Reprise

There are a couple of updates today about things I've written about recently.

I speculated about Jayson Werth going to the A's in the offseason, but Ruben Amaro says don't be so quick to run J-Dub out of town to the Yankees, Red Sox or a wild card team like the A's:

"As we've talked about before, we'd love to bring Jayson Werth back, and he obviously plays rightfield," Amaro said. "Nobody's giving Domonic Brown the job in rightfield next year."

Even though Werth is finishing up a second straight career year heading into a free-agent market that has paid similar players more than $15 million per year?

"It's possible," Amaro said, "Again, these are issues that we'll deal with in the offseason."

I don't buy it, but a part of me thinks there may be some super-secret convoluted plan in the works, similar to jettisoning Cliff Lee to get Roy Halladay. Could next year's outfield be Raul Ibanez, Werth and Brown?

On a cheerier note, New England native and Carlos Quintana fan Rich Hill not only got to pitch for his favorite team, but earned a win for the Red Sox against the Mariners Tuesday night:

"The big thing for me is being back at this level and able to pitch well," said Hill, who had shoulder surgery a year ago. "But it's a cool thing to get a win with the Red Sox in my first game"’ said Hill, a Milton native and Boston resident.

Today's games: Behind ace Roy Halladay, the Phillies lead the Marlins 10-4 in the 9th. If they hold on, they would have a three game lead over the Braves. ... Behind ace Clay Buchholz, the Red Sox finished a sweep of the Mariners with a 5-1 win.

Q'd up

It gets monotonous when baseball players are asked to name their favorite players. They always pick the same handful of stars - Cal Ripken, Nolan Ryan, Ken Griffey Jr., etc. Sometimes you'll see somebody who was ingrained to a certain region - a Don Mattingly or Ryne Sandberg. Or, you'll see homages to players with significant historic importance beyond the game - a Jackie Robinson or Roberto Clemente.

For a game played by more than 16,000 major leaguers, it seems only a few dozen are mentioned frequently as being someone's favorite player.

That's why New Englander Rich Hill's answer for his favorite players was so refreshing. Hill, a former top pitching prospect for the Cubs who has become a journeyman minor leaguer, was called up by the Red Sox, his hometown team.

Instead of naming Wade Boggs, Roger Clemens or Mo Vaughn as his favorite players, he named venerable Dwight Evans, who would fit into the geographical category, and little-known Carlos Quintana:

Here's how much of a Red Sox fan Hill is: when asked to name his favorite players growing up, he first said Dwight Evans and then mentioned Carlos Quintana, a first baseman and occasional outfielder from 1988-93.

If you know who the Q is, you're a real fan.

I guess I'm a real fan. I remember when Q burst onto the scene. He seemed to claim the first base job out of nowhere. (I was a kid living several states away before the Internet.) He was an anchor of the 1990 team - one of my favorite seasons - and a player who always seemed better than he actually was because he wasn't overhyped.

His career was cut short because of an injury in a car crash, but thanks to Rich Hill, he'll be remembered today.

Today's games: It's up to Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge to hold onto the Phillies 2-1 lead over the Marlins. I wonder if this is going to be another time when Cole Hamels misses out on a win because of no run support. ... The Red Sox are just getting under way in Seattle.

Will J-Dub move up in the alphabet?

Everyone assumes that Jayson Werth - who has become right fielder non grata to Christine - will be a Red Sox or Yankee next year.

But what if Reggie Jackson is a double agent and was working for another one of his former teams, the A's, when he went recruiting the bearded wonder this spring?

Sports Illustrated had a piece talking about how young, good and cheap the A's pitching is and speculated that Billy Beane may have money - and spend it - to upgrade his offense this offseason. J-Dub, whose wild looks would have fit right in with the Jason Giambi A's of the 2000s, was mentioned.

I was intrigued by that, especially with Peter Abraham's random note last night:

Don't sleep on Oakland. Give that team a hitter or two and they have the pitching to do some damage.

