A Few More Thoughts

So the pitching battle has heated up even more. While Jamie Moyer struggled again, JA Happ and Pedro Martinez continued to gain ground in the race for the final rotation spot. Moyer has one thing going for him: he's uselessness in the bull pen. The Phillies know what his stuff is, and frankly, it's nothing special anymore. The team also doesn't want to lose his knowledge and leadership so they don't want to cut him entirely loose.

Moyer's fastball hits 81 MPH tops. That is ridiculously slow and a lot slower than the 83-85 he hit the past few years. This makes his 73 MPH change up a lot less effective. Hitters have a much easier time sitting on the change up or catching up to the fast ball to fight it off when guessing wrong. As much as the crowd loves Moyer, he's done.

Happ pitched probably the best outing any Phillies pitcher had all year. He went the distance, shutting out the Rockies, only allowing four hits and two walks with 10 strike outs. He improved to 8-2 and his ERA dropped to a 2.74.

Martinez moved one step closer to being major league ready, going six innings and striking out 11 in his third and probably final AA rehab start. The 37-year old also allowed four runs, three earned.