Halladay Leads The Phils To Victory

After Ryan Madson blew a 3 run lead in the bottom of the 9th innning, in a game the Braves eventually went on to win in the 10th, the Phillies quickly found themselves in the midst of a 3 game losing streak. The Phillies offense struggled greatly against the Marlins, and after dropping the first game of the series in Atlanta, the Phillies really needed someone to stop the bleeding. Roy Halladay was just that guy. On Wednesday night, Doc Halladay took the ball and did what an ace is supposed to do. He came up big when his team needed him the most. He pitched 9 complete innings and gave up 0 runs. He fooled hitters and was in control throughout the whole night. Not only did Roy Halladay help the Phillies win 2-0, he also gave the bullpen some much needed rest, and lightening the load on this bullpen is especially huge. On Thursday night, Jamie Moyer followed Halladay's performance by pitching 6 strong innings, giving up 0 earned runs. The Phillies went on to win by a final of 8-3. The Phillies got strong offensive performances from guys like Juan Castro, Greg Dobbs, and Carlos Ruiz. And Jamie Moyer finally did what I have been saying all season long, he avoided that one really bad inning. Jamie is a great pitcher, and when you give him a little run suppport he is going to win games for you. As much as I don't want to talk about Friday night, I am going to write about it anyway. Cole Hamels pitched 6 innings and gave up 6 earned runs. Seriously Cole, you go from an extremely strong pitching performance against the Marlins to this? Cole was really hurt by a 5 run 4th winning in which he surrendered 3 home runs. No Im not making this stuff up. It is still early but I am beginning to grow tired of the Cole Hamels show, its getting real old fast. Regardless, the Phillies have to forget about Friday night and focus on winning the series. The Phillies will send Nelson Figueroa to the mound tonight, who is filling in for an injured J.A. Happ. The Phillies need to continue playing hard, and keep scratching out wins anyway they can.