As June approaches the Philadelphia Phillies have been living up to all the preseason hype, just as the Miami Heat have as the make their way into the NBA Championship series. The Phillies have a major League best record of 34-20.

The amazing part about their record is they have yet to play a single game with their pre-season starting line up in tact. Unfortunately for the rest of the National league, that day is rapidly approaching as starting CF Shane Victorino should be back off the DL at the end of this week.

With the return of All-star 2B Chase Utley, the Phillies are averaging nearly 6 runs a game. Chase has already hit more home runs than his replacement Wilson Valdez. Look for the Phillies offence to get another shot of adrenalin when speedy Shane Victorino returns to the lineup.

All of baseball knows the heart and soul of this time is its pitching. They are 3rd in ERA 3.10, 1st in quality starts 37, and 2nd in WHIP 1.21. Also, Cole Hamels and Roy Halladay both have 7 wins already this season. Both could win 20 games this season and compete for a Cy Young Award.

Three out of the top leaders in strikeouts in the NL belong to the Phillies rotation Roy Halladay is first with 91 K’s, Cliff Lee is third with 86 K’s and Cole Hamels is 5th with 76 K’s. Ladies and gentleman it doesn’t get much better than that.

The Phillies bullpen has also been miraculous. Closer Ryan Madson is 2-1 with 1.88 ERA and is 12 for 12 in save opportunities.  Jose Contreras has yet to give up a run all season in 10.2 innings. He is also 5 for 5 in save opportunities. Antonio Bastardo is 3-0 with 26 K’s in 19.1 IP and a 1.40 ERA. 

Ryan Howard and Placido Polanco have lead the charge for the Phillies Offence and Raul Ibanez is heating up after a horrific April. Howard is 2nd in the National League with 42 RBI and 12 HR. Polanco is tied for 6th in the NL with 66 hits and 14th in BA .317.

Player to Watch: RF Domonic Brown. With the injury to Shane Victorino and Ben Fransisco continuing to struggle, Brown will be given a long look in RF for the Phillies. So far, he is batting .310 with 4 RBI in 29 AB. 

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Philadelphia Phillies have recalled left-handed pitcher Mike Zagurski from Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

Zagurski was promoted Tuesday. He fills the roster spot opened when the Phillies optioned right-hander Vance Worley to Lehigh Valley after Monday’s game against Washington.

Zagurski has appeared in two games for Philadelphia this season, allowing a run in 1 1-3 innings. He was 1-0 with nine saves in nine opportunities and a 1.88 ERA in 14 games for Lehigh Valley.

Worley was 2-1 with a 3.75 ERA in six games, four of them starts, for Philadelphia. In his last appearance, he gave up eight runs and 12 hits in three innings Sunday against the Mets.

Philadelphia pitching coach Rich Dubee said Kyle Kendrick would take Worley’s place in the rotation for Saturday’s game in Pittsburgh.

Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

By Mike Prada

– Senior Editor

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May 31, 2011 – The Washington Nationals missed their chance to get to the Philadelphia Phillies when Roy Halladay wasn’t pitching his best on Monday, losing 5-4 despite hitting three home runs. As a reward, the Nationals will get Cliff Lee in the second game of a three-game series on Tuesday.

The Nationals are free-falling, having lost 10 of 12, including three straight one-run games. Things continue to get worse, which is bad because the Phillies continue to improve. Philadelphia now owns the best record in the Majors and has continued to dominate the Nationals, with their fans invading their stadium to add insult to injury.

Jason Marquis will oppose Lee on Tuesday, as he hopes to rebound from his second loss of the season. Ivan Rodriguez will start behind the plate for Wilson Ramos. Here is the complete Nationals’ lineup:

1. Roger Bernadina (CF)
2. Ian Desmond (SS)
3. Jayson Werth (RF)
4. Michael Morse (1B)
5. Danny Espinosa (2B)
6. Ivan Rodriguez (C)
7. Jerry Hairston (3B)
8. Brian Bixler (LF)
9. Jason Marquis (P

Read More: Cliff Lee (P – PHI), Jayson Werth (RF – WAS), Ivan Rodriguez (C – WAS), Jason Marquis (P – WAS), Roy Halladay (P – PHI), Michael Morse (LF – WAS), Roger Bernadina (RF – WAS), Brian Bixler (SS – WAS), Ian Desmond (SS – WAS), Wilson Ramos (C – WAS), Danny Espinosa (2B – WAS), Philadelphia Phillies, Washington Nationals

Former major league baseball player Lenny Dykstra was scheduled to be arraigned on federal charges this morning in Los Angeles.

