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| Brad Lidge has agreed to a three-year, $37.5 million contract extension with the Phillies, according to MLB.com. The deal includes a club option for 2012 and performance incentives. |
Our View: He is worthy of the extension, as he is off to the best start of his career, with 19 saves and 47 strikeouts over 35 innings, with a 0.77 ERA and 1.03 WHIP. |
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| Phillies' skipper Charlie Manuel noted that he hasn't decided whether or not to bring back J.A. Happ for another start in the rotation, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. He said, "I haven't thought about it at all yet." |
Our View: Happ was nothing special in his first start (in place of the demoted Brett Myers), as he allowed two earned runs on three hits over 4.2 innings against the Mets, with four walks. If Happ is handed another start, he will only merit consideration in larger NL-only leagues. |
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| Jamie Moyer failed to secure his eighth victory of the season on Saturday night though he held the Mets to three runs over 6.2 innings. |
Our View: That's five straight outings for Moyer of three or fewer runs allowed as he continues to give his club a chance to win every time he takes the hill, something he has been able to do since roughly the Jurassic age. |
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| Ryan Howard socked his 23rd home run of the season on Saturday leading to three RBI to give him 76 on the year. |
Our View: Care to hazard a guess as to what Howard did in the two AB where he didn't hit a home run? If you need us to tell you, then you just haven't been paying attention. He has 119 K in 88 games in case you were wondering. |
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| Carlos Carrasco could pitch in the Futures Games on July 13 even though he missed his last Double-A start due to right shoulder tightness, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. The injury is not believed to be serious. Carrasco, 21, is 5-7 with a 4.18 ERA over 97.0 innings. |
Our View: Keeper league owners likely know all about the Phillies top pitching prospect. Carrasco has been uneven at Double-A this year, but we still love his upside and could see him getting a call in September, if not sooner. |
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| Shane Victorino went 1-for-4 and delivered a game-winning RBI single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning in Friday's 3-2 victory over the Mets. |
Our View: The Phillies returned home from a nine-game road trip, in which they went 5-4. |
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| Ryan Howard went 2-for-4 with an RBI in Friday's close 3-2 win over the Mets at home. Both of his hits were singles. |
Our View: Howard collected his 73rd RBI of the season, and extended his hitting streak to seven games. |
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| Tom Gordon earned a one out save in the Phillies 4-1 win over Atlanta on Thursday night. The save is the veteran right-handers second of the season. |
Our View: Gordon came in for the final out of Cole Hamels' near complete game, and did so because closer Brad Lidge had pitched the last three games. Lidge's Thursday night appearance saw him throw 28 pitches making him unavailable for tonight's game. |
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| Ryan Howard hit a solo home run helping the Philadelphia Phillies defeat the Atlanta Braves by the score of 4-1 on Thursday night. |
Our View: The home run was the big first baseman's 22nd of the season. Howard went 1-for-4 in the game, a percentage that unfortunately raises his average. Howard came into Thursday's game hitting .219 and exited with a .220 average, this in 324 at-bats. |
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| Chase Utley hit his league leading 24th home run and the Phillies scored a 4-1 win over the Atlanta Braves on Thursday night. |
Our View: Utley, who has recently shown signs of breaking out of a 40 at-bat funk, is hitting an even .300 on the season. |
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| Cole Hamels was one out short of a complete game victory as the Phillies defeated the Atlanta Braves 4-1 on Thursday night. Hamels allowed one run on five hits, walked two and struck out seven. |
Our View: Hamels earned his ninth win of the season and lowered his 3.38 ERA to 3.22 in the wining effort. |
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| The Philadelphia Phillies will recall J.A Happ on Friday, this according to The News Tribune. Happ will start Friday against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park in place of the demoted Brett Myers. |
Our View: Myers was sent down to triple-A Lehigh Valley after recent struggles. Happ was ultimately the choice over bullpen fodder Chad Durbin. |