If Werth is done with the Phillies, I'd love for him to go West instead of setting up another stale bidding war between the Yankees and Red Sox.

Tonight's games: The Phillies lead the Marlins 11-1 in the 8th. I think this one is safe. ... The Red Sox play late in Seattle.

Sleepy games

This week, I learned that I could sleep outside in the middle of a storm so violent that it carried a tornado warning. And I later learned that I could sleep through what was probably the most interesting Phillies game of the year. Some may argue that designation should be Roy Halladay's perfect game, but I didn't get an expensive watch out of it, so I'm going with last night's tilt that I did not see.

I could blame the baby for my fatigue, but truthfully, I wouldn't have stayed up much later even before Trent arrived.

I fell asleep as the game headed into the 14th inning. At one point, Christine told me that Ryan Howard was ejected and that Raul Ibanez was shifted to first base with Roy Oswalt taking over left field because there were no more "extra men," as Chris Wheeler stupidly calls bench players. I was fascinated with the scenario, but couldn't open my eyes.

Later, I heard her slip into bed. "Who won?" I asked in a fog.

"They did. Roy Oswalt grounded out in the 16th with the potential tying run on base," she said.

"Snore, snore, snore," was all I could muster.

This morning, I was flipping through the program I got at Sunday's game and noticed the Citizens Bank ad on the back. I liked its slogan, but just now connected it to last night's intriguing game: "This could be the game you get to tell everyone, 'I was at that game.'"

We've had a few of those, most notably Game 5 of the 2008 World Series and the 2007 regular season clincher, but given my propensity for falling asleep, I'm kind of glad we weren't at last night's game.

With Halladay pitching for the Phillies and the Red Sox playing a double header, I was fairly confident I would be awake when two of three of today's SoxandPhils games finished. Partial victory - Trent and I napped through a portion of the Red Sox afternoon game.

Tomorrow is a Phillies business-person's special. I have a feeling Christine might come home from work with her two guys conked out on the living room floor.

Tonight: J.A. Happ and the 'Stros beat Halladay and the Phils 3-2. The Sox split their twin bill against the Mariners, but picked up a half game on the Rays and Yankees, who each lost.

{Side note: The Phillies have entered yet another frustrating skid. They could be in first place right now, if only they could have scored some runs over the past three days to beat the lousy Astros.}

Scoreboard watching

We always enjoy it when the scoreboard does a little something different with the players' headshot screens. For instance, the last time we saw the Nationals, we spotted advertisements on the Capitol building.

On Sunday, they used Nationals players to promote an exhibit (Late Renoir) at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Either that, or Adam Dunn has become so despondent about Stephen Strasburg's latest injury that he's going to study art history.

And it's not just the artsy folk they're targeting with scoreboard ads. They're also targeting folks whose tastes are more in line with little guys like Trent who appreciate the finer things in life such as critters and building blocks.

Yup, there's no better way to get people to come to Philadelphia Zoo's Creatures of Habitat, a "combination of birds and beasts, each intricately fashioned from thousands of LEGO bricks," than using Shane Victorino's mug.

And in some innings, the Phillies still rock it old school.

Sometimes it's real old school, like Jason Werth circa 1999. Or maybe that's Jayson Werth circa 2011 after his hairy look has been Yankee-ized.

Speaking of which, I finally got around to Sports Illustrated's piece on Jayson Werth. It's a decent read.

Thankfully, the formerly bearded Red Sox, Johnny Damon, is staying in Detroit.

Real scoreboard watching: The Red Sox and Mariners were rained out. They trail the Yankees and Rays by 5.5 games. The Yankees beat the Blue Jays, and the Rays lead the Angels.

For the Phillies, it was a typical Cole Hamels night. He pitched well but got no run support. Well, at least he won't be getting the loss as they scored two runs to force the Astros into extra innings. It's 2-2 in the 12th.

The Phillies lead the Giants by a game but trail the Braves by 2.5. The Braves are losing to the Rockies, and the Giants lead the Reds.