The all-star outfielder for the New York Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies is accused of bankruptcy fraud and obstruction of justice related to his bankruptcy filing two years ago.

A 13-count federal grand jury indictment alleges that after he’d filed for protection, Lenny Dykstra moved valuables out of his $18 million mansion in Ventura County, including chandeliers, artwork and sports memorabilia related to his career.

Prosecutors allege he then lied under oath about selling, destroying and hiding the property, valued at nearly a half million dollars, that should have gone to his creditors.

Dykstra’s attorney told the Associated Press that his client did not commit fraud, and that the case stems from a dispute with the bankruptcy trustee.

If a jury convicts him on all 13 counts, Dysktra, whose fans called him “Nails,” faces up to 80 years in prison.

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The Philadelphia Phillies today recalled left-handed pitcher Mike Zagurski from the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.

Right-hander Vance Worley was optioned today to the IronPigs in a corresponding move.

Zagurski has made two appearances this season for the Phillies, surrendering two hits — one of them a home run — in 1 1/3 innings. He is 1-0 with a 1.88 earned run average in 14 relief appearances with the IronPigs.

Worley was impressive in his four appearances this season with the Phillies. He made two starts, giving up one run in 12 combined innings. He had a one-run, three-inning appearance May 9 against the Florida Marlins and pitched a shutout inning May 13 against the Atlanta Braves.

Worley experienced more trouble in his last two appearances, however. He gave up three runs on six hits and four walks May 24 against the Cincinnati Reds, then lasted just three innings while giving up eight runs on 12 hits Sunday to the New York Mets.

A lack of innings apparently led to Worley being less sharp in his most recent appearances.

“I just need to get more innings in,” Worley said on mlb.com.

Worley is 2-2 with a 3.51 ERA in five starts this season at Lehigh Valley.

On a cold, February morning, I proposed 33 over-under proposition bets to keep the Philadelphia Phillies season interesting.

Truth be told, for baseball lifers like yours truly, baseball is always fascinating, and the Florida Marlins, the Atlanta Braves and the ever-busy Disabled List have all kept things quite interesting so far.

How interesting? With their 5-4 Memorial Day matinee win over the Nationals, the Phils stand at 34-20, which is the best record in baseball. They have done so despite a rash of injuries that may have buried a lesser team.

With 54 games in the books, exactly two-thirds of the season remains to be played. This seems like a fun time to re-examine  those 33 over-and-unders I proposed while awaiting Spring Training.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/605820-phillies-2011-preview-33-over-unders-to-keep-the-season-interesting

 

PITCHERS AND CATCHERS

 

1. Combined wins by R2C2 (Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels):  71

With Halladay’s win over the Nats, R2C2 now has combined for 21 wins against 11 losses. That puts them on pace for 63 wins. This should come down to the wire, as an injury to Oswalt and very poor run support for—especially—Lee, have deflated this number a bit.

2. Combined innings by R2C2: 850

Halladay (a National League-leading 91.1), Lee (74.2) and Hamels (74.2) all rank in the top six in this category. Injuries have reduced Oswalt’s workload to 45 innings. Collectively, they have pitched 285.2 innings, which puts them on pace for 855.6. They’re just over the pace needed.

3. Combined strikeouts for R2C2: 800

The three healthy pitchers are all in contention for the strikeout crown; Oswalt has some catching up to do. Collectively, they have fanned 284 hitters, which projects to a most impressive 852. They’re striking out a man per inning, while yielding very few walks.

4. Combined complete games for R2C2: 20

Halladay looks like he’s going to lead the majors in this category again, and is setting a great pace with four. Lee and Hamels have one apiece, which puts R2C2 on pace for 18.

5. Wins by Joe Blanton in a Phils uniform: 6

I proposed this more as a nod to trade rumors than to concerns over Big Joe’s injuries and ineffectiveness. Blanton his the one-third pole with one victory in his six starts. This, of course, puts him on target for three wins.

