Phillies Stage Comeback, Broxton Surprisingly Not Involved

Vance Worley got knocked around a little bit today.  After the first inning, the Vanimal surrendered three walks, allowed the Dodger offense to hit for a collective cycle and had placed the Phillies in a five run hole.

This is not something that all of us watching the Phillies this season have become accustomed to.  Kyle Kendrick was warming in the first inning.  Vance managed to get through four innings and struck out six batters, but was tagged for a career high six earned runs. The last thing that anyone really wants to see in the first inning of a game is Kyle Kendrick.

Luckily, Chad Billingsley did not take advantage of the rare bad outing from a Phillie starting pitcher.  His outing was just as ineffective as Worley going 4 1/3 innings and allowed five runs.  He was let down by some poor defense from Casey Blake, improving his line somewhat as only two of the runs he allowed were earned.

Hunter Pence put the Phillies on the board in the top of the fourth inning following a Ryan Howard walk with 400 foot blast to center field.  Anyone who had any reservations about the Pence acquisition have to be impressed by the team’s performance since his arrival.  He has a hit in all but one game since he got here and the team has only dropped one contest since July 31st.  He may look a little funny when he runs, swings a bat, throws and does anything that a baseball player does, but he is inexplicably really good at baseball.

Worley added another run in the fourth with an RBI single to center.  In the fifth, Blake’s aforementioned poor defense helped the Phillies plate their fourth run on a Pence grounder and as Billingsley gave way to Hong-Chih Kuo as Raul Ibanez pushed another run across on a groundout.  After Kuo walked pinch hitter Ben Francisco, the Dodgers turned to Blake Hawksworth.  The Phillies proceed to tie and eventually score the winning run against the hard throwing righty.  Chase Ultey hit an opposite field single to tie the game and Ryan Howard put the Phils on top with an opposite field home run.

For the second night in a row, Ryan Madson allowed a ninth inning run before retiring Rod Barajas to end the game.  The Phillies swept the Dodgers shoveling even more shit onto the heaping pile that is their franchise.  You have to feel bad for Vin Scully.

The Phillies return home from kicking the shit out of all the west coast teams.  Day off tomorrow followed by a series with the Washington Nationals.  Cole Hamels goes for his fourteenth win of the year as he takes on Livan Hernandez.