Phillies Bat Around in 8th Inning Without Recording a Hit

The Philadelphia Phillies accomplished an unusual feat during Saturday’s 9-5 road win over the Atlanta Braves, sending all nine batters to the plate in the eighth inning without recording a single hit during the frame, per MLB Stat of the Day.

Entering the inning with a 5-3 lead, Phillies outfielder Tyler Goeddel drew a leadoff walk as a pinch hitter, and shortstop Freddy Galvis bunted into a fielder’s choice that put Goeddel out at second and Galvis safe at first. 

After a walk by infielder Taylor Featherston and subsequent double steal, Braves reliever Hunter Cervenka intentionally walked second baseman Cesar Hernandez to load the bases.

Cervenka then walked outfielder Odubel Herrera to bring in the inning’s first run, but the real damage occurred when the next two batters reached on errors, pushing the lead from 6-3 to 8-3 while still leaving the bases loaded with one out.

Braves reliever Ryan Weber then hit outfielder Aaron Altherr with a pitch to drive in the inning’s fourth and final run, but Weber did induce a ground-ball double play from catcher Cameron Rupp to finally end the ugly frame.

The Phillies thus batted around the lineup without a hit for the first time since July 17, 1992, a run that lasted more than 24 years, per ESPN Stats & Info.

If not for the inning-ending double play, the Phillies might have even sent 10 or 11 batters to the plate without recording a single hit.

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Phillies Set Franchise Record with 62 Losses Before All-Star Break

The Philadelphia Phillies set an unwanted record during the season’s first half, losing 62 games before the All-Star break for the first time in franchise history, per Sportsnet Stats.

Although there was no expectation of the team being competitive this season, the Phillies have arguably still been somewhat disappointing, as they’re in a league of their own when it comes to futility.

Sitting at 29-62 through 91 games, the Phillies have a miserable .319 winning percentage, putting them more than 100 percentage points below MLB‘s second-worst team, the 38-52 Milwaukee Brewers (.422).

The Phillies have scored a National League-worst 309 runs and allowed an MLB-high 468 runs. Only the Chicago White Sox have plated fewer runs, and even the Colorado Rockies—who play at Coors Field—have surrendered fewer.

The White Sox have MLB’s second-worst run differential at minus-73, while the Phillies have more than doubled the negative output, sitting at minus-160 heading into the second half.

They aren’t just the worst team this season, but possibly the worst team MLB has seen since the 2003 Detroit Tigers finished 43-119 for a .265 winning percentage.

And the franchise already has 14 100-loss seasons in its largely woeful history, having reached that mark in 1904, 1921, 1923, 1927, 1928, 1930, 1936, five consecutive seasons from 1938 to 1942, 1945 and 1961.

With the team presumably trying to trade the few veteran players it still has left, the Phillies are all but guaranteed to finish with baseball’s worst record and a 100-loss season.

If not for the strong performance of rookie third baseman Maikel Franco, it would truly be a lost season.

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Franco Becomes 3rd Rookie in MLB History with Consecutive 5-RBI Games

Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Maikel Franco had another huge night against the New York Yankees on Tuesday, becoming just the third rookie in MLB history to record five RBI in consecutive games, as well as the first player ever to have five RBI in back-to-back games against the Yankees, per the Elias Sports Bureau (via ESPN Stats & Info).

On the heels of a four-hit, two-homer, five-RBI performance in Monday’s 11-8 win over the Bronx Bombers, Franco collected two hits in three at-bats during Tuesday’s 11-6 victory, also drawing a walk and getting hit by a pitch.

His night started off innocently enough, with a groundout in his first at-bat, followed by a walk in his second.

Franco then got the best of Yankees starter CC Sabathia in his third plate appearance, hitting a three-run homer in the fourth inning to give the Phillies a 6-3 lead.

After getting hit by a pitch in the seventh inning, Franco smacked a two-run double off of near-unhittable Yankees reliever Dellin Betances in the top of the ninth, turning a 6-6 tie into an 8-6 lead.

The Phillies extended the lead to 11-6 by the end of the inning, and they’ve now shockingly scored 31 runs over the last three games, having previously beaten the St. Louis Cardinals by a score of 9-2 on Sunday.

Although the three-game winning streak is meaningless in the context of a lost season, Franco’s emergence has been the highlight of the year for a rebuilding franchise.

After struggling mightily during a brief stint (56 at-bats) in the majors last year, the rookie owns a .319/.368/.604 batting line through 37 games this season, with 10 home runs, 20 extra-base hits, 29 RBI, 23 runs and a stolen base in 144 at-bats.

He has made six errors at the hot corner, but even so, he’s already been worth 1.7 Wins Above Replacement (WAR), according to FanGraphs.

That figure puts him 10th among all third basemen this season, and only 10 players at any position have accumulated more WAR than Franco (1.5) over the last 30 days.

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Phillies’ Ryan Howard and Marlon Byrd Are 1st Teammates to Strike out 180 Times

Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard and outfielder Marlon Byrd are the first teammates in MLB history to each strike out 180 or more times in a season, per Lee Sinins of Complete Baseball Encyclopedia.

