Over the past few weeks, I've talked to a lot of current and former players about Barry Bonds. One thing I've learned is, regardless of whether they believe Barry used steroids, they respect him for his astounding hand-eye coordination and his extraordinary talent. Steroids or not, the guy is great. And when Barry talks, especially about hitting, his peers tend to listen.Milt Thompson knows that. So Thompson, the Phillies' hitting coach, arranged an on-field meeting before tonight's game between Bonds and Ryan Howard. Thompson asked Bonds to talk to Howard about being patient at the plate, even when pitchers would rather walk him intentionally than pitch to him. As you may imagine, Howard was all ears. Now, let's see if it works.
* Howard went 0-for-3 tonight, but then, nothing went right for the Phillies in a 13-0 loss to the Giants. That's a season-high four straight losses since last weekend's sweep of the Braves in Atlanta. The Phils have been outscored 33-12 on this homestand and haven't had a lead. Is this rock bottom? If not, June will be an ugly month -- again.
* No space in the cramped 50-cent edition for this: Mike Zagurski isn't perfect, but he's not intimidated by Bonds, either. Despite being in single-A Clearwater only a month ago, Zagurski found himself pitching to Bonds in the fourth inning -- and getting him out on a fly ball to left field. Unfortunately for the rookie lefty, the very next hitter, Ray Durham, blasted a three-run homer. "Yeah, he's Barry Bonds, but you have to treat him like he's any other hitter," Zagurski said. "Either you've got to get him out or you won't be out there very long."
* Celebrity sightings: James Earl Jones read "Casey At The Bat," and Roger Waters of Pink Floyd fame threw out the ceremonial first pitch before performing next door at the Wachovia Center. * Anonymous: To be clear about Charlie Manuel's ejection, he wasn't contending that Matt Morris checked his swing. He was arguing that Morris offered to bunt at a third strike, and it certainly was a critical play. If Morris is called out, the inning is over, and the Phillies don't allow a run. Instead, Morris singles, and the Giants pick up five two-out runs. Big difference.
* Looks like Marlins pitcher Scott Olsen, already no favorite of the Phillies, isn't making any fans in Milwaukee.
2 comments:
Scott, you are the best writer in the whole world. Bonds is aq piece of crap as a human being.
I was checking out the game via Yahoo last night and it said he was ejected for arguing about a checked swing, my bad. That being said, Elmer Befuddled does not have the wherewithal to know that this potential out would lead to 5 runs. The guy can't even pull of the double switch properly during most games. At this point I'd take my chances with Davey Lopes. Too bad the owners will not pay Uncle Charlie to sit on the lazy boy eating pork rinds.
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