Monday was a glorious day for baseball. The temperature was moderate. There was not a cloud in the sky.
The Phillies had a 7-5 lead in the ninth inning with closer Jose Mesa on the mound when the team just self-destructed. You've read the details of the 10-7 loss to the New York Mets by now. Suffice it to say that most agreed that it was one of the worst innings played all year.
"We've been on a roller-coaster ride all year," manager Larry Bowa said after Monday's clash. "Nothing really shocks me anymore."
It will shock me if this team wins the division. If it does so, it will be in spite of itself. The wild card is not an option. The Phils must win the Eastern Division to get to the playoffs.
This is the first time that I've been so upset with this club. For a young team, it is remarkable that the Phillies are still in contention in September. What's missing is the killer instinct to put teams away.
This is where veteran players are most valuable. Catcher Todd Pratt has done an excellent job handling the young starters, and pitcher Robert Person has stepped it up in his last few outings. General manager Ed Wade deserves credit for making the trade for relievers Dennis Cook and Turk Wendell because the Phils desperately needed help in bridging the gap between the starters and Mesa.
The fact that things haven't worked out thus far is no knock on Wade. At the time, I thought it was a good move, and we should wait until Sept. 30 before making final judgments.
In the meantime, I recall Paul Owens getting manager Dallas Green some veteran help for the September stretch in 1980. He wasn't eligible for the postseason because he was acquired after Aug. 31, but the Phillies might not have gotten there without reliever Sparky Lyle.
The road trip through Montreal, Atlanta and Cincinnati will define the Phillies' 2001 season. If the club can stay close, it will make the final 10 games at the Vet meaningful. I just don't want to see the team playing out the string by then.
I don't want to jinx this year by looking to the future, but something caught my attention while I was reading through Monday's game notes.
Pitcher Vicente Padilla, whose career stats as a reliever have never been overly impressive, may have found his niche. He was converted to a starter after being optioned to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on June 26 and was undefeated in 16 starts. Padilla went 7-0 with a 2.42 earned-run average. In 82 innings, he gave up 64 hits and 22 earned runs, struck out 75 batters and walked 11.
This is significant because it is further proof that the Phillies have a surplus of good young pitchers. We've already seen what David Coggin, Nelson Figueroa and Brandon Duckworth can do. Randy Wolf may just need some more time to turn the corner, and Padilla only needs an opportunity to demonstrate his ability as a starter.
Add Cliff Politte to that mix. He's been throwing well in relief, but he has always been more successful as a starter. In eight starts last year, Politte went 4-2 with a 2.87 ERA. He was in a heated battle with Amaury Telemaco for the fifth spot in the rotation this spring when an injury forced him to miss the first half of the season.
What all of this means is that some of these guys will be pitching for the Phillies for the next few years. The rest will be trade bait when the team looks to upgrade.
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