Hamels is thinking about Playoffs

The Houston Astros continued to have the Phillies number last night in Philly, beating Hamels and the Phils 8-2.  Miguel Tejada went 4-5 with three runs and an RBI, CarlosLee added tow hits, two runs and an RBI and even former Met Jeff Keppinger got into things going 3-5 with two RBI on the day.  Yorman Bazardo(1-2) got his first win by lasting 5.2 innings and only allowed two hits and two runs to the heavy hitting Phillies.

Cole Hamels(10-10) dropped back to .500 on the season with a 6.2 inning stinker, allowing nine hits and six runs in this game.  The offense obviously didn’t help wither as Shane Victorino was the only Philly with two hits and only Chase Utley recorded the only RBI for them.  Phillies Phandom will have more on the Phillies and their struggles against the Astros.

Jurrjens with another gem

Jair Jurrjens is keeping the playoff hopes of the Braves alive, with a gem last night in a 4-0 win against the Fish.  Jurrjens(14-10) went seven innings and allowed just five hits and a walk with no runs, his season ERA is now 2.61, impressive.  The Braves only had three hits, but had ELEVEN walks to put up their four runs.  The RBI’s were credited to Nate McLouth, Chipper Jones, Brian McCann and Garrett Anderson.  The Braves Baseball Blog covers the Braves.

ELEVEN walks, that is absolutely insane and you can not expect to win with that.  Anibal Sanchez(3-8) went five innings and his line was two hits, three runs and EIGHT walks in the game.  No one in the offense had more than two hits, those went to John Baker and Chris Coghlan as the Marlins flounder down the stretch, check out FishGuts for more.

Is he doing the robot?

Ah, the matchup of the week, the last place Nats against the should be last place Mets, the Nats took the first game, 2-1.  Ross Detwiler(1-6) got his first major league win as he went six innings and allowed just seven hits and one run in the game, congrats.  Ryan Zimmerman got the Nats on the board in the first with a sacrifice fly and Mike Morse had a solo shot in the sixth that proved to be the game winning run.  Mike MacDougal got his 17th save of the season with a perfect ninth as well.  Centerfield Gate has more on the Nationals and many things baseball.

Nelson Figueroa pitched well enough to win yet again, but he does play on the 2009 Mets, so that didn’t happen.  Figueroa(2-8) got the loss in six innings allowing six hits and two runs, basically just on that home run in this one.  Fernando Tatis had the only RBI with a single to Center field in the sixth scoring Carlos Beltran, temporarily tying the game.  The Real Dirty Mets Blog covers this and many other issues the Mets face entering the offseason.

Just one game on Monday night, and it was a laugher…

Jones hurts the Metsies again

The Atlanta Braves had no problem in this one, as they had put up 11 runs in three innings on way to an 11-3 romping of the Mets last night.  Garrett Anderson hit a two run home run to cap a four run first and Chipper Jones added a big blow with a three run home run in the second inning as well early in this one.  Derek Lowe(15-9) was able to cost through five innings allowing just six hits and three runs and leaving with just 69 pitches on the day.  Kenshin Kawakami picked up the save pitching four innings of one hit ball.  The Braves Baseball Blog is the place to go for Brave info.

Pat Misch was awful for the Mets, just absolutely awful.  Misch(1-4) got through 1.1 innings and allowed seven hits and eight runs and THREE home runs, Lance Broadway wasn’t much better giving up three more runs in 1.2 innings  following.  Young catcher Josh Thole had an RBI groundout in the second as well as an Angel Pagan RBI groundout in the fifth sandwiched around a Daniel Murphy solo homer in the fourth for all the scoring.  The Real Dirty Mets Blog has more on the Mets season winding down.

Please feel free to email any recommend questions or comments about the segment to mrose@nleastchatter.com or go to this forum topic and post a reply. We need questions for our next Chatter Up! Those games are Nats @ Mets and Phillies @ Braves. Thanks for everyone’s participation!

Hamels with a classic gem

Cole Hamels pitched his second straight great game, the only difference was this time, he didn’t let the bullpen ruin it for him.  Hamels(8-8) went the distance in a 1-0 win versus the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night while only allowing three baserunners on two hits and one walk and using 118 pitches.  The Phillies have been waiting and hoping for Hamels to find his good stuff, and if he has now, it could not have come at a better time with the playoffs around the corner.  Ryan Howard was the only Philly player with two hits as he went 2-4 and contributed the only RBI on a double in the fourth inning, scoring Shane Victorino for the only run of the game.  Check out Phillies Phandom for more on Cole and this game.

