An off day and a busy Friday night kept me off the keyboard for 48 hours, but it's a fine Saturday for baseball and a little Eminem . .
GUESS WHO'S BACK . . .
BACK AGAIN . . .
PIGEON'S BACK!
TELL A FRIEND!
Pre-game:
The Phils have a few obstacles to face today if they want to push their winning streak to 5 games.
1 - They have to somehow conjure a quality start out of Kyle Kendrick: which is possible since Citi-Field is the last place where KK resembled a major league pitcher.
2 - The Phils have the misfortune of playing in NYC on September 11. That's some serious Karma to overcome. I have to admit - this is one day that I despise the NY Mets just a little . . .bit . . . less.
Top 1st:
After Shane Victorino crushes a fly ball that Angel Pagan runs down in the right-center gap, Placido Polanco drops a ball perfectly on the right-field line for a double - WHAAAAATTTT??? The ball is called foul - the baseball sized divot on the foul line is attributed to aliens from the Men In Black movie.
Karma, anyone?
Bottom 1st: 0-0
With two outs and Jesus Feliciano (single) on first, Kyle Kendrick pulls out his travel size Fear Toxin inhaler and walks right-handed slugger David Wright on four pitches.
Ike Davis brings some hefty power stats and a .259 batting average to the plate. But he also brings a left-handed swing, which against Kendrick adds about .150 to Davis's average. The new math works in New York's favor as Davis scores Feliciano with a liner to the RF corner.
Top 2nd: NYM 1 - PHI 0
Feeling guilty about stealing an RBI against the helpless Kendrick, Ike Davis tries to atone for his larceny by gifting a one-out rror to put the Geico Caveman on first. Left fielder Lucas Duda joins his teamate in the giving spirit by failing to call off Jose Reyes on Raul Ibanez's routine pop-up. But Brian Schneider bails out the Metropolitans by rolling a taylor-made 3-6-3 double play to Davis.
Bottom 3rd: NYM 1 - PHI 0
GOING PIGEON PRESENTS: WIRED FOR SOUND
Kyle Kendrick: "Um, Mr. Reyes? My mom made some of the toll-house cookies, and um, I think you're a really good player and all, and um, I wonder if maybe um, you might want one.
Jose Reyes: "My MAN!! Hook me up with one of those!"
Reyes lauches Kendrick's mom's best toll-house cookie into the second deck of cavernous Citi Field.
Jose Reyes: "HEY KYLE! TELL YOUR MOM THANKS FOR THE COOKIE! AND FOR LAST NIGHT!!!"
Top 4th: NYM 2 - PHI 0
With a chance to drive in teammate Chase Utley with two outs and boost his Free Agent profile on FOX as the announcers discuss his earning potential, Jayson Werth dribbles a tee-ball grounder to Reyes for an inning-ending forceout.
When Werth opens his locker after this game, the following message will be waiting on his cellphone
From: Scapegoat
To: Geico
You do know that the shadows have reached the mound AND home plate, right Jayson?
Keep it light - Milt T.
Top 5th: NYM 2 - PHI 0
Nothing of note happens here, except for an odd discussion between FOX announcers Matt Vasgersian and Tim McCarver.
GOING PIGEON PRESENTS: FALLEN IDOL
When I was growing up in the 1970's, I loved catcher Tim McCarver. He always caught Steve Carlton and provided a steady and occasionally clutch bat for the contending Phils teams of Danny Ozard and Dallas Green.
But Tim McCarver went into broadcasting after his career and convinced himself that he INVENTED THE SPORT.
I'm no Mets fan, but Tim McCarver's suggestion that Citi Field should shorten it's fences for the sake of offense TO HELP THE METS is sheer lunacy.
The only reason the Mets were a factor in the NL East race through the All-Star break is because of great pitching and small-ball hitting. If the fences at Citi Field are shortened, the Mets will lose what I think is their biggest home-field advantage. Surely a FORMER CATCHER knows better than to suggest otherwise.
Rant off.
