Phillies (yawn) land big-name pitcher before trade deadline

For the second consecutive year, the Phillies landed a big fish for their rotation. Of course, the celebration is muted for Roy Oswalt because only a few months ago the team had jettisoned a better, slightly younger ace who was very popular in the clubhouse and among fans.

That was my first thought, but then I considered this: What if, last year, the Phillies landed Roy Halladay midseason and Cliff Lee never came to town? Can you imagine the euphoria there would be today if the Phillies then acquired a matching Roy for the top of the rotation?

Under that scenario, Ruben Amaro Jr. would be viewed as a god in this town. But that's not the scenario we have, so he'll probably be remembered as the dolt who dumped Cliff Lee (even if the Phillies win more World Series).

We'll see what the new Roy has to offer when he debuts tomorrow.

The Phillies continued to roll tonight, beating the Diamondbacks 3-2 in 11 innings on 1980s night.

The Red Sox were off, but they were still rolling, too. It was Josh Beckett's charitable bowling event.

Brown delivers

After much speculation about trading Jayson Werth for a starting pitcher, the Phillies have a new right fielder. J-Dub's still a Phillie; he's just moved to center field because Shane Victorino is injured.

So the new right fielder is Domonic Brown. D-Brown had a memorable debut, going 2-3 with two runs and two RBIs as Roy Halladay pitched a complete game 7-1 win over the Diamondbacks. The run was Brown's fault as he dove and allowed the ball to bounce past him instead of taking it on one hop and preventing the run.

The postgame noted that this was the first two-hit game for a Phillie making his major league debut since Lou Marson in 2008. Christine and I were at that game. I wrote:

The 22-year-old went 2-4 with a two-run homer in the 8th. It took me a moment to figure out why fans were booing. (They're not booing, they're saying Boo-urns.) One day we'll tell the kids how we were at the big-league debut of the great Lou Marson.

Maybe it was a little overblown, but Christine told the Marson story to Trent tonight. It made me a little emotional, but pretty much everything makes me a little emotional these days.

The Red Sox finished off a four-game sweep of the Angels. That also made me a little emotional.

SoxandPhils involved in blockbuster trade

Well, not quite.

But what a coincidence that Dan Haren made his Angels debut Monday against the Red Sox and Joe Saunders, the other established major leaguer in the blockbuster deal, will debut for the Diamondbacks on Thursday against the Phillies.

In other pitching quirks, John Lackey starts against the Angels tonight while the Phillies faced their former mate Rodrigo Lopez.

The first game went well, despite struggles from Cole Hamels. Phillies 9, D-Backs 5.

The Red Sox and Halos are scoreless in the 2nd.

Surprise recall

1. We didn't know Antonio Bastardo was injured.

2. We didn't know Scott Mathieson was a fan favorite, though we've been rooting for him here.

3. We didn't know that Mathieson would be the next pitcher recalled from AAA.

We learned all those things tonight as Mathieson has made it back to the big leagues after two Tommy John surgeries:

This completes Mathieson's grueling journey back to the big leagues. He went 1-4 with a 7.47 ERA in nine appearances (eight starts) with the Phillies in 2006. His struggles led to the Phillies acquiring Jamie Moyer. Mathieson injured his right elbow Sept. 2, 2006, and had Tommy John surgery Sept. 29. He made seven rehab appearances in August 2007, but felt more discomfort and required ulnar nerve transposition Sept. 24, 2007.

Mathieson had his second Tommy John surgery in 2008.

The chances of returning to the big leagues following two Tommy John surgeries are slim, but Mathieson did it. He's back. And I know fans have been eager to see him pitch at the big-league level again.

I'll never forget that his best work (so far) had come in relief in a blowout loss against the Red Sox. I was doing some electrical work in our spare bedroom and listened to the game on the radio. Mathieson's recall reminded us to check on the progress of another one of Christine's favorites, Mike Zagurksi. He's pitching well in AAA, so maybe we'll see him join Mathieson again.

Tonight's games: Playing an hour early so the Fenway Faithful could watch Game 7 of the NBA finals, the Red Sox finished off the sweep of the Diamondbacks behind a mediocre performance by John Lackey. Daniel Nava (he needs a good nickname) went 3-4 with two doubles, two runs and an RBI. ROY! ROY! ROY! I know, this run won't last long, but I'm going to enjoy it as long as I can.

In New York, meanwhile, Kyle Kendrick, who is preparing for a demotion, put in a strong effort -one run on four hits, two walks with three strikeouts in seven innings. His mates actually put some runs on the board, beating the Yankees 7-1.