The San Francisco Giants did what they did best, but also did exactly what they do worst.  Jonathan Sanchez(6-11) was a tough luck loser going six innings and allowing only three hits and three walks while striking out eight and only allowing Howard’s RBI double.  The Giants bats though only managed three baserunners with Ryan Garko and pinch hitter Rich Aurilia with a single in the ninth before pinch runner Andres Torres was thrown out trying to steal second.  The loss put the Giants down one game in the wildcard to the Rockies who won last night.

He's back!

Tim Hudson came back last night to the Braves after missing over a year with Tommy John surgery and I don’t think any Braves fans are complaining with his performance.  Hudson(1-0) worked into the sixth, getting one out in the inning and allowed six hits and three walks while allowing two runs and striking out five and only using 82 pitches.  The Braves bats got on the board early as Chipper Jones scored Matt Diaz on a double play ground out in the first.  In the third, when the Braves were now down 2-1, Tim Hudson himself scored on a balk after he walked earlier in the inning and Brian McCann later doubled in Martin Prado to give the Braves the lead for good.  The final insurance run that was necessary was scored by Chipper Jones on a Garrett Anderson RBI infield single in the eighth.  The Braves bullpen was solid until the ninth when Rafael Soriano got his 21st save but not without allowing a solo homer to Dan Uggla to pull the Marlins within one and allowing the tying run on base but held on for the 4-3 win.  The Braves Baseball Blog will have more on the Braves win and Hudson’s return.

The Marlins are basically in free fall at this point and they have now lost two in a row to the Braves after a tough weekend against the Padres.  Last night Chris Coghlan continued his hot hitting, going 3-4 with a run scored and Jorge Cantu also contributed three hits and a couple RBI.  Anibal Sanchez(2-6) didn’t pitch terribly, but still took the loss in going five innings allowing five hits and three runs along with two walks and four k’s and a balk to score a run.  FishGuts discusses the Marlins latest struggles.

Rockies break their slide

The Rockies came into this series at home against the Mets having lost their wild card lead and were tied with the Giants for that spot.  Luckily for them, the Mets are the Mets.   Jorge De La Rosa(13-9) survived a tough first inning in which he gave up two runs and threw 28 pitches and rebounded to go six innings allowing only four hits, two runs (1 earned) and three walks while striking out six.  The Rockies offense feasted on bad Met pitching as they scored their first on a bases loaded walk and then had a two run homer by Carlos Gonzalez in the second, a three run homer in the fourth by Todd Helton.  Another interesting note is that Jason Giambi, the former Yankee walked in the seventh as a pinch hitter with the bases loaded to get an RBI in his first at bat for the Rockies who now have a one game lead in the wildcard race.

The New York Mets really wish it was October 4th right now, its just terrible.  Mike Pelfrey(9-10) fell below .500 on the year as he only lasted four innings and allowed six hits, seven runs (only six earned), walked five and gave up two huge home runs and his ERA is now above 5 for the season.  Jeff Francouer did get the Mets on the board with a sac fly in the first inning and Fernando Tatis added an RBI single later in the inning.  The Mets got nothing else until the seventh against the Rockies relief pitching when Angel Pagan hit a triple scoring Corey Sullivan.  The Real Dirty Mets Blog will cover this Mets loss and all the Mets losses for you.

Bell with another save

The San Diego Padres are actually a “hot” team right now, just at the wrong time of the year.  The Padres got single runs in the second, fifth, seventh and eighth on their way to a 4-1 victory against the Nationals.  Will Venable had an RBI single to start the game, Kouzmanoff added a sac fly, Oscar Salazar had a solo home run and finally Drew Macias had the final nail with a single in the eigth scoring a run.  Clayton Richard(4-1) went 6.2 innings and allowedonly a single run and four hits and walking two to get the victory for the Nats and Heath Bell worked a perfect ninth with two k’s for his 33rd save of the season.

The Nationals bats have absolutely gone silent, which is a far cry from a few weeks ago.  The Nats only got four hits as a team last night, luckily one of them a home run.  Josh Bard hit his fourth homer of the year in the seventh inning chasing Clayton Richard and making the only blemish for Pads pitching.  J.D. Martin(3-4) pitched a good game going six innings with five hits, three runs but only two earned and three walks while striking out five and allowing a home run in the game.  Centerfield Gate covers more of the Nats struggles lately.

Please feel free to email any recommend questions or comments about the segment to mrose@nleastchatter.com or go to this forum topic and post a reply.

