On The Hill...

(35-21) 79 starts into his career with Philadelphia, the 6'3'' left-hander Cole Hamels, the Phillies' 1st Round pick, 17th overall in 2002, is (11-8) this season, his third, with a 3.13 ERA in 28 starts and 195.2 IP, over which he's allowed 159 hits, 68 ER, 24 HR, and 43 walks with 168 K's collected, a 1.03 WHIP and a .219 BAA on the year. The 24-year old has the 7th lowest ERA in the NL, thee lowest WHIP, 4th best K/BB ratio, second-lowest BAA, and the second-most innings pitched behind only the Mets' lefty Johan Santana. Put simply, Hamels is nasty. Against DC?

In 11 starts over three seasons, Hamels is (4-3) with a 2.25 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP and 77 K's in 72.0 innings, having allowed 57 hits, 19 runs, 18 earned, 17 walks and 9 HR's to the DC franchise, while holding the Nationals to a .214 BAA. Hamels is, however, (0-1) against Washington in 2 '08 starts, in spite of the fact that he, personally, has allowed just 9 hits and 1 run (on a HR) with 4 walks and 17 K's in 15.0 innings pitched, in games which the Nationals have won thanks to equally impressive starts by Tim Redding on April 2nd, and Jason Bergmann on May 20th, who matched Hamels all the way, with each starter throwing 7.0 scoreless before turning the game over to their respective pens...

DC lefty, John Lannan, a year younger than Hamels, at 23 years of age, an 11th Round pick out of Sienna College in the '05 Amateur Draft, is (0-1) in 2 starts against Philadelphia since his infamous debut in Philly, in which the young "Cool Hand(ed)" starter earned genuine "heat" from Phillies' fans by hitting both Chase Utley and Ryan Howard on the hands (breaking Utley's right) after the two had hit Lannan hard in earlier at bats. The Umpire thought it was intentional and so did Philly fans...(ed. note - "But seriously, how can any team with Kyle "Way Inside" Kendrick on their roster complaining about anyone hitting batters?")

Lannan's given up 10 ER's in 10.0 innings in those 2 starts against the Phillies, and 3 of the 15 hits he's allowed have left the yard, with Howard, Rollins and Werth all taking him deep. "Cool Hand" Lannan's one start against Philadelphia this season was here in DC, on July 31st, an 8-4 Philly win in which Lannan was tagged for 9 hits, 8 runs, 6 earned, the HR's to Rollins and Werth and 3 walks, while striking out 7 in 5.2 IP. In his last 10 starts, Lannan's (4-3) with the Nationals 4-6...

Nationals' #'s Against Cole Hamels...

Ronnie Belliard - 5 for 20, .250 AVG, 1 2B, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 6 K's. 

Jesus Flores - 1 for 11, .091 AVG, 7 K's.

Cristian Guzman - 3 for 8, .375 AVG. 

Lastings Milledge - 2 for 9, .222 AVG, 1 2B, 3 K's. 

Ryan Zimmerman - 9 for 43, .265 AVG, 2 HR's, 2 RBI's, 8 K's. 

Phillies' vs John "Cool Hand" Lannan...

Ryan Howard - 2 for 5, .400 AVG, 1 HR, 2 RBI's. 

Pedro Feliz - 2 for 3, .667 AVG. 

Jimmy Rollins - 3 for 7, .429 AVG, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI's.

Chase Utley - 3 for 5, .600 AVG, 1 RBI.

Shane Victorino - 2 for 5, .400 AVG. 

Jayson Werth - 1 for 3, .333 AVG, 1 HR, 1 RBI.

Quote Of The Day...

Mike Hinckley, recently called-up to the Nationals to MLB.com's Bill Ladson as quoted in an article entitled, "Resilient Hinckley turns career around", in which the left-handed reliever tells the MLB.com writer:

"'I went through a lot of injuries and things that were out of my control,' he said. 'I was trying to get back. It's great to be here, get out there and help my team win. It's great to know that you have a little extra -- you could blow it by the guy if you need to.'"

(Ed. Note)...

(ed. note - "Not sure what to make of DC GM Jim Bowden saying, in the same Bill Ladson article, that when it comes to Hinckley, "'Prior to me being here, he was the one guy I couldn't trade." Huh? Does that mean he has tried to trade Hinckley and couldn't? Or that someone in the organization told Bowden that Hinckley was the one person in the organization from before he arrived as GM that he "couldn't" trade?...

"So I checked in at the "Nationals Journal" where Chico Harlan cleared things up with a different recollection of Mr. Bowden's quote in a post entitled, "Comments galore on the call-ups", in which Mr. Harlan quotes the DC GM stating (about Hinckley):

"...prior to being here, he was the one guy I was told I couldn't trade when I first got here."

That's what I thought Bowden was saying...But who's speaking up for Hinckley? Who told Bowden that he couldn't trade someone? Asst. GM Mike Rizzo? Director of Scouting Dana Brown? I wonder?

Just for a tiebreaker, I looked around...but can't find the quote from GM Jim Bowden anywhere else on the web...")

And now for something a little different...

Question: What If The Nationals Had To Trade Ryan Zimmerman?, check out federalbaseball.com's FANPOST, "Hypothetical GM", which gives you the chance to make a virtual trade with the A's...It's a hypothetical excercise with an A's blogger...but What Do You Think The A's Would Have To Give DC To Get Ryan Zimmerman?

For A Phillies' Fans' Perspective On The Current Series, Check the SBN's Phillies' Blog:

The Good Phight

Check the NatCast if you're heading to Nationals Park...

I know it might not mean much to DC fans, but as an old Expos' fan, I can't tell you how nice it is to see the Hinckley's and Casto's of the world finally seeing the light of day...now if we just give Larry Broadway one shot...Just one? 7:10 pm EST start in DC's Nationals Park, the second of three with Philly. Seven-game win streak on the line. Lannan vs Hamels. Lefty vs Lefty. Who's Watching The Nationals?