GaryMrMets
07-06-2004, 01:27 AM
http://www.southjerseynews.com/issues/july/s070204e.htm
Big bats pick up slack for arms
Friday, July 2, 2004
PHILADELPHIA
Pitching, smitching.
The Phillies bludgeoned their way into first place all alone Thursday for the first time since May 23 by throwing pitching and defense out the window and just whaling away. The Phillies beat Montreal 10-5 Thursday to finish off a series in which they scored a stunning 44 runs - the Phillies' biggest offensive series since 1932.
Yes, it was just the Expos. Yes, the Expos started guys named Sun-Woo Kim and Scott Downs in this series. But the Phillies are today the best offense in the National League. That's right, the best. The Phillies lead the league in runs scored.
For all the injuries the Phillies have suffered in their pitching staff, Kevin Millwood, Eric Milton and Brett Myers have all been healthy as horses all year - and not a one of them has an ERA below 4.68. The Phillies' pitching staff ranks 11th in the league in ERA.
Now, this space has never been very big on math. But if you've got one group of people ranked first, and one group of people ranked 11th, you kind of ought to feel like you can lean on that first group.
Before this series, the Phillies were 5-18 when they allowed more than five runs, or when they had to win a slugfest. In this series, they allowed more than five runs in every game, yet went 3-1 because the offense scored enough to push the team into first place.
What if the Phillies' pitching never gets sorted out? Can this offense carry the day? Can it carry the team? Can the Phillies keep winning this way?
"Yeah, I think we can," Phillies manager Larry Bowa said. "If we continue to shorten our swings, put the ball in play like we've done (in this series), yeah. I don't think in the long run any team can keep winning 8-7 every night. Until we get the pitching straightened out, I think we can do that. But for a real long stretch? That's hard to do."
This is the offense the Phillies envisioned when they put this thing together in the spring, even though it has a little different look to it now. Jimmy Rollins has stepped into the leadoff spot (hitting .297 there) and Jason Michaels has brought a .311 average to the center field position in the wake of Marlon Byrd's demotion.
But the 3-4-5 core of Bobby Abreu, Jim Thome and Pat Burrell has been exactly what the Phillies hoped. Abreu is having one of his finest seasons, Thome is only one of the four or five most feared hitters in the game and Burrell seems to have regained his form, the one that had him destined for greatness before the 2003 debacle.
The Phillies will hit the All-Star break with all three players topping 50 RBIs. Only one other team - the Reds - has three hitters driving in runs at that rate.
Thome didn't even do very much in this series, driving in only one run (and that on a fielder's choice groundout Thursday) in the three wins - games that saw the Phillies score 41 runs.
"It's a credit to how good this team is," Burrell said. "We have a lot of guys here who can do a lot of things."
One of them, certainly, is Burrell. Rollins has been the most important factor, in that he stepped in to fix the Phillies' most glaring lineup hole. But it was said here before the season that Burrell would be the factor that ultimately determines whether the Phillies' offense is good enough - and so far, he's come through.
Burrell is hitting .289 with 56 RBIs after driving in three runs Thursday. Most importantly, when he went through a bad stretch in June he was able to right the ship - Burrell has batted .435 in his last five games, with seven RBIs.
"When I get out of whack, the biggest thing for me this year is that I have something to go back to," Burrell said. "Last year I didn't have anything to go back to. Having a good start, I really had the confidence to go out and hit. When you believe in what you're doing, it makes it a lot easier."
Most importantly, he's making teams pay for pitching around Thome - which they have done and will continue to do, because that is the choice most managers will make even if it makes the crowd boo.
Burrell is hitting .250 after a walk to Thome, but he's got three hits in his last three at-bats in that situation. That's Burrell's job - to make sure, when teams walk Thome, that there is a price to pay.
Thursday, with the Phillies leading 7-4, the Expos walked Thome to face Burrell - and Burrell broke the game open with an RBI single, and the rout was on.