6. Saves for Brad Lidge: 33

Ouch. Injuries have kept the—erstwhile?—closer on the DL all season; you do the math. However, Ryan Madson is on pace for 36.

7. Batting average for Carlos Ruiz: .285

Coming off a .302 season, this seemed like a compromise projection for the career .259 hitter. Ruiz is only batting .250 so far, but don’t count him out just yet.

8. Homers for Chooch: 11

Chooch is only on pace for six, but has missed a bunch of games. I still like this number.

 

THE REST OF THE LINEUP

9. Home runs for Ryan Howard:  44

Howard’s 12 homers—he’s already pushed Ruiz’s prop bet—has him on pace for 36.

10. RBI for Howard: 136

The Big Piece is vying for the league lead with 42, which projects to 126. He has done so despite being surrounded by an erratic, ever-changing lineup.

11. Whiffs for Howard:  180

Howard’s 65 whiffs—projects to 195—make 200 a possibility.

12. Games played for Chase Utley: 145

Oh well, this one’s down the drain. Utley has now played in seven of 54 games, Would you believe 100?

13. Homers for Chase: 28

Chase has launched one so far, but if he gets really, really hot…

14. HBP for Chase: 23

Utley led the league each year from 2007 thru 2009. He’s been plunked once already, and Phillies fans hope he does not even approach this number.

15. Games played for Jimmy Rollins: 145

Jimmy’s been healthy so far, only missing one game. I don’t think he’ll keep up this (159 game) pace, but he has a very good chance of hitting the over here.

16. Runs scored for Jimmy: 105

His 30 runs project to 90. If he stays healthy, and patient, he can do it. He is on pace for 69 walks, which would set a career high.

17.  Stolen bases for Rollins: 32

This looks like a good number. Rollins has swiped 12 bases, which projects to 36.

18. Placido Polanco’s batting average: .300

Polly has cooled off from his torrid start, but still stands at a very nice .317.

19. Will Polanco reach 2,000 career hits before or after September 15?

Placido has 66 hits and 1902 total. This one should be very close to the pin.

20. Games played for Wilson Valdez: 55

I think Valdez has this one cinched. His 45 games project to 135, and even if Utley and Rollins never sit out, he may get 11 more appearances as a reliever.

21. Will Raul Ibanez finish the season in a Phillies uniform?

At first glance, Ibanez’ detractors would ask “Who needs him?” On second glance, the Philies do, at least for 2011.

22. RBI for Raul: 90

Don’t laugh just yet. On May 1, Ibanez was batting .154. Now, he’s at a respectable .246, and on pace to knock in 87 runs. it’s been a great battle back for the for true professional.

23. Batting average for Shane Victorino:  .285

Yet another Phillie on the DL, Shane is hitting .284. 

24. Homers for Shane: 13

Although he’s already missed 15 games, the Flyin’ Hawaiian has popped six, which projects to his tying his career mark of 18, set last year.

25. At-bats for Domonic Brown: 250

That infamous Hook of Hamate injury has limited Brown to 29 MLB at-bats so far.

26. Homers for D-Brown: 14

He has not launched any so far.

27. Games played for Ben Francisco: 115

This one will be interesting. His 48 games project to 144, but will he play well enough to stay in the everyday lineup?

28. Ben’s batting average: .270

Francisco hit .268 last season, but carries a .229 BA thus far.

29. Homers for Ross Gload: 8

In limited duty, Gload has not put any in the seats so far. In fairness to him, I’m not counting foul balls, or homers rocketed in BP.

 

TEAM NUMBERS

30. Total Wins in 2011: 100

Somewhat amazingly, this collection of the walking wounded is now on pace to win 102 games.

31. Games ahead at the All-Star break: 4

The Phils are two-and-a-half games ahead of the Marlins (in action Monday night; this one also figures to be close.

32. Games the Phils will win the NL East by: 7

With that two-and-a-half game lead, they are on pace to win by seven-and-a-half games.

33. Games the Phils will finish ahead of the New York Mets: 13

In February, I wrote: It was a margin of 18 last year, but can the Mets be that bad again?

Well, the Phillies are on pace to win 102, and the Mets project to win about 75. So, I guess they can be that bad.

 

To summarize, other than the projections that were destroyed by injuries, a majority of these propositions will come right down to the wire. Would you have it any other way?