http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/4014 Recent articles about Greg Dobbs en-us Mets' shortstop Jose Reyes came through with a clutch three run home run off reliever Ryan Madson in Wednesday's game against the Phillies. It was a beautiful hit and probably the most important hit of the season for Reyes. Despite a very shaky outing by Phillies' starter Brett Myers, which included four walks in the first inning and the bases loaded twice, the Mets were only able to muster three runs against him. The game was tied at three when Madson relieved Myers to start the sixth inning. Madson gave up consecutive singles to Damion Easley and Brian Schneider. He then struck out the pitcher John Maine, which brought Reyes to the plate. Reyes then drove Madson's first pitch to right for his 11th homer of the season. As Reyes rounded the bases, he had his right index finger stuck up high in the air, waving it around. Upon reaching the Mets' dugout, Reyes did his arm waving, high fiving dance with a teammate. While I do not like the dancing in the dugout, I understand lots of players do it. It was an exciting hit and I don't fault him for celebrating with his team. What really bothers me is the waving of his finger around the bases, taunting the Phillies and their pitcher Ryan Madson. It is completely and unequivocally unacceptable and classless. An arm pump or two is one thing, but to celebrate the entire way around the bases is jive and immature. Not to mention that Reyes in large part contributed to his team's humiliating collapse from the night before. For those that didn't catch the game, in the ninth inning of Tuesday night's game with the bases loaded, Phillies' catcher Carlos Ruiz grounded to Reyes. Instead of flipping to the second baseman to start the double play, or throwing to first to get the sure out, Reyes tried to beat speedy Shane Victorino to second base and got there late. Everyone safe all around. Instead of having two outs and a man on third, there were no outs and the bases loaded. Pinch hitter So Taguchi then proceeded to hit a double, scoring Victorino and Gregg Dobbs, with Ruiz moving up to third. Everyone knows that the number of outs how many guys are on base and who those runners are will dictate how the pitcher approaches his batter. It is certainly not a foregone conclusion that Taguchi hits a double with only Ruiz at third. If Reyes doesn't blow the play then it might have been a completely different game. It takes a lot of balls, nerve, and a complete lack of respect, class, and humility to be showboating just the next day after you screwed up so royally the day before. Just as much to blame are the gutless Phillies. Instead of intentionally walking Reyes the following inning, the Phillies should have put him on notice that that kind of behavior would not be tolerated and beamed him in the ribs, or the back. Instead they allow him to dance and showboat like the immature four year old that he is and respond by not pitching around him. Thursday's starting pitcher Jamie Moyer, while not known as a hard thrower, has been around for almost 22 years and is from the old school. He should put Reyes on notice that that kind of behavior is not going to be tolerated by those players who are the symbol of class and tradition. Jose Reyes is an immature, jive, classless tool and he needs to be taught a lesson. If it's not the Phillies, then maybe it will be the Marlins, who have expressed a grave dislike and disgust with Reyes' behavior. Last year the Marlins were open about the fact that Reyes' cocky and immature behavior was the motivation they needed to keep the Mets out of the playoffs by beating them in the final series of the year. Reyes' behavior is going to eventually come back to bite him and the Mets right where it hurts. If not the Phillies or the Marlins, then it will eventually be some other team. Jose Reyes, look out. Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:14:02 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294875 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294875 Manny Ramirez is out of Boston's lineup when the visiting Red Sox face Kyle Kendrick (6-2, 4.54) and the Phillies in the rubber match of their three-game set. Rookie Justin Masterson (3-1, 2.90) goes for Boston. Lineups have been posted: Geoff Jenkins, Greg Dobbs and Carlos Ruiz earn starts against the right-hander. Unless Chris Coste is hurt, Ruiz's insertion in the starting lineup, after the night game in which he went 0-for-3, says a lot about the importance of his... Wed, 18 Jun 2008 12:37:16 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279441 