What Else Can Go Wrong?

Frustration, injuries, illness, slumps and brain cramps.

Put them all together and voila - you have the Phillies right now. Each element has played a seemingly equal role in the current slide.

The good news?

The baseball season is long.

The bad news?

Every night you're tuning into more of it.

Ibanez Injury Adds to Home Woes

Some really bad news today, as Raul Ibanez has been placed on the 15-day DL with a groin strain.

It’s a big blow to a team that is currently stinking things up in front of the home crowd. Last night’s listless, 7-1 thumping by the Blue Jays only serves to augment this latest injury news.

It goes without saying that losing Ibanez, an early National League MVP candidate, is a huge loss. John Mayberry will likely play ever day in left until Ibanez returns.

Can Mayberry at least provide a reasonable facsimile of Ibanez’ production?

If the team can't come up with better play at home (i.e. give the 'pen a break), it might not matter.

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You can follow today’s game here.

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Inquirer Phillies beat writer Andy Martino mentioned on his blog a few days ago that he’d be away from the team for a few days, working on something “Phillies related.”

Wonder what it could be?

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And now for a bit of good news: Flyers captain Mike Richards is up for the Selke Trophy, the award given to the NHL’s top defensive forward, at tonight’s league awards dinner.

MLB Needs NBA-Style Mandatory Review Policy

Thanks to a six run seventh inning Sunday afternoon, the Phillies managed to salvage one game from their home interleague series with the Red Sox.

Might it have been more?

If Greg Dobbs’ extra inning blast Saturday night is called fair, the Phils take two out of three. Of course, the ball was called foul and what’s done is done.

However, it did get us to thinking: why have replays available for such situations if they’re not going to be used? It should be noted that umpire Jim Joyce exhibited a great amount of class in the way he dealt with his call’s aftermath – from his reassuring of Charlie Manuel on the field to his forthright comments to the media afterward.

Joyce repeated with certitude that he saw the ball.

With all due respect, Joyce was missing the point. And it’s not his fault, either.

Watching more non-76ers NBA basketball than we have in years made us think that an NBA-style mandatory replay system might be in the best interest of MLB, too. The NBA mandates that a shot made at the end of a quarter – even if it is somewhat obvious that the shot was released prior to the buzzer – be reviewed to ensure its validity. Everyone involved knows the drill, accepts it as part of the game, and moves on.

Where is the harm in MLB adopting that same standard for foul/fair pole home runs?

It wouldn’t be a waste of time, as the Daily News’ Rich Hofmann suggests. Again, do it the way the NBA does it, with a maximum of a few minutes passing by.

It’s a small price to pay to make sure the right call is made.

Getting Back on the Horse

One of the beauties of baseball is that the tough losses don't have the opportunity to linger. There's always another game, usually less than 24 hours later.

Of course, that's no guarantee the next night will be any better, but the idea that the next night could turn out differently is what keeps us going.

Last night's 5-2, 13-inning loss to the Red Sox featured great pitching and timely hitting (Ryan Howard!) - something both the Phils and BoSox know a little bit about. Jon Lester proved he is one of the best pitchers in baseball, allowing just two hits in seven innings and striking out 11. Kudos to Joe Blanton, too, who has been on a hot streak of his own. Blanton lasted seven, struck out seven and allowed two runs on five hits.

Blanton has gone at least six innings in each of his last four starts (2-0, 2 NDs in that span), allowing a measly six earned runs on 21 hits in a span covering 27 innings. The lone righthander in the rotation has settled down big time after a very shaky start of the season.

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Our friend Todd Zolecki got some clubhouse reaction to Greg Dobbs' 11th inning moonshot - a shot that would have won the game for the Phils.

Thanks to the Yankees - or rather, Luis Castillo - the Phils NL East lead remained at four games.

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Antonio Bastardo gets his third start of the season tonight, opposing Dice-K. It's an interesting matchup in that Dice-K has struggled this year, while Bastardo is making just his third career start.

The unfamiliarity factor usually benefits the pitcher, and the lack of scouting reports on Bastardo is an interesting factor in his success. The kid has good stuff, but the big leagues are all about making adjustments - particularly the adjustments you make after everyone has already adjusted to you.

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Very curious that Kyle Kendrick was called up to take Scott Eyre's place on the roster following the latter's placement on the 15-day DL.

Different Night, Different Hero

The song says two out of three ain't bad.

That's especially true when it comes to the Phils winning a series in New York. Yet another shot of extra inning lightning jolts the Phils to a four game lead over the Mets in the National League East, a season high.

It was sweet watching Raul Ibanez (vote for RI here) drill a three run home run. It was even sweeter hearing a combination of silence and boos from the home folks before heading for the TARP Field exits.

Now it's back home for a weekend set with the Red Sox.

Phils Fans Storm West Coast

Are the Phillies playing in Citizens Bank Park West? It sure sounds that way.

Watching the Phillies take the lead - hopefully permanently - here in the third inning, it's striking to hear the cheers as the Phils went ahead 2-1. The Petco Park stands are littered with red regalia.

There's the possibility that some of those fans are those of the bandwagon variety, but we'd be willing to bet the number is pretty low.

Remember, this is Cole Hamels' hometown after all.