Where was the defense?
by Scott Butler 10/17/09
The Philadelphia Phillies have one of the best, if not THE best defense in baseball. One of the reasons the '09 Phils are so fun to watch is that they catch the baseball and make the plays they are supposed to make. They don't come up with many fancy plays, but they make the routine ones, well, routine.
But it was routine plays that cost the Phillies a 2-0 series lead over the Dodgers in the NLCS. And unfortunately they were all in one inning. Oh yes, the eighth inning.
People can put the blame on Charlie Manuel for pulling Pedro Martinez or blame the bullpen for blowing the lead, but the fact is that none of those things would have been an issue if the fielders did their job.
First batter: Casey Blake hit a hard bouncer to Pedro Feliz. The ball glanced off his glove and into left field. It is hard to place blame on Feliz for this since it had to be difficult to see in the shadows. But it was a play that had to made and wasn't.
Second batter: Ronnie Belliard hit a bunt towards the mound. You can't blame Park because he just did not have time to get over. The problem on this play was Howard because it was a ball he could get to but he ran a bad route. It may seem nit picky, but he knew a bunt was coming and was not prepared. Like with the Scott Eyre play in the NLDS, Howard was a bit of a spectator and it cost them an out.
Then the Utley play. I don't need to tell you how big a mistake that was. It was big. It was a bad play, but it was a mistake on a play he will make 99% of the time. Not much you can do about it. But those are three plays in one inning that could have been made. It is not fair to place a huge amount of blame on individuals. But it is something that good fielding teams like the Phillies can't do.
It is simple: play better defense or lose the series. It's that simple.
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