Cole Hamels Dominates Padres, as Phillies Win on 1980's Retro Night
By: Mike Reisman
In 1984, Cole Hamels was less than a year old, and had probably never picked up a baseball. However, 27 years later, Hamels donned an '84 throwback jersey and began his absolute domination of the San Diego Padres on 1980's retro night. However, tonight's game wasn't at all similar to 1984, the year in which both teams jerseys were from. In 1984, the Padres came three games away from a World Series title, while the Phillies finished at a pedestrian .500, but tonight the roles were reversed, as the Phillies controlled the game on the way to a 3-1 victory.
The Phillies would get no rest from the extreme heat they faced in Chicago, as the game time temperature was 101 degrees, making this game the hottest of the year. That wouldn't stop Cole Hamels though, going eight innings, and putting a choke hold on the Padres, striking out 10 batters, matching his season high, and giving him his 12th win of the year. He would allow a single run in the 5th, but wouldn't allow a single hit afterward.
Though the Phillies bats wouldn't exactly explode, they would get the job done, scoring three runs, only one of which came on a hit. However, it was enough to get the Phillies their 62nd win of the season against San Diego's promising rookie Cory Luebke. They weren't able to get a single hit off of Padres relievers, proving that if the Phillies want to win this series, they're going to have to do it early while the starting pitcher is still in.
Ryan Madson came to close out the game with a perfect 9th inning, earning his first save since June 12th. Antonio Bastardo had been in the closer's role after Madson injured himself in mid-June, and it looked as though tonight was the beginning of Madson taking his job back, however tonight Charlie Manuel did say that both Bastardo and Madson will be closing games, so though it may. Though the move may be a bit questionable, it's not surprising from Manuel, a manager who is very loyal to his players that perform well.
Today was a generally good game for the Phillies, as they saw some good milestone for players coming back from injuries. In addition to Madson's first save, the team saw Shane Victorino's first hit since coming off the DL, a single to lead off the bottom half of the 4th. Though not a milestone, the Phillies saw a two-hit game from Chase Utley, bringing his batting average to .275, and almost guaranteeing that Utley's knee is fully recovered, and not bothersome.
The Phillies will play again tomorrow at 4:10 getting no break from the heat, playing in what is shaping up to be 98 degree weather. In this game, Kyle Kendrick is slated to face the 5-10 Mat Latos.