But the Phillies’ bats were in absentia most of the weekend, dropping the first two games without so much as a whimper from their supposed mighty lumber. On Monday afternoon, however, they finally erupted to the tune of 11 runs and 17 hits, good enough to beat the Jays into submission 11-6 and avert the sweep.
Despite Fultz-ed Up Rotation, Phils Salvage Finale Read Post »
Of 17 his starts this season, 16 have been quality outings. Saturday, he only lasted four innings and was shelled for 11 hits and six runs by the Twins. Bear in mind that he took a line drive off his pitching forearm in his previous start. Capuano says it wasn’t a factor in this game, but obviously something wasn’t quite right. Of course, nothing is going right for opponents of the Twins these days. That’s nine straight wins now and 17 of 18 for the boys from Minnesota. At home, they have a 12-game run going. It’s something to think about if your starters are facing Minny.
Fantasy Notes: Nathan Finds his Niche Read Post »
In part deux of the Phillies-Jays series at the Rogers Centre Saturday afternoon, Toronto won its season-high fifth game in a row, 5-2, as the Phils’ supposed potent offense was again shut down.
He’s mostly a fastball pitcher, ranging from 86 to 91 mph, but seems to pitch most comfortably and effectively at 89 mph. Unfortunately, that leaves just a 4-to-5 mph spread between his fastball and changeup. But Janssen employed a liberal amount of north-south movement on his heater to change the batters’ eyes and that was very effective, on Saturday at least. He mixed in the occasional curve (ranging 74 to 79 mph) — which he can throw for strikes, and a slider that ranged from 83 to 86 mph. I’d like to see Janssen lean more on off-speed stuff, especially his breaking ball. I believe that would really complement his fastball.
Casey on the Mound Read Post »
He looked superb a few starts ago against the Angels in a game I caught on the tube, but it looks like the rest of the league has been catching up to him lately. Let’s see what happens Friday. (Go Phils! This is the first chance I’ve had to see the Phillies, who are my second favourite team, in person since since the 1993 World Series.)
Wednesday’s win over the sagging Dodgers was the Twinkies’ lucky seventh straight. Minny was a dismal 27-34 and 11.5 games back in the AL Central after getting beat by the O’s on June 10. Since then, the club has gone an unconscious 15-1. And guess how many games they’ve shaved off of the Tigers’ lead with this run?
Twinkies Out of Luck? Read Post »
The NBA draft occurred Wednesday night, a couple of hours after our deadline for this column, so coverage of that will have to wait until next time, but for now, let’s get into some free-agent chat.
Three in the Key: Let the Speculation Begin Read Post »