Following Thursday’s game against the Florida Marlins, Howard has an MLB-high 188 strikeouts, while Byrd is tied for second place in the National League at 181 with Washington Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond.

In the American League, only MVP front-runner Mike Trout (181) and Houston Astros first baseman Chris Carter (179) figure to reach 180, though Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis (173) was well on his way before getting suspended for amphetamine use.

For Howard, the lofty strikeout total comes as no surprise, with this season marking the fifth time he’s piled up 180 or more in one season. Previously, Howard had 180-plus strikeouts in four consecutive seasons from 2006 to 2009, a span that also qualifies as the peak of his now-disappointing career.

In Byrd’s case, the strikeouts come as more of a surprise, as he had previously never topped 144, the total he posted last year. The outfielder’s late-career renaissance has not been hampered by his increased proclivity for the punch-out, as Byrd has more than made up for the lack of contact by posting the two best homer totals of his career in the last two seasons.

Prior to 2013, Byrd never had more than 98 strikeouts or 20 home runs in one season. He then had 144 and 24 last year, only to top both marks in 2014. In addition to his 181 strikeouts, Byrd has 25 home runs heading into the final three games of the season.

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Phillies’ A.J. Burnett Becomes 1st Pitcher with 12-Strikeout Game for 5 Teams

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher A.J. Burnett struck out 12 batters in Monday’s 3-2 win over the Washington Nationals, thus becoming the first player in major league history to record a 12-K game with five different teams, per ESPN Stats & Info.

Burnett has accomplished the feat with each team he’s played for: the Phillies (2014), Pittsburgh Pirates (2012-13), New York Yankees (2009-11), Toronto Blue Jays (2006-08) and Florida Marlins (1999-2005).

Monday’s was perhaps the most surprising of Burnett’s 12-strikeout performances, as the right-hander hasn’t been particularly effective this season. Not only does he own a 7-14 record and 4.30 ERA, but Burnett’s 7.9 K/9 would be his lowest since 2010 (7.0) if it were to hold up.

In four previous starts against the Nationals this season, Burnett compiled just 17 strikeouts, failing to top seven in any of the outings.

Additionally, the Nats are the hottest team in baseball, having won 12 of their last 14 games, even after Monday’s loss.

That said, the Nationals do have a bit of a weakness for the punch-out, with their 21.1 strikeout percentage ranking 24th in the majors. Of the six teams behind them, only the division rival Atlanta Braves (22.5 percent) and Miami Marlins (23.3 percent) have a realistic shot at the playoffs.

As for Burnett, the 37-year-old hurler is widely expected to retire after the season, after he contemplated the move heading into this year. Among active players, Burnett’s 2,337 career strikeouts trail only the 2,437 compiled by injured New York Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia.

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Phillies’ Chase Utley Becomes 12th Player in Franchise History with 1500 Hits

Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley recorded the 1,500th hit of his career in Sunday afternoon’s contest against the Atlanta Braves, per MLB Milestones on Twitter.

With one out in the seventh inning and his Phillies down 3-2, Utley singled back up the middle into center field off Braves starter Aaron Harang for the milestone base knock. The moment didn’t last long though, as Utley was unceremoniously sent back to the dugout when the next batter, Ryan Howard, hit into an inning-ending double play.

The first-place Braves would ultimately hold on to beat the Phillies 3-2, leaving Philadelphia eight games back of the division lead.

Utley, who has spent his entire 12-year career with the Phillies, is just the 12th player in franchise history to record 1,500 hits with the team. He’s moving into some select company on the Phillies’ all-time franchise lists, as he’s already in the top 10 for both doubles and home runs, per Baseball-Reference.com. 

Utley has 322 two-baggers, good for seventh place on a list topped by current teammate Jimmy Rollins, who has 470 doubles of his own.

As for home runs, Utley’s 223 rank sixth in Phillies franchise history. Teammate Ryan Howard is second with 325, while the great Mike Schmidt sits atop the leaderboard with 548 career home runs, all hit in a Phillies uniform.

 

 

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Phillies’ Jonathan Papelbon Records 300th Career Save

With a scoreless ninth inning in Tuesday’s game against the San Diego Padres, Jonathan Papelbon of the Philadelphia Phillies recorded his 14th save of the 2014 season and No. 300 for his career. He joined Joe Nathan (354) and Francisco Rodriguez (323) on the list of active players who have reached the 300-save mark, per ESPN Stats & Info. 

At 300 career saves, Papelbon is tied with Jason Isringhausen and Bruce Sutter in 24th place on the all-time list. To break into the top 20 this season, Papelbon will need to log at least 12 more saves, which would move him past Tom Henke, who tallied 311 over his career. 

The 33-year-old Papelbon needed 585.1 innings—spread across 10 MLB seasons—to become the 26th member of the 300-save club. He closed the majority of his games as a member of the Boston Red Sox, earning 219 saves during a seven-season stretch that included four straight All-Star Game selections from 2006 to 2009. The right-hander put together an impressive streak of seven consecutive 30-save seasons from 2006 to 2012 before falling one short at 29 in 2013, his second year with the Phillies.