Our first game back

Yesterday was our first game back to Citizens Bank Park since we became parents. Lots of things were different - bootleg vendors sold ponchos instead of pretzels, the sax guy wasn't playing, and they now have a trivia game outside of Bull's BBQ.

But one major thing didn't change - it rained. We sat through it. We got wet. I got grumpy but hung in there.

Despite the hour and 45 minute rain delay - including a scary moment when I dozed off and thought I was blind because I could see only the white of the tarp on the field - it was a pretty good game. Roy Oswalt shut down the Nationals, giving up five hits and a walk with eight strikeouts over seven innings in the 6-0 win. The lack of runs was impressive because he let the leadoff guy on in the first four innings. And in each of those innings, someone got in scoring position, including the first inning when Oswalt struck out Adam Dunn and Ryan Zimmerman after letting the leadoff guy get to third with one out. Roy also went 2-3 with a run and came close to an extra-base hit in his final at-bat.

But he might not have been the player of the game. That award could be claimed by Christine's favorite, Carlos Ruiz, whose only hit was a meaningless single in the 4th and whose fielding was marred with a throwing error and three stolen bases.

Despite those feats, Chooch set up the big two-run 6th inning, which iced the game. With two outs and runners on second and third, the Nationals elected to walk the fearsome Chooch, who's actually been intentionally walked 33 times in his career (nearly all in front of the pitcher), to get to Wilson Valdez.

Valdez, filling in for a resting Chase Utley, was never so insulted in his life and stroked a two-run single to put the Phils up 4-0. Raul Ibanez hit a two-run home after the rain delay in the 7th.

Observations from the stands: It was a fairly uneventful game on and off the field. A funny moment came after the rain delay when the new Nationals second baseman, Alberto Gonzalez, complained that the field was too wet. He was booed when the grounds crew came out to sop up more water. After they left, a bunch of sea gulls (you can sort of see them on the right) swarmed the field, mocking the Nats.

We weren't sitting in our usual area of seats, and it seemed much more quiet than usual. We could hear the radio broadcast floating through the stands. In fact, the crowd never really seemed to wake up until the end of the rain delay when they played Chubby Checker's Let's Twist Again, followed by the original The Twist. The crowd was really going as the Nats took the field and an usher was shown on Phanavision while Twisting.

The team honored Philadelphia native Jerry Crawford, who was umpiring his last game in the city before retiring after a 33-year career. He also umped the last game at the Vet and the first at the Bank. You can read about him in the Inky and Daily News. Instead of giving him a gold watch, the Phillies gave him a plush Phanatic. More on that later this week, but I wonder if that's why the Phillies won so easily.

Debbi Kee's Keenote Chorale did the anthem. ... WPXN's Ben Arnold did God Bless America. No one told him it was raining. He could have trimmed a few minutes off it.

Antiquated T-shirts: We didn't see that many: Cliff Lee, Jim Thome and Jacoby Ellsbury's No. 46.

Babies on the brain: Of course, when we saw the Cole Hamels lunch bag, I was upset we didn't bring Trent. (OK, I was upset we didn't bring Trent as soon as we left the house.) The several young tots we saw in the stands didn't help. There was one nearby (kind of looked like Peyton Manning) who kept staring at Christine. Of course, being the proud, responsible parents that we are, we compared every youngin to Trent. There was no contest: The cutest baby wasn't at the park. ... There were some youngsters on the field with the Phanatic in the middle of the game doing some Latin dances. I dunno why we were amused by this; probably because it's the most people we've seen involved in a Phanatic skit.

Tonight's games: The Phillies faced former mate Brett Myers. On the radio broadcast, Scott Franzke said young Brett was starting for the Phillies. I think somebody is stuck in 2009. Myers pitched well in his return to Philadelphia, but was outpitched for seven innings by Blanton. Myers left trailing 2-1, but Ryan Madson blew it in the 8th. Astros 3, Phillies 2.