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279441 The Phillies offense, which broke out for 35 combined runs on Sunday and Monday, picked right up were they left off, at least in the first two innings. The Phils tagged Rockies starting pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez for 4 runs in the first and 3 more in the second but were held off the scoreboard for the rest of the game. Philly did manage to win, holding off a late, rain-soaked comeback by the Rockies to win 7-4. Click the link for much more on the game including video highlights of the game. Tue, 27 May 2008 22:50:37 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/271577 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/271577 Remember yesterday? Ah, that seems so long ago. I wrote a piece about being angry over 15 runs scored, well chalk that up to lunacy. Today I bring to you a happy atmosphere on the blog, sponsored by 20 runs. Yes, the Phils have now scored 35 runs in the past 2 games an have leap-frogged their way up the MLB run total leaderboard to 2nd right behind the Cubbies. Why the turn around? Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino are back and healthy atop the lineup as sparkplugs. Chase Utley is Mr. Awesome. Ryan Howard is steadily creeping out of his season long slump. Pat Burrell is a pimp. Geoff Jenkins is finally coming to terms with the retirement of Brett Favre and hitting again. Pedro Feliz isn't quite as horrible as people thought. Carlos Ruiz & Chris Coste make a solid catching duo. Greg Dobbs is the best pinch-hitter ever! In all honesty, this offense is made to score runs, that's their gig. For the first part of the season something just wasn't clicking as if their mojo was stolen, but they must have chugged some of Lil' Jon's Juice because their back with vengeance. Tip of the cap to Jamie Moyer who notched career victory 235 and Chase Utley for collecting a career high 6 rbi. The question now is- how many runs tonight? Kyle Kendrick vs. Ubaldo Jimenez. ______________________________________________ In the mood for theatre? Theatre Exile presents a return engagement of its hit show The Philly Fan by Bruce Graham, starring Tom McCarthy, and directed by Joe Canuso. A one-man tour-de-force in which two-time Barrymore Award winner Tom McCarthy takes audiences on a hilarious journey through the frustrations of the past fifty years of Philadelphia sports. This production is an in-your-face, tell-it-like-it-is romp through the memories of a hard core fan used to seeing sure-thing victories turn into "oh-my-God-they-blew-it" defeats. June 10-15 at The Playground at the Adrienne, 2030 Sansom Street. Tickets are $25 - $30 ($50 for the Opening Night Gala); call (215)922-4462 or visit www.ThePhillyFan.net. Tue, 27 May 2008 06:19:59 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/271278 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/271278 As guys like Craig Counsell, Manny Mota, and Jose Oquendo have proved, behind every winning team, there's usually a guy who can come in cold off the bench late in the game and lace a game winning hit. Wed, 21 May 2008 07:42:17 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/269274 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/269274 Any time the Phils win I should be happy. However, last night had loss written all over it until Greg Dobbs made some magic happen in the top of the 9th. Dobbs has been an amazing asset as a bench player and occasional starter during his time with the Phils, collecting his league leading 10th pinch-hit and 9th rbi. The pitching was great for both sides last night with Cole Hamels having another dominate performance notching 11 k's over 7 shutout innings. Tom Gordon came in and pitched the 8th to win his 4th game of the season with Brad Lidge taking the 9th inning for his 11th save. I should be happy, I keep telling myself- "Don't worry, be happy.", but I just can't wrap my head around the fact that the Phils offense is scoring less than an amputee playing basketball. Over the past 4 games the Phils have only scored 9 runs, losing 3 of those games and lucky to not have lost all 4. Pat Burrell has gone cold, Pedro Feliz continues to hack at the first pitch, Ryan Howard's average is going downward once again with the k's increasing, Chase Utley isn't the force he was a couple weeks ago, Rollins has been inconsistent, the list goes on. They wait for the homerun, but the homerun doesn't always come, and when it doesn't come the Phils fail to score runs. Situational hitting has always been an Achilles heel for