The Phillies bats exploded for 15 hits on Tuesday in their 7-3 win in Miami, good for matching their season high in a game. Part of that was the direct result of Delmon Young and Ryan Howard finding their swing last night while part of it was the Marlins pulling their young phenom Jose Fernandez a bit early.
“Maybe one of the best things was they took him out,” Manuel said with a laugh.
The Big Piece's return to the lineup after a couple of days to rest his knee brought three hits and three RBIs with him (video). Delmon Young's troublingly quiet bat found some life too, putting a ball over the fence to give the Phils an early lead. Ben Revere also added a trio of hits of his own and even hit a couple of balls pretty hard into the outfield. Wheels commented that one fly ball he hit may have been the longest hit ball of Revere's season.
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Offense is still possible contrary to what the past few weeks may have led you to believe.
And Tyler Cloyd's effort was another very good one. He scattered 8 hits over 7 strong innings and allowed only 2 runs while striking out 5 and walking 2. It's pretty strange how he got lit up in the minors in between two solid outings for the Big Leage club. Better to win up here, I guess.
If the Phils win tonight and the Nationals lose, the teams will be all square heading into the series down in Washington this weekend.