Unfortunately, the big story involving a former SoxandPhil is that the Red Sox put in a waiver claim on Johnny Damon, who's considering whether to waive his no-trade clause to Boston. I hope he stays in Detroit. John Lackey was also locked in a pitcher's duel but outpitched the Mariners Doug Fister and got a well-deserved 6-3 win.

More quick thoughts on a hot and busy weekend

Trent met his other grandparents today, so baseball was once again an aside.

Another nice win for the Phillies, though, 4-3 over the Rockies, which sets up the possibility of a four-game sweep if Joe Blanton can come through tomorrow afternoon.

The game was delayed by severe thunderstorms. It's the type of game Christine and I are familiar with at the ballpark. It was much better to be inside with family.

It was also Christmas in July. Christine and I have never been in the park for Christmas in July, which might be the only promotion we've never seen in person.

While the Phillies won by scoring a couple runs late, the Red Sox lost to the Mariners 4-2 by giving up three late-game runs.

Quick thoughts during a hot and busy weekend

We're occupied this weekend, overloading Trent with grandparents. He took his first trip outside the house to his Grandmom's today, so we only half watched the Phillies nice 10-2 win over the Rockies. It was good to see an offensive explosion and Kyle Kendrick pitch well in his return to the rotation.

We couldn't imagine sitting in the stands during this 100 degree heat.

Trent got his first pack of baseball cards. The gum is bigger, wrapped in plastic and tasted worse than I remembered. Yes, I guess you could say I stole candy from a baby, but he's way too young for bubble gum.

And there were only seven cards in the pack. What a crock. I think you got 15 in my day. His only Red Sox or Phillie was one-third of a Ryan Howard. The Big Piece was on a card with Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder as the NL's top home run hitters.

In the 5th, the Red Sox lead the Mariners 1-0.

Not a good week for SoxandPhils old goats

First, there were the reports that Pedro Martinez will not pitch this year. He hasn't retired, but I doubt he will be able to come back again.

Then, Jamie Moyer left Tuesday's start with an injury. There's a good chance he'll need Tommy John surgery. If any 47-year-old can return from Tommy John surgery, it's J-Moy. And, he's hopeful that he can pitch again this year. But you can't help but think that this is the end of a remarkable career.

Then, Moyer's former teammate, Tim Wakefield, who is a Sox, but never been a Phil, was sent to the bullpen as Josh Beckett came back.

Finally, as I was typing this, we watched former SoxandPhil and now Brave Billy Wagner blow a save against the Marlins. So it's not all bad tonight, especially because the Phillies beat the Rockies 6-0. The Red Sox and the Mariners are tied at 1-1 in the 4th.

Fool one night, genius the next

Last night I couldn't believe Charlie Manuel left Joe Blanton in to hit with the bases loaded in the 7th inning of a 1-1 game. It was no shocker that the move backfired and cost the Phillies the game. I knew Blanton should have been lifted without knowing he had such dramatic splits this year: an OPS of about .700 for his first 75 pitches, but nearly 1.200 after that.

Somewhere, Grady Little would be proud. In a completely unrelated note, Pedro Martinez will not pitch in 2010 but has not retired.

Given the Blanton experience, I was a little surprised to see Cole Hamels lifted after throwing 97 pitches in eight shutout innings today. (I was at work and not watching the game, so I didn't know it was very hot in St. Louis.) But no worries this time: The Phillies bullpen finished the one-hitter and the bats finally scored two runs in the 11th inning to beat the Cardinals 2-0, averting the sweep.

In the 2nd, the Red Sox and Mariners are scoreless.

Breaking news: Milt Thompson has been fired as hitting coach.

42-year-old virgin & hometown star going to St. Louis

I thought we were going to be disappointed today - mainly because no Phillie, besides the two who were certain to be voted on, is having a stand-out season. And, I thought nostalgia wouldn't be enough to put Tim Wakefield on the team.

