Cliff Lee Goes 10: Roy Halladay Welcomes Him to the 10-Innings Club

With the game taking place in the Pacific time zone, a fair share of you reading this likely missed the pitching throwdown (“duel” just doesn’t seem an adequate description) between Cliff Lee and Matt Cain on Wednesday night at AT&T Park.

As you might expect with two of the best pitchers in baseball opposing each other while facing two of the more impotent lineups in the majors, there was a string of zeroes lined up on the scoreboard.

Cain went nine innings, allowing just two hits and no runs. But since the San Francisco Giants couldn’t score any runs for him, Cain was pulled for a pinch-hitter to lead off the 10th inning and didn’t get a decision.

Lee one-upped Cain, pitching 10 scoreless innings. He gave up seven hits and no walks. As Crashburn Alley explains, Lee was able to pitch the 10th because he’d thrown only 89 pitches through nine innings. After finishing the 10th, Lee had 102 pitches for the night. Had his turn to bat not come up in the 11th, maybe Charlie Manuel would’ve left Lee in the game. 

Alas, the Philadelphia Phillies couldn’t score, thanks in part to a curious decision to let Jim Thome pinch-hit against lefty reliever Javier Lopez. In the bottom of the inning, with Antonio Bastardo taking over for Lee, a Ty Wigginton error put Brandon Belt in scoring position. Melky Cabrera drove him in with a single to win the game.

With that, as pointed out by MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki, Lee became the first pitcher to go 10 innings in a game his team didn’t win since Bret Saberhagen did it for the New York Mets against the San Diego Padres in 1994. It must be something about the West Coast.

Saberhagen struck out 11, issued no walks and allowed five hits in his outing, by the way.

Lee also became the fourth pitcher in the 21st century to go 10 innings. The one guy who might not be impressed by his effort is teammate Roy Halladay, who did it twice while with the Toronto Blue Jays.

In 2003, Halladay pitched a 10-inning shutout against the Detroit Tigers. He allowed only three hits, struck out five and walked no one. 

In 2007, Halladay got the Tigers again for 10 innings. At least this time, Detroit scored a run on him with a solo homer by Magglio Ordonez.

As if it weren’t amazing enough that Halladay twice went 10 innings against the Tigers, the same pitcher took the loss for Detroit in both games. Fernando Rodney was tagged with the loss in each game, pitching a poor inning of relief.

Also in 2007, Aaron Harang pitched 10 innings for the Cincinnati Reds. He allowed one run and seven hits against the Milwaukee Brewers, while racking up 10 strikeouts. A Ryan Braun homer accounted for the Brewers’ only run.

The fourth man to go 10 was Mark Mulder in 2005. Facing the Houston Astros and Roger Clemens, Mulder pitched a shutout for the St. Louis Cardinals, allowing five hits with five strikeouts and no walks. 

The last Phillies pitcher to throw 10 innings was Terry Mulholland in 1993. Mulholland allowed one run, despite giving up 10 hits to the Cardinals in the effort. 

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Philadelphia Phillies’ $85 Million Offer to Cole Hamels Last Year Is Small Now

Do you think Detroit Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski is sitting in his office today, feet up on the desk, hands behind his head, smiling the smile of a man who knows how smart he was?

Seattle Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik might also be feeling some relief, perhaps staring out a window, appreciating the wonders of nature as he ponders how the universe worked in favor of him and his team.

(I’d paint the same image for former Los Angeles Angels GM Tony Reagins, but since he no longer holds that job, it doesn’t quite apply. Reagins may be feeling smart, but he’s probably not striking the pose of the contented man today.) 

Each of these men dodged a financial bullet, signing their aces before the development of a market for starting pitching that appears ready to explode after Matt Cain and the San Francisco Giants agreed to a six-year, $127.5 million contract. Or maybe these GMs just had the fortune of good timing.

Before the spring of 2010, Dombrowski and the Tigers signed Justin Verlander to a five-year, $80 million contract. He would’ve been eligible for free agency after last season.  