Former Red Sox slugger returns to Fenway

Lost in the shuffle of the NL West portion of the Red Sox' interleague schedule is the return of a former Red Sox whose exemplary character and offensive contributions are still missed long after he was traded to the National League.

I speak not of Manny Ramirez, whose Dodgers play in Boston this weekend, but of Adam LaRoche, who had an interesting nine-game stint as a Red Sox last year:

The first baseman spent little more than a week in a Red Sox uniform last year, acquired on July 22 and then traded nine days later.

In between, he managed to homer in his first game, stroke a big double to help beat the A's in his third, and move in with teammate and fellow hunting enthusiast J.D. Drew. The arrival of Victor Martinez made LaRoche expendable, so he was traded to the Braves at the deadline for fellow first baseman Casey Kotchman.

LaRoche, now on the Diamondbacks, could be bitter about having been moved around so much, but he's not:

"I see it as a pretty classy gesture on the Red Sox' part," LaRoche said. "When they got Victor in that trade, they easily could have forgotten about me and not tried to trade me. I could have stayed here and been a platoon guy and played a couple of times a week.

"But I remember Tito (manager Terry Francona) calling me into his office and saying, 'We feel bad we got you and now we've got Victor and there's going to be this big circle of guys playing third and first. We’re doing everything we can to get you moved before the deadline.'"

Classy remarks on his part.

The phenom starts again: Yes, Stephen Strasburg makes his third major league start on Friday (another national broadcast, of course), but I'm more interested in Felix Doubront getting his first call-up to make a spot start for injured Daisuke Matsuzaka.

Today's games: Things went well tonight for the Phillies in New York on the 24th anniversary of Jamie Moyer's big league debut. J-Moy didn't pitch well that night, but the young Cubbie was able to beat Steve Carlton and the Phils. Gary Matthews went 2-4.

That was win No. 1. Tonight was No. 265, as Moyer went eight innings in the 6-3 win. (Only two were his; Brad Lidge struggled but allowed only the one run.) Tonight was win No. 700 for Charlie Manuel. I felt good when the Phillies scored six runs in the 2nd and 3rd innings, including their first back-to-back homers of the season (Jayson Werth and Ryan Howard). But I was worried that they didn't keep piling up runs. Baby steps, I know, but you need to be relentless to beat the Empire.

The Red Sox, meanwhile, kept it closer than they should have against former Phillie Rodrigo Lopez and the D-Backs, but they won 6-2 behind seven solid innings from Jon Lester.

LaRoche, who was 1-4 last night, went 1-4 again tonight.

The Phanatic's long-lost brother

I can't decide what's more surprising: that the Yankees had a mascot named Dandy who I never heard about, or that I agree with George Steinbrenner about something (that mascots don't belong in baseball).

Although, my anti-mascot stance has weakened after being around the Phanatic so much.

Kudos to the Wall Street Journal for unearthing this nugget about the Yankees secret mascot, who was cut from the same cloth as the Phillies iconic green furball. I know I was just a toddler when this thing roamed the upper deck at Yankee Stadium, but I can't believe he didn't become part of Yankee lore. To me, he's more impressive than that mystique and aura crap New Yorkers used to toss around.

But the Yankees consider him a bigger dud than Hideki Irabu, Eddie Whitson and Carl Pavano:

The biggest bust in Yankees history was 7 feet tall, made $40 every home game and spent most of his brief career in the upper deck.

From 1979 to 1981, the Yankees employed a mascot named Dandy. He was big and blue and a spectacular failure—a historical oddity for a proud franchise that has collected 27 world championships but would just as soon forget he even existed. Which, to be fair, isn't terribly difficult to do.

"It's one of the sadder stories," said Wayde Harrison, who created Dandy with his wife, Bonnie Erickson.

The story is worth a read.

Not so dandy: I fully expected Roy Halladay to dispatch the Empire in his Cy Young matchup against CC Sabathia, but he struggled. In the 7th, Yankees 6, Phillies 3.

Red Sox: Clay Buchholz fared a little better than Doc, but he better step it up if he wants to fulfill all the All-Star buzz that has been surrounding him. In the 6th, Red Sox 6, Diamondbacks 3. In the battle of the Drew brothers, slight edge to Stephen who is 1-3 with a run and a stolen base. J.D. is 2-3 with no extracurricular stats.

[Photo credit: Wall Street Journal]

At least one Red Sox team did well today

Team Red Sox had a much better day than the real Red Sox, despite our rainiest day since we've been participating in the local MS Walk.

We were a little nervous all week with the doom and gloom forecast. We did get wet, but we slogged through our eight-mile walk, doing our part to raise money and awareness of multiple sclerosis.

