The Flyin’ Hawaiian
comes up big for the Phillies

In the Batter’s Box
By Matt Godfrey

The game of baseball can be funny at times.
A group of oversized men get paid — a lot, in some cases — to try to mash a small, round object as hard and as far as possible.
And, ironically, you’re considered the best at doing just that if you can successfully make contact three out of every ten times.
Lucky for us Philadelphians that our Phillies lineup is known as one of the most potent and powerful of those beasts in all of baseball.
When you look at the lineup you have Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Pat Burrell all leading the charge with their consistent power bats.
Jimmy Rollins, Jayson Werth and Pedro Feliz are not far behind when it comes to hitting the ball hard.
But Shane Victorino is not one of those guys you would call a "power hitter."
Though Victorino is one of the fastest and most energetic players in baseball, power is just not something he has in his repertoire.
I guess he took exception to that notion recently because he has been showcasing quite a bit of power over the last few weeks.
While his Phillies were struggling to keep pace in the division, Victorino decided to channel some of his ample energy into pure power to put the ball out of the park.
And put his team back on top of the National League East.
In the last 18 games he has hit seven homers, driven in 15 runs and also scored 15 runs.
That includes two homeruns in one game off of a strong Hall of Fame candidate in Randy Johnson.
His power surge has helped the Phillies go from a below-average stretch to posting a 7-1 record over the last eight games, not including the current Florida Marlins series.
He has also helped pick the Phillies up after the team had fallen behind the New York Mets in the standings.
While I am sure he will not be participating in any homerun contests anytime soon, Victorino’s recent power surge has to have opposing pitchers thinking that a long ball is not such a long shot when he is at the plate.
He also turns a lineup with an already ridiculous amount of power into a lineup with an even more ridiculous amount of power . . . something you can never have enough of in this game.
Speaking of power, can we say it?
Can we say "Welcome back, Brett Myers"?
Could it be that the once-unfocused and whiny Myers, who seemed content with being a bad starting pitcher in hopes of being able to return to his role as a good closer, has turned things around?
It certainly seems that way, with the amount of information we have to work with to date.
Myers, who was sent to the minor leagues before the all-star break, has returned to the majors with what seems a renewed confidence.
He came back with a rocky start against the Texas Rangers, in which it seemed that everyone bleeding Phillies red was nervous, to say the least. His next start, against the Washington Nationals, he seemed to be pitching much more confidently, but he also was pitching against the worst offensive team in baseball.
His third and most recent start came Sunday in the series finale against the more competent and offensively capable St. Louis Cardinals.
His confidence seemed to have risen with the occasion, since he held the lineup with the National League’s second-best batting average to only two runs over six solid innings.
Myers’ new rotation mate, Joe Blanton, another Phillies starter rumored to be on the cusp of a demotion, tossed a similar game the night before.
With the recent recall of rookie lefthander J. A. Happ, the Phillies had six starting pitchers on their roster and only five spots to fill.
The idea that most people are latching on to is that Happ would be used as a reliever to complement J.C. Romero, but manager Charlie Manuel says he views Happ as a starter.
While Happ’s role on the big-league roster has yet to be determined, Blanton and Myers are offering quite an argument for themselves to remain in the starting rotation.
If it is merely Happ’s presence on the roster that pushes the dynamic duo to such great heights, then I doubt anyone would mind if he just sat in the bullpen all season. ••