Just a few weeks earlier, Zduriencik and the Mariners locked up Felix Hernandez with a five-year, $78 million deal. The 2011 free agent market was deprived of yet another superstar pitcher.

Last August, Reagins and the Angels signed Jered Weaver to a five-year extension worth $85 million. Without the new deal, Weaver would’ve become a free agent following this season. It was the last big move—and probably his best one—for Reagins, who resigned last September. 

Those deals weren’t exactly bargains, of course. At the time, they were fair market contracts.

That market is what the Philadelphia Phillies had in mind toward the end of last season when they made a contract offer to Cole Hamels. According to CBSSports.com’s Jon Heyman, in fact, the Phillies offered the same deal the Angels gave to Weaver: Five years, $85 million. 

No one would’ve criticized Hamels for accepting the Phillies’ offer. As mentioned, that was the market for starting pitching at the time. Turning it down was a risk. But Hamels now looks pretty smart for declining and waiting for a better offer. 

As so many have pointed out in light of Cain’s contract, if he’s worth almost $130 million, what kind of a deal might Hamels receive? (That is, if he hasn’t already agreed to one. If so, Ruben Amaro might get to join the contented GM club.) 

The two sides don’t appear likely to agree on a new contract before opening day, though Hamels hasn’t set a deadline like Cain did. It’s just as well, because the bar for starting pitchers has been significantly raised. 

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Cole Hamels Contract: Ready to Sign New Deal with Philadelphia Phillies?

Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Cole Hamels figures to be one of the top free-agent pitchers available after the season. 

With the annual demand for quality starting pitching around the majors—especially now that the Los Angeles Dodgers look ready to pursue top talent with new ownership in place—testing the open market this winter would seem to be in Hamels’ best interests. 

Yet Hamels may have tipped off that he already has an agreement in place with the Phillies. That’s how the Philadelphia Inquirer‘s Matt Gelb read into Hamels talking about whether he and his agent have set an Opening Day deadline for negotiating a new contract.

“My only understanding is if you sign anybody before opening day, you have to deal with the luxury tax,” he told Gelb. “So that’s the only thing I know of. Anything after goes toward next season. I understand that’s where the Phillies are.”

So what exactly in that statement made Gelb think, “A-ha”? By his interpretation, that was a curious detail for Hamels to be aware of. Gelb did some digging, however, and found out that when a contract is signed no longer has anything to do with the luxury tax being applied.

Is it a stretch to think this means Hamels has a new contract with the Phillies and is waiting until after Opening Day to sign it? Perhaps, but it might also explain why Hamels told MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki that he hasn’t been thinking about his contract situation at all.

Why worry about what’s already taken care of?

But Hamels’ moment of zen might also stem from the comfort of knowing that he’s going to hit a big payday after the season, regardless of whether or not it’s with the Phillies. 

Personally, if I was a free agent, I’d want to see what kind of offers come my way. What sort of interest will the Dodgers, Marlins and any other team looking for pitching demonstrate? 

Of course, the Phillies are also a team not afraid to spend big money. And they really can’t afford to lose Hamels, so they have an obvious need, too.

There’s something to be said for the comfort of familiarity and playing for a team that has shown it will do anything to win. 

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Philadelphia Phillies: Time to Trade Domonic Brown

Sometimes, a relationship reaches the point where it’s clear that the two sides involved just need to move on. The Philadelphia Phillies and Domonic Brown have gotten to that stage now.

The Phillies sent Brown to Triple-A on Friday, citing a need to improve his defense as the primary reason for the demotion. General manager Ruben Amaro said the team wants Brown to get work in left field and prefer he learn the position with the Triple-A club in Lehigh Valley rather than Philadelphia. 

After two seasons splitting time between the majors and Triple-A, is there much more Brown can do to improve his standing with the Phillies? Or has he basically hit a ceiling within the organization and better off seeing if he can succeed elsewhere? 

