Phillies Fail to Produce in Series Finale

Last night in Cincinnati, the Phils argued that a close play at the plate cost them the game; during today's rubber match, though, runners never made it that far.  The issue wasn't lack of baserunners, as the Phils matched the Reds hit for hit.  The difference, of course, is that Cincinnati brought runners home while the Phils left them stranded.  

The Game: Righty David Buchanan started for Philadelphia, and in his six innings, he gave up four runs on six hits.  (He also managed to hit Brandon Phillips with a pitch in the first inning, but Carlos Ruiz later caught him stealing second base in the fourth inning.) In the grand scheme of things, Buchanan's outing wasn't bad.  Of the 24 batters he faced, he struck out six, and about 2/3 of his 102 pitches were strikes. Antonio Bastardo pitched innings seven and eight, striking out two and allowing no runs.  Pitching was not Philadelphia's problem today.  

Baserunning wasn't the Phils' issue today, either, as Jimmy Rollins and Ben Revere each successfully stole a base.  Philadelphia earned six hits by six batters (Revere, Rollins, Howard, Byrd, Brown, and Ruiz), yet managed to score just one run.  Chase Utley's sac fly to left field in the third inning scored Ben Revere, but with runners in scoring position, the Phillies went 0 for 5 today.  They stranded a total of eight runners.  

Hits are wonderful, but not if Utley is the only one advancing runners to home plate.  

Notable Offensive Statistics: 

• Chase Utley: 30th RBI for 2014.
• Jimmy Rollins: stolen base, career hit #2,230 (four shy of Mike Schmidt's franchise record).
• Ben Revere: a hit, a stolen base, and a run scored.

Impact: The Phillies have the worst record in the National League, and statistically speaking, are better only than the Tampa Bay Rays in all of Major League Baseball.  The Phils are now 7.5 games behind Atlanta.  Today's loss didn't have much impact, other than to further destroy morale and dig the W-L defecit even deeper to 25-36.  This team is difficult to watch.  

Up Next: Hopefully, tomorrow's day off will provide time for some rest.  Tuesdsay night at 7:05, the Phils host the Padres.  Righties Ian Kennedy and A.J. Burnett are scheduled to start, and if nothing else, it will be Chase Utley bobblehead night.