I love the odd faces pitchers make

Tommy Hanson continues to impress for the Braves, as the Bravos rolled to victory in a makeup game versus the Diamondbacks yesterday, 9-4.  Hanson(8-2) went six strong innings and allowed only six hits and two runs in earning his eighth win of the season.  Hanson also helped himself with a run scoring fielders choice groundout and LaRoche added a two run homer late in joining Garrett Anderson in Braves who hit balls out.  The Braves Baseball Blog is your place to go for more Braves info.

Max Scherzer struggled today, but also was not helped by his defense in this game.  Scherzer(7-7) went five innings and was charged with nine runs, but only THREE of them were earned as the Diamondbacks made two errors behind him.    Mark Reynolds and Stephen Drew added home runs for the Diamondbacks and Miguel Montero had an RBI single as well, but the errors allowed the game to get out of hand.

how much longer in the rotation?

The San Francisco Giants, a typically low scoring, good pitching team, got a gift wrapped game from the Mets last night.  The Giants scored in six of nine innings and put up crooked numbers within two of them to win by a score of 10-1.  Aaron Rowand hitting out of the seven hole was 4-5 with two runs scored and two RBI and even added a home run in the fourth.  Randy Winn was also 3-5 with two runs scored batting in front of Winn in the blowout.  Rookie Joe Martinez(3-1) went five innings and only allowed a third inning run and walked two.

Livan Hernandez was awful again for the Mets in receiving his eighth loss and costing the Mets a chance to win this series.  Hernandez(7-8) went 5.1 innings and allowed 11 hits and six runs, including a home run while actually only throwing 76 pitches on the day.  Gary Sheffield knocked in Cory Sullivan in the second inning to score the Mets only run.  The Real Dirty Mets Blog has more on the Mets and be sure to check NLEC out for the Chatter Up! Between the Braves and the Mets later.

Martinez makes a good first impression

Pedro Martinez made his debut for the Philadelphia Phillies last night, replacing Jamie Moyer in the rotation and managed to get a win.  Martinez(1-0) went five innings allowing seven hits and three runs, while striking out five and he allowed two of his three runs in the fifth.  He was helped by a Phillies offense finally breaking out after a number of mediocre games, mainly with an eight run fourth.  In the fourth inning alone, Jimmy Rollins and Raul Ibanez hit three run home runs, and Feliz and Ruiz added RBI singles as well.  The Phillies cruised after that to a 12-5 win for their second straight after being swept over the weekend, check out Phillies Phandom for more on them.

Jeff Samardzija made the start for the Cubbies on this day and could not do much against the Phillies offense.  Samardzija(1-2) went only 3.1 innings and allowed eight hits and seven runs and raised his era to 7.81 on the season.  RBI singles from Jake Baker, Milton Bradley and Ryan Theriot produced most of the offense for the Cubs.  They will hope to take the final game of the series today.

bound to have a bad start or two

The Florida Marlins couldn’t make it six in a row last night in south Florida, as they were beat up 14-6 by the Houston Astros.  The Astros got five runs in the first and added another in the second before the Marlins could get on the board.  Hunter Pence had the big blow in the first with a three run home run and actually finished the game with six RBI as he added another three run shot in the fourth inning.  Starter Bud Norris(3-0) went the minimum and allowed ten hits and four runs, five overall but was bailed out by stellar offense on this day.

Ricky Nolasco just had one of those days for the Marlins, they just hope its only one, unlike early this season.  Nolasco(8-8) only got through 3.1 innings and was tagged for eight hits and TEN earned runs which you don’t see very often.  He did help himself with the bat in the second with an RBI single and Hanley Ramirez contributed a two run home run in the fourth, but they could not manage enough to climb back into this one.  FishGuts has more on the Marlins and this win.

LaRoche - A welcome addition

The Atlanta Braves broke the Nationals winning streak Tuesday night and last night, they started them on a losing streak.  Derek Lowe(12-7) went seven strong innings and only allowed two runs on four walks and five strikeouts to get back in teh swing of things ans he had some offense behind him.  On their way to a 6-2 victory, the Braves hit four home runs of the solo variety, including two from Adam LaRoche and one each by Garrett Anderson and Martin Prado.  LaRoche even added an RBI later in the game while walking with the bases loaded for more insurance for the Braves.  The Braves Baseball Blog is your place to go for all Braves related info.

Nationals starter Craig Stammen had the opposite problem of Derek Lowe on this night, his offense did not do much for him.  Stammen got a no decision as he went six innings and allowed two runs, both on solo shots.  Jorge Sosa(1-1) who had been lights out so far for the Nats only got one out in the seventh and allowed what would eventually be the winning run to score on a home run.  Adam Dunn and Ronnie Belliard both had RBI singles for the Nationals and that produced both runs they would get, but once again, Christian Guzman singled to extend his streak to 17 games and Zimmerman now has a 15 game streak.  Centerfieldgate will have more on the Nats.

