Yahoo! Sports

Philadelphia Phillies

35-38,
3rd NL East

Jump to a team Other Teams

Phillies Team Report

Yahoo! Sports - 3 hours, 56 minutes ago

Inside Pitch
Notes, Quotes
Roster Report

So far, 2013 has been a year of starts and stops for Carlos Ruiz.

After serving a 25-game suspension, the catcher came back and played three weeks before suffering a left hamstring strain that placed him back on the bench for another four to six weeks.

So when the time came for Ruiz to return this time around, he was going to make sure that the timing and his health were absolutely perfect.

"The two rehab games that I played, I (didn't) feel anything," Ruiz said before Philadelphia's 4-2 win over the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night. "I was almost running normal, you know. But at the same time, you try to recover and you try not to go crazy. I needed to be 100 percent and now I feel good."

One of the dilemmas that having Ruiz back presents, however, is the question of where to put him in the batting order. He was one of the Phillies' leading RBI guys in 2012 when he was selected to his first All-Star Game.

However, manager Charlie Manuel decided to hit Ruiz in the eighth spot to try to break him in a little slower.

"My thinking was to put him down there (in the No. 8 hole) and let him get some at-bats," the manager said. "On nights we have a good night he'll get four at-bats. On nights we aren't getting runs he'll get three, probably. We'll see where he's at."

For his part, Ruiz isn't too worried about getting his offense going. At this rate, his biggest contribution could be controlling a pitching staff that seems to have been up and down all season long.

"Today, I feel great," Ruiz said. "I don't want to think about (at-bats). Just one at-bat at a time. Sometimes, you get your timing back right away. Maybe you don't have it. For me, I go up there and play good defense, call a good game and win the game."

Record:

35-38

Streak:

Lost one

Past 10 Games:

4-6

NEXT: Friday—Mets (Jimmy Hefner, 1-6, 3.96) at Phillies (Cole Hamels, 2-10, 4.40)

Player Notes:

2B Chase Utley, out since May 20 with a strained oblique, was hitless in four at-bats as he began a rehab assignment at Double-A Reading on Wednesday. Manager Charlie Manuel said that if all goes well Utley will be activated Friday or Saturday during the Phillies' series against the Mets. Utley is hitting .272 with seven homers and 25 RBIs in 44 games this season.
LHP Cole Hamels, Friday's starter, absorbed a 5-2 loss in his last start, June 16 at Colorado. Hamels allowed three runs on six hits over seven innings, striking out seven and walking two. He is 6-10 with a 4.20 ERA in 22 career starts against the Mets.
RHP Kyle Kendrick allowed a run on two hits over 7 2/3 innings but took a no-decision in Wednesday's 6-2, 11-inning loss to Washington. Kendrick, who has yielded two earned runs or fewer in 10 of his 15 starts this season, retired 16 straight hitters at one point. He struck out six, walked one and recorded 13 ground-ball outs.
3B Michael Young went 2-for-5 with a two-run homer Wednesday. Young's homer was his third of the season and raised his career RBI total to 1,001. He became the 19th active player to drive in more than 1,000, and the 242nd in major league history to reach that milestone since RBI became an official statistic in 1920.
CF Ben Revere went 1-for-5 to run his hitting streak to 10 games. Revere is hitting .391 (18-for-46) in that span to raise his average from .244 to .272.
2B Kevin Frandsen went 0-for-3 and saw his six-game hitting streak come to an end. Frandsen, who likely will be relegated to the bench when 2B Chase Utley returns, is hitting .274.

Quote To Note:

"That's a tough one to swallow. To get beat by two infield hits and a walk, that's a tough one to swallow."

—Closer Jonathan Papelbon, who blew his second save in three nights Wednesday.

Medical Watch:

LHP Jeremy Horst (strained left elbow) was placed on the disabled list June 17, retroactive to June 16.
2B Chase Utley (grade 1 right oblique strain) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 21. He began taking batting practice June 14. He began a rehab assignment June 19 at Double-A Reading. Manager Charlie Manuel said that if all goes well Utley will be activated June 21 or 22 during the Phillies' series against the Mets.
C Erik Kratz (torn medial meniscus in left knee) went on the 15-day disabled list June 9. He had surgery June 12 and he is out until late July or early August.
RHP Roy Halladay (torn rotator cuff, strained labrum, bone spur in right shoulder) went on the 15-day disabled list May 6, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on May 24. He underwent surgery May 15.