Tag: Brad Lidge

Phillies Win A Big One In Frigid Colorado

She’s seen too many teams that should have contended but didn’t–too many Septembers that didn’t count. She lives and dies with the Phils.

May I have my kishkes&#185 back, please? What a night with the Phillies.

In case you’re not motivated enough to stay up until 2:15 AM the Phillies just held on to beat the Colorado Rockies in a well played and hard fought game. The game was close the whole way. The final was 6-5.

The game was played in frigid conditions after being snowed out yesterday! Many of the players wore ball caps with ear flaps. Water vapor was visible anytime anyone exhaled.

In the end it all came down to Brad Lidge, who was perfect as a closer last season but now can’t get men out! He’s got a 7.21 ERA. He’s blown 11 saves. Horrendous!

There have been calls to ditch Lidge for much of the late season. Charlie Manuel, the manager, has mostly (not totally) stood by Lidge. He did again tonight.

It was an adventure with two walks after the first out. It looked like he couldn’t find the plate, the usual precursor to a gopher ball for a home run.

Helaine turned off the sound on the TV.

“It’s only a game,” she repeated… maybe chanted is a better word. “It’s only a game.” But she didn’t mean it.

It’s more than a game to Helaine. She still feels the pain from Joe Carter’s World Series killing home run even though it happened in 1993. She’s seen too many teams that should have contended but didn’t–too many Septembers that didn’t count. She lives and dies with the Phils.

Lidge ended the inning with a pop-up stranding two. Game over. We began to breath again.

There’s still a long way to go before the World Series. I’m not sure we’re strong enough!

&#185 – Like so many other Yiddish words kishke is often used contrary to its actual meaning. Kishke itself is a sausage–there are intestines involved. It’s not a real 21st Century kind of dish.

In this case kishke means my internal organs and even then it’s used as a metaphor.

Eric Bruntlett’s Triple Play: “Is There Some Kind Of Special Prize?”

Later, when informed on ESPN’s Baseball Tonight his play was today’s “Web Gem,” Bruntlett replied, “Is there some kind of special prize?”

It’s been well established the Fox Family watches and roots for the Phillies.

“They gave Utley the day off,” Helaine told me as we sat down to watch.

Chase Utley’s a great player. His replacement, Eric Bruntlett, is not. And yet there’s a reason teams play the games. You never know what’s going to happen.

It was, to say the least, an unusual game. The Phils scored six runs in the first. The Mets answered with two.

By the time the ninth inning arrived we’d seen Mets starter Oliver Perez removed in the middle of a batter, an inside-the-park home run made possible by the dubious interpretation of a ‘ground rule’ and a triple turned into an out after the umps reconsidered the original blown call on a spectacular catch.

The Phils were still up in the ninth as the troubled Brad Lidge came on. We were prepared for the worst. Lidge leads the league in blown saves!

The Phils defense collapsed in a series of embarrassing errors leaving the Mets with two on and no out. Now there was no getting around what was obviously ordained. The Phillies were about to suffer a crushing and ugly loss.

It didn’t work out that way!

“One moment I’m standing on third with what I thought was a triple and the next I end the game on a triple play. But there was a lot of stuff that happened in between.” – Eric Bruntlett on Comcast Sports Net

Jeff Francouer hit a line drive into an unassisted triple play. Eric Bruntlett, the fill-in who’d been called out on the faux triple and who’d contributed to the Phils ninth inning predicament was in the right place at the right time — unassisted triple play. Game over–only the second time a triple play ended a game in Major League Baseball’s well documented history.

Later, when informed on ESPN’s Baseball Tonight his play was today’s “Web Gem,” Bruntlett replied, “Is there some kind of special prize?”

Eric–fame is fleeting. Enjoy the ride. Tomorrow it’s back to the bench.

Oh… and on behalf of the Foxes, thanks.

Blogger’s note: There was originally video available for embedding, but MLB has removed it.