(The pictures are our team's first-ever customized shirts worn by fans of the Yankees, Phillies and Nationals - we're a multi-partisan team.)

Despite the cold and wet, Christine and I really enjoyed our day with our largest team ever. We're looking forward to next year when we hope we get back to the traditionally beautiful weather we get on walk day.

Thanks to all whom who walked, cheered, supported, journeyed long distances or otherwise participated in our efforts.

Red Sox: On walk day, they did not do their part, losing 7-6 to the Orioles in 10 innings. Tim Wakefield pitched well, Scott Atchison did not. Keep those names in mind, because when Daisuke Matsuzaka comes back, there's a good chance that Wake gets bumped to the bullpen and Atchison gets bumped off the roster. Sad on both ends.

Phillies: Christine was very happy to see Carlos Ruiz drive in two runs to give the Phillies a 6-5 lead over the Diamondbacks in the 6th inning. "Choooch!" she said. That erases the hole Kyle Kendrick dug. We'll see what happens next.

[Photo credits: Kim on the design; Rishi and Wyndham on the financing]

Please repeat today's weather

Today was a beautiful day for a walk or a ballgame. Please, please, please repeat today's sunshine for our charity walk tomorrow and for our ballgame next week.

Non-SoxandPhils note: Andruw Jones last night became the third player in history to hit two home runs, including a walk-off, on his birthday. I've said this several times, but I can't believe he's only 33 - six days older than me. He has seemed so old and worn down in recent years - unlike me.

Red Sox: They trail the Orioles 3-1 in the 7th. Why did we sign John Lackey?

Phillies: They lead the Diamondbacks 1-0 in the 4th. What inning will Nelson Figueroa collapse?

Oh well, wishing good things to the Red Sox walk team and the SoxandPhils baseball teams.

Friday night link dump

The Phillies are playing late tonight, so I have time to catch up on some of the news of the week.

But first, kudos to former Red Sox manager Kevin Kennedy who was among eight men who subdued a nut who was threatening to blow up an airplane.

Here's the stuff I have missed.

***Jacoby Ellsbury decided he needed more tests after he was having trouble breathing - turns out he has four fractured ribs. Great.

***A day after everyone reported that Tim Wakefield was going to the bullpen because Daisuke Matsuzaka was coming back, the Red Sox announced Dice-K will throw a simulated game. We're still waiting to hear from Wakefield:

Tim Wakefield came into the clubhouse 45 seconds before the media had to leave. I asked him if he would answer a few questions. "Nope," he said.

I hope we're not seeing a repeat of Jaime Moyer from last year.

***To cure the inability to stop anyone from stealing bases - even Vladimir Guerrero had a couple swipes the other night - the Red Sox are shopping for a catcher, which probably would mean the end of the line for David Ortiz, who accepted blame for his failures.

Red Sox: Papi homered for the first time this season. Jon Lester wasn't dominant, but he didn't give up a run in 5 2/3 innings against the Orioles. But the bullpen is blowing it - three runs in the 7th and 8th innings after going 21 straight scoreless. It's 3-3 in the 8th.

Phillies: When the game started, I was downstairs and Christine was upstairs. I heard the annoying Chris Wheeler babbling on. "Wheels is on," I angrily yelled upstairs. Christine didn't hear me and came down to tell me that Wheels was back.

We thought he was going to be on the radio again because Scott Franzke is home with his wife and their newborn son August - congrats to the them. By the way, Jim Jackson is doing radio tonight, now that the Flyers have a few nights off before the second round of the playoffs.

The Phillies lead the Diamondbacks 1-0 in the 4th. Cole Hamels continues his Roy Halladay impersonation, even hitting a double and scoring the lone run so far.

It's back on

All right, I was a little nervous about getting swept by the Yankees and dropping two of three against the Rangers in consecutive weekends. I'm not happy that we're just one game ahead of the Rangers and seven behind the Yankees.

BUT ... it appears we're going to sweep the Blue Jays before heading back to Fenway for some revenge against the Empire. And the Phillies certainly have been clicking on all cylinders. So, you can book it: SoxandPhils World Series this fall.

Hopefully the pitching lines up: Lee vs. Beckett; Hamels vs. Lester; Buchholz vs. Blanton; and Tazawa vs. Happ.

Tonight's details: Another solid outing for Joe Blanton: three earned on nine hits with three strikeouts through seven. The home run barrage continues (Ryan Howard, Jayson Werth and Carlos Ruiz) as the Phillies lead the Diamondbacks 12-3 in the 8th.

Jon Lester is also pitching well - one earned on three hits and two walks with four strikeouts through seven. The Red Sox lead the Blue Jays 8-1 in the 8th.

