game we win from here on out is huge. We’re chasing two teams and we need to put together some wins if we’re going to stay in this thing.”</p>
<p>Werth and Ibanez both ended with two hits and an <span class="caps">RBI</span> for the Phillies, who ended a two-game slide and won for the fifth time in seven tries. They are now 4 1/2 games behind Atlanta for the NL East lead, with the New York Mets lurking at five games off the pace.</p>
<p>Taking the hill for Manuel’s club tonight will be ace Roy Halladay. Halladay is only 2-4 in his last six decisions and did not figure into the decision the last time out in a 1-0 win over Cincinnati despite tossing nine innings and giving up five hits. The righty also fanned nine batters.</p>
<p>Halladay is 10-7 with a 2.19 <span class="caps">ERA</span> in 19 starts this season and will try for his first career victory over the Cubs. In two career starts against Chicago he is 0-2 with a 3.00 earned run average.</p>
<p>Chicago suffered its first loss on the 10-game homestand (2-1) and wasted a superb effort from starter Randy Wells on Saturday. Wells delivered seven shutout innings and struck out five in the no-decision, while Carlos Marmol was the culprit in the ninth, allowing four runs on one hit and five walks to suffer the loss.</p>
<p>“Sometimes he’s effectively wild,” staff mate Sean Marshall said of Marmol on the team’s site. “Today, he was picking at the corners a little bit. With a lineup like the Phillies have, you have to stay ahead of them. He knows what he has to do. He’s done it so well this year and last year and his entire career.”</p>
<p>Ryan Theriot had the lone <span class="caps">RBI</span> for the Cubs in the seventh inning, while Derrek Lee, Marlon Byrd and Starlin Castro had two hits apiece in defeat.</p>
<p>Tom Gorzelanny will try to pitch the Cubs to a series triumph when he takes the hill Sunday. Gorzelanny has won two straight appearances and previously toed the rubber on July 10 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. In the 7-3 win at Dodger Stadium, he gave up two runs — one earned — in six innings to improve to 4-5 in 18 games (12 starts) to go along with a 3.16 <span class="caps">ERA</span>.</p>
<p>The left-hander beat the Phillies on May 19 this season on the road, as he tossed 6 2/3 shutout innings in his team’s 4-1 win. Gorzelanny is 1-1 with a 3.86 <span class="caps">ERA</span> in two career starts against Philadelphia. He is just 1-3 in the Windy City this season.</p>
<p>Chicago, which will also host Houston and St. Louis, is 10 games off the lead in the NL Central Division.</p>
<p>The Phillies had a five-game winning streak at Wrigley Field halted with Thursday’s loss, but have still won nine of the past 13 meetings between the ballclubs.</p>
https://philly.sbnation.com/2010/7/18/1575846/preview-halladay-up-as-philliesScott Kessler2010-07-17T23:45:04-04:002010-07-17T23:45:04-04:00Phillies Beat Cubs 4-1 But Hamels Doesn't Get Win
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<p>Chicago, IL (Sports Network) – Ross Gload scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch in a wild four-run, two-out rally in the ninth inning that carried the Phillies to a 4-1 comeback win over Chicago in third meeting of a four-game set.</p>
<p>Placido Polanco singled home the tying run and Jayson Werth walked with the bases loaded to force in an insurance marker and spell the end of the day for Chicago reliever Carlos Marmol (2-2), who suffered the loss after giving up all four runs on one hit and a season-high five walks while recording just two outs for the Cubs, who have dropped four out of seven.</p>
<p>Chad Durbin (1-1) worked a scoreless eighth inning to grab the win after Cole Hamels yielded a single run on eight hits over seven frames. He walked two and struck out six for the Phils, who stopped a two-game slide and won for the fifth time in seven tries. Brad Lidge threw a shutout ninth inning to preserve the win and earn his seventh save of the season.</p>
<p>Marmol entered in the ninth to protect a 1-0 lead and issued back-to-back one- out walks to pinch-hitters Brian Schneider and Gload before Shane Victorino struck out. Polanco then singled to left field in front of Tyler Colvin, whose one-hop throw to the plate was in time to cut down Schneider but was mishandled by catcher Geovany Soto to allow the tying run to score.</p>
<p>“I got the ball in plenty of time,” Soto said about the play at the plate. “He made a perfect throw to me, plain and simple, I just missed it. I rushed to grab the ball and get a tag and took my eyes off the ball.”</p>
<p>Gload had advanced to third on the play and scored the decisive run when Marmol uncorked a wild pitch with Jimmy Rollins at the plate. The Phillies subsequently loaded the bases for Werth, who worked the count full before drawing a free pass to push Polanco across the plate and chase Marmol from the hill.</p>
