Phillies Edge Braves on Victorino’s Bat, Arm
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The Phillies capitalized on a 2 out, ninth inning Atlanta fielding error to tie the game and then centerfielder Shane Victorino pounded the second of his two triples in the tenth to drive in the lead run. 2nd baseman Chase Utley followed with run-scoring double for important insurance as Victorino nailed the potential tying run at the plate as the Phils edged the Braves by a 4-3 score in their Friday opener.
The Phillies win, coupled with Florida’s pounding at the hands of Cincinnati and San Diego’s close win over Johan Santana and the Mets, left them atop the NL East by 3 1/2 games over the Marlins, 4 1/2 games over the 3rd place Braves and 5 1/2 games over the 4th place Mets.
For five innings, veteran lefthander Jamie Moyer and Tim Hudson were engaged in a classic pitching duel with Utley’s ground out RBI the only run crossing the plate.
Atlanta threatened in the third inning as 3rd baseman Chipper Jones’ 2 out ground-rule double to rightfield was sandwiched between two walks by Moyer. But the veteran lefty got rightfielder Jeff Francoeur to fly out to center to end the threat.
The Braves took the lead at 2-1 in the sixth inning as 1st baseman Mark Teixeira opened with a single to leftfield. With 1 out, catcher Brian McCann homered to rightfield. Leftfielder Omar Infante followed McCann’s homer with a triple to rightfield chasing Moyer. Reliever Chad Durbin replaced Moyer and got centerfielder Gregor Blanco to ground into a fielder’s choice with Infante being nailed at home. Pitcher Hudson ended the inning by flying out to centerfield.
Both starters pitched well but neither was involved in the final decision. Myewr gave up 2 runs on 5 hits while walking 3 and striking out 4 in 5 1/3 innings while Hudson gave up 1 run on 5 hits while walking 4 and striking out 3 in 7 2/3 innings.
The score remained 2-1 through a parade of relief pitchers, although both sides came away with nothing after loading the bases in the seventh, until catcher Chris Coste batted with 2 out in the ninth and runners at 1st and 2nd.
AP Sports Writer Charles Odum writes;
Kelly Johnson’s unlikely ninth-inning error gave the… Phillies new life.
The second baseman dropped a pop fly by Chris Coste with two outs in the ninth for an error, allowing [pinch runner] Eric Bruntlett to score the tying run from second. Johnson threw out [3rd baseman] Pedro Feliz, who tried to score from first on the play, to end the inning. Braves fans, on their feet to cheer the expected win, were too stunned to even boo.
“It just didn’t stick,” Johnson said. “It hit the palm. That’s probably the one spot in your glove it’s going to pop out.”
With reliever Tom Gordon on mound in the Braves ninth with 1 out and runners on 1st and 2nd base, “Flash” struck out Teixeira and got Francoeur on a pop-out to 1st base to end the threat. Gordon came away with his 5th win vs 2 losses.
AP’s Odum describes the tenth inning;
Shane Victorino took advantage with his bat and arm…
Victorino drove in the go-ahead run with a triple in the 10th, then threw out Gregor Blanco at the plate as the tying run in the bottom of the inning…
Manny Acosta (3-4) lost for the second time in three days, giving up two hits and two runs while recording only one out.
Acosta gave up a leadoff double to pinch-hitter Chris Snelling in the 10th. Pinch-runner So Taguchi moved to third on a sacrifice and scored on Victorino’s triple to right-center… Chase Utley added a run-scoring double off Royce Ring, what proved to be a true insurance run when the Braves started to rally in the bottom of the inning.
With one out, outfielder Josh Anderson singled off closer Brad Lidge and moved to third on Blanco’s infield hit. Blanco stole second, but Lidge struck out leftfielder Greg Norton. [Shortstop] Yunel Escobar then drove in Anderson with a single to center, but Victorino threw out Blanco on a close play at the plate to end the game.
“I knew I had to charge the ball hard and get rid of it quick,” Victorino said. “I knew it would be a close play. I wanted to give the catcher (Coste) a chance.”
Coste said Victorino’s strong throw almost caught him off-guard.
“He threw it so hard I didn’t have time to adjust,” Coste said. “It was a line drive.”
Braves manager Bobby Cox argued the call with home plate umpire Alfonso Marquez but after watching the replay said Blanco was out.
“We gave it away. We didn’t lose it, we gave it,” Cox said. “Bad baserunning, drop a pop-up.
“Kelly catches everything. I’ve never seen him drop one. We’re all allowed one.”
Lidge nailed down his 16th save while giving up 1 run on 3 hits. He struck out 2.
A hat tip to Phillies Nation as that blog cites a report from Tom Zolecki who notes that the Phils have activated outfielder Jayson Werth from the 15-day disabled list while sending Snelling down to make room for Werth on the 25 man roster.
For all of the scores, boxscores and recaps on Friday’s games, click here.
On Saturday, young Kyle Kendrick faces 23 year old lefthander Jo-Jo Reyes. In Sunday’s final, Adam Eaton opposes 30 year old reliever turned starter Jorge Campillo.
After Atlanta, the Phillies move on to Florida and then to St. Louis before returning home to play Boston and the L. A. Angels in inter-league competition.
For the scores, boxscores and recaps on Saturday’s games, click here.
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