Bring on the Empire.

The plot thickens

On a night when Clay Buchholz and Cliff Lee won marquee matchups against Roy Halladay and Dan Haren, respectively, we have to focus on a bar fight.

As suspected, Brett Myers' eye was injured in a bar fight, Randy Miller of the Bucks County Courier Times reported today. Somehow the story didn't get much traction from the rest of the Philly beat writers. First, young Brett said he was hurt playing with his son Kolt. Then he said he was injured falling in his car. There were reports of a fight, but police and sources said Myers was not involved.

Here's the latest story - which Charlie Manuel could have shot down but did not:

The real story, according to team sources, is that Myers was punched in the face Friday night during an altercation in or outside of Shannon's Irish Pub in Jacksonville, Fla., his hometown.

Myers, who has been rehabbing from hip surgery in Clearwater, Fla., drove four hours Friday to Jacksonville to see his family and ended up watching a band at Shannon's. There was a fight there that night and Myers was in the restaurant/bar with his wife, but the couple was only involved in a verbal dispute, according to a police report.

Manuel suspects there is more to Myers' latest story.

"He's a grown man; I'd like to see him be a professional," the manager said. "At the same time, there's not a whole lot I can do when he's down in rehabbing and getting ready to pitch. When he's (in Philadelphia), my concern becomes greater. I don't want him to get in trouble."

C'mon Brett: Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.

In less police blotter pitching news: Pedro dubbed himself and Jaime Moyer "two old goats" after they defeated the Diamondbacks on Tuesday. J-Moy still isn't happy about being in the bullpen. {Maybe he's just disappointed that he didn't get to be on The Pen.} ... Buchholz is in the midst of three tough matchups - Justin Verlander, CC Sabathia and Roy Halladay. Combined, the trio is 50-18 with a 3.17 ERA. Clay has held his own - four earned runs in 19 innings.

He was 0-2 in these matchups, but picked up a win tonight. He outpitched Doc, and the Red Sox beat the Blue Jays 6-1.

I found out last minute that the Red Sox were on ESPN tonight. I was looking forward to watching Lee pitch, but Christine and I wound up watching our teams in different rooms. I missed another Cliff Lee beaut. He tossed his second complete game for the Phillies, giving up an unearned run on two hits with 11 strikeouts in the 8-1 win over the Diamondbacks. Halladay gave up five runs, four of them earned, in five innings tonight. Ruben Amaro Jr. should be fired for not getting him at the deadline.

Tacos: I made tacos for dinner tonight. I mention only because there's a new fan club in Philly: Bako's Tacos.

Four pitching narratives

With both squads off yesterday, the beat writers wrote about pitching.

Phil Sheridan did a good job boiling down the enigma of Brett Myers: Whether or not the latest version of eye-gate is true, you can't question his desire to help his team, even though he always seems to find trouble like this.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Josh Beckett is dominating without trouble this year. Since he was shelled for all of April, Beckett has gone 12-2 with a 2.17 ERA. His opponents are hitting .208 and slugging .314 off him. This may be the year he wins a Cy Young.

Maybe we shouldn't have reminded him about April. He ended up pitching like it's the fourth month of the year again, giving up seven runs in 5 1/3 innings on nine hits and a walk. The Red Sox now lead the Blue Jays 9-7 in the 8th.

If Beckett does win a Cy Young, he'd be the first Red Sox to do so since Pedro Martinez in 2000. That's who Scott Lauber wrote about today in a touching tale of his lesser known brother Jesus, who never made it to the show. Because of that, Pedro has a soft spot for young players and sacrificed a start in 2002 for Josh Hancock.

Pedro made his first home start as a Phillie tonight. After giving up a leadoff home run in a 22-pitch first inning, Christine predicted Jamie Moyer's first relief appearance. Pedro needed just 16 pitches for the next two innings, but Christine was prophetic because the game was delayed by a thunderstorm.

Moyer took over after the delay and needed just six pitches in the 4th inning and then had a single in the bottom of the inning. The Phillies lead the Diamondbacks 4-1 in the 6th.

Hopefully, old Jamie can get the ball to shut-down reliever Chan Ho Park, whose relationship with Korean fans - and his upcoming documentary - were also featured today. Apparently, he's a god to his fellow Koreans.

Shattered

I got an e-mail today with the subject: "I knew the Red Sox were too good to be true."

Once I opened it, instantly the best baseball year of my life was ruined. What I long suspected, but hoped would not be true, was confirmed: The 2004 Boston Red Sox were tainted by drugs. David Ortiz, like his cohort Manny Ramirez, tested positive in 2003. I'm a hypocrite, and the Red Sox first championship in 86 years is no more pure than any that the Yankees have won.

