Hey, Why Not? Phillies-Mets Liveblog

We all know what happened last year. The Mets were 7 games up in the final month of the season and somehow managed to lose the division to the Phillies, of all teams. For good measure the Phils went 12-6 against the Mets last season, the exact same record the Fightins had against the Washington Nationals.

It’s the last Shea Stadium home opener as the Mets move in to Citifield — yes, that’s what it’s called — next season. The Phils have beaten the Mets eight straight times and swept ‘em three times last season. I believe this is what we call a “baseball rivalry.” I know we haven’t had one in so long it’s hard to figure out how to act, but let’s all get ready to boo the Mets out of their stirrups today, even if it’s just in front of your computer.

Pregame
The Mets and Phillies each have similar lineups to the ones they trotted out last season with the notable exception of perennial Cy Young candidate Johan Santana, the best pitcher in the game. Oh, yeah, him. The Mets also got outfielder Ryan Church and catcher and long-time Phillie-killer Brian Schneider from the Nationals in an off-season trade. Both teams are one game below .500 right now; The Phillies are actually only a game behind division-leading Florida.

Game starts at 1:10 and is on Comcast SportsNet if you’re near a TV. Radio is 1210, live box score is here. Plus updates from me right in this space!

Top first
Hey, Shane Victorino got a hit! Chase Utley then was hit, but Howard flied out deep and Burrell struck out looking on a pretty sick pitch — but still one he shoulda swung at. Great atmosphere so far, it seems, with the crowd really into it — it is a sold-out opening day. Good thing the Phillies have, uh, Jamie Moyer on the mound.

Bottom first
David Wright hit one to deep center, but it wasn’t really all that close to the wall despite Harry acting like it was going to hit Canada. Still scoreless.

Top second
Jayson Werth singled, but got doubled off first on a line drive by Pedro Feliz. Not really his fault, just an unfortunate bad break.

Bottom second
You can’t believe Jamie Moyer would go two consecutive innings without allowing a run? Well, you’re right on track: Carlos Delgado really did hit one to Canada and the Mets are up 1-0. Hey, at least Geoff Geary can’t blow this year’s first game at Shea!

Top third
The Phillies 9-1-2 hitters went down 1-2-3. I wasn’t paying much attention, because I am watching this new government anti-weed movie called “Stoners in the Mist.” It’s no Reefer Madness, but hey, it does say, “They’re a danger to themselves and to society.” And it also has a sweet video game called Cannabis Isle that apparently features Purple Tentacle from Maniac Mansion. (Just trust me, that line makes sense. Maybe.)

Bottom third
1-2-3! Awwright Jamie! Still 1-0, Mets.

Top fourth
Chase Utley got hit by another pitch. That’s why he’s awesome: Always willing to take one for the team, hard-working — oh, and a nice on-base plus slugging percentage. Nothing else happened in the inning, and ohmigodthisgameisalreadydraggingon. I blame the Mets.

Bottom fourth
Oh, no. Shane Victorino caught a long David Wright flyout then slammed into Jayson Werth. He grabbed his shoulder when he fell down — and still caught the ball! — but seems okay now. Since he’s okay, now we can laugh at it, since the replays are hysterical.

Bottom fourth, still
And now Jamie Moyer has given up a hit and a pair of singles and the bases are loaded with 1 out. The second hit was an infield single that Chase Utley delayed throwing to first because he was considering throwing to second. The runner beat the throw by a quarter-step. Gah!

A groundout by Ryan Church makes it 2-0, Mets. Gah!

Top fifth
The Phillies had 1st and 2nd with 1 out and 1st and 3rd with 2 outs, but didn’t get anything. Each team only has three hits; the Mets have the important ones, though.

Bottom fifth
Whoo! Shane Victorino with a nice basket catch deep in center field to end the inning. The Phillies are going against a tired Oliver Perez (75 pitches already) with Utley, Howard and Burrell next inning. This might be their best shot to do something this game.

Top sixth
Utley and Howard go down easily, but Burrell walked, moved to second on a balk and moved to third on a passed ball. (Hey, want to take a base a normal way next time?) After a Jayson Werth walk, the Mets remove pitcher Oliver Perez — who still hasn’t allowed a run this year — and brings in a pitcher called “Joe Smith,” clearly an alias to preserve his amateur eligibility.

Bottom sixth
Pedro Feliz walked (his first career base on balls!) but Carlos Ruiz grounded out and the Phillies still can’t hit anything. Ohh, I could see this inning being a long one.

Bottom sixth, still
Whoops, nevermind. The Mets go down in order; the Phils are still behind, 2-0. It’s looking likelier and likelier the Phillies won’t be scoring any runs today.

