Brandon Beachy pitched well and kept the Braves in the game, but the bullpen did not. A grand slam by Jimmy Rollins led to a 11-5 win for the Phillies, holding that clinching celebration for another day.
The Braves scored in the first inning for the first time in a long time, as Derrek Lee doubled in Jason Heyward from first base. They remained ahead by one until the fourth, when several singles led to two runs for the Phillies on a RBI single by Raul Ibanez and RBI single by Carlos Ruiz. Lee singled in a run in the fifth to tie it at two.
Beachy put two on in the sixth and after getting two outs was relieved by Peter Moylan. Ruiz grounded to Brooks Conrad, who waited to throw to second and rushed it rather than taking the easy out at first to end the inning. The Phillies took advantage of the continued inning by walking in a run off Moylan, and after he was relieved for no apparent reason, Mike Dunn gave up a grand slam to Rollins to sum it up.
Beachy was charged with four runs on seven hits in 5.2 innings, walking one and striking out five, but he pitched better than the line shows. Two hits were for extra bases while the rest were singles. He made a few mistakes and was hit hard, but for the most part they found a glove. He seemed to build off his last start and kept the damage to a minimum. It’s probably enough to earn a spot in the playoff rotation if needed.
Moylan was charged with two runs, but I feel he could have ended the inning. Dunn was brought in to turn Rollins around and hit right-handed, but his first pitch was sent into the stands. Kyle Farnsworth struck out two in a scoreless inning. Cristhian Martinez allowed four runs in the eighth, a couple of those scoring after he was relieved by Mike Minor. Why Minor is still getting innings in any situation at all is beyond me.
Lee was the entire offense, going 3-5 with two doubles and five RBIs. Conrad had two singles, but they don’t make up for the terrible defense. The rest of the offense had four singles total. The team did walk five times, three of which came from Kyle Kendrick, who lasted only five innings, allowing two runs on five hits.
The Padres jumped to a quick lead in their game, so if the score remains, the magic number will remain at two.
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