this club, and make that tenfold this season. Entering last night's game they were 4 for their last 32 with runners in scoring position and I know that number probably got even uglier last night with the Greg Dobbs hit being the only hit in that situation. Bottom line, this offense is wasting some damn good pitching performances that they'll wish they hadn't because it's highly doubtful that it'll continue all season long. So, yes I'm happy they won, but I'm also worried about this offense. The time is now for a series win, as the winless Matt Chico toes the rubber for the rubber game of the series tonight against Grand Pappy Moyer. C'mon Phils, show some phight, and knock that baseball so hard it cries. Wed, 21 May 2008 06:05:57 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/269260 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/269260 Leave it to Cole Hamels to lead the Phillies to a win even when the offense doesn't show up. One day after being shut-out by Tim Redding and the Nationals, the struggling Phillies offense was once again shut down by Washington for 8 innings. Luckily, the Phils got another monster performance from Cole Hamels and a timely hit by Greg Dobbs to salvage a 1-0 win. Hamels dominated the Nationals for 7 innings, striking out 11 batters and giving up only 4 hits. This is the second brilliant performance in a row for Hamels who earned the first shutout of his career last week when he beat the Braves 4-0. Today's outing lowered his ERA to 2.61, and while he didn't earn the win, he still has to be in the early discussion for the NL Cy Young. With the way every other starting pitcher is struggling for the Phils, Hamels will need to make games like tonight the routine if the team wants to stay competitive. The offense came up small tonight, managing only one run when they absolutely needed it. After being shut down by Redding yesterday, a pitcher with a career ERA of 4.74, the Phils made Jason Bergmann, who had an ERA over 7 this season entering the game, look like an All-Star. They scored their only run when Greg Dobbs singled off Jon Rauch to bring in Eric Bruntlett in the 9th inning. The Ryan Howard strikeout watch hit 68 for the season after he struck out 3 more times tonight, lowering his batting average to .183. Howard had been swinging a hot bat lately so I will let him pass for now, but he may be falling back into another slump. I have said all along that we can live with his strikeouts if he still gets a hit a game, but the longer his average hovers below the Mendoza Line, the more worried I get. Click the link to see the highlights of Hamels' gem. Tue, 20 May 2008 23:27:51 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/269218 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/269218 Charlie Manuel's statement to beat writer Randy Miller that "Right now, [Werth is] definitely one of our starters," left a few people scratching their heads. One of them was Shane Victorino, who said, "I was the starting everyday center fielder before I got hurt. What am I now?" The simple answer to Vic's question is "not a starter." The questions I'm asking are, "Is Jayson Werth really a starting outfielder?" and "Why is Manuel doing this?" The first question has been talked about and debated already. The consensus - probably not. I'm not going to waste time with that. The why question, however, is more interesting. He said to Randy Miller, "We're trying to win. I'm playing the guy who is doing more than he is. Hit .320 or .330 and you'll be sure to be in there. If you're hitting .235..." Fine, Manuel is going to start players that are hitting better because it gives the team a better chance to win. That makes sense. Of course, Chris Coste is hitting .324 and hasn't been named the starting catcher in place of Carlos Ruiz. Greg Dobbs is hitting .345 and isn't starting at the hot corner in place of Pedro Feliz. So Taguchi is pathetic, hitting in the .170's, yet there is no replacement in sight for him. The first baseman is hitting .187. Yet Victorino is the player singled out to officially lose his starting job. It makes me think there is more to this change than just simple stats. Also, Manuel needs to check his stats. He says "hit .320 or .330 and you'll be sure to be in there," but Werth's May batting average is .255. Victorino is hitting .257... --------------------------- Game Thoughts - I'm not going to get into how awful Brett Myers has been this year. I don't want to know why he's lost gas on his fastball. I do want to know what sort of bet he lost so he had to get that horrible tattoo on his left wrist though. Do