Yesterday, the Philadelphia Phillies went 1-1 in their split squad performance against the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox. Today, Cole Hamels took to the hill to take an a third team from the American League East, the Baltimore Orioles.
Hamels, hanging heavily in the balance of the Phillies future, got off to a rough start against Baltimore. After ending last season on a 25-game suspension for the use of performance-enhancing drugs, Chris Davis recorded is second home run of Spring Training. The three-run shot put the team up immediately.
Two doubles, one by Jimmy Paredes and the other by Davis, handed the Orioles two more runs off the arm of Cole Hamels in his second and final inning.
Former Phillie Jayson Nix singled in a run in the third off Mike Nesseth. Paredes then stepped up big again, homering in that same inning to extend the Baltimore lead to 9-0.
The onslaught continued into the fourth with a Nolan Reimold two-run home run.
It was in that fourth that the Phillies were able to record both their first hit and run. An RBI single from Ryan Howard followed back-to-back singles by Cord Phelps and Chase Utley. Grady Sizemore collected a base hit RBI of his own, moving the score to 11-2.
Baltimore's bashing extended into inning number five, led by a Everth Cabrera triple. Paredes sacrificed him home, and Steve Pearce homered for runs 12 and 13 on the afternoon.
Philadelphia tacked on a third run in the fifth with a Phelps single, but the Orioles took it right back with their fifth team home run in the seventh inning.
Russ Canzler took over left field for Darin Ruf in the eighth, and knocked in his first RBI of the Spring with a single.
Finally, Baltimore scored their final two runs of the game with a two-run single by Henry Urrutia in the ninth.
The Phillies came up empty in the bottom of the ninth, and fell to the Orioles 16-4.
Up Next: Alex Cobb and the Tampa Bay Rays return to Bright House Field in Clearwater to take on the Phillies and a yet-to-be announced starting pitcher.