I was wrong. Tim Wakefield, a Red Sox hero and two-time World Champion, is now an All-Star:

Wakefield got a standing ovation this afternoon when the Sox' All-Stars were announced at Fenway Park, and acknowledged the cheering crowd with a wave.

"That was pretty cool," said Wakefield. "It was phenomenal, it just shows how much the fans really care, not just about me but our players here. For them to give me the kind of ovation they gave me, it makes me feel very welcomed here and I've felt that way for a long time because the fans have been behind me since I've been here. Like I've always said, they’'e our 26th man on the roster -- I owe a lot of my success to them.

"I have a lot of emotions running through right now. It's a pretty proud moment for me and my family."

He'll be joined by starters Jason Bay and Dustin Pedroia, reserve Kevin Youkilis, and pitchers Josh Beckett and Jonathan Papelbon.

On the other side of the diamond, the Phillies will be able to match the Red Sox at 2B, LF and 1B: Chase Utley and Raul Ibanez were voted starters, and Charlie Manuel made just one indulgence pick: selecting St. Louis native Ryan Howard as one of four first basemen on the team.

"There's not many opportunities where you get to play in an All-Star Game in your hometown," said Howard, who grew up outside St. Louis. "I think everybody is definitely excited and can't wait for it."

Oh, and Shane Victorino could also make the team as an injury replacement for Ibanez or Carlos Beltran, or as the final fan selection. Don't let him get Pat Burrell'd. {When we started watching the selection show, I told Greg that I thought Victorino would be on the ballot for the 33rd man. Time for some voting this week.}

Managerial strategy: While Cholly chose just one Phillie, Joe Maddon is taking three Rays as reserves. When I noted that he didn't take any pitchers, Christine observed that he selected three Red Sox pitchers. On the NL pitching staff, there are no Phillies, but two Mets. We wonder whether Maddon and Manuel plan to blow out their oppositions' arms. The Rays weren't happy with the way Terry Francona used Scott Kazmir last year. {And let's not forget that Brad Lidge lost the All-Star game last year after he warmed up for about five innings. Cholly was similarly displeased with that move.}

Today's games: The Phillies completed a sweep of the All-Star-laden Mets 2-0, behind Joe Blanton's 7 1/3 shutout innings. Brad Lidge pretended it was 2008 and struck out the Mets in the top of the 9th on only 14 pitches. The Red Sox scored five in the 7th to beat the Mariners 8-4 and avoid an embarrassing sweep.

Personal: This is our first post on our new laptop. {Just a warning: I think Greg plans on live-blogging the All-Star game next week. Great. This is going to be just like a real game - when he needs a bathroom break or concession stand run at the ballpark, I have to keep score. I foresee something similar happening next Tuesday with the blog.}

All-Star Selection Show

The All-Stars will soon be announced. The local media made a final push for Ryan Howard and Tim Wakefield.

I hope Timmy gets the call, but I have a feeling that SoxandPhils will be disappointed with their representation this year.

On the field, Phillies go for the sweep against the Mets while the suddenly-reeling Red Sox try to avert a sweep by the Mariners.

Happy Fourth

It's been a hectic holiday weekend - baseball has taken a backseat the past few days to visiting family, riding my bike, watching fireworks (last night and tonight), barbecuing and watching the annual Nathan's hot dog eating contest.

Yup, if you count that as sport, then the bulk of my sports-watching the last two days has been seeing people shove hot dogs and soggy rolls down their gullets. Joey Chestnut won again; I'm bummed.

Last night, I see that Rodrigo Lopez bailed out the Phillies, helping them to get a rare win at home. Christine and I debated whether it's a sign that the champs have righted the ship or that they're just taking advantage of playing an even more dreadful team (the Mets).

The Red Sox battled back to tie the Mariners, but wound up losing in 11 innings. I tried to listen while sitting in my truck waiting for the fireworks to start. Reception was decent, but not clear enough to hear over the din of the crowd waiting for the show.

Later this afternoon, the Phillies and Jamie Moyer host Ferando Nieve and the Mets. The Red Sox (Brad Penny) and Mariners (Garrett Olson) have already started. The Sox are up 2-0 in the 2nd.