Top seventh
Here’s what really makes baseball exciting. The Phillies come up to bat, bringing in Greg Dobbs to pinch-hit for pitcher Jamie Moyer (a much better 6-inning, 2-run appearance). Then the Mets pulled pitcher Joe Smith for reliever Scott Schoeneweis. In response, the Phillies pulled Dobbs — good at-bat, Greg! — and brought in So Taguchi. All of these changes took approximately three hours.

Taguchi grounded out, incidentally.

Top seventh, still
Harry Kalas, fresh off his Dennis Hopper quote yesterday, said Baltimore was leading the National League East. Wheeler corrected him this time, slyly.

Top seventh, still — Utley Ties ML Record
With Rollins on second and Shane Victorino on first — he got another hit! — Chase Utley was hit by a pitch for the third time today, tying “too many to list” for most in a game all-time.

Top seventh, still — bahahahahahaha
Carlos Delgado fielded a slow Ryan Howard grounder and went to second for the double play…. whoops! It bounces off Chase Utley’s back, goes into short center field. Two runs score, and we’re tied at 2! And there are 2 runners on with only 1 out.

And after all that excitement, time for another pitching change.

Top seventh, still — Phillies take the lead!
Pat Burrell flies out, but Jayson Werth reaches out with two strikes and knocks it into right field. It’s an RBI single and the Phillies have taken a 3-2 lead. If you remember up a few grafs: “It’s looking likelier and likelier the Phillies won’t be scoring any runs today.” Whoops.

Bottom seventh
Mmm-hmm. After Pedro Feliz pops out to end the top half of the seventh, Brian Schneider singles off new pitcher Chad Durbin to open the bottom half. Uh-oh.

Bottom seventh — Thanks, Inning Endy!
Ex-Phillie Endy Chavez fakes a bunt attempt and swings away. He hits it right to Jimmy Rollins — after Chad Durbin just missed knocking it down — who has an easy 6-3 double play. (This becomes more important when Jose Reyes singles after Chavez.)

Top eighth
Ahhhhhh…. phew. In the seventh, Damion Easley hit one to deep, deep, deep left field, but Taguchi caught it with his back at the wall to end the inning and keep the Phillies ahead. Meanwhile, Carlos Ruiz leads off with a walk. Taguchi bunts him over to second. (Meh.)

The Phillies have 8 free passes today, 5 walks and 3 hit batsmen (all Utley). Go for the record next time, Chase!

Top eighth, still — Phils increase lead
Picking up where last year left off! Jimmy Rollins singled home Carlos Ruiz to make it 4-2. Victorino followed it up with a walk and then Chase Utley came up with a chance for a major league record if he can just lean into one. (Okay, it’s rather unlikely. But let’s see!)

Top eighth, still — Bum Utley doesn’t set ML record
That noted bum Chase Utley didn’t set the ML record for most times hit by a pitch. Instead he hit an RBI double and it’s now 5-2.

Oh, but here’s some more Phillie-like news: Jimmy Rollins just headed into the locker room, apparently injuring his foot during one of Aaron Heilman’s 10 fake throws to the bag. (This is what Wheels said, so who knows.) And then pinch hitter Geoff Jenkins popped out with the bases loaded. (Howard got an intentional walk.)

Bottom eighth
Hey, look, it’s former Met Howard Johnson — now the hitting coach — who turned me down for an autograph when I was in like fourth grade. Boooooooo!

J.C. Romero is in for the Phillies now and struck out David Wright looking to open the inning. Since then, he’s given up a double to Carlos Beltran and a 2-out walk to pinch-hitter Brady Clark. 2 outs, tying run at the plate.

Top ninth
A simple groundout ends it. The first two Phils went down easily, and now So Taguchi is up. For reference, here’s his headshot (apparently not re-taken at Spring Training this year):

Oh, Eric Bruntlett is in at shortstop for the injured Jimmy Rollins. Let’s do our best to ignore that. Ha ha, look at So Taguchi’s eyes!

Bottom ninth
The update on Jimmy Rollins is that he has an ankle sprain. (I can’t believe it took until the bottom of the ninth to let us know. Aren’t the announcers employees of the Phillies?) Ankle sprains could be transient — but if it’s a high ankle sprain, watch out. Those take forever to heal.

Final: Phillies 5, Mets 2
Nine in a row over the Metropolitans as the Fightins rally in the final three innings to spoil the Mets’ hope opener. Moyer gets the win, Gordon the save. The Phillies have their first second back-to-back wins of the year and are now back at .500.