Fun day.

I didn't even care when I heard Papi hit a big home run to win today's game, 8-5 over the A's. The myth of Big Papi has been shattered. Ortiz, who had previously advocated a full-year suspension for roiders, claimed ignorance until after the game:

He said he was "blindsided" when a Times reporter asked him about the allegation before the game, and said he responded at the time with a "no comment" because he "wanted to get to the bottom of this." He added:

Based on the way I have lived my life, I am surprised to learn I tested positive. ... I will find out what I tested positive for [and] based on whatever I learn, I will share this information with my club and the public. You know me -- I will not hide and I will not make excuses.

Speaking to reporters in the clubhouse after the game, Ortiz elaborated on his statement. "I found out like an hour before the game about the situation. You guys know I'm a guy that never turns my back on you guys, always been true with you guys. And, honestly, right now I don't have information about it. I'm going to get more input about the situation and I'm going to honestly tell you guys what's up. But right now, I don't have answers. I've got no information."

At least Curt Schilling, the real hero of 2004, remains taint-free. I know, I shouldn't make such statements about any player of the last quarter decade.

Before this stunner, I had prewritten the following post. It encapsulates what I felt about Papi before this afternoon. I will post it as a final reminder to myself of the hypocrisy. I apologize to Jimmy Rollins for the roider ruining it for him:

It was nice to see Jimmy Rollins listed as one of Bubba Burgers "Who's Hot?" players on Sunday.

It got me thinking of all the crap J-Roll and David Ortiz took at the beginning of the year. These are two clutch players who willed their teams to overcome desperate odds to win improbable championships - Phillies over the Mets in 2007 and Red Sox over the Yankees in 2004.

Yet when they scuffled a bit this year, the fans who benefited greatly from their past performances wanted to run them out of town.

I admit I got impatient and frustrated with both of them, but it was more a feeling of "I don't want to see such a proud and capable player who has meant so much to my team struggle."

It wasn't the usual sports-talk drivel of, "He's done. Ship his ass out of here."

Since J-Roll bottomed out on July 1, he has increased his line from .205/.250/.319 to .236/.288/.381. Papi has improved from .186/.282/.284 on June 2 to .224/.311/.409 today.

I'm sure neither player is happy with his line, but I'm just glad they're back to playing at superior levels - not for what it means to their teams, but for what it means to their pride.

Maybe they'll carry their hot streaks through the World Series and battle not only for the big trophy but for World Series MVP as well.

Phillies: They lost 4-0 to the Diamondbacks last night. Hmm, maybe they should have traded losing pitcher J.A. Happ for Roy Halladay. They play even later tonight, opening a series against the Giants.

Phils land Cy Young pitcher; questions still abound

While still contemplating the Phillies big trade for reigning AL Cy Young award winner Cliff Lee, I heard a radio caller put it in perspective. Most of the talk show scene was anti-Cliff Lee because he's not the big name - Roy Halladay - they had been clamoring for.

"Doesn't anyone remember the days of Hard Hittin' Mark Whiten or Gregg Jefferies?" the caller said. "We won the World Series last year and just got an ace. Sure, he's not the ace, but he's an ace."

Damn straight.

I hope the Phillies didn't give up too much - Carlos Carrasco, Lou Marson, Jason Knapp and Jason Donald are going to the Indians for Lee and Ben Francisco. Those are some of their top prospects, but not the big ones they didn't want to give up for Halladay.

Christine didn't want to give up a large haul for Halladay - the Phils were good enough to win it all without him last year and have as good of a shot as anyone to win it all again this year without mortgaging their future. She feels a bit bad for J.A. Happ, the likely candidate to get sent back to the bullpen, but pitching depth is fleeting, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him get some more starts even after Pedro Martinez and Cliff Lee arrive.

Heck, a few weeks ago, the Red Sox were seen as having an embarrassment of riches with their starting pitching, and now some think they need to get Halladay.

Todd Zolecki has a nice post on why the deal makes so much sense for the Phillies.

We've been upset with the way the Phillie players have been outspoken in their yen for Roy Halladay. I am concerned that they don't believe they can win without him. Hopefully, Clifton proves them wrong. He's looking forward to the opportunity:

I'm going to the defending World Champions, that's a good thing ... I'm anxious and excited to get there. ... It's the National League. I'm going to have to figure out how to get a bunt down more consistently.

This being SoxandPhils, we have to speculate what this trade means for the Red Sox deals. Will they pull the trigger on Roy? Or, since the Indians acquired Marson, does that mean Victor Martinez is coming to Fenway? We have less than 48 hours to find out. Until then, we'll think about the possibility of the World Series opening in Fenway: Lee vs. Halladay.