you think he has a tramp stamp too? - Did anyone cringe when, after falling behind Howard 3-0, Tim Redding struck him out on three straight fastballs. The last one he just blew right past him. Not exactly what I want to see from our best slugger. I know he's been swinging better lately, but that was ugly. - I love the grey brick behind home plate at Nationals Park. Very sharp. - I wanted to throw my remote control through the television screen when Pedro Feliz popped out to first in the fourth inning. Twice Jenkins led off an inning with a double and twice Feliz failed miserably to advance him to third. It didn't even appear that Feliz was trying to take the ball to the right side. - Great episode of House last night. It saved me from the final three innings... Tue, 20 May 2008 05:50:23 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/268858 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/268858 The first month of the season is over, which for the Phillies, is always a good thing. Let's take a look at who has impressed and who hasn't. [Stats referenced do not include last night's game.] Exceeding Expectations Pat Burrell - I don't care what any of you say, no one saw this month coming. Chase Utley - We all knew Utley would hit well all year, but double digit homers in April was definitely not expected. Brad Lidge - He looks like a reliable closer, even if he needs a few more days of rest than other top-line stoppers. Jayson Werth - Working pitch counts, hitting homers, running down fly balls, having a hot mom...the man can do it all. Chris Coste - He will be on this list every year. Charlie Manuel - Hasn't screwed up much. Possibly the most surprising early season trend. Meeting Expectations Gavin Eaton - No wins, no losses, and ERA around 5. Sounds about right. Greg Dobbs - If he continues to hit .340, will be in the "Above" category by year's end. Snelling, Harman, Bruntlett, Bohn - small PT, small stats. Ramon Henderson - Typical solid performance in the 'pen and as BP thrower. I wish I could walk around my job in catchers shin guards... Below Expectations Ryan Howard - Howard is the leader of this group. Brett Myers - An ERA over 5 for the opening day starter is not a good thing. At least the Phils aren't the only team in this situation (see: Verlander, Sabathia). Of course, those two have improved velocity and promising recent results... DP Feliz - Double-plays and strikeouts were expected. But some shaky D and a ~.200 average is far less than anticipated. Carlos Ruiz - Frankly, he looks horrible. Geoff Jenkins - The .240 average isn't a shocker, but only 4 RBIs is unacceptable. So Taguchi - Hasn't contributed much, and has been shaky as a defensive replacement, conjuring up memories of Chris Roberson. Scott Sheridan - Phils trainer hasn't helped Rollins get back on the field quick enough. Is it really Sheridan's fault? I don't know, but I have to blame somebody. No Grade Jimmy Rolllins and Shane Victorino, due to injuries. First month overview - I give the Phils a grade of "Ehh." Not as successful as I would have liked, but also not as unsuccessful as previous Aprils. Also, considering the struggles of Myers, the 4 regulars mentioned above, and the injuries to Rollins and Victorino, and this month actually seems pretty good. Thu, 01 May 2008 05:57:35 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/262073 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/262073 Greg Maddux, the 42 year old future Hall of Famer, was denied his 350th career victory by a pitcher who was two years old when Maddux started his major league career in 1986. Cole Hamels, now 24 years old, proved to be, at least on this night, a better pitcher than Maddux in leading the Phillies to a 7-4 win over the Padres. Hamels went 7 1/3 innings on the night, scattering five hits, striking out six, and giving up only two runs. He coasted throughout most of the game, mixing his pitches well forcing the Padres into a number of 0-2 counts that they couldn't get themselves out of. Hamels gave up a home run, just like he always does, but he maintained his composure in a good bounce back effort after looking subpar in his last two starts. Maddux, who has been stuck on 349 wins for three starts now, fared only slightly worse than Hamels, going 6 1/3 innings, giving up 8 hits and 3 earned runs. His most frustrating moment on the mound occurred when he nearly slammed his glove to the ground after giving up a hit to Hamels in the 7th inning. Click the link for more, including video highlights of Hamels' great start. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 23:31:38 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261472 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261472 The Philadelphia Phillies (12-11) travel to Pittsburgh for a 3 game set against the Pirates (9-13) starting Friday night at 7:05 in beautiful and underrated PNC Park. Match-ups: Friday- Adam Eaton (0-0, 4.74 era, 1.34 whip) vs. Zach Duke (0-1, 4.37, 1.77), Saturday- Kyle Kendrick (1-2, 5.59, 1.81) vs. Matt Morris (0-3, 9.15, 1.98), and Sunday- Brett Myers (2-1, 4.78, 1.31) vs. Paul Maholm (1-2, 4.22, 1.50). Phils Jackpots: Pat Burrell (.355 avg/1.224 OPS), Chase Utley (.385/1.288), Jayson Werth (.300/.958), Greg Dobbs (.355/.992), and Chris Coste (.370/1.172). Buccos Jackpots: X-Man Nady (.337/.919), Nate McLouth (.333/.978), Ryan Doumit (.344/.943), Ronny Paulino (.290/.726), and Jason Bay (.270/.859). Phils Bankrupts: Geoff Jenkins (.225/.600), Pedro Feliz (.213/.654), Carlos Ruiz (.194/.484), Eric Bruntlett (.207/.534), and Ryan Howard (.176/.638). Of note- Mr. Ten Million Dollar Man Ryan Howard has only 7 hits in 63 at bats against the Pirates for a .111 batting average with no homeruns, only 4 rbi, 31 k's, and a piss poor .303 OPS. Buccos Bankrupts: Freddy Sanchez (.227/.513), Luis Rivas (.188/.433), Doug Mientkiewicz (.212/.606), Brian Bixler (.158/.390), Adam LaRoche (.149/.454), Jose Bautista (.178/.525), and Nyjer Morgan (.130/.433). *Each team sucks at fielding, 21 errors for the Phils and 25 for the Pirates. *My prediction, the Phils are going to get hot and sweep this series and build a strong foundation for their first winning April in quite some time. ____________________________________ Phlashback Phriday: Gary Varsho In honor of the upcoming series between the State buddies Phillies and Buccos, WSBGM's has decided to pay tribute to a Phucco...hello Gary Varsho! Varsho has spent time in both organizations as a player and coach, currently employed as bench coach for Pittsburgh (also bench coach for Phils as recently as 2006). Gary's playing days lasted 8 illustrious season from the time he started as a Cub back in 1988 until the day he retired a Phillie in 1995. In between Chicago and Philly were two stops with the Pirates and one with the Reds. Career line: 571 gm, 101 r, 204 h, 41 dbl, 11 trpl, 10 hr, 84 rbi, 27 sb, .244 avg, and .649 OPS all while doing mostly pinch-hitting with occasional time at all three outfield positions. Of note, Varsho holds a .667 playoff batting average going 2-3 in the '91 and '92 postseason with the Buccos. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 05:58:27 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256997 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256997 What the f@#k Chuck?! The curse of the dumbass finally broke through this season as Charles Fuqua Manuel notched his first loss of the season. Overall, I was pleased with Manuel's managing through April. He had done some questionable things prior to last night's mess, but every manager is going to make a few bad decision over the course of a 162 game season. However, last night he was downright retarded; leaving a gassed Cole Hamels in to begin the 8th inning after he had already thrown 110+ pitches was stoo-pid! Vegetarian Prince Fielder took Hamel's meatball deep into the night for his second homerun of the game, leaving the Phils with a 1 run deficit. Good job Charlie, way to use your brain on that one. Rest of the game- Chase Utley and Pat Burrell went bar hopping against the Brew Crew, giving them 18 combined homeruns. Greg Dobbs also nailed a 2-run blast, but once again the Phils could only score on longballs, guess they're not any good at "small ball". Jayson Werth was worthless in the 9th inning stranding So Taguchi at 3rd with only one out. Werth also may have cost the Phils another run when he was caught stealing at 3rd base after a leadoff double. Ryan Howard continue his torrid pace to being a complete waste going 0-4. Cole Hamels committed an error, that's 742 errors on the season for the Phightins now. That error and Fielder's 1st inning homer put the Phils in an early hole, but rumor has it Cole went back into the clubhouse for a readjustment from his chiropractor. All in all, it was a game the Phils should have won easily, but instead they screwed up and fell back to .500. Chance at redemption this afternoon with a 1:05 matinee pinning Grand Pappy Moyer against equally crafty right-hander Jeff Suppan. Go Phils! Thu, 24 Apr 2008 05:49:45 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256204 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256204 Today's game was the twentieth of