Well, they started off with a sweep in favor of the Reds. It's the first week of the season, and early on, my prediction seemed to have been proven false. Sure, it's professional sports and there's no way to really predict how your favorite team is going to fare. However, the Philadelphia Phillies were a sore spot for many conversations early in the week.
The Phils came out of spring training with a winning grapefruit league record. Their first regular season opponent, the Cincinnati Reds, finished with an even .500 record.
During their first day of competition, the Phils came out with high hopes, but would only be able to plate two to the Reds’ 6. Despite a solid opening performance (with the exception of when Zack Cozart was in the box), Hellickson’s three hits allowed would be doubled by the end of the game, thanks to the bullpen. The only highlight for Philadelphia came off the bat of Freddy Galvis, when he hit a two-run shot to right to give his team an early second inning lead that would be diminished in the bottom of the eighth.
With opening-day jitters gone, the Phillies once again took the field in Cincinnati on Wednesday for the second of a three-game series. Early runs would once again prove to be insufficient in the battle to beat the Reds. The one-run difference after the first inning wouldn't suffice in the bottom of the ninth against the bat of Scott Schebler with a bases loaded double. Aaron Nola went seven straight, allowing only one run, and our bullpen failed us for a second time this season.
Thursday was almost a little more promising as the Phillies came to fight. The game was scoreless heading into the third inning, where Philly would strike first with an unearned run, when Jay Bruce mishandled a single off the bat of Ryan Howard, allowing Morton, Thursday’s hurler, to cross the plate. In the bottom of the third, the Reds answered, but the highlight of the game for the home team happened to be an eight-run fourth. Joey Votto, Cedrick Hunter, Ryan Howard and Carlos Ruiz all contributed to the Phillies’ 10-6 loss with a long ball each.
Friday would bring about a new series, set in a deep rivalry. The Mets opened at home with their oldest and best NL East rivals. After being on the road for a very awkward World Series rematch, the Mets stole the Phillies’ fourth game of the season. Despite the Mets suffering an injury to their starting pitcher, deGrom, they were able to soar over Philadelphia with a 7-2 win. Mackanin was not too happy with his team, especially after their fourth loss, seeing as simple base running mistakes cost Philadelphia what could have been a much-needed rally. “That was unacceptable,” the skipper had to say about Cesar Hernandez’s error during an infield fly in the eighth.
It's possible that the gloomy feeling in the hearts of Philadelphia sports fans caused by the first four games had finally caught up to the clubhouse on Saturday, April 9. Though not an all-around exciting game, it was the team’s first win of the 2016 season, and we have an unlikely slugger to thank for it. Going into this season, there has been lots of talk surrounding the veteran first baseman. As the first four games came and went, the rumors continued to fly, claiming that the club will likely give Howard a $10 million buyout and trade him off, leaving only Carlos Ruiz on the roster from the 2008 championship team.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that at this point in the season, I would be OK with keeping Ryan another couple years. Yes, his track record shows more strikeouts than the next person, but right now he's an asset to the program. Looking at stats alone, going into the home opener, he has two home runs (leading the team) and is batting .235 (third highest), as well as leading in RBI’s with four. Just my opinion, but if we had to make a decision tomorrow, I would keep Howard.
All the Phillies needed was that one win to get the momentum rolling. They came out with hot bats on Sunday to finish off their rivalry series with a 5-2 win. Odubel’s two run home run in the sixth would lift the Phillies over the soon-to-come runs that the Mets would plate in the bottom of the same inning. However, the Fightin’ Phils didn’t stop there. They put two more on the board to secure the win. Hellickson brought his record to 1-1 on the season, retiring the first 11 straight batters and giving the Phillies more wins at Citi Field already this season than they were able to walk away with in 2015 as a whole.
The Phillies open at home against the Padres on Monday April 11, 2016 with a day game. The first pitch is 3:05 p.m.