Plenty of other major league teams would surely find use for a player who’s shown he can hit and get on base. No, Brown hasn’t hit well in his two stints with the Phillies, compiling a .236 batting average and .636 OPS. But an .834 minor league OPS shows that the skills are there. Other clubs would be willing to accept that and overlook his defensive deficiencies. 

There may have been no better opportunity for Brown to win a big league job with the Phillies than this year. Instead of Brown, the team is expected to rotate the likes of John Mayberry, Laynce Nix and Juan Pierre in left field. According to David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News, Pierre might get squeezed out in a roster crunch, along with another veteran outfielder, Scott Podsednik.

So maybe Brown was just the loser in an unfortunate numbers game. But it has to be a disappointment for a player once considered to be a top prospect not to beat out journeymen and role players for a starting position. 

Brown certainly seemed to hit well enough to warrant a spot on the Phillies’ Opening Day roster. He hit .300/.333/.650, far better than Mayberry (.224), Nix (.208) or Pierre (.257). But as MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki points out, Brown only appeared in 20 games due to neck and thumb injuries. Maybe that wasn’t enough of a sample to give the Phillies confidence in opting for him over a veteran player.

Or perhaps the team considers Brown such a butcher in left (or right) field that they just can’t justify putting him out there, no matter how well he hits. Defense is certainly at a premium while the Phillies’ lineup battles injuries and struggles to score runs. Until then, Mayberry and Nix may not provide spectacular outfield defense, but they’ll make the necessary plays and maybe mix in a highlight reel catch or two. 

But what if, as CSNPhilly.com’s Corey Seidman asks, Brown never becomes a good—or decent—outfielder? What then? Do the Phillies just wince and put Brown out there, hoping he can get to most balls in the outfield? Or do they try to see if they can get anything in return for him, before his regard in the organization gets any lower? 

If all else fails, maybe the Phillies can just completely throw up their hands and see if Brown can play second or third base. 

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Philadelphia Phillies’ Injuries Pile Up as Michael Martinez Breaks Foot

If you’re a major league team with an excess of infielders, the Philadelphia Phillies would like to speak with you. In fact, general manager Ruben Amaro is probably on the line that’s flashing right now.

The Phillies’ infield was already looking mighty thin when Chase Utley left spring camp due to persistent pain in both of his knees. Utley was to consult a specialist to help him get his rehab out of its “plateau,” but he’s almost certainly going to begin the season on the disabled list. And some are questioning whether or not the rest of his baseball career is at stake. 

Oh, and Placido Polanco has missed the last few spring training games due to a sprained left ring finger. It’s been a bad week for Phillies infielders.

Philadelphia was already short-handed with first baseman Ryan Howard going down with a torn left Achilles tendon last October. His recovery was pushed further back when he developed an infection with one of the sutures from the surgery that repaired the tear. Howard is currently wearing a protective boot, and is expected to be out until late May or early June.

One of the players who was expected to fill in at second and third base was utility infielder Michael Martinez. But Martinez was scratched from the Phillies’ plans when he suffered a broken foot in Tuesday night’s game against the Baltimore Orioles. Martinez was hit by a pitch and fractured the fourth metatarsal in his right foot. With that, he joins Howard in the walking boot club and the Phillies don’t know when he’ll return.

Whether or not the Phillies go hard after another infielder might depend on how well rookie Freddy Galvis plays for Utley at second base. If he struggles, the team could look at acquiring a veteran replacement.

Some of the names that have been mentioned by Phillies beat reporters include Blake DeWitt and Jeff Baker of the Chicago Cubs, Mike Aviles of the Boston Red Sox, Maicer Izturis and Alberto Callaspo of the Los Angeles Angels and Orlando Hudson of the San Diego Padres. 

That appears to leave the Phillies with plenty of options to pursue if Galvis proves he’s not ready or Amaro decides they need more infield depth. (Pete Orr and Hector Luna will also remain in camp with the Phillies if the team decides to stand pat when the season begins.) Their infield situation is definitely something to keep an eye on during the first few weeks of the season. 

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