<p>James Russell took over and faced Raul Ibanez, who legged out an infield hit to first base after the rookie left-hander was late to cover from the mound. That allowed Rollins to score to make it 4-1 and brought on Andrew Cashner.</p>
<p>Pinch-hitter Cody Ransom smashed a ground ball back through the middle that was gloved by the diving shortstop Starlin Castro, who got the force out at second base to finally end the inning.</p>
<p>“It’s tremendous,” said Phillies manager Charlie Manuel referring to the importance of the victory. “We gotta win some games. Every game we win from here on out is huge. We’re chasing two teams and we need to put together some wins if we’re going to stay in this thing.”</p>
<p>The Cubs had broken up a scoreless duel in the seventh when Castro led off with a double, moved to third on a ground out and scored on a suicide squeeze bunt by Ryan Theriot, who legged it out for an infield hit.</p>
<p>The Phillies put runners at second and third and two out in the fourth before Carlos Ruiz flied out to end the frame. The Cubs had runners at the corners with two outs in the bottom of the inning but Castro bounced into a force out at second base to end the inning.</p>
<p>A two-out double by Werth and walks to Ibanez and Ruiz loaded the bases for the visitors in the sixth before Wilson Valdez grounded out. Chicago put runners at first and second with one out in the home half before Alfonso Soriano flied out and Soto was called out on strikes.</p>
<p>Cubs starter Randy Wells worked around seven hits and a pair of walks, while fanning five, to spin seven scoreless frames.</p>
<p>Marmol became the first Cubs pitcher to walk at least five hitters in a relief outing since Johnny Vander Meer walked five of the ten batters he faced in one complete frame on July 27, 1950 against Philadelphia and the first to do so in less than a full inning since June 11, 1920 when Speed Martin issued a free pass to five of the seven hitters he faced and was knocked in the first inning after recording two outs. The Phillies won for just a third time in 40 games when trailing after eight innings…Philadelphia is 37-9 when scoring four runs or more…The Cubs have scored three runs or fewer in 16 of their last 25 games, including one run or less in nine of them…Chicago was thwarted in a bid to win three straight home games for the first time since May 16-25. Philadelphia stranded 12 baserunners, while the Cubs were 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position and left nine men aboard.</p>
https://philly.sbnation.com/2010/7/17/1575146/phillies-beat-cubs-4-1-but-hamelsScott Kessler2010-07-17T14:28:19-04:002010-07-17T14:28:19-04:00Phillies, Once Again, Trying to Get Back On Track Against The Cubs
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<p>(Sports Network) – It’s been all smiles for the Chicago Cubs on their current homestand and they’ll go for a series victory this afternoon in the third test of a four-game series versus the Philadelphia Phillies at Wrigley Field.</p>
<p>The Cubs opened their 10-game homestand by handing the Phillies a 12-6 loss in Thursday’s series opener before taking yesterday’s second portion of this series, 4-3, on an Aramis Ramirez solo homer with two outs in the bottom of the eighth. Ramirez ended 3-for-4 with three runs scored and Marlon Byrd tied the game with a two-run homer in the sixth inning for the Cubs, who have won six of their last nine games.</p>
<p>“If that continues,” Cubs manager Lou Piniella said on the team’s site, “it’s like a little forest fire that starts spreading a little bit. Let’s keep working and keep playing and hope we keep winning some baseball games.”</p>
<p>Ted Lilly started for the Cubs and did not record a decision after giving up three runs in seven innings. Sean Marshall recorded the victory with a scoreless eighth and Carlos Marmol struck out three in the ninth for his 17th save of the season.</p>
<p>Chicago will also host Houston and St. Louis on the residency.</p>
<p>Since beginning the season 3-0 over his first five starts, Cubs starter Randy Wells has struggled mightily. He is just 1-7 with a 5.11 earned run average in his last 13 starts and will take the ball Saturday.</p>
<p>Wells was solid in his last appearance, hurling seven innings of three-run ball in a 3-2 loss at Los Angeles on July 8. He struck out seven Dodgers that day and allowed just one walk before falling to 4-7 overall with a 4.61 <span class="caps">ERA</span>.</p>
<p>The right-hander is 2-3 in nine home starts in 2010 and has never faced the Phillies in his career.</p>
<p>Philadelphia entered the All-Star break fresh off a four-game sweep of the Cincinnati Reds, but are now having trouble with another NL Central foe. In Friday’s tough loss, reliever Ryan Madson gave up Ramirez’s bomb to left in the eighth inning to absorb the defeat.</p>
<p>Joe Blanton was decent through the first seven innings and allowed three runs on five hits and three walks with eight K’s in the no-decision. Ryan Howard hit a two-run homer and Shane Victorino delivered a solo shot to get the Phils on the board first in the fourth inning.</p>
