Phils Snap Skid

Tuesday, the Phils beat Arizona 8-5, to snap a 3-game skid and escape becoming the 1st Phillies team since '06 to lose 4-straight in the month of April.  The Phils have been a poor April team over the past several seasons.  They generally start hitting over the summer and play their best baseball in the fall.

A glimpse at the last 5 NL East title seasons tells a tale of April woes and mediocrity with 1 exception ('11):

4/24:  Phils snap 3-game losing streak, now 7-7 

since 1-3 start.

'07 Phils were 4-11 April 20th, before winning 5-straight and finished the month 11-14.  Won division.

'08 Phils were 9-10 April 20th, but managed to finish the month 15-13.  Won division.

'09 Phils were 5-6 on April 20th and finished the month 11-9.  Won division.

'10 Phils were 8-5 April 20th and 12-10 at the end of the month.  Won division.

'11 Phils were 11-6  April 20th and 18-8 at the end of the month.  Won division.

'12 Phils were 7-7  April 20th, are now 8-10 and are well within reach of the April win % achieved by 4 of the past 5 division title Phillies teams.

In fact, with Tuesday's win over the Diamondbacks, the Phils improved to 8-10, which matches the '08 Championship team's record after 18 games.  However, few Phils fans are thinking World Series right now.

To say that the team is struggling is stating the obvious, which is what John Kruk and co. did on "Baseball Tonight" last night, when they forecast a long, bad season for the Fightin'.  In fact, the featurette link is, "Bad Phillies," while the piece itself is titled, "Are We Worried Yet?"

If you're a Phillies fan, you were born worried.  However, this time, it appears your worries are, unfortunately, confirmed every time the Phils take the field.  Perhaps even when they don't:

Cliff Lee (Oblique Strain) and Hunter Pence (left shoulder) are the latest injured Phils, joining Utley (knee) and Howard (heel) with an excess of All-Star, MVP and Cy Young brass between them.

More troubling, however, is how poor the Phils play is on the field.

Lee was dazzling for 10 innings on 4/18/12

4/18 was a pitching high and hitting low, when  Cliff Lee threw 10 astounding shutout innings, but the team failed to score behind him and lost the game.

4/23/05 - Last 10 shutout innings in any game: Mark Mulder, Cardinals: 10-inning, 1-0 win over the Astros.

7/15/94 - Last 10 shutout innings and team loss: Bret Saberhagen, Mets: 14-inning loss to the Padres.

9/21/81 - Last 10 shutout innings, Phillies: Steve Carlton, against the Expos: Expos won 1-0 in 17 innings.

Lee's career high 10 innings made him the 1st Phillies starter to eclipse 9 innings since Terry Mulholland, 5/8/93.  Lee surrendered 7 hits, struck out 7, walked none and threw strikes with 81 of 102 pitches.

After the game, Lee went on the DL with a shoulder injury, but the Phillies insist it wasn't from overuse.

"I was told I was done after 9, but I said I could easily pitch another inning," Lee said after the game.  "I tried it again after 10, but it didn't happen."

The Phillies are presently playing 15 straight games without a day off.  They are 7-7 on this string of games.

Jimmy Rollins is 3-for-32 on the current road trip. He is hitting .229 with a .267 OBP.

Meanwhile, NL East-leading Washington has hit the stride they predicted when they dropped $126 million for 7 years of Jayson Werth.  Last year, when Werth batted .232 with 58 RBI, it looked like the Phils had shed dead weight and saved a load of cash.  Who's laughing now?  Werth leads the Nationals with a .322 Ave. and a .412 OBP.  The Nationals, meanwhile, have off-season addition Brad Lidge, boast MLB's 3rd best record (12-4) and #1 ERA: 2.34.

Yes, they will fall to Earth, but that doesn't necessarily mean the Phils will catapult up.

Another early '12 low-point (perhaps, by September, we'll need a low-light reel) was this past weekend in San Diego.  I was there, along with thousands of visible Phillies fans-- and Flyers fans for that matter (the Flyers have often outscored the Phillies in April).  There were red and orange hats and jerseys everywhere as San Diego was besieged by Philly fans.

We came out to see the Phils we've come to know and love: Nix, Wigginton, Savery, Galvis, Pierre... ?!

The number of Phillies starters Sunday, who were on the roster a year ago?  3.

Phils errors Sunday: 3.

Phils runners left on base Sunday: 10.

The Phils batting average ranks among the top in the league, while their runs scored is nearly rock bottom.  They are logging some of the fewest pitches-per-at-bat in all of baseball.

The Phils boosted the Padres season record by 40% by losing twice to the hapless soon-to-be sold squad.

Noticeably absent Sunday was Jayson Werth in Right Field.  Werth's lanky frame looked light as a feather when he raced across the field and gobbled up whatever came his way.  He would lay himself out fully horizontal in what appeared to be a mile long stretch to stab the air and claim an out.  It was a thing of beauty when he and Victorino spanned 90% of the field, spreading like sunlight, while Burrell/Ibanez tried to stay out of their way as much as possible.

4/22/12, 1st inning: 1st of 2 costly misplays by Pence

Instead, Sunday, Hunter Pence was misplaying balls in Right Field (diving and missing when he clearly should've kept the ball in front of him) and costing the Phils runs like it was a preview screening of "The Three Stooges" remake.  The Phils fan to my left kept calling them, "The Bad News Bears."  The Phils fan to my right reassured me that this was just "extended Spring Training," that these players were merely "placeholders for the Real Phils."  I couldn't help thinking, 'It's April, and we're in the cellar, 5 1/2 games back.  Feels like old times.'

On the bright side, Howard will return, sooner because the team is floundering, and his presence alone will help as each player in the order sees better pitches as a result.

The pitching staff is playing to expectations: 2.81 ERA ranks 4th in the NL. 

8th inning set-up man Chad Qualls has been a nice early surprise out of the bullpen.  He surrendered his 1st run Tuesday, but ranks 2nd in the NL in Holds.

New closer Jonathan Papelbon is 6-6 in saves with a 1.13 ERA.

4/24/12:  Worley's 6 S.O. were all strike 3 caught-looking.

Vance Worley hasn't lost a beat from his Rookie-of-the-Year candidate '11 season.  Worley (2-1) lowered his ERA to 2.16 while beating Arizona Tuesday night.  Worley, who struck out a career-high 11 in 7 innings of a Phils shutout on April 20th, has 27 S.O. to 9 BB in 25 IP.

Tuesday, Hunter Pence, playing through pain snapped an 0-for-his-last 16 in the 4th inning with his 3rd HR.  He nearly hit a 2nd HR in the 7th, but it sailed foul by about a foot.

Shane Victorino hit his 4th HR Tuesday and is on pace for a career-high.  The Phils 3 HR Tuesday was a season-high.

If the Phils can reach .500 and hold there until some of the regulars come back and others start producing, they should be in a position to make a push over the summer and hit a late-season stride to yet make a run at their 6th-straight division title.

In the meantime, they have been and may continue to be at times tougher to watch than we've been accustomed to in recent years.