Myers Dominates Mets In 3-0 Win

Posted by Tim Malcolm, Sat, September 06, 2008 08:16 AM

Brett Myers threw possibly the best game of his career (given the importance, stage and outing) as the Phillies defeated the Mets 3-0 at Shea Stadium Friday night.

Myers threw 81 strikes in 118 pitches, allowing just three hits (all doubles) and two walks (one intentional) in eight innings. He struck out 10. He hit the strike zone early and often. His curve was devastating. Mets hitters had no answer. Frankly, Myers has become a dominant pitcher, and considering the only pitchers with a better (or equal) post-trade deadline resume are CC Sabathia and Rich Harden, Myers has become one of the majors’ best arms. In two months.

The Phillies scored a run in the first off Mike Pelfrey (who pitched well, also). Shane Victorino singled, stole second, advanced to third on an error and scored on a Chase Utley groundout. Then in the seventh, Greg Dobbs slammed a huge two-run home run. That was enough. After Myers’ outing, Brad Lidge had nails biting before securing his 34th save in as many chances.

But make no mistake, this game was all about Myers, who has completely turned it around. He now has a 4.19 ERA, an ERA+ of 106. If Myers continues being sharp with his curveball — which Chris Coste compared to the changeup thrown by Cole Hamels and Johan Santana — it’s very possible he will be the ace we always predicted.

Associated Press photo

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41 Responses to “Myers Dominates Mets In 3-0 Win”

  1. mikemike Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 8:43 am

    If the phillies in the off season let moyer go and take that money for burnett or sheets, we would have hamel sheet or burnett plus myers and happ with kendrick or blanton that would be a good rotation.

  2. phils50+ Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 8:47 am

    First time blogger. This is the first website I check in with each day. Outstanding writing style, Tim. Myers was indeed awesome last night. Keeping Reyes off the bases is key. It was a playoff style, edge of your seat game! Howard was very good defensively last night (I cringe when the ball is hit his way). Lidge was not lights out but we got the W.

  3. adam Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 8:47 am

    that would be nice, i’ll tell you what, myers performance has just been impressive and after the way he struggled earlier it makes you appreciate his effort all the more

  4. Fred Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 8:52 am

    Does anyone actually think the Phils will spend the necessary cash to get a top-of-the-line pitcher? They’re need to find a lot more cash than Moyer’s if they going to make a splash. Perhaps Moyer’s and Burrell’s money?

  5. KM Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 9:12 am

    Burrell’s money should be close to enough to sign a Burnett or a Sheets. I prefer Burnett – Sheets is injury riddled, plus he would probably cost more money.

    1 down, 2 to go. I have confidence in Moyer tonight(weather permitting), I just hope the bats show up.

  6. Jim Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 9:28 am

    They don’t need a frontline pitcher for the most part. If Carrasco is half of what he’s supposed to be you can run with Hamels, Myers, Blanton, Happ/Carrasco/Kendrick.

    You need to either re-sign Burrell and/or pick up a quality corner outfield bat.

    I think thats how you spend Gordon and Burrell’s money. Also, they should just cut ties with Eaton and Jenkins. Werth has proved that he can play everyday in right field.

  7. Bigbob Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 9:39 am

    Myers had Becket-caliber stuff out there last night. Best I’ve ever seen him, and fun to watch. But the key to gaining a playoff spot, I think, will be the way that Charlie uses his relievers. There was a good discussion the other day on phillliesnation about Romero being the best 8th inning guy. It made a lot of sense: make Durbin the 6th and 7th innning guy and JC the setup man.

  8. KM Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 9:39 am

    Well, if we lose Burrell and pick up a speedy outfield contact bat who rarely strikes out, i.e. Juan Pierre, I think we will be alright. We have enough power without Burrell in the lineup, so acquiring a speedy contact player would not only aid the power bats in the lineup, but it would be cheaper, allowing us to spend money in the places we need it in the offseason.

  9. VA Steve Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 10:14 am

    The key to any successful pitching effort is first strikes. Myers was outstanding in this category last night. Keep it up.

    Regarding Moyer, Phillies need to keep him, if for nothing else make him the pitching coach. You have to love this guy and his ability to “pitch.” He does not have great stuff, but gives great effort with very good results. All of our young pitchers could learn a lot from him.

  10. Derek Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 10:33 am

    Can someone tell me