Rays top Phils, take two of three in WS rematch
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06/26/2009 - St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Willy Aybar went 3-for-4 with a homer and three runs batted in, as the Tampa Bay Rays routed the Phillies, 10-4, in the rubber match of a three-game set between last season's World Series participants.
Aybar started at third base in place of Evan Longoria, who was held out of the lineup for precautionary reasons because of recent hamstring stiffness.
Jason Bartlett went 2-for-5 with an RBI, extending his career-high hitting streak to a club-record 19 games. He broke the original record held by Quinton McCracken.
Ben Zobrist had two hits -- including a two-run homer -- while Carl Crawford doubled twice, walked, and drove in two for the Rays, who have won four of five overall. Former Phillie Pat Burrell had two hits and an RBI in the win.
Rays starter Andy Sonnanstine (6-7) gave up four runs in the first inning, but held the Phillies scoreless for the remainder of his 5 1/3-inning outing. In total, Sonnanstine allowed six hits, walked one and struck out seven.
"I thought he did a nice job as the game [went on], he settled in nicely, he made better pitches," Rays manager Joe Maddon said of Sonnanstine. "We've seen him do that this year...He's a professional, he settled himself down, and he put those zeros up and permitted us to come back."
The Phillies' early four-run lead evaporated as Philadelphia starter Antonio Bastardo (2-3) allowed six runs on seven hits and three walks in 3 2/3 frames, before he exited with an apparent injury.
Chad Durbin followed Bastardo and allowed three more runs in two innings, as the Phillies continued to struggle in interleague play. Since the most recent stretch began on June 12 they have lost 10 of 12 games, and been swept in two series (by Toronto and Baltimore).
Ryan Howard hit a two-run double for Philadelphia, while Pedro Feliz went 2- for-4 with an RBI.
The Phillies jumped on top in the first inning, when Greg Dobbs and Chase Utley hit consecutive one-out singles. Howard then blasted a ball deep to right-center field that bounced off the base of the wall, plating both runners.
Howard later scored on Matt Stairs' double, and Stairs crossed the plate on Feliz's RBI single.
But the Rays took over from there, getting three runs back in the bottom of the first. Burrell hit a two-out single and scored on Carlos Pena's double. Zobrist followed with a homer into the left field corner to make it a 4-3 game.
"We were focused. We came out, we got four runs tonight," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "The whole momentum of the game shifted when they put three [runs] back on the board...That's how the game goes, sometimes."
Aybar led off the second with a homer off the left field foul pole to even the contest, and Gabe Kapler followed with a double. Dioner Navarro's bloop single then put runners in scoring position with no outs.
After B.J. Upton popped out, Crawford plated a run with a double to left. Burrell hit a soft grounder back up the middle and was thrown out at first, but the play scored Navarro to give the Rays a 6-4 edge.
The Phillies wasted a scoring opportunity in the sixth when, with runners on the corners and one away, Eric Bruntlett hit a fly to center. Stairs aimed to tag up from third as Upton caught the ball, but Feliz ran all the way to second and was doubled up, ending the inning before Stairs crossed the plate.
The Rays then stole all the momentum, tacking on three runs in the home half. Bartlett had an RBI single, and Aybar followed with a two-run hit. Crawford's fielder's choice plated a run in the seventh to complete the scoring.
Game Notes
Phillies starting shortstop Jimmy Rollins was benched for Thursday's game because of recent poor play. Bruntlett started at short and went 0- for-4...McCracken had an 18-game hitting streak from August 18-September 9, 1998...Eight of Tampa Bay's 15 hits were for extra bases.
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The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.
New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).
The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. online football betting Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.
Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.
Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.
The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.
Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.
The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.
Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.
However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).
The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.
Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.
In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.
Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.
Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.
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