Whats this? A Save? a WIN?

The New York Mets managed once again to take the final game of a series, as they won 6-4 in Arizona yesterday.  For five innings of the game, it looked like the same old Mets offense as they were down 1-0 going into the top of the sixth.  At that point the Mets got three runs, on a wild pitch, and two more on a single while Tatis tried to stretch his hit to a double.  The Mets promptly lost the leadi n the seventh, only to uncharacteristically get it back in the eighth and ninth with three more runs.  Castillo singled home a run and then Corey Sullivan tripled home Castillo with what proved to be the winner.  Pedro Feliciano(5-4) got a blown save and a win in this one as he was on the mound to give up the tying runs in the seventh but got credit for the win as well, and Francisco Rodriguez got his 25th save of the season.  Check out The Real Dirty Mets Blog for more.

Jon Garland may have been his own worst enemy yesterday as he got the Mets on the board with his own error and wild pitch.  After that, the wheels came off for the inning nad he was headed for a loss except for Mets relief pitching.  Josh Whitesell and Miguel montero got him off the hook with RBI singles in the seventh inning.  Jon Rauch(2-1) got the loss as he gave up two runs on three hits in the eighth inning.  Josh Whitesell added another RBI single in the ninth, but that was all the D’Backs got in losing 6-4.

Happ with the complete game gem

Rookie J.A. Happ who had to deal with trade rumors last week and rumors this week of going to the bullpen or possibly being demoted when Pedro comes aboard had a lot on his mind last night.  You sure couldn’t tell with how he pitched though.  Happ(8-2) threw a complete game shutout only allowing four hits and two walks and struck out ten in cooling down the formerly hot Rockies.  He got plenty of run support with a trio of homeruns from the Phillies.   Pedro Feliz hit a solo shot, Rollins hit a two run shot and finally Jayson Werth capped the scoring in the fifth with a three run home run.  The final game is this afternoon, but check out Phillies Phandom for more information on the Phils.

After extending the win streak to five, the Rockies only got four hits and not one batter had more than one hit in being shut out 7-0.  Jorge De La Rosa(9-8) only lasted five innings but got charged with all seven runs on ten hits and only three strike outs.  It was De La Rosa’s first loss since June 16th as he had been on quite a roll.

Are Fish fans sick of this?

The Washington Nationals are on a roll, now winners of foru straight games for the second time in just over a week after beating the Marlins 5-4 last night in Washington.  Ryan Zimmerman and Adam Dunn hit solo home runs in the first and the Nationals would never look back with Lannan on the mound.  John Lannan(8-8) went six innings while allowing eight hits and two runs to get another win.  Mike MacDougal worked the second straight game for his 10th save of the season, but this one was not as stressful.  Ronnie Belliard added a solo home run of his own in the fourth and Christian Guzman tripled and doubled both times scoring Nyjer Morgan to account for two RBI.  CenterfieldGate covers all of the Nationals news here at NLEC.
The Florida Marlins must be wondering what is going on as they have lost two straight to the bottom of the division Nationals after taking two of three from the Cubs and Braves last week.  Rick VandenHurk(1-1) only lasted four innings allowing five runs on seven hits and allowing three home runs in taking his first loss this season.  Dan Uggla also had a big game, with a solo shot and a two RBI single later in the game.  Hanley Ramirez provided the only other run on a double play groundout, but obviously, no RBI.  FishGuts will have more info on how the Marlins fans are feeling about this loss.

Chipper being Chipper

The Braves rebounded the last two days from a bad loss on Monday night against the last place Padres.  Yesterday, rookie Tommy Hanson had another impressive start Wednesday afternoon.  Hanson(6-2) went six innings with five hits and two runs and three walks while striking out five.  He was given runs early, by four RBI singles by Garrett Anderson, two by Nate McClouth and a two RBI  single by Brian McCann.  Martin Prado added a sacrifice fly as well as the Braves won 6-2. Check out The Braves Baseball Blog for more information about this win.

Chad Gaudin(4-10) lost his tenth game of this season and could not get through the fourth inning in this one.  Gaudin gave up nine hits and six runs with two walks in 3.1 innings and the Padres never had a chance.  The only runs they were allowed was on a Will Venable home run scoring two.

Gettin Figgy with it?