We're curious who will read Lou Gehrig's speech for the Phillies and Red Sox. I like this idea to honor him this way.

Cheery thoughts for a holiday weekend

Phillies bullpen.

OK, not so cheery.

Two weeks ago, Scott Lauber and Paul Hagen wrote about interim closer Ryan Madson's seemingly good fortunes. That night he blew his first save, prompting me to question whether Lauber, Hagen or I had jinxed him.

This week, Lauber finally wondered whether his feature had jinxed Mad Dog, who has lately pitched like a peaceful puppy.

Today, he's got all the bullpen numbers; you can click here for them, but it's not a read for the faint of heart:

Lidge is 0-3 with a 7.57 ERA and six blown saves in 20 chances. Madson, meanwhile, after getting off to a great start, is 0-3 with a 10.80 ERA and three blown saves since June 16.

That's worth repeating: Between them, Madson-post June 16 and Lidge all season are 0-6 with nine -- nine! -- blown saves.

Incredible. Lauber also noted that last year the Phillies were 65-9 when leading after seven innings and as everyone is aware of, 79-0 when leading after eight. The Brad Lidge bullpen is no longer perfect this year: 29-6 when leading after seven, 31-6 when leading after eight.

Hopefully, things can begin to settle down a bit for the bullpen and the Phillies can conquer their home woes when the open a series against the Mets, who thanks to the Phillies are still in the NL East race, along with the Braves and Marlins. Jason Bay will play his first game as an American in Fenway against the Mariners.

Mixed bag

If I said Ramon Ramirez and Brad Lidge would each pitch 2/3 of an inning and one would get a save and the other a loss, who would have tabbed Ramirez (ERA less than 1.00) as the loser and Lidge (ERA more than 8.00) with a two-pitch save?

Baseball's funny that way.

The Phillies completed a four-game sweep of the Nationals, 8-6, despite Chan Ho Park reverting to his early-season struggles. He was knocked out in the 2nd inning. Sergio Escalona (the surprise call-up to take Andrew Carpentar's roster spot) got the win in his major league debut.

Luckily, the Phillies were playing weak competition and were able to withstand Park's poor outing in a back-and-forth game fueled by the Nationals (then up 6-5) botching a sacrifice bunt by Pedro Feliz in the 8th. The pitcher threw it away, allowing two runs to score. Feliz later scored on an Eric Bruntlett double.

In the 9th, Charlie Manuel let Scott Eyre pitch to two lefties before bringing in Lidge with one out and one on. On his second pitch, Josh Willingham grounded into a double play.

Funny, I started my day watching the DVR of Brad Lidge getting a double play against the Nationals with the bases loaded to clinch the 2008 NL East. Unfortunately, that game was on Fox, so I was stuck with Tim McCarver saying Carlos Roo-is, instead of listening to Harry Kalas' joy.

Red Sox: No joy today. Mariners 3, Red Sox 2. Justin Masterson pitched well in what probably will be his last start because Daisuke Matsuzaka is expected to return from the DL. A 2-2 game on the road isn't very comforting, but I felt good knowing Ramirez was pitching the 9th with Jonathan Papelbon still in the pen.

Alas, for the second time this year, Ramirez allowed a run. It was unearned, and his ERA stands at 0.43. He got the first two men out before allowing an infield hit to Yuniesky Betancourt, who went to second on a throwing error. An intentional walk and then a base hit ended the game.

There's no guarantee the run wouldn't have scored without the error. It was a tough loss, but I cannot blame Ramirez; he's pitched too well this year.

Bright Sunday morning

I woke up to rain and clouds, but the outlook is good for the SoxandPhils after a Saturday in which everything went right. The Phillies swept a doubleheader against the Nationals, and Brad Lidge recorded a save with a rare 2009 scoreless appearance. Then, the nightcap ended in the 6th inning, preserving a bullpen that was needed early and is already overtaxed after Friday's extra innings.