Now in his third year with Philadelphia, he hasn’t blown a save since his first attempt of the season back on April 2, converting 14 consecutive opportunities since that date. Following another appearance Wednesday, he has gone eight consecutive outings without allowing a run and owns a 1.42 ERA and 1.02 WHIP for the year. 

 

All stats courtesy of MLB.com unless otherwise specified.

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Phillies’ Jimmy Rollins 2nd in Franchise History to Play 2,000 Games

With Wednesday’s appearance against the Colorado Rockies, Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins became the second player in franchise history to play in 2,000 games, per ESPN Stats & Info. Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt is the other, having played 2,404 games in a Phillies uniform.

In addition to total games played, Rollins is climbing his way up the Phillies’ record books in several other categories. His 2,221 hits leave him just 13 behind Schmidt for the all-time lead, and he already has more doubles (464) than any other Philly. Rollins’ 431 steals place him at second on the franchise list, falling just behind another speedy, Billy Hamilton, who swiped 508 bags during a career that lasted from 1888 to 1901.

At 35 years old, Rollins is third among active shortstops in career games played. Derek Jeter leads this list with 2,646, while Miguel Tejada—who signed a minor league deal with the Marlins earlier this month—sits at 2,171.

Rollins is now in the 15th season of a career that has included three All-Star game appearances and the 2007 National League MVP award. He continues to be a fixture in the Philadelphia lineup, having started 42 of 49 games in 2014. The switch-hitter is slashing .257/.357/.419 this season, with 27 runs, 22 RBI, six long balls and six stolen bases.

All stats courtesy of MLB.com unless otherwise specified.

 

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Phillies’ Jimmy Rollins Nearing 2nd Place on Franchise Hits List

Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins has been surprisingly productive this season, and he’ll soon be rewarded with a new place in franchise history. Entering Tuesday’s game against the Miami Marlins, Rollins is closing in on both second and third places on the Phillies’ all-time hit list, per Baseball-Reference.com.

However, while there’s no doubt that Rollins has 2,213 career hits or that second-place Richie Ashburn has 2,217, the hit total of third-place Ed Delahanty is a bit contentious. Baseball-Reference.com has Delahanty one ahead of Rollins with 2,214 hits in a Phillies uniform, while FanGraphs and MLB.com have the two Philadelphia standouts tied at 2,213 apiece.

Of course, regardless of which number is used for Delahanty, the 1890s legend will soon be fourth on the franchise hits list. A Hall of Famer who played just 13 seasons and 1,557 games in a Phillies uniform, Delahanty couldn’t reasonably be expected to rank any higher. Rollins, for the sake of comparison, is in his 15th season with the Phillies and has played 1,991 games for the team.

Things are oddly tight at the top of the Phillies’ hit list, as Rollins (2,213) trails second-place Ashburn (2,217) by just four base knocks and is only 21 behind first-place Mike Schmidt (2,234), who is widely regarded as the finest player in franchise history.

Rollins may soon top Schmidt and Ashburn in the franchise record books, but the long-time Phillies shortstop probably won’t be joining them in the Hall of Fame. As impressive as his career has been, Rollins owns a lifetime .269/.328/.426 slash line that just doesn’t quite seem Hall-worthy, even for one of the better defensive shortstops of his time.

 

All statistics from Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.

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Phillies’ Jimmy Rollins One Home Run Shy of 200 for Career

Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins heads into the 2014 season needing just one home run to reach 200 for his career.

Coming off a disappointing six-homer season, the 35-year-old Philadelphia mainstay seemed to make a bad impression on Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg during spring training. The issue led to some trade rumors, which were silenced by Rollins, and it seems that Sandberg and the shortstop have settled things for the time being.

With the issue hopefully out of the way, Rollins is set to take aim at some milestones in 2014, first among them the aforementioned 200-homer mark.

Rollins has always offered plus power for a shortstop, as he hit 14 home runs during his first full season in 2001, then fell between eight and 14 homers in each of the following four years. Those numbers, while solid, fell far short of his production in other areas.

From 2001 to 2005, Rollins led the league in triples three times and averaged 33.6 stolen bases per season, while playing strong defense at a premium position and appearing in at least 154 games each year.

Known as a player who provided value with his speed, defense, durability and balanced offensive approach, Rollins rewrote the book in 2006, slugging a then-career-best 25 home runs.

Then, in 2007, he took yet another step, hitting a career-best 30 homers on his way to becoming one of the more surprising National League MVP Award winners in recent history.

Rollins wasn’t able to maintain that power, however, and fell back to 11 long balls in 2008 before posting highly variable totals of (chronologically) 21, eight, 16, 23 and six.

The inconsistency would look a bit better were it not for the fact that Rollins is 35. He’s well acquainted with the bounce-back season, but at this point in his career, anything more than 8-12 dingers should be considered icing on the cake.

With that in mind, we may have to wait a few weeks, or possibly even months, for No. 200.

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