Today's games: After the Red Sox blew a three-run lead in the 9th last night, that World Series fantasy is starting to look like a pipe dream. They're trailing the A's again tonight, 5-3 in the 5th.

The Phillies won 4-3 last night as Brad Lidge turned a comfortable Cole Hamels performance into a squeaker against one of the worst teams in baseball, the Diamondbacks. They end the series late again tonight.

Red goes green, Hawaiian style

I mentioned Sunday that in honor of Shane Victorino hula T-shirt day, the Phillies superimposed flowery Hawaiian shirts on all the players' scoreboard photos.

We intended to post Shane's scoreboard shot (pictured on the left) until Christine realized it looked awfully familiar.

A check of the SoxandPhils archives confirmed her suspicion: The Phillies used the same Shane Victorino-in-a-Hawaiian-shirt picture from last year.

I think the Phillies are taking their whole recycling thing (red goes green) a little too far.

Christine takes pride that her team seems to be at the forefront of environmental issues, but can somebody explain to me what energy or resource has been saved by reusing the same Shane Victorino photo (pictured on the right)?

Looking back at last year's post, I noticed that the Phanatic recycled his Hawaiian costume as well. Doesn't he know it's tacky to wear the same dress twice in similar situations?

Speaking of Shane: A colleague who watched Sunday's game on TV told me Victorino's 1st inning stolen base was negated because the umpire interfered with the catcher's throw.

Hairy Harry: I forgot to mention on Sunday that the Ask-A-Phillies question was about pets. Raul Ibanez has a bunch: cats, dogs, guinea pigs and, best of all, a tarantula named Harry. I bet HK is pleased.

Pitching news: The Red Sox may or may not be intruding in the Phillies trade talks for Roy Halladay. I'm not endorsing a trade, but if it occurs, I just hope it works out better than the Daisuke Matsuzaka experiment. Dice-K has blamed the Red Sox for his arm troubles, which has angered the organization.

Today's games: The Phillies and the Red Sox won last night. The Phillies have another late game in Arizona. The Red Sox, after retiring Jim Rice's No. 14, lead the A's 6-3 in the 7th.

Cycle correction

Christine and I giggled when this trivia question popped on the scoreboard yesterday. Didn't they know Jimmy Rollins' cycle last week made this outdated?

While looking into it, to my horror, I discovered J-Roll did not hit for the cycle - ending a home run short of it.

I don't know how I made that mistake. I was on vacation and probably had too many peaches and pecans on my mind. {Jeez, no wonder why he's no longer a reporter.}

Trade rumors: It's torturous watching the Phillies barter for Roy Halladay, or any other pitcher out there, but I'm also perplexed at the big move the Red Sox may or may not be making:

Red Sox manager Terry Francona said that he has been checking in on general manager Theo Epstein’s trade negotiations before Friday's deadline, and the names he's hearing aren't necessarily the usual suspects brought up on talk radio.

"I listen to the talks. I don't listen to the radio, but I talk to Theo," said Francona. "Some of the people I hear talked about on the radio -- you guys have no idea."

Today's games: The Phillies play late in Arizona; the Red Sox, behind a strong Josh Beckett outing, lead the A's 6-2 in the 7th.

Helu `ekahi! (Hawaiian for No. 1, first rate)

Neither Brandon Webb nor Cole Hamels were dominant today, but the two aces matched up in a tense duel that was tied at two when each left after seven innings.

The Phillies survived a crazy 7th. With the Diamondbacks clinging to a 2-1 lead, Webb and Stephen Drew led off with singles. Conor Jackson attempted a bunt, but it was hit too hard - right at Pedro Feliz who tagged third, but couldn't turn the double play. Then came the real oddity. Orlando Hudson singled to right, and Geoff Jenkins fired home, freezing Drew on third. Hudson didn't see that the runners ahead of him had stopped and kept running toward second, which Jackson occupied. Coste looked Drew back to third then threw to Howard, who ran up the line to tag Hudson. Score that 1B, 9-2-3. Mark Reynolds struck out to end the threat.

"If the Phillies don't win this game after giving up no runs in that ugly inning, they might be done for the season," I said to Christine.

The Phils might have been on the same wavelength, scratching across the tying run in the 7th on an RBI double by Jimmy Rollins. In the 8th, they remembered they're an elite offensive unit. Chase Utley and Ryan Howard greeted reliever Chad Qualls with singles before Pat Burrell gave Clint Hurdle a lesson in what it means to be an All-Star, hitting a three-run homer. Pedro Feliz added a solo shot. Although Brad Lidge gave one up in a messy 9th for the All-Star closer, the Phillies held on 6-3. It actually felt like the kind of Phillies game we have grown accustomed to in recent years.

