Photo Courtesy: Phillies
On Wednesday, the dreams of baseball fans were fulfilled as the sport returned to the field and began actual gameplay. As Phillies fans, we went into camp excited to see the team, and eager to watch some new faces make their case for the 25-man roster. Now, four games into the preseason, things haven't gone quite as planned. Most people don't see a 1-3 start as something to be concerned about, as well they shouldn't. But a disappointing start to a campaign can quickly dampen the spirits of a fanbase. The team hoped to look for a victory today as A.J. Burnett made his first start against his former squad, the Pirates of Pittsburgh.
The Game: Very similar to how most games have started for the Phillies this Spring, the opponent got off to a quick start. Burnett allowed a one out double to Gregory Polanco, then hit Pedro Alvarez with two away to put two runners on base. A ground ball up the middle was fielded by Freddy Galvis, and he quickly tagged the bag at second for the force out. However, the umpire called him safe on a bang-bang play, and Polanco scored. 1-0 Pirates after one inning.
Phillies top prospect Jesse Biddle came in to replace Burnett in the third. He was able to record two quick strikeouts on Polanco and Travis Snider, but allowed a single to Pedro Alvarez. Chris Dickerson was next, and his double allowed a on-the-run Alvarez to score and move the game to 2-0 Pittsburgh.
Biddle continued into the fourth. A walk to Chris Stewart, followed by a sacrifice bunt and a groundout resulted in a man on third and two away. Jaff Decker popped a ball into center field for Tony Gwynn Jr. Some Florida sun seemed to interfere, and the ball dropped into play, allowing Stewart to come on home. 3-0 Pirates.
Pittsburgh lefty and Japenese pitcher Yao-Hsun Yang came in to pitch the fifth inning. He was able to retire Bobby Abreu, but Freddy Galvis reached on a single. Cody Asche was then hit in the hand by a pitch, forcing him to leave the game in favor of Maikel Franco. Zach Collier was hit by a pitch as well, loading the bases with just one away. Tony Gwynn struck out with a chance at some RBIs, but Carlos Ruiz came through with a walk to bring in the Phillies first run in thirteen innings. 3-1 Pirate advantage.
Antonio Bastardo allowed a solo homerun to Joshua Harrison in the top of the sixth inning. Singles by Collier and Gwynn as well as a walk by Tommy Joseph loaded the bases for the Phillies in the bottom of the seventh inning with two away. Kevin Frandsen then swung at the first pitch and flied out to center field, ending the threat.
The rest of the contest went scoreless, and the Phillies fall to the Pirates, 4-1.
Other Phillies pitchers today included Jonathan Papelbon, Jake Diekman, Mario Hollands, and Brad Lincoln.
Notable offensive statistics:
Tony Gwynn: 2-4, 1 K
Marlon Byrd: 0-3, 1 K
Zach Collier: 1-2
6 total batters were hit by a pitch in the game, 4 on the Phillies and 2 on the Pirates.
Impact: Another loss that really only hurts for the sake of losing. Grapefruit League standings mean very little moving forward, but it is still fun to watch a team perform well. The good news comes from the lack of errors or boneheaded mistakes in today's ball game. Taking pitches and being reliable in the field are two keys to success, and the Phillies have done both relatively well thus far into February/March.
Up Next: Roberto Hernandez will make his second start of the Spring for the Phillies tomorrow afternoon against Matt Moore and the Tampa Bay Rays.