<p>“We just need to get runs. We need to keep them from scoring runs,” Howard said. “Laws of baseball. Outscore the other team.”</p>
<p>The Phillies are still 5 1/2 games behind Atlanta for the lead in the National League East, while the New York Mets sit five games off the pace. Both the Braves and Mets lost on Friday. Philadelphia will visit St. Louis for four games after its trip to the Windy City.</p>
<p>In injury news for the ballclub, the Phillies activated third baseman Placido Polanco off the 15-day disabled list on Saturday. Polanco has not played since June 25 due to inflammation in his left elbow. He had been playing through the injury after getting hit by a pitch, but medication and cortisone shots did not remedy the issue.</p>
<p>Through 62 games this season, the 34-year-old veteran was batting .318 with five home runs and 27 <span class="caps">RBI</span>. He was the leading vote-getter among National League third basemen in All-Star balloting prior to his injury. To make room on the roster, the club gave infielder Juan Castro his unconditional release.</p>
<p>Philly hopes that Cole Hamels can stay on the winning side of things when he takes the mound today. Hamels was 1-5 in eight starts before winning his most recent trip to the hill, a 1-0 victory versus Cincinnati on Sunday. He threw 7 2/3 scoreless innings and gave up six hits with three strikeouts and three walks to improve to 7-7 in 18 starts and lower his <span class="caps">ERA</span> to 3.78.</p>
<p>Hamels, a left-hander, will try to even his road record Saturday, as he sports a 3-4 ledger in eight away starts this season. The 2008 World Series <span class="caps">MVP</span> is 3-1 with a 2.61 <span class="caps">ERA</span> in five career starts against the Cubs.</p>
<p>The Phillies had a five-game winning streak at Wrigley Field halted with Thursday’s loss, but have still won eight of the past 12 meetings between the ballclubs.</p>
https://philly.sbnation.com/2010/7/17/1574646/phillies-once-again-trying-to-getScott Kessler2010-07-16T23:25:11-04:002010-07-16T23:25:11-04:00Recap: Phillies Lose 4-3 In Chicago
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<p>Chicago, IL (Sports Network) – Aramis Ramirez continued his hot streak with a game-winning solo home run in the eighth inning, and the Chicago Cubs edged the Philadelphia Phillies, 4-3, in the second of four games at Wrigley Field.</p>
<p>Ramirez, who was hitting just .165 following a game on June 25, has raised his batting average to .220 by going 24-for-64 in his last 16 games, including 3- for-4 on Friday. Marlon Byrd added a two-run homer for the Cubs, who won consecutive home games for the first time since June 16-17.</p>
<p>Ted Lilly was solid in the start, yielding three runs, four hits and a walk while fanning 10 over seven innings. Sean Marshall (6-2) earned the win for one perfect inning, and Carlos Marmol notched his 17th save.</p>
<p>Ryan Howard hit a two-run homer for the Phillies, who have dropped two straight following a four-game win streak to end the first half of the season. Shane Victorino also homered in defeat.</p>
<p>“We just need to get runs. We need to keep them from scoring runs,” Howard said. “Laws of baseball. Outscore the other team.”</p>
<p>Joe Blanton allowed three runs on five hits and three walks in seven innings. Ryan Madson (2-1) was dealt the loss for giving up Ramirez’s home run.</p>
<p>With Madson on the mound in the eighth, the first two Cubs batters were retired. Ramirez, however, hammered a 3-2 belt-high pitch into the left-field bleachers for a 4-3 Chicago advantage.</p>
<p>“Early in the count, I tried to go deep,” Ramirez said. “When I got to two strikes — he’s got good stuff — he just made a mistake.”</p>
<p>Marmol came in and struck out Jayson Werth, Howard and Francisco in succession to end the game.</p>
<p>The first three innings moved rather quickly, with the teams producing just one baserunner — a Byrd one-out single for Chicago in the second. He was erased on a subsequent Alfonso Soriano double play groundout.</p>
<p>The Phillies finally cracked the scoreboard in the fourth on Victorino’s one- out blast into the left-field bleachers, but the Cubs tied the game in the fifth.</p>
<p>Ramirez led off with a single, and Soriano worked a one-out walk. After both runners moved up on a groundout, Geovany Soto was intentionally walked to get to Lilly, who went down in the count 0-2 after a swinging strike. Blanton, though, issued three straight balls, then Lilly fought off a pitch down the middle. Blanton’s next pitch was just high, walking Lilly and forcing in Ramirez for a 1-1 score.</p>
<p>Both teams blasted a two-out, two-run homer in the sixth — Howard for the Phillies and Byrd for the Cubs — to keep the game tied, 3-3, heading to the seventh.</p>
<p>Chicago nearly went ahead in the seventh, as Starlin Castro led off with a single and moved to second on an errant pickoff throw. Soto’s fly ball sent Castro to third with one out, but pinch-hitter Kosuke Fukudome and Ryan Theriot both struck out to end the threat.</p>
