These days I have serious trade regrets as I traded Chase Utley for Johan Santana in the off season.  Johan’s doing fine but Utley is tearing it up all over the field!  Johan is definitely not as valuable a fantasy player as Utley up through April…  I can only hope I don’t regret the trade still by the end of the year!

Shane Victorino came back from the DL last night but he wasn’t in the starting lineup as Jayson Werth is also doing very well.  Somehow the offense isn’t putting it all together yet this year, with Howard in the doldrums and Rollins out on the DL.  Utley, Pat Burrell, Werth, and Geoff Jenkins are all doing pretty good.  You think?  If they could just all put it together they’ll win that 100 games predicted by Rollins.

Last night, Cole Hamels stole the pitching duel with Gary Maddux, who is still looking for win #350.  And he even got a single in the 7th inning to raise his batting average to .313.  Another candidate for the pitchers hitting counts league!

Scott Hairston did hit two home runs but it wasn’t enough and the Padres took the loss.  The Phillies now have a record of 15 wins and 12 losses but are half a game back in the NL East–the Marlins are in first with the Mets a few percentage points ahead of the Phillies.  Atlanta is at 12-14 and the Nationals at 10-17 (yowch!).

Brett Myers was hit all over the ballpark for 4 runs up through the 5th inning and he ultimately took the loss.  Nate McLouth hit two home runs in this game as well.  Meanwhile, Paul Maholm shut down the Phillies from start to finish, pitching a complete game where the Phils only got 2 hits.  They can’t win them all, for sure, and it wasn’t a total blowout. Though what’s going on with Brett Myers is a bit of concern for fantasy owners like myself.  Will he pull it together soon or should I be considering benching him in the interim?  I’ve already benched Gorzelaney due to a lack of being able to handle the pitching responsibilities, is it time to consider Brett Myers on the “what to do” list?  I hope he figures it all out and comes back in style. 

Another win and the Phillies are up above .500 by a good margin at 15 wins and 11 losses, hopefully for good!  Ryan Howard is back as well, hitting a home run in the first inning after two days on the bench.  The Phillies got a 6-0 lead in the 2nd and never gave it up, though the Pirates did get a few hits in there.Kyle Kendrick got the win, Matt Morris the loss, and Nate McLouth and Ryan Howard both had Home Runs during the game. 

The Phils are putting it together, one scrappy hit after another.  They’ve won 5 of their last 6 games due to key hits and home runs by the big infield hitters (Chase Utley, Ryan Howard) but also due to hits by the scrappy outfielders (Jayson Werth, Pat Burrell, and now Brad Harman in his first big league game).  This time it was Jayson Werth and Chris Coste, the catcher for the game, who came up with the big hits.The Phillies scored all of their runs in the 1st, 3rd, and 4th innings while the Bucs staged a comeback in the 4th and 5th off of Adam Eaton.  Chad Durbin came in in the 4th, Tom Gordon came into the game during the 7th inning (earning the win), and Brad Lidge earned another save in the 9th.In other news, Ryan Howard had his second night off for a mental health break.  He’s been struggling mightily at the plate and hasn’t been able to get himself on track this season yet.  He will break out and hit the long ball but every player has to figure out how to get back into his groove at some point.  This is just Ryan Howard’s time!  Good luck, big guy!  We know you can do it. 

And Pat Burrell is just on a TEAR!  Jayson Werth hit a solo home run in the 6th inning but then in the 8th inning, Pat “The Bat” Burrell is finally living up to his name!  He hit a double with Chase Utley and Greg Dobbs on base to score the winning runs, bringing his season total for RBIs to 25.

Jamie Moyer was the starter but Tom Gordon came into the middle of the 7th inning to get the win, Brad Lidge got another save, and David Riske was the losing pitcher.

So the Phillies are back above .500 again, with 12 wins and 11 losses.  They’re still in 3rd place in the NL East but it’s only April.  So breathe easy, Phillies phan.  Tomorrow they play the Pittsburgh Pirates away at 7:05 pm.

And back down to .500 the Phillies go!  Cole Hamels is now 2-3 (bad for my fantasy team!).  Chase Utley, Pat Burrell, and Gregg Dobbs all hit home runs but it wasn’t enough.  Mitch Stetter (who?) got the win and Derrick Turnbow the save.

It amazes me how dependent the Phillies are on Jimmy Rollins.  Is it because it’s just April and they can’t get things going with their bats because of the injuries?  When Chase Utley was out last August, they kept on hitting and winning.  With Rollins out now, they’re having a more difficult time finding ways to win.  Is this the April factor or just how important J-Roll is to the team?

Oh darn.  They won in the 9th inning, again.  Ryan Madson came in and got the win, Brad Lidge got the save, and Manny Corpas was the losing pitcher.  Despite Garrett Atkins and Matt Holliday each hitting a home run, the Phillies pulled it out in the 9th!  Jayson Werth got a solo home run in the 8th but it was Pat “The Bat” Burrell who had the game winning hit in the 9th–a double off of Corpas.The Phillies play the Brewers tonight.  Let’s keep it up!  They’re over .500 so now we’re going for a real, winning record.  woohoo! 

In the first of a 3 game series at Colorado, the Phillies have started off on the right foot!  They’re back at .500 again and starting to pull it together.  Chase Utley has been red hot and making me regret trading him away for Johan Santana during the off-season, that’s for sure…Kyle Kendrick gave up 3 runs in the second inning to the Rockies but the Phillies pulled things together and got it done in the late innings, with home runs by Pat Burrell, Chase Utley, and Jayson Werth throughout the game.  Now if they can only pull themselves up over .500 by winning again tonight… 

Friday, 11th - Phillies 5, Cubs 3

• winning pitcher - Brett Myers, losing pitcher - Carlos Zambrano, save - Brad Lidge

Saturday, 12th - Phillies 7, Cubs 1

• winning pitcher - Cole Hamels, losing pitcher - Ted Lilly

Sunday, 13th - Phillies 5, Cubs 6 (10 innings)

• winning pitcher - Kerry Wood, losing pitcher - Rudy Seanez, save - Bob Howry

The Phillies almost made a sweep of the Cubs, which looked good!  But no such luck.  They’re sitting at a record of 6 - 7 so they’re still in 2nd place in the NL East.  Will they continue on with their winning ways?  crossing my fingers!

The Phillies are in the midst of a series with the Mets and they won the Mets’ home opener Tuesday, 5-2, in a comeback surge in the 9th inning.  Then they lost to the Mets Wednesday night, 2-8.  But the biggest loss was Tuesday night as Jimmy Rollins sprained his ankle while avoiding a pickoff attempt in the 8th inning.

He finished the night Tuesday but Rollins will be out for a few days now nursing a swollen ankle.  He may be back as soon as next Tuesday against the Houston Astros.  But without his bat in the lineup, can Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, and even Eric Bruntlett, his replacement, take up the slack and win the games?

It didn’t work out that way Wednesday night so we’ll just have to see tonight!  As long as they can cut back on those errors (Bruntlett made TWO), they have a chance to win the series, I think.  Then they can take the lead in the NL East from the Marlins!

Then the Chicago Cubs come into Philly for a three game series Friday through Sunday.  The Cubs have a record of 5 wins and 3 losses and are in 3rd place in the NL Central, behind the Brewers (2nd) and Cardinals (1st).