season for the Phillies, which seem like a nice time to write up our first Phillies report card. The concept is quite simple; I'm going to give a letter grade to each man on the team. I am grading not just on a player's performance, but also on a curve based on my expectations for that player going in and that player's importance to the team. Obviously, if Jayson Werth and Ryan Howard each had identical numbers so far, Werth would get a much higher grade since so much more is both expected and needed from Ryan Howard. Here goes our 20-game Phillies Phaithful Report Card. 55-Clay Condrey, RP: C- Condrey has struggled so far in 2008. His ERA is at 7.04, although that number is inflated by a particularly bad outing April 6th in Cincinnati where he was knocked around for a four spot. In his other six appearances, Clay has kept his ERA at a very respectable 3.17 in 5 2/3 innings pitched. Condrey is the most likely pitcher to get demoted if the Phillies decide that Kris Benson or Steve Kline should be added to the big league roster. This is nothing new to Clay who crossed the U.S.-Canada border so many times last years while bouncing between the Phillies and AAA Ottawa that he now has duel citizenship. Tue, 22 Apr 2008 03:06:50 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/253176 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/253176 First the pitching was the issue, then more recently the bats weren't holding up their end. Today, it all came together for the Phillies, who rode 16 hits and great pitching by Brett Myers to a 10-2 victory over the Houston Astros. Myers went 7 strong innings, giving up 5 hits and striking out 8 batters. After a rocky start to the season for Myers, he appears to have settled back into the rotation with his last two quality starts. Tom Gordon got some work in the 8th inning and managed to get through the inning unscathed, lowering his ERA to 9.45. The Phillies featured a new combination at the top of their line-up: So Taguchi leading off and Greg Dobbs batting second. This combo proved to be the best yet for Charlie Manuel, as the Phillies got 3 runs in the first and never looked back. They got home runs from their 3-4-5 hitters, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Pat Burrell. Chris Coste also got four hits, one of them 2-run bomb in the 8th inning. It was a total team effort, with every Phillie starter getting at least 2 hits except for Crappy Eric Bruntlett, who went 0 for 5. Click the link for more, including highlights of the drubbing. Thu, 17 Apr 2008 18:06:27 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/241079 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/241079 Pat Burrell is and forever will be awesome. Here at WSBGM's we've always loved him, but with love comes criticism. For the first 7.5 years of Burrell's career we cheered and defended him every chance we got, but then we gave up on him midway through the '07 season because of his Mendoza Line batting average and seemingly washed-up demeanor...silly us. Pat "the Bat" Burrell is back with vengeance. He is currently the longest tenured Phillie (in his 9th season) and is marching up the all-time record book of accomplishments in a Phillies uniform. After last night's win, Burrell sits atop the National League in OPS at 1.369, 4th in average at .400, 2nd in rbi with 12, tied for 3rd in homeruns with 4, and has only struckout 6 times (Ryan Howard should be taking notes). Do I think he can keep this pace up the entire season? No. However, if he does we're witnessing the modern day Ted Williams at work. ____________________________________ Wins are Nice: Took Brett Myers until his 3rd start to pitch like an ace, but at least it finally happened. He was nearly derailed in the 1st inning after surrendering back-to-backs jacks, but he calmed down after that to go 8 strong innings and help guide the team to victory. Going 8 innings was crucial because it allowed the overused bullpen the night off, aside from Brad Lidge who picked up his 2nd save of the season. Greg Dobbs, Shane Victorino, and Pat Burrell were most of the offense, with Pat being the hero of the game. Tonight Cole Hamels looks to continue his early season dominance against the Cubs and Ted Lilly. I hope the Phils destroy Lilly, because that's such a pansy last name, it's truly only fitting for a girl. Overall, this Phils lineup has struggled immensely against the southpaw with Feliz being the only one with any success. Sat, 12 Apr 2008 07:15:47 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/235798 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/235798