Top 6th: NYM 2 - PHI 0
Kyle Kendrick gives the Phils 5 innings of solid if not spectacular work, and is rewarded with a seat on the bench as Greg Dobbs looks at strike three to lead off the inning.
I mean - I'm not a baseball expert or anything, but I think Kyle Kendrick could have looked at a two-strike pitch on the inside corner.
Bottom 6th: NYM 2 - PHI 0
After three pitching changes and two pinch-hitters, the Mets load the bases with one out. Jose Contreras gets pinch hitter Luis Hernandez to send a short fly ball to Werth in right. David Wright tags up on the play, but Geico makes a good throw home - where Brian Schneider makes a better tag to end the inning.
Top 7th: NYM 2 - PHI 0
With Chase Utley (HBP) and Raul Ibanez (bloop single) on base and two outs, Brian Schnieder should be looking fastball inner-half with the count 2-0 in his favor.
Well, he gets the 2-0 fastball inner-half and belt-high. How he pops out to Jose Reyes behind shortstop I'll never know.
Bottom 7th: NYM 2 - PHI 0
Jose Contreras retires the first two batters easily, and then the September 11 Karma strikes the Phillies hard.
Jesus Feliciano - bloop single to center
Angel Pagan - line drive that Raul Ibanez plays into single plus error.
David Wright - intentional walk
J.C. Romero in to pitch:
Romero starts Ike Davis - remember, he entered the game with a .259 batting average - with three balls out of the strike zone.
And I mean way, way out of the strike zone. I've come closer to sleeping with Meghan Fox than Romero came to throwing a strike on those pitches.
Romero reaps what he sows when Davis slaps a two-run single up the box to extend the Mets lead to 4-0.
Top 8th: NYM 4 - PHI 0
Blame it on 9/11 or Citi Field or day baseball, but the Phils have been unable to hit Mike Pelfrey this afternoon.
But with one out in the eighth, pinch-hitter Ross Gload makes an important discovery.
Realizing that Pelfrey IS NOT Bob Gibson, Gload smokes a towering one-out double to the warning track in right-center.
Realizing that Pelfrey IS NOT Bob Gibson, Shane Victorino scorches a single to score Gload.
Realizing that Pelfrey IS NOT Bob Gibson, Jerry Manuel pulls him for Mike Parnell.
Placido Polanco continues the rally with single past Luis Hernandez to put runners at first and second.
But Gerry Manuel brings in lefty Pedro Feliciano to bamboozle Chase Utley into a fielder's choice grounder to second.
Ryan Howard - who had nothing to show for crushing three balls earlier in the game - dunks a Texas League single to center to score Victorino and Polanco.
WE HAVE A BALLGAME!
Not so fast! Righthander Manny Acosta comes in to face Jayson Werth. Since there are two outs, the caveman is retired on a 96-mph fastball at his eyebrows.
Top 9th: NYM 4 - PHI 3.
Hisanori Takahashi recently told a reporter through an interpreter that he doesn't throw hard enough to be a true closer.
Naturally, Raul Ibanez lines out to left on a fastball that registers 93-mph according to FOX.
Nick Evans - who replaced strating LF Lucas Duda - makes a nice sliding catch on the ball. IIronically, banez has misplayed several such hits in the past month.
Mike Sweeney then sends a BOMB off the wall in left-center for a double.
**Remember when McCarver said the Mets needed to move that fence in? This is further proof that - for Mets fans - that is a BAD idea. That ball would have been gone almost anywhere else.
Wilson Valdez bids for an infield hit, but unlike J.C. Romero, Takahashi can field his position, Valdez's groundout moves pinch-runner John Mayberry Jr. to third.
But while pinch-hitter Carlos Ruiz has been dominant in many ballparks, he has sucked hard at Citi Field this season, batting just .176
The Beast sends a dribbler to Wright at third, who easily fires to Ike Davis to end the game.
Final score: Mets 4 - Phillies 3.
Final score in Atlanta: Braves 6 - Cardinals 3 (12 inn.)
Tied again.
You really didn't think the Phils would make this easy, would you?
I am Don Pigeon and I am OUT!!!
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