New York Mets fans have been through a lot this year, and in the second inning when starter Jonathon Niese went down with an injury, it didn’t help.  Luckily, at least for this game, Nelson Figueroa filled in and did great with the bat and the arm.  Figueroa(1-2) came on and pitched 4.1 scoreless innings of relief while only allowing four hits and striking out five while adding a two rbi triple and a walk at the plate.  The Mets won the game 9-0 behind David Wright going 3-4 with a two run home run and a four RBI day from Angel Pagan who had a two run home run a triple and a sacrifice fly.  Bobby Parnell earned his first major league save by pitching three innings while allowing just one run and striking out three.  Check out The Real Dirty Mets Blog for more information on the Mets and this win.

Kyle Lohse started for the Cardinals and was hit hard and hit early.  Lohse(4-7) went only 2.2 innings and allowed five runs and seven hits for the Cardinals before four relievers combined to give up the nine total runs.  Albert Pujols had two hits and along with Joe Thurston the only two Cardinals batters with more than one hit.

The Phils are all smiles

Why wouldn’t every single player on the Phillies be all smiles right now?  The Phillies can’t seem to lose, and last night they won yet another game, by the score of 4-3.  The Phillies also seem to be able to spread out the nightly heroes, last night could be considerd Shane Victorino.  Victorino went 3-5 with two runs scored and two RBI including a solo home run.  After the help from Victorino, Hamels(7-5) went eight innings only allowing one run and four hits while striking out nine for the win.  Brad Lidge got a shaky 20th save as he worked the ninth but gave up a hit and two runs on a home run.  Check out Phillies Phandom for more as the Phils go for a series sweep today.

The Diamondbacks took an early lead in this game on a Ryan Roberts solo home run, but could get nothing more against ace Cole Hamels.  D’Backs ace Danny Haren(10-6) only got through five innings himself giving up three runs and two earned and walking three while having a very high pitch count.  Mark Reynolds tried to get them closer in the ninth as he provided the two run shot off Lidge, but that would be all.

Gload with his 1st career walk off

The Marlins went into the bottom of the ninth inning on Tuesday night, with the chance to drop out of second place in the National League East to the Atlanta Braves.  Cody Ross walked and then Ross Gload who has been solid all year as a pinch hitter hit a two run shot to win the game 4-3.  The win keeps the Marlins hit and they have now won four of six against the Braves so far this season.  Ricky Nolasco pitched a solid game, going seven innings and giving up two runs and got a no decision.  Leo Nunez(3-3) gave up a run in the ninth on a solo home run and was in line for a loss, but Gload’s heroics saved him and gave him the victory.  Check out FishGuts for more on the win.

The Atlanta Braves Rafael Soriano(1-2) blew his second save of the season as he worked one third of an inning and gave up the two run home run to Gload.  Jair Jurrjens pitched six strong giving up the two runs and Gonzalez and Moylan gave up a hit each in perfect innings, Moylan had been in line for a victory.  Prado continued his hot play with an RBI single in the third and Chipper Jones and Garrett Anderson capped the scoring with home runs for the Braves.  The Braves Baseball Blog has more information on the win and the Bravos.

Big Pelf shuts the Rox down

Tuesday night, the Mets were looking to win four games in a row, for what seems like the first time since the Clinton administration.  They sent Mike Pelfrey to the mound and although he worked in and out of trouble, the Mets managed a 4-0 shutout.  Pelfrey(8-6) worked 6.1 innings scattering seven hits and three walks but working out of two bases loaded jams on way to the win.  The Mets offense got solo runs in four different innings, the second, third , fourth and eighth.  Francouer, Castillo, and Murphy had RBI singles and Brian Schneider had a sacrifice fly for all the Mets offense.  Check out The Real Dirty Mets Blog for more Mets info.

Jason Marquis(12-7) came into this game with the most wins in the National League and took the loss, obviously not adding to his total.  Marquis went six innings, giving up seven hits and two earned runs and left after only 86 pitches as the Rockies tried to jump start the offense.  The Rockies will hope to get a win tonight against Mets ace Johan Santana.

Dunn hits a monster shot

Break up the Nationals! The Nats have now won four games in a row, and by commanding fashion, last night winning 8-3 over the Brewers.  Nyjer Morgan and Christian Guzman had three RBI’s each, with both having a home run and Adam Dunn added a solo shot of his own to go with three walks.  Colin Balester(1-1) got his first win this season and went six innings of two run ball and the win held up through the shaky Nats bullpen.  Check out CenterfieldGate for more info on the Nats and their win streak.

Braun homered for the second straight game, but that doesn’t help when the rest of the pitching and hitting doesn’t support you.  Carlos Villanueva(2-8) went four innings and gave up five runs and two home runs taking the loss.  Tim Dillard did not help the come back shots ashe worked four more innings but gave up three more runs, solidifying the Nats win.