Observations from the stands: The park was filled with grass skirts, leis and the sounds of ukuleles as the Phillies celebrated Shane Victorino's Hawaiian heritage. We worried that the soothing music would put the team to sleep - and they don't like to be woken up. ... Danny K sang Tiny Bubbles before the game. ... The opera company Savoy, led by Dan Rothermel, sang the anthem. It was serviceable, but they looked like they were dressed for a prom on a very hot day at the park. ... In the 1st, Ryan Howard dropped an easy foul ball. Hamels hung his head, seemingly in disgust. He struck out the batter on the next pitch. ... Kudos to whomever caught Chad Tracy's homer in the 2nd for not caving into the boos and throwing the ball back. 1) It's a stupid tradition. 2) It's not Philly's tradition, it's Chicago's.

In the 4th, Chris Young attempted to bunt his way on. It looked looked a foolish strategy when it went right up the middle and seemed like an easy play for Hamels or Coste. But neither touched the ball, and Young was safe. ... In the 5th, Feliz turned a nifty double play, spearing a liner and then catching Drew off first base. Howard had to leap to catch the throw but came down on the bag to get the out. They played Van Halen's Jump after the inning ended. ... The Phillies' first run came from an RBI double in the 5th by Hamels, who might have thought early on that was the only way he was going to get any runs today

Scoreboard messages: Yesterday's loser, Adam Eaton, was booed when he appeared on the recorded "Happy Birthday" announcement. We haven't seen such a reaction to an appearance on the scoreboard since Jose Mesa's young kid was part of the pregame message at the Vet in 2003 telling the fans the rules of conduct. Searching for any online references to this, I found out that Jose Mesa's kid - not certain if it's the same one - was drafted by the Pirates a few years ago and is seemingly out of baseball already.

More observations: The Phanatic really enjoyed hula dancing. I was surprised he didn't wear a coconut bra. ... In the 6th, Charlie Manuel half-heartedly jogged to third to argue a call. It reminded me of watching Howard chug into foul territory to chase a foul pop. ... In the 7th, when the Phanatic was trying to spur a rally, he was drilled with a foul ball by Victorino.

We've never mentioned it before, but one of Christine's favorite parts about Sunday games is the starting nine, in which they send out little kids to all the positions to wait for the real Phillies to take the field and give out autographs. She loves looking at the strange alignments - sometimes the left fielder runs all the way to the wall, other times he's barely out of the infield. At least one infielder is always cemented on a base. We also think it's probably best to be chosen for second base or shortstop because the kid gets not just one of the best players on the team, but two of the best because because Rollins and Utley usually huddle with their kids.

Today was something new. Stationed at first was not Who, What or I Don't Know. It was Base who was playing first base. Jimmy Base, that is.

That's a wrap: The win ensures the Phillies break for the All-Star game in first place despite an awful stretch and a big winning streak for the Mets.

The Red Sox beat the Orioles 2-1 today behind Daisuke Matsuzaka. Kevin Youkilis has a contusion after getting hit in the thigh, and his All-Star start is in jeopardy. A little foreshadowing: Last night while playing Baseball Mogul, Youkilis went down for two months with a broken forearm in the computer game.

Hopefully, the real-life injury isn't serious. Anyway, the Rays also lost, so the Red Sox regained control of first place.

With both our teams leading their divisions, Tuesday's game could determine whether the World Series starts in Fenway or Citizens Bank. I don't see the National League winning for the first time since 1996, when another venerable stadium hosted its last All-Star game. But they didn't make as big of a deal about Veterans Stadium then as they're doing for Yankee Stadium now.

Utley and Lidge are ready to report to New York. Cholly gave them their warm-up jerseys in a cheesy pre-game ceremony. I've never seen that before; I wonder if Major League Baseball makes all the teams do it. By the way, their replica jerseys, which look like the Yankees' road grays, are on sale now. You can also buy an All-Star Game program, which is customized to your favorite player, which means Chase Utley, if you root for the Phils.

How annoying

Don't break Ryan Madson's remote (it's his favorite gadget), mispronounce Chris Coste's name or watch a horror movie if So Taguchi is in the room. And whatever you do, if there's a baby hurting, don't show him to Pedro Feliz.

Next up in our review of the Phillies yearbook answers is "Nothing annoys me more than ..."