Josh Beckett threw his best game since opening day to beat the Mariners 5-3, ending the Red Sox three-game losing streak. David Ortiz is expected to remain on the bench through today's game.

The end?

Preface: I have a gut feeling, beyond just a fan's hope, that this post will soon be outdated.

I wrote that more than a year ago on a post about David Ortiz's early struggles in 2008. He looked pained after every at-bat, knowing he was hurting the team. I had faith he would snap out of it. He did for parts of last year, but now I don't have the same faith, as Chad Finn wrote this week:

More than any player in franchise history, David Ortiz taught even the most cynical Red Sox fans that refusing to give up sometimes results in the sweetest
rewards.

So the inclination is to resist giving up on him. The man deserves that much, at least under normal circumstances.

Of course, there's a particularly cruel catch here: The circumstances are no longer normal; they are dire.

Is Papi done? Is his body breaking down? Will we find out that the magical combination he formed with Manny Ramirez was propped up by drugs? I hate thinking that about a guy who seemed so pure in spirit as he led the Red Sox to two World Championships, but after Manny, who knows who's next?

On Thursday, the guy who used to be automatic in clutch spots went 0-7 and left 12 men on, most notably weakly grounding out to end the 12th inning with the bases loaded.

In the aftermath, a dejected Ortiz said the words that many of us feel guilty for thinking:

"I'm sorry, guys. I just don't feel like talking right now," he told the media. "Just put down,'Papi stinks.'"

You could hear the pain through the printed words and my stomach turned. I'm hoping with nothing but hope that this is just an particularly bad slump and by the All-Star break he'll have 20 home runs, the Red Sox will be in first place by five games and all of this will be forgotten.

But I have a feeling that the more likely scenario is that the Sox will spend July looking for a successor to Big Papi.

Last night: With Papi on the bench, the Red Sox blew a 4-0 lead, losing to the Mariners 5-4. Next Saturday, I might have to write about Jon Lester's 2009 woes.

[Photo credit: Associated Press]

Mr. Manuel goes to Washington (with the Phils)

The Phillies took their final bow for 2008, spending the afternoon at the White House.

Charlie Manuel was quite entertaining when recapping the visit on the radio pregame show. He said President Barack Obama is very pleasing to look at and gives you a warm feeling inside.

(Is that why Cholly still hasn't proposed to his long-time companion?)

The Phils skipper said he has now met four presidents, but didn't clarify.

Obama also lauded the Phillies for their off-field endeavors and as an example of racial progress:

"Chase [Utley] works on behalf of pediatric hospitals. Brad [Lidge] supports our wounded warriors. Cole [Hamels] helps those suffering with HIV/AIDS in Africa. Ryan Howard is a national face for the Boys and Girls Clubs, participates in the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and takes an active role in mentoring inner-city students."

While honoring the Phillies for their achievements on the field, Obama made time to highlight the problems of race that persist both in the United States and in baseball. As inequalities in education, housing and other services plague society, baseball struggles to with its own lack of diversity.

According to a study conducted by Univ. of Central Florida Institute for Diversity & Ethics in Sport, blacks comprised only 10.2 percent of all major leaguers in 2008. The statistic recently provoked Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman Orlando Hudson to say that Jackie Robinson "would probably turn over in his grave."

"As the number of African American kids taking up baseball is in severe decline, the impact of having role models like Ryan and Jimmy to look up to just can't be measured," Obama said.

Now, if only the president could help their awful starting pitching.

Tonight's games: The Phillies should have stayed in the Rose Garden. Ryan Howard crushed one to dead center for a three-run home run, giving the Phillies a 6-4 lead in the 7th against the Nationals. But Brad Lidge, who has gone from Lights Out to Blown Save Brad, coughed it up. Even worse, the game remains tied in the 12th with J.A. Happ (who was supposed to start one of the games in tomorrow's double header) on the mound.

The Red Sox are off to a decent start, up 4-0 in the 4th against the Mariners.

