Saturday, June 24, 2006

Phillies drop two

It's been a tough few days for our Arden Hills Phillies. They have lost two games, first to the Giants 18-12 on Thursday, and to the Twins 11-5 this morning. A few quick notes.

The first loss to the Giants was especially disappointing, as the team struggled throughout against a team they had defeated handily earlier in the year. Pitching and defense were not at the usual level and it was a struggle throughout to catch up. The most interesting development of the game from this correspondent's perspective was that my son made his pitching debut. He came in the 6th inning and allowed one run, while getting 3 batters to ground out in the infield. Ben will not soon be confused with Roger Clemens, but his pitches were accurate and induced the Giant batters to hit routine grounders. Sometimes that works the best.

Today's game was a hard fought one, but a late Twins spurt spelled the difference. The Phillies and Twins had tied earlier in the season and this one was pretty much the same thing. Since the Twins players and the Phillies players are all classmates at Valentine Hills Elementary School, the kids and the parents know each other well and it's always an interesting game.

The two losses put the Phillies back below .500 at 6-7-2. The final game of the regular season takes place on Tuesday, a rematch against the Rockies at the dreaded Lily Pond in far Vadnais Heights. Game time is 6 p.m. Following the 4th of July break, the playoffs begin. Watch this space for updates!

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