Phils Report Card #7

Record since last Report Card: 8-3

Overall Record:  44-27 (1st place; 5 games ahead of Atlanta)

For the first time since the first week of the season, the Phils had pretty much everything working during a 7-game winning streak that ended with a loss last night in Seattle.  The offense was productive, the pitching was mostly spectacular, and this team reminded many of why they were the odds-on favorites to win the NL coming into the season.  On to the grades…

Position Players:
It was a solid stretch offensively, but let’s not go overboard.  This line-up has managed to set the bar really low, so it doesn’t take much to get us excited.  Still, seven runs or more in 4 of 5 games during one stretch last week was really nice to see.  Ryan Howard got things on track (sort of) by ending a 65 inning homerless drought for the team when he hit one against the Dodgers last Wednesday.  The team has hit 13 in the ten games since then.

The most positive development has to be Chase Utley finding his stroke for the first time this season.  He hit .353 (12-34) with an impressive eight extra-base hits, including two homers.  He had a couple big games, and is running the bases like his old self, which is obviously a great sign of how he’s feeling on the recovering knee.  Matching Chase in production was Victorino, who seemed to get a spark from moving back up to the 2-hole in the order.  He hit .378 (17-45) with a home run and three steals.  He also hit a huge two-run single on Wednesday that tied the game with Florida in the bottom of the 9th.  Chooch had a pedestrian 11 games, but he deserves mention for his two big singles in the 9th and 10th innings of that game, the 10th inning hit being the game-winner.

Just as Victorino got a spark from hitting 2nd and having Utley and Howard behind him, Polanco took a nose-dive by moving to 5th in the order.  He hit .167 (6-36) and has now seen his season average dip below .300.  Though he did hit a grand slam to beat the Cubs on Friday.  Dom Brown has had a bad (and strange) run lately.  He hit an abysmal 4-37, but three of those four hits were home runs, including his first multi-homer game, which included an upper-deck bomb.  The raw ability is so evident with him, but it seems like he needs to make some adjustments with his stance or swing, because he’s getting overpowered by fastballs right now.  J-Roll had a similar stretch, but less extreme, with just 7 hits in 40 AB’s, but three of them were homers.

In the field, they continued to be less than impressive.  Six errors in the 11 games, and that doesn’t include a handful of errant throws by Utley and a couple misplays by Ibanez.  It looks like Utley’s throwing woes are here to stay, and hopefully they don’t come back to bite them in a key spot.  Howard made his first error of the year, and it wasn’t even a throwing error, which means he’s really made some more strides there.

Grade:  B-

Starting Pitchers:
Take away Roy Oswalt’s starts, and the starters were completely dominant.  In eight starts by the other four starters, they allowed one run or less in seven of them.  The remarkable season of Cole Hamels continued, with one run allowed over 15 innings in two wins, with 9 hits allowed, 15 K’s, and one walk.  He wasn’t even fazed when his last start was delayed for rain at the start!  Is this a new Cole?

As good as Hamels was, Cliff Lee one-upped him.  He followed an 8 inning/1 run beating of the Cubs with a two-hit shutout of the Marlins on Thursday, earning him the Start of the Week award.  Kyle Kendrick is going well, turning in his best start of the year with 7 innings/1 run in a win over Florida.  He pitched three scoreless innings in his previous start before exiting due to a lengthy rain delay.

Halladay shut-out the Cubs over 7 innings last week, then was touched for 4 runs in a no-decision against Florida.  He had 17 K’s and no walks in those two starts.  The top non-Phillie in strike-out/walk ratio is the Pirates Jeff Karstens, at 3.92.  Cliff Lee’s is 4.63, Hamels is at 5.11, and Halladay a ridiculous 8.14.  These guys are strike-throwing machines.  Halladay leads the league in strike-outs and is also on pace to meet his goal of less walks than starts, with 14 walks in his 15 starts so far.

As for Oswalt, he turned in three mediocre starts, giving up 4, 3, and 4 runs in those starts, and taking two losses against one win.

Grade:  A-

Bullpen:
Yes, Ryan Madson blew his first save of the year and Contreras was bombed for four runs by the Cubs the next night, but they look like blips on the radar screen, as the bullpen continues to overacheive.  Madson gave up just one run in that blown save, and he picked up two saves and a win in his other three appearances.

Despite giving up 2 runs to the Dodgers last week, it looks like Michael Stutes may have moved past Contreras, at least for the time being, in Charlie’s mind.  It was telling that in the 9th inning of a close game against the Marlins on Wednesday, Charlie went with Stutes.  Bastardo continues to pitch really well, and even Danys Baez and David Herndon were effective over this stretch.

Grade:  B