To recap pitching against FSU, Happ had a successful start (2IP, 1H, 1BB, 1K)...but it was the exact opposite for newly aquired prospect, Phillippe Aumont, who struggled through 2/3 of an inning, giving up five runs on two hits while walking three and striking out one. I know all of you Phillies fans are already thinking how this guy may be a bust, but it is spring training and he has a lot to work on. One draft pick from a few years back, Joe Savery, has quietly been flying under the radar. He had a spectacular year in Reading and carried it over to Lehigh Valley. He got in an inning of scoreless work, striking out two. The official box score can be found here. Hitting wise, some highlights included Domonic Brown going 1/1 with two runs scored, a walk and an rbi. Backup catcher Brian Schneider knocked in a run and Raul put in a solid at bat, picking up an rbi. Minor leaguer, Chris Duffy, knocked in two runs in his debut as a Phillie as well. Am I a little surprised they gave up six runs to a college team, yes...but Phillippe Aumont picked up most of that in a rough outing, which will change.
Now on to todays game, where the Phillies got what you could say "early revenge" on the Yankees, rallying in the 9th to win 3-2. They were up 1-0 heading into the ninth, but Sergio Escalona blew the save. With one out in the bottom of the ninth and the Phils team trailing by a run, Paul Hoover doubled and advanced to third, scoring Quintin Berry, who just beat the throw from left field. Wilson Valdez won it two batters later with an infield single that hit off pitcher Wilkins Arias, allowing pinch-runner Dewayne Wise to score from third with two outs.
Other than a Placido Polanco throwing error, the starters did a great job in the field for the most part. Of course, the big hype today was the debut of Roy Halladay in Phillies red...and he did not disappoint. Doc pitched two scoreless innings, striking out three on 24 pitches....21 of
which were strikes. After his departure, Kyle Kendrick showed that he learned a lot from being in AAA for the majority of last season, throwing two scoreless innings and tallying a strikeout. I got to see some of Kendrick's stuff and I can already tell that this kid has improved. A lot of movement on his sinker and two-seam fastball. I really hope KK will get to prove to the Phillies brass that he deserves the fifth starter spot. Jose Contreras worked out of a jam in his second inning of work but thanks to Paul Hoover catching a base stealer, he got out of what could have been a big inning for the Yanks. He ended up with two innings pitched, gave up two hits and struck out three. Andy Carpenter gave up a hit and struck out two in two innings and Sergio Escalona gave up two runs, got the win and a blown save.Not many Phillies regulars dazzled at the plate this afternoon...it was non-roster invites that did most of the hitting. Here are the notables 2B/SS Ozzie Chavez, who spent last season with the R-Phils in AA (1/2, 1RBI)....Juan Castro went 1/2 with a run scored and Wilson Valdez went 1/1 with a run scored and an rbi. Even though the stats aren't the greatest, it is nice to see some of the prospects take some hacks at the big name pitchers. The only regular Phils starter with a hit was Polanco, who went 1 for 3 at the plate.
After spring training game number one, I was impressed the most by Kyle Kendrick. He did not let his high ERA from 2008 stop him from trying to improve. Instead, he went down to Lehigh Valley to work on his mechanics, which seemed to benefit him today. As I stated earlier, I saw a lot more break on his pitches and he looked a lot more focused on the mound.
Box
Up Next: The Phils play Doc's former team, Toronto, tomorrow at 1:05.
Random Notes: Kyle Drabek pitched two innings for the Jays today, giving up three hits, two runs and two walks. He also struck out three.
*photo courtesy of Phillies.com
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