Quick Stains: April 18th

I'm not usually the Phillies commentator on here. But, I was at the game so here goes nothing.

1. The Phillies had nothing. My illustrious blogging compatriot D. Page frequently claims victory in life because he "plays with more heart." Playing with heart can make the difference in baseball, with women, and anything else you can think of. Can you think of a big play the Phillies made that displayed pure heart this season. One of the very first posts on Stain Club was a tribute to Shane Victorino's heart. Now I see Jimmy Rollins go 0 for 6 in a game that was mostly tied or one run down. Those are games won by teams with heart.

2. Charlie Manuel is not a smart man. This may not be breaking news to dedicated Stain Club readers, but it really can't be said enough. Brett Myers looked confused out there. I was sitting in the upper deck and the confusion seemed palpable. Can anyone think of a #1 starter struggling over three games and getting moved to middle relief? Especially after going to the press with his eloquent chihuahua comparison. It just didn't make sense. I also greatly enjoyed Manuel jumping the gun on a pitching substitution before the batting matchup he wanted was actually in. Consequently, the Nats said just kidding and sent up a different guy. Genius.

3. I haven't had time to look over the game stats but when my friend suggests that we fire the coach and use the money to pay for a team psychologist... you know there's trouble.

4. Periodically I would predict strikeouts during key Phillies at bats. Not to jinx them, but I wanted to emphasize the inevitability of their offensive struggles. Same goes for the GIDP. My roommate and I pushed our psychic powers to the limit in an attempt to discern whether it would be 6-4-3 or 4-6-3.

5. Adam Eaton: Phillies hero? Earlier I mentioned the lack of heart. That was unfair to Mr. Eaton. Frequently knocked by Phillies fans as overpaid (this is almost certainly still true) and is seen as a marginal starter. Except for giving up a nasty three run jack, he pitched strong. He took a serious grounder off his pitching hand, but he wanted the ball and was not about to leave the mound. Additionally, he came back from one of the ugliest cuts I've ever seen (I would've looked better trying to chase that offspeed pitch) and nailed a key RBI double that almost instilled hope in my friends with Phillies loyalty.

6. What happened to Ryan Howard? Isn't he the reigning NL MVP? Is he not prominently featured as the officially sanctioned hero of the Stain Club? He was a total non-factor and his only memorable play was not paying attention during a botched pick-off attempt. If you see a picture of Adam Dunn in the Stain Club Hero's Circle you'll know D. Page has completely given up (he thinks Adam Dunn is junk. I disagree.)

7. Will the Phillies find the BPAS or will the trail of stains continue? All I know is after seeing the game tonight I've been mulling the possibility of taking off work to see a very winnable Nats game.