Posted July 22, 2012 on AP on Fox
Obama_welcomes_2008_c18b
Jimmy Rollins hit an RBI single to lift the Philadelphia Phillies to a 4-3 victory over the San Francisco Giants in 12 innings Sunday. John Mayberry Jr. hit two solo homers for the last-place Phillies, and Nate Schierholtz hit a pair of solo shots for the NL West-leading Giants. The Phillies snapped a seven-game home losing streak and avoided their first sweep against the Giants since 2004. Brad Penny (0-1) walked Carlos Ruiz with one out in the 12th. Laynce Nix followed with a single to right to move Ruiz to third. Rollins then lined the first pitch to right to end it. The five-time defending NL East champions are 10 1/2 games behind Atlanta in the wild-card standings. Kyle Kendrick (4-8) tossed 2 1-3 innings to earn the win and extended his career-best scoreless streak to 18 2-3 innings. Phillies starter Joe Blanton gave up three runs and seven hits in eight innings, increasing his trade value with another strong second-half start. Since 2008, Blanton has the best record in the majors after the All-Star break at 17-5. The right-hander will be a free agent after the season, so the Phillies might move him before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline unless they start to make a run. San Francisco's Barry Zito allowed three runs and five hits, striking out seven in seven innings. Zito is having his best season for the Giants since signing a $126 million, seven-year contract in December 2006. After Mayberry gave the Phillies their first lead, 3-2, on his second homer in the seventh, Schierholtz answered with his second in the eighth. He hit a high drive to right to tie it at 3. Blanton escaped further trouble in the inning when right fielder Hunter Pence saved two runs by making a running basket catch on Buster Posey's deep fly to right. Mayberry drove a 3-2 pitch into the seats in left to tie it at 2 in the fourth. He hadn't driven in a run in his previous 39 at-bats, going back to June 24. Pablo Sandoval's RBI double to left-center gave the Giants a 2-1 lead in the fourth. Schierholtz ripped a 2-0 pitch way out to right for his first career leadoff homer to give the Giants a 1-0 lead. Chase Utley's RBI triple in the bottom half tied it at 1. Zito escaped a first-and-third, one-out jam by getting Pence to ground into his 13th double play. Zito stranded runners on second and third in the third by striking out Ryan Howard on a 74 mph curveball. NOTES: Blanton has allowed 22 homers, second-most in the majors. ... Zito allowed his 12th earned run in the first inning in 19 starts. ... Melky Cabrera extended his hitting streak to nine games with a first-inning double. ... Schierholtz has five homers this season, including two multihomer games. ... Nix came off the disabled list after missing more than two months with a left calf strain. OF Jason Pridie was designated for assignment. He went 3 for 10 with a homer in a brief stay. ... Mayberry has hit all eight of his homers since May 11. ... The Phillies had their 267th consecutive sellout, including postseason games. ... Roy Halladay (4-5, 3.96 ERA) makes his second start since returning from the disabled list when the Phillies open a three-game series against Milwaukee on Monday night. ... Ryan Vogelsong (7-4, 3.21) pitches for the Giants in the opener of a three-game series against San Diego on Monday.
THE BACKYARD
BEST OF MAXIM
AROUND THE WEB
RELATED ARTICLES

Philadelphia Phillies storyline: Plan B

Cole Hamels is the first name on the to-do list for the Philadelphia Phillies.  Is he the only player with an expiring contract that will return? TAL’S HANDY CAPS WELCOME, NEWCOMERS: I will publish after every battle that is not washed out.  I will have many season-long highlights of puzzle pieces, especially important after drubbings and defeats. If you were directed here...

Another Take: Phillies' Latest Big Offer is Proof that Cole Hamels Will Not Sign

We were all good and happy last night at reports that the Phillies were offering free agent-to-be Cole Hamels between $142 and $144 million over six years.  But this morning on 97.5 the Fanatic, Assistant Program Director and weekend host Joe DeCamara had an interesting take: the face that we are learning of this offer is proof that Cole Hamels will not sign. DeCamara makes a...

Holding On To Cole Hamels Would Be Wise

Ruben Amaro Jr. has not had the misfortune of conducting a fire sale in his three years as the Phillies general manager. He made moves to give them a better chance to win in the playoffs. This year is going to be a different story. The Phillies have no shot of making the playoffs in October. They are not good enough to make a run, especially with their lousy bullpen. That means...

Philadelphia Phillies: 2012 ERA for the NL East at game 96

Joe Blanton of the Philadelphia Phillies slots in behind the aces.  How do the Braves compare at the bottom of their rotation?  The Apocalyptic Horsemen Stats are in my recent coverage linked below. TAL’S HANDY STATS   WELCOME, NEWCOMERS: I am alternating a game-day 2012 ERA For The NL East and a 2012 ERA For The MLB 5. See link section below. In each publication, the number...

