- The Phillies are now 8-5 after their worse loss of the young season so far, a 10-3 drubbing to the lowly Marlins in Miami. The team is in danger of losing the advantage of a fast 4-0 start by losing a home series to Washington and now have split with Miami. Key game today as losing two of three to a team that will surely lose over 100 games this summer is unacceptable.
Marlins Park is huge with a vast outfield. That didn't stop starter Zach Eflin from giving up three homers in the third inning. Eflin, who had been pitching so well, returned to his inconsistent self. The Marlins increased their team batting average from .212 to .232 all in one game.
The Phils' offense was stagnant again, scoring their three meaningless runs in the ninth inning after the game was well decided. With Cesar Hernandez struggling, Scott Kingery came off the bench late in the game and smacked a pair of doubles. He deserves time at second base Kingery is the future at second, why not play him more?
I also expect lineup changes today in the key rubber-match game. Andrew Knapp should catch today, What about giving NIck Williams and Aaron Altherr playing time in the outfield?
Speaking of the outfield, Odubel Herrera is up to his old tricks again. He failed to run out a fair ball and gave away at bats. He also allowed a catchable fly ball drop a this feet.
We hoped that Herrera was beyond this. I said in the blog that he will never change. he can be a dynamic, brilliant player, yet he could also be a lazy bum. Herrera is in an ideal spot in the batting order and should thrive. He just seems to lose focus at times. Trading him- and Cesar Hernandez- for pitching during the off-season may have been the way to go. Roman Quinn, if he stays healthy, gives the team speed and solid defense in center field. Kingery provides energy. There's no reason for the Phillies to allow moody, inconsistent guys like Herrera and Kingery bring them down.
The Phils come home tomorrow to take on the rival first-place Mets for a three-game series, before the club embarks on a road trip to chilly Colorado and New York.
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- The Sixers were stunned Saturday afternoon by the surprising Brooklyn Nets. Joel Embiid did play but was clearly hampered by a sore knee. Ben Simmon and Tobias Harris seemed lost. J.J. Reddick only scored five points. Jimmy Butler showed up but the defense didn't.
Embiid and reserve Amir Johnson were caught in the fourth quarter with Johnson's cell phone, laughing. That's against league rules. Both should be fined. Where is their focus, in a tight playoff game, to get caught with a cell phone during a game? Embiid claimed that Johnson's daughter was "sick." But what about the laughter?
Coach Brett Brown may have lost his team. His job is on the line during this playoff run. If he can't reign in the discipline of not having a cell phone on the bench, what else is going on?
The Sixers and Nets play Game Two of their playoff series on Monday night. It's a must-win game for the 76ers, who do not want to fall to Brooklyn 0-2 while going to New York. A loss on Monday could signal the beginning of the end in many ways.
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