Update: As Greg was writing this, the offense finally came through. Phillies 10, Nationals 6.

[Photo credit: Philadelphia Inquirer]

Road trip

I have to hit the road for a two-week business trip today. Christine will keep the blog running. But I figured the occasion merits a look at my first trip to Fenway some 20 years ago.

By 1988, my Yankee-loving family had realized my Red Sox fandom wasn't a fad and offered to take me to Fenway. We got bleacher seat tickets for the Aug. 17 game against the Mariners.

The 1988 Red Sox were a sorry lot for a division winner. John McNamara, one of the goats from 1986, was fired mid-season and replaced by Joe Morgan (no, not the Hall of Fame second baseman who now poorly broadcasts for ESPN). When we saw them, Morgan's Magic hadn't yet propelled them to first, but they were on their way, just two games out.

Their big stars were Roger Clemens, Wade Boggs, old-timer Dwight Evans and newly acquired Lee Smith. Ellis Burks and Mike Greenwell were up and coming for a team that barely won the AL East with an 89-74 record before getting swept by the A's in the division series.

Their opponents that night were even sorrier: the eventual 68-93 Seattle Mariners. Things were so bad for that squad that former Sox Rey Quinones was considered one of their five stars despite a .284 on base percentage. They did have not-yet former ESPN broadcaster Harold Reynolds leading the charge.

That night featured Billy Swift vs. Bruce Hurst. The Sox won 7-2 in a rain-delayed game. No Red Sox really stood out at the plate, but five (Marty Barrett, Evans, Greenwell, Jody Reed and Rich Gedman) had two hits.

Geddy homered. Homering for the M's was Steve Balboni. My sister embarrassingly cheered because he used to be a Yankee.

I forget when it rained, but it was a lengthy delay. My folks were willing to wait it out even after someone offered to adopt me out of the Yankee family. He had a pool. I always liked that memory, but now it seems a little creepy. I recently learned he was drunk. What did I know, I was 11.

The game resumed, and I was looking forward to seeing the big man in the bullpen finish it off, but we left in the 8th because my parents thought the subway closed at midnight or something. In later years I learned that the trains do close rather early in Boston, but that they keep them open on game nights.

Prices: $1.50 for the scorecard; $5 for bleacher tickets; $14 for box seats.

SoxandPhils connections: A 23-year-old Mike Jackson pitched 1 1/3 innings for the Mariners. ... An ad for the Rolaids Relief Award congratulates the 1987 NL winner Steve Bedrosian. ... Best of all is this beer ad featuring Greg "The Bull" Luzinski, who doesn't like ewers for some reason. It's such a slice of '80s cheese. Christine joked that one day this could be Pat Burrell, but then we decided they don't do beer ads like this anymore.

Today's game: Even though I'm on the road, Christine is going tonight. She'll post tomorrow, but maybe not with the same amount of detail as I write (I told her she doesn't have to keep a scorecard).

Now it's a competition

Last night's great win was wiped out today by losing to the Mets, 6-3. Last year, the Phillies wouldn't let the Mets rebound like this, so does tonight say that the Mets have better character than last year or that Brett Myers is officially done? He lasted five innings, giving up three runs on five walks and three hits with only two strikeouts in a no-decision. In the 1st, he gave up two runs on four walks and no runs. Not exactly the message-sending performance needed from young Brett. The Phillies are again tied with the Mets for first.

Red Sox: They certainly didn't play as if it were an afternoon getaway day in Seattle, needing 12 innings to complete the sweep of the Mariners, 6-3. Clay Buchholz pitched all right, but we're still awaiting better things from him. Justin Masterson made his relief debut with 2.2 perfect innings.

The Sox, trailing the Rays by a half game and three in front of the Yankees, get an off day tomorrow before heading home, where they'll hopefully end this little resurgence by the Empire. Good and bad news on the injury front: David Ortiz is due back Friday, but Manny Ramirez is day-to-day with a bum knee.