Phillies Salvage a 12-Inning Win Over Giants

Something to smile about for Jimmy and the Phils. (AP) So, they won one. Cue the fireworks! I kid, I kid. Jimmy Rollins singled in the winning run in the 12th inning to give the Phillies a 4-3 win over the Giants to avoid being swept. John Mayberry Jr. homered twice, giving him eight for the season. Chase Utley hit his first triple of the season. Joe Blanton gave them eight...

Giants 6, Phillies 5(10)

Cole Hamels waved to an appreciative crowd that gave him a standing ovation after a mediocre outing. Was it his last time wearing a Philadelphia Phillies uniform? ''I can't control it,'' Hamels said after a 6-5 loss to the San Francisco Giants in 10 innings Saturday. Hamels and fellow All-Star pitcher Matt Cain hit homers in the same inning, but Gregor Blanco...

Cole Hamels and the Phillies working towards a long-term deal

Earlier this week, we learned that the Phillies were preparing a $120 million offer to left hander Cole Hamels, but apparently he wanted more money. Today, sources close to Jon Heyman of CBSSports said that the Phillies and Hamels are “moving in the right direction” regarding the contract talks. Heyman says that the Phillies' willingness to offer Hamels six years “is a...

Phils Still Trying on Hamels; Talk Victorino with Dodgers

Will we be kissing Vic goodbye soon? (ESPN) -Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com says the Phillies are still actively trying to sign Cole Hamels as we’re just over seven days from the July 31 trade deadline. “They’re trying — actively trying,” a person with knowledge of the situation told CSNPhilly.com on Monday afternoon. “They’re making offers.” I’ve never doubted...

The Phils avoid the sweep by defeating the Giants in extra-innings, 4-3.

The Phils win in extra-innings to avoid being swept as they defeat the Giants in twelve innings, 4-3. The Giants took the lead in the first as Nate Schierholtz started the game off with a lead-off home run, his fourth home run of the season, giving the Giants a 1-0 lead. The Phils tied the game up at one-all in their half of the first as, with a man on first, and with one man out...

Postgame Videos – Giants Beat Padres 7-1, July 23, 2012

Ninth Inning Comeback Lead Phillies to 7-6 Victory over Brewers

Roy Halladay returned to Citizens Bank Park for the first time since coming off the disabled list during the Dodgers series. He would face Randy Wolf and the Milwaukee Brewers.  It didn't start out on a good note for Doc. In the first inning, Carlos Gomez was able to score on a double from Aramis Ramirez. Corey Hart later brought home Ramirez with an RBI single, giving the...

Brewers-Phillies Preview

The last time the Philadelphia Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers were preparing to open a series, both clubs were rolling toward a division title. That's definitely not the case this time. Roy Halladay will try to give the Phillies back-to-back home wins for the first time in nearly a month in Monday night's series opener against the struggling Brewers. When the Phillies...

Saturday: The Phils lose an extra-innings home run derby with the Giants, as they lose in ten innings, 6-5.

An expected pitchers’ duel end up being a home run derby, with both team’s starters hitting a home run, before the Phils finally lose to the Giants in ten innings, 6-5. The Phils took the lead in the first as, with two men out, Chase Utley hits a solo home run, his third home run of the season, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead. The Giants tied it up at one-all in the third as Matt...

Postgame Wrap: Fantastic Mr. Fox Sports

National broadcasters are an easy target. Hall of Fame announcer Tim McCarver, for example, had a whole website dedicated to his quotes (though it seems to have been taken down). FireJoeMorgan.com was a hit back in the day, dedicated to its namesake and many others, and other sites have sprung up to immortalize the gems coming from the mouths of the best and brightest. Now, I understand...

Extending Melky Cabrera

Cross posted from Bay Area Sports Guy: One of the hardest questions as a Giants fan is do you want to offer Melky Carbrera a long term contact. If so, how high would you be willing to go? Complicating the matter is the fact that he has two distinct periods in career, on e in which he has produced at a below average rate and one at an above average rate. Prior to his 2011 stint...
THE MLB HOT 40
Today's Best Stuff
For Bloggers

Join the Yardbarker Network for more promotion, traffic, and money.

Company Info
Help
What is Yardbarker?

Yardbarker is the largest network of sports blogs and pro athlete blogs on the web. This site is the hub of the Yardbarker Network, where our editors and algorithms curate the best sports content from our network and beyond.