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| Cole Hamels will try to continue in July what he accomplished in June. He went at least seven innings in all five starts for the month, going 3-1 with a 2.61 ERA and striking out 34 while walking just eight. |
Our View: Hamels goes against the Braves in Atlanta tonight. On the road this season he is 3-1 with a 4.21 ERA, but has held opponents to a .224 batting average. Hamels is one of the best in the National League, and should be in fantasy lineups tonight. |
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| MLB.com reports that Freddy Garcia is expected to be 100 percent healthy in two weeks and will pitch a showcase session for interested teams, most likely between July 20-24. The Astros, Cardinals, Dodgers, Rays, Red Sox, Tigers, Twins and Yankees are among the teams that are expected to monitor Garcia's session. He would wait until signing with a team before deciding on a timetable for when he would make his first Major League appearance since June 8 of last year. |
Our View: Garcia was very ineffective in his 11 starts last season (1-5, 5.90 ERA), but did win a combined 31 games in the two seasons prior to that. Garcia won't make a fantasy impact until the stretch run, if he makes one at all. |
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| Brett Myers was mediocre at best in his first Triple-A start since being optioned to the minors earlier this week. He allowed three runs over five innings. |
Our View: Myers struck out six, walked two, and gave up five hits. He will likely make at least two more starts in the minors. |
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| Philadelphia infielders Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley were up to their usual mischief tonight, helping their Phillies get the dominating 7-3 over Atlanta. Rollins went 3-for-4 at the plate with one walk and three singles, good for one RBI and two runs scored. Utley went 2-for-4 with this 24th double of the season, good for one RBI and one run scored. |
Our View: Both players stole bases and both players continue to give fantasy owners reason to smile. |
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| The Phillies piled on the hits as they took the wood to Atlanta this evening, winning 7-3. Much to the delight of the fans in Philly, it was first baseman Ryan Howard serving as the offensive catalyst, going 1-for-4 at the dish with one walk and his 21st home run of the season, totaling three RBIs and one run scored on the night. |
Our View: Howard's average is still horrendous (.219), but he failed to garner a single strikeout on the evening and is showing signs of improvement. He hit five homers for 26 RBIs last month and has hits in each of his last five games. |
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| Philadelphia RHP Kyle Kendrick earned his eighth win of the season, leading his Phillies to a strong 8-3 win over Atlanta. Kendrick pitched six innings to allow three runs (all earned) on seven hits with two walks and two strikeouts. |
Our View: This gives Kendrick consecutive wins and a strong start to the month of July, coming off a 3-1 record through June and a 5-1 record over May and June. |
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| Philadelphia outfielder Pat Burrell continues to enjoy work at the plate, tonight helping his team earn the dominating 8-3 win over Atlanta. Burrell went 2-for-3 with one walk and his 20th homer of the season to total two RBIs and one run scored on the night. |
Our View: Burrell hit just .256 last month but totaled six homers and 14 RBIs on the month, matching 25 strikeouts with 20 walks. He's enjoying one of his best seasons to date and has gotten right back on track for the month of July. |
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| The Phillies enjoyed a plethora of offense this evening, putting 14 total hits on the board to pull the 8-3 win over the Atlanta Braves. The bulk of that offense came from outfielder Shane Victorino , going 2-for-5 at the plate with his third homer of the season, posting four RBIs and one runs scored on the night. |
Our View: Victorino hit just .235 through June without a single home run and just four RBIs. This is the start of a new month and could be the beginning of a reversal of fortunes for the young outfielder. |
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| Brett Myers has been optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, in hopes he gets back on track, according to MLB.com. "I can't say enough about Brett's willingness to accept this assignment," Phillies general manager Pat Gillick said. |
Our View: Myers has been a disaster this season, and though he should not be on fantasy staffs anyway, this is confirmation of that. He is currently 3-9 with a 5.84 ERA. His velocity has waned, and he has given up 24 home runs in 101.2 innings. |
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