Phillies Blow Opportunity in Atlanta
By Matt Veasey
The Philadelphia Phillies lost to the host Atlanta Braves on Sunday afternoon at Turner Field in the conclusion of a four game series and lengthy road trip.
The Phillies wrapped up a long 10-game road trip with a dispirited 2-1 loss to the host Atlanta Braves on Sunday afternoon that left the two clubs with a split of a four-game series.
For the Phils it was a huge missed opportunity. The team is trying to show that they have taken a legitimate step forward from last year’s debacle, and to do so must demonstrate that they are better than and can beat clubs behind them in the standings.
Yesterday, the Phillies had an opportunity to take three of four against the worst team in baseball, which would have sent them on their flight home with a 5-5 record on that tough road excursion. Instead, it became one more wasted opportunity for a team that is showing that it still has far too many not-ready-for-prime-time players.
This time it was 27-year old rookie Joel De La Cruz who shut the Phillies down by tossing 4.1 shutout innings over which he allowed just three hits and two walks. A parade of five relievers then largely shut the Phillies down the rest of the way, yielding just two more hits.
On the Phils’ side, yet another nice start was wasted by Jerad Eickhoff, who allowed just two hits over five shutout innings before rains set in and knocked him out after just 67 pitches.
When the rain delay, which appeared inevitable from the start, it was a scoreless game. When the contest resumed, the Braves jumped on top in the bottom of the 7th when former Phil Jeff Francoeur drove a two-run homer off Andrew Bailey.
“It was nice,” said the player who became popular as ‘Frenchy’ a year ago in Philly about his homer to MLB.com contributors. “I got a pitch up in the zone. I put a couple good swings on the first few. The first one, if I’m in Philly, I’ve got a homer. But this was a good win for us.”
That 2-0 lead held into the top of the 8th when Jimmy Paredes drove his 3rd homer of the season over the wall in right-center, the solo shot cutting the deficit to 2-1. But that would prove to be the Phillies final hit of the day.
Now the club returns home after a 4-6 road trip that has left them 11 games under the .500 mark on the season. They are 7.5 games behind the New York Mets and 10 games ahead of the Braves in the NL East Division standings, stuck in the no-man’s land of 4th place. I suppose it’s better than last overall.