Until the pitching gets straightened out - if the pitching gets straightened out - the bats may have to keep carrying this thing for a while.
Big bats pick up slack for arms
Friday, July 2, 2004
PHILADELPHIA
Pitching, smitching.
The Phillies bludgeoned their way into first place all alone Thursday for the first time since May 23 by throwing pitching and defense out the window and just whaling away. The Phillies beat Montreal 10-5 Thursday to finish off a series in which they scored a stunning 44 runs - the Phillies' biggest offensive series since 1932.
Yes, it was just the Expos. Yes, the Expos started guys named Sun-Woo Kim and Scott Downs in this series. But the Phillies are today the best offense in the National League. That's right, the best. The Phillies lead the league in runs scored.
For all the injuries the Phillies have suffered in their pitching staff, Kevin Millwood, Eric Milton and Brett Myers have all been healthy as horses all year - and not a one of them has an ERA below 4.68. The Phillies' pitching staff ranks 11th in the league in ERA.
Now, this space has never been very big on math. But if you've got one group of people ranked first, and one group of people ranked 11th, you kind of ought to feel like you can lean on that first group.
Before this series, the Phillies were 5-18 when they allowed more than five runs, or when they had to win a slugfest. In this series, they allowed more than five runs in every game, yet went 3-1 because the offense scored enough to push the team into first place.
What if the Phillies' pitching never gets sorted out? Can this offense carry the day? Can it carry the team? Can the Phillies keep winning this way?
"Yeah, I think we can," Phillies manager Larry Bowa said. "If we continue to shorten our swings, put the ball in play like we've done (in this series), yeah. I don't think in the long run any team can keep winning 8-7 every night. Until we get the pitching straightened out, I think we can do that. But for a real long stretch? That's hard to do."
This is the offense the Phillies envisioned when they put this thing together in the spring, even though it has a little different look to it now. Jimmy Rollins has stepped into the leadoff spot (hitting .297 there) and Jason Michaels has brought a .311 average to the center field position in the wake of Marlon Byrd's demotion.
But the 3-4-5 core of Bobby Abreu, Jim Thome and Pat Burrell has been exactly what the Phillies hoped. Abreu is having one of his finest seasons, Thome is only one of the four or five most feared hitters in the game and Burrell seems to have regained his form, the one that had him destined for greatness before the 2003 debacle.
The Phillies will hit the All-Star break with all three players topping 50 RBIs. Only one other team - the Reds - has three hitters driving in runs at that rate.
Thome didn't even do very much in this series, driving in only one run (and that on a fielder's choice groundout Thursday) in the three wins - games that saw the Phillies score 41 runs.
"It's a credit to how good this team is," Burrell said. "We have a lot of guys here who can do a lot of things."
One of them, certainly, is Burrell. Rollins has been the most important factor, in that he stepped in to fix the Phillies' most glaring lineup hole. But it was said here before the season that Burrell would be the factor that ultimately determines whether the Phillies' offense is good enough - and so far, he's come through.
Burrell is hitting .289 with 56 RBIs after driving in three runs Thursday. Most importantly, when he went through a bad stretch in June he was able to right the ship - Burrell has batted .435 in his last five games, with seven RBIs.
"When I get out of whack, the biggest thing for me this year is that I have something to go back to," Burrell said. "Last year I didn't have anything to go back to. Having a good start, I really had the confidence to go out and hit. When you believe in what you're doing, it makes it a lot easier."
Most importantly, he's making teams pay for pitching around Thome - which they have done and will continue to do, because that is the choice most managers will make even if it makes the crowd boo.
Burrell is hitting .250 after a walk to Thome, but he's got three hits in his last three at-bats in that situation. That's Burrell's job - to make sure, when teams walk Thome, that there is a price to pay.
Thursday, with the Phillies leading 7-4, the Expos walked Thome to face Burrell - and Burrell broke the game open with an RBI single, and the rout was on.
Until the pitching gets straightened out - if the pitching gets straightened out - the bats may have to keep carrying this thing for a while.