The last time the Phillies swept the Braves in Atlanta (May 5-8, 1995) ...
... they had Gregg Jefferies in left field.
... they had Kevin Stocker at shortstop.
... centerfielder Lenny Dykstra would play just one more season before retirement.
... Jefferies, Mark Whiten and Charlie Hayes would lead the team with 11 home runs.
... Paul Quantrill would lead the team with 11 wins.
Yeah, that team pretty much stunk.
These current Phillies hope to be better than that. They beat the Braves yesterday at Turner Field, 13-6, to complete a three-game sweep. Ryan Howard hit a couple homers. Greg Dobbs hit a homer, although he would have had two except Andruw Jones made a ridiculous catch at the center field fence. Cole Hamels pitched well. Clay Condrey did not, but it didn't matter. They had a very good weekend after a miserable start to their road trip in Florida. Remember the Rod Barajas tag Wednesday? Remember Dobbs' throw home Wednesday? Remember Brett Myers walking off the field Wednesday? Remember how the Phillies showed fight Thursday before losing the series finale to the Marlins? It couldn't have been much worse, but the Phillies turned it around.
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The Phillies aren't thrilled that John Smoltz criticized them Saturday. They want him to mind his own business.
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Bob Ford pretty much sums up Phillies baseball perfectly.
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The Phillies open a three-game series tonight against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citizens Bank Park. Here are the pitching matchups. With a couple lefthanders on the mound for Arizona, I think you'll see Wes Helms back in the lineup with Dobbs starting against the righthander tomorrow.
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I'm sure most people have seen this, but I haven't so I thought I'd link it. Chase Utley talked with Maxim Magazine last month. The interesting part of the interview? He mentions Myoplex shakes a few times. Why? Probably because he endorses the product. There's a full page ad of him in the current ESPN The Magazine, the one with Barry Bonds' pursuit of 756 on the cover.
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Enjoy your Memorial Day barbeques.
