Since the Phillies still hold baseball’s best record and are the odds-on favorite to represent the National League in the World Series in two months, their problems aren’t as severe, as say, the Baltimore Orioles. But all things considered, it was a rough week for a team that was the first in the majors to reach 80 wins.
After blowing just one ninth-inning lead in the season’s first 3 1/2 months, the Phillies have lost three leads in the ninth in the last six games, including Sunday’s 5-4, 10-inning loss to Washington.
They’ve also been unable to escape the injury bug. On Sunday, a day before third baseman Placido Polanco(notes) is scheduled to come off the disabled list, shortstop Jimmy Rollins(notes) left the game after two innings with a right groin strain.
The severity of Rollins’ injury won’t be known until after he has an MRI on Monday. He was listed as “day-to-day” after the initial diagnosis.
While the Phillies still have enough All-Stars in their lineup to cover up the occasional injury, they can’t do anything about one of the culprits to this week’s problems. After relying heavily on their dominant starting pitching this season, a barrage of rain has temporarily messed up their winning template. Sunday marked the third game in four days in which the Phils endured a lengthy rain delay.
The result was another day when a starter, for this game, Roy Halladay(notes), was knocked out earlier than planned. After allowing two runs in five innings, Halladay was knocked out by a 71-minute rain delay.
The Phils turned over a 3-2 lead to the bullpen. Twice, the relievers blew leads.
Rookie Michael Schwimer(notes) gave up a game-tying home run to the first batter he faced, Danny Espinosa(notes), when played resumed in the sixth. In the ninth, after the Phils reclaimed the lead, Antonio Bastardo(notes) was one strike from nailing down a win when Ian Desmond(notes) homered to tie the game.
The Nationals finished off the Phils bullpen by bludgeoning Brad Lidge(notes) in the 10th. Lidge allowed three of the first four batters to reach base and then plunked Jonny Gomes(notes) with the bases loaded to end the game.
“It’s going to happen; unfortunately, a lot of times in baseball, it happens in spurts,” Halladay said of the late-inning blown leads. “It seems to snowball through a certain time. All of us feel good about the guys down there. I don’t think there’s any question we’ll get past it. We all have a lot of confidence in those guys. They’ll get it done a lot more times than they won’t.”
NOTES, QUOTES
• RHP Roy Halladay was limited to less than six innings for just the second time this season in the Phillies’ 5-4 loss in Washington on Sunday. For the third time in the last four games, the Phils endured a lengthy rain delay that knocked out their starter. Halladay allowed two runs in five innings before a 71-minute rain delay knocked him out.
“It’s definitely frustrating,” Halladay said. “It kind of messed us up for about a week here. We’ll be glad when the weather moves out. As a starter, to be stuck going five innings is never fun.”
• SS Jimmy Rollins exited Sunday’s game against the Nationals with a right groin strain. Rollins wasn’t available to the media after the game, but he appeared to sustain the injury while making a play at shortstop that required him to catch a ball up the middle and make a 360-degree spin before firing to first base.
Rollins is scheduled to have an MRI on Monday morning. He has started 119 of the Phillies’ 125 games this season.
• 3B Placido Polanco expects to be activated from the disabled list Monday, the first day he is eligible to return to the Phillies lineup. Polanco hasn’t played since Aug. 5 because of a sports hernia injury.
Polanco has been limited to six games since July 4 with back and sports hernia injuries.
• LHP Antonio Bastardo blew his first save of the season in the Phillies’ 5-4 loss to the Washington Nationals on Sunday. Bastardo, who had converted eight straight saves in Ryan Madson’s(notes) absence earlier this season, was summoned to pitch the ninth Sunday after Madson was unavailable for the second straight day after he pitched in three games in three days.
Bastardo, who led all NL pitchers in opponents’ batting average and on-base percentage, overpowered the first two batters en route to strikeouts. But despite getting two quick strikes on Ian Desmond, he left a slider up and Desmond lined it over the left-field fence for a game-tying home run.
“My slider was working,” Bastardo said. “But sometimes we miss a pitch.”
• RHP Michael Schwimer made his major league debut in relief of Roy Halladay on Sunday. Following a 71-minute rain delay, Schwimer took over a 3-2 game from the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner and served up a solo home run on the second pitch he threw.
“I was thinking that it can’t get any better than this,” Schwimer said. “And after a few pitches, I was thinking that it can’t get much worse than this.”
But after surrendering a home run to Danny Espinosa, Schwimer retired eight straight batters and nine of the last 10 he faced in three innings.
ROSTER REPORT
Medical Watch:
• SS Jimmy Rollins (right groin strain) exited the Aug. 21 game and was scheduled to have an MRI on Aug. 22.
• LHP Cole Hamels(notes) (left rotator cuff inflammation) is expected to miss one start. He hopes to return to the rotation the week of Aug. 22.
• C Carlos Ruiz(notes) (left testicle contusion) didn’t play Aug. 17-18 and is day-to-day.
• 3B Placido Polanco (sports hernia) left the Aug. 6 game and hasn’t played since. A subsequent exam revealed the hernia. He got a cortisone shot Aug. 9, was re-examined Aug. 12 and fielded groundballs Aug. 13. He was placed on the disabled list Aug. 16, but was eligible to return Aug. 22 because it was backdated. He expected to return when eligible.
• RHP Joe Blanton(notes) (sore right elbow) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 16. He threw a bullpen session July 4. He had a bullpen session canceled July 16 after experiencing what assistant GM Scott Proefrock called a “hiccup” in his recovery. On Aug. 8, he was examined by Dr. James Andrews, who determined that surgery is not necessary. Blanton hopes to pitch again this season.
• RHP Jose Contreras(notes) (right forearm strain) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to June 20. He received a platelet-rich plasma injection July 22, and the timetable for when he might throw again was uncertain. He’s playing catch and hopes to be able to pitch in September.
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