<p>The Cubs lead the season series, 3-1…Blanton struck out eight…Howard homered in back-to-back games for the third time this season, and he has 12 <span class="caps">RBI</span> in eight games…Victorino hit his 15th home run, setting a new career high.</p>
https://philly.sbnation.com/2010/7/16/1574058/recap-phillies-lose-4-3-in-chicagoJason Brewer2010-07-16T12:28:44-04:002010-07-16T12:28:44-04:00Preview: Phillies Try To Get Back On Track Against Cubs At Wrigley
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<p>(Sports Network) - The <a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Chicago Cubs</a> know they have a long and difficult road ahead of them if they are to get back into contention in the National League Central. More games like Thursday's second-half opener should make that journey smoother.</p>
<p>Chicago will look for its second straight win to open its post-All Star break schedule this afternoon, when it continues its four-game series with the <a href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Philadelphia Phillies</a> at Wrigley Field.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Cubs</a> kicked off a 10-game homestand with a 12-6 victory over the <a href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Phillies</a>, but remain nine games behind the first-place <a href="https://www.redreporter.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Cincinnati Reds</a> in the division. They hit three homers in last night's rout, saw <span>Starlin Castro</span> steal home on a failed suicide squeeze that got by Phillies catcher <span>Carlos Ruiz</span> and received 6 2/3 innings of two-run ball from starter <span>Ryan Dempster</span>.</p>
<p><span>Derrek Lee</span> and <span>Geovany Soto</span> hit two-run homers for Chicago, <span>Alfonso Soriano</span> had a solo shot and drove in three runs, while <span>Aramis Ramirez</span> stroked a pair of two-run doubles to match a season high with four RBI.</p>
<p>"You have to keep going and win games. Come here ready to play and see what happens," said Ramirez, who was hitting just .207 before the game but is batting .350 (21-for-60) with five homers and 14 RBI over his last 15 contests.</p>
<p>The Phillies' <span>Ryan Howard</span> hit a two-run homer in the first inning, but starter <a href="../../mlb/players/1/Jamie_Moyer" class="sbn-auto-link">Jamie Moyer</a> yielded six runs over just three innings of work as the Phillies failed to match their season-best five-game winning streak while also falling 5 1/2 games behind the first-place <a href="https://www.talkingchop.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Atlanta Braves</a> in the NL East.</p>
<p>"It is not a good way to set a tone to start the second half," said Moyer. "I'll wear it. It is my responsibility."</p>
<p>Howard added another two-run homer in the ninth, his 19th long ball of the season, and upped his NL-leading RBI total to 69. He has driven in 10 runs over his last seven games and is 3-for-11 with a homer and two RBI lifetime versus today's starter for the Cubs, <span>Ted Lilly</span>.</p>
<p>The continued subject of trade rumors, Lilly has struggled over his last two starts. The left-hander has allowed a total of 16 runs in that span, 14 of those earned, while logging just 10 1/3 innings of work.</p>
<p>Lilly lasted a season-low 3 2/3 innings against the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Dodgers</a> on Friday, yielding seven runs (five earned) on seven hits in his shortest outing since a two-inning start on Sept. 5, 2008.</p>
<p>"Ted wasn't sharp at all. He's gotten the ball up in his last couple of starts," Cubs manager Lou Piniella said.</p>
<p>The 34-year-old Lilly is 3-8 with a 4.08 earned run average on the season and 1-4 with a 6.43 ERA in five career starts versus the Phillies.</p>
<p>The Phillies hope <span>Joe Blanton</span> can produce a better second half after going just 3-5 with a 6.41 ERA in 13 starts before the break.</p>
<p>The right-hander hasn't factored into the decision of his last three starts, posting a 6.05 ERA in that span while allowing five earned runs in each of his last two outings. That includes last Friday versus the <a href="https://www.redreporter.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Reds</a>, when Blanton also gave up 12 hits and struck out seven over his 5 1/3-inning outing.</p>
<p>Blanton, 29, faced the Cubs on May 20 and got a no-decision after getting charged with three runs over seven innings of work. He has a 2.75 ERA without a decision in three career starts versus Chicago.</p>
<p>Ramirez is just 1-for-6 in his career versus Blanton, while Lee is 2-for-8 with a double and homer.</p>
<p>The Phillies had a five-game winning streak at Wrigley Field halted with last night's loss but have still won eight of the past 11 meetings between the two clubs.</p>
https://philly.sbnation.com/2010/7/16/2317951/preview-phillies-try-to-get-back-on-track-against-cubs-at-wrigleyEvan Dunlap