2009 Philadelphia Phillies - Season's Over, Time to Move On

[PhillyPhreak54]

Negative ghostrider, the worst part of the game was they left TWO runners on 3rd with less than 2 outs again.

Punch those two runs in and they win.

This offense is sickening. It has been since the Arizona road trip.

Ibanez looks terrible and they can't string hits together for shtein.

[QB Eagles]

Slumping offense doesn't bother me so much. That shtein happens over the course of a season for all teams. Obviously you don't want it to happen in the postseason or during a pennant race, but when you've got a six-game cushion in September... big deal. This team has massive firepower and it will return soon enough.

The Lidge shtein DOES bother me because that's been season-long, shows no sign of letting up, Cholly is clearly not bothering to address it, and it's absolutely guaranteed to cost them postseason games unless it gets better real quickly. It's ludicrous to let any closer stink up the place that bad that often in a season. Doesn't matter who they are... doesn't matter if they just won the World Series for you, doesn't even matter if they've a Hall of Famer. Even if the team had no other obvious options (which it does in Myers), I'd at least want to see them testing different things out in the 9th.

[PhillyPhreak54]

Perhaps the 6-game cushion is one reason Manuel feels the need to stick with Lidge, that he sees they have some room to wait and see if he fixes himself.

I'm not saying that would happen nor that I agree with it, but thats about the only explanation I can come up with

[PhillyPhreak54]

HOUSTON — Much more on this in tomorrow's News Journal, but Charlie Manuel was ticked off after today's 4-3 loss, which completed the Astros' first four-game sweep of the Phillies since Sept. 6-9, 1999. Here's a taste of his postgame rant:

"We had a bad series, and that's saying it lightly, I guess. They outplayed us. They deserved to win. We keep playing like that it's going to be tough for us to win [many more games]. We did almost everything we could do to lose. You name it. We had shcnaces and we couldn't get a big hit. We didn't get a two-out hit. And we didn't pitch when we had to. They did. We didn't. It was a rough series for us. The way we played, we made it rough.

"When I see us chase balls on the ground, chase 'em in the dirt, chase 'em over our head, I start to wonder. I don't know what it is, if they're trying too hard, if they're tight, whatever. We have no reason to be tight. But some of those at-bats we put on, it seems we dcon't have a clue what we're doing. That's what I see. Watch, you'll see it, too. We've got guys on base, the pitcher's the one in trouble. Not the hitter. Offense is offense. That's why it's called offense. When you're hitting and you've got a pitcher with the bases loaded and runners in scoring position and less than two out, the hitter, he's offensive. When he's chasing balls in the dirt and stuff, I call that defensive. That don't work.

"You can go around and talk to them. You can talk to them in batting practice. But what is today? September 9th? Damn, if we ain't got it by now, we ain't never gonna get it. We were in good position coming in, and we're still in good position. We've got to play. We've got to win some games. It's been kind of leading up to this. It's got to bottom out sometime. We've got some wins. We beat the Giants two games, and we got real good pitching, tremendous starting pitching, when we scored three runs and got two wins. Over in Pittsburgh, we didn't hit at all. Actually, we played real bad there. Homers are great when one or two guys are on base. When you hit three solos and the other team scores three, four, five runs, and you lose, it's not so great.

"I don't know. I hear some of them talk. I hear some of them say, 'We play better when we have to or when there's more pressure.' I find that hard to believe when I see us play like we did today. I find that hard to believe. I played 20 years. I like my chances ofbeing relaxes when we have a nice lead. That don't register for me.

"[Expletive] the last couple years. That don't mean [crap]. We're playing today. Last year is dead and gone. Having to win? No, I don't get that. I think when you have a lead, you're sitting better than you are when you absolutely have to win a game that day. I think having a lead's got to be better than that. I'll take the lead. That's what I'm trying to say. Last year, what happened in the past, that's gone. We played tremendous baseball last year the last five, six weeks. Best baseball we've ever played. I'm not going to give our lead up and say, 'We'll start here.' No, I'm not going to do that because I don't know if we can come through or not. I like our chances better where we're at, but at the same time, we have to win some games. That's what I'm trying to say.

"We're not playing good. When I see how we're playing, for us not to be able to knock runs in, I've got to think we're a little bit tight when I see guys hitting balls on the ground. I think my experience tells me that much."

So, that about captures Charlie's mood. There's much more where this came from, and we'll have it for you in tomorrow's paper and at www.delawareonline.com/phillies. Meanwhile, feel free to join Charlie and vent your frustrations in our comments section.

More later.

Good rant, Chuck...get in their asses

[Don Ho]

HOUSTON — Charlie Manuel was ticked off after today's 4-3 loss"We're not playing good. When I see how we're playing, for us not to be able to knock runs in, I've got to think we're a little bit tight when I see guys hitting balls on the ground. I think my experience tells me that much."

Good rant, Chuck...get in their asses

Awyright Chalee.  Bout farging time.

[ice grillin you]

what charlie does and especially what he says now means shtein regarding lidge...one the playoffs start the closer role will be taken on a game by game basis depending on score....match ups situation

probably wont matter tho as i cant see this offense getting a lead in the payoffs against good pitching every night

[BigEd76]

Victorino switched from Rollins' agent to Ibanez's agent and wants a long-term deal

[BigEd76]

...and WTF Cole....this is just....wow

[phattymatty]

why is there a random little black girl in his bed?

[rjs246]

Jealous?

[phattymatty]

no need.

[reese125]

why is there a random little black girl in his bed?

Im assuming that pic of Africa and their foundation answers your question

[BigEd76]

the blond boy isn't theirs either.  The dog was probably a loaner from Chase and Jen...

[MDS]

I wonder what Jen's butthole smells like.

[SunMo]

shtein, probably.