Topping the list, seven Phils had peeves related to driving, such as traffic by Brett Myers and taxi cabs by Shane Victorino. The team also doesn't like to be woken up (would that explain June?): Five of them are irked by being roused - mostly by a ringing phone, but Kris Benson was most specific, saying he hates it when his dogs wake him by barking at the pool guy or UPS lady. Five others listed rude eating habits.

Chase Utley said "people who stink." We don't know if that's a knock on some of his inferior teammates such as Adam Eaton or whether he's telling Pat Burrell to take a shower. Utley's very mysterious in some ways.

Other noteworthy answers: a messy locker (Erik Bruntlett), stupid people (Clay Condrey), complaining (Chad Durbin), hatred (Tom Gordon), sympathy (Brad Lidge), loud people (Jimmy Rollins), rain delays (Rudy Seanez) and overall dumbness (Jayson Werth).

Burrell and Ryan Howard didn't have answers.

What annoys me: Adam Eaton. Especially when he gives up eight runs in 3.2 innings and loses 10-4 to the Diamondbacks before a national audience. That's two consecutive clunkers for Eaton. Why was J.A. Happ was demoted again? Oh yeah, Eaton still has a year and a half left on that bargain $24 million contract.

The Mets won and are now a half game back. The Marlins are winning and could join them. As Christine noted, we'll be scoreboard watching tomorrow to see if the Phillies can hold onto their narrow division lead heading into the All-Star break.

What doesn't annoy me: Scoring runs for Tim Wakefield. The Red Sox backed the knuckler to a 12-1 win over the Orioles. All starters had a hit except for Jed Lowrie, who is back up to replace the injured Julio Lugo, who is going to miss four to six weeks. Kevin Youkilis hit a grand slam.

The win, and a Rays loss, puts us a half game back heading into the final day of the pre-All-Star portion of the schedule.

Phils win in extra innings; Buchholz beat in return

Finally, Jayson Werth came through with an RBI single to beat the Diamondbacks, 6-5 in 12 innings, after the Phillies failed several times to push across the winning run in earlier innings.

There were a couple odd moments in the game. After Shane Victorino tripled in the 8th to tie the game at five, Jimmy Rollins kept waving a bottle of baby oil at him from the dugout. I can't wait to hear the explanation of that one.

A short while later, Tom Arnold could be seen in the stands with his arm around a young lass I hope was his daughter.

The Mets won to stay 1.5 out; the Marlins are winning at the moment.

In Boston: Clay Buchholz returned from injury and a lengthy minor league stint to face the Orioles. Unlike his previous start against the Birds, he gave up a hit - five of them that led to four runs in five innings. Sox lost 7-3. Not a great line, but it seems he showed flashes, like striking out the side in the third.

Fortunately, the rest of the top half of the division lost, so the Sox remain five ahead of the Yankees and 1.5 behind the Rays and their arrogant fans. I'm glad my owner isn't stuck in third place and so bored that all he can do is disparage the competition.

Wake wins battle of the aged; Cholly mixes things up

In the battle of the 40-somethings, Tim Wakefield outdueled Randy Johnson. It was much closer than the 5-0 final. I actually got to see the ESPN Red Sox broadcast and Wake's knuckleball flutter past the Diamondbacks, giving up only two hits and a walk in seven innings. The Big Unit gave up two runs in six innings before Kevin Cash hit a three-run homer off Juan Cruz.

And, honestly, we weren't thinking about our fantasy team when Craig Hansen loaded the bases in the 9th, setting up a save for Jonathan Papelbon.

Off the field, however, the focus was on the two biggest names on the DL for the Sox: Curt Schilling may not be done, and David Ortiz relived his T-ball days.

In Phillyland, Charlie Manual might want his slumping bats to go back to T-ball to get reacquainted with that strange little white orb that's baffled them lately:

We've got guys not hitting. I mean swinging bad. Swinging at balls in the dirt. Chasing balls over their heads. It looks like they've never seen a baseball. Really. They can go back to square one and think about what they've always done. And that's be aggressive, but at the same time be patient enough to get good balls to hit. That right there is how we're going to come out of it.

His theory tonight: Pick a lineup out of a hat.
1. Jayson Werth, RF
2. Chase Utley, 2B
3. Jimmy Rollins, SS
4. Pat Burrell, LF
5. Ryan Howard, DH
6. Pedro Feliz, 3B
7. Shane Victorino, CF
8. Chris Coste, C
9. Erick Bruntlett, 1B.

So far, it's working. The Phils are leading the A's 2-0 in the 4th. My alarm clock is set to WIP; I'm sure Angelo Cataldi will greet me in the morning with how they blew it.

And, breaking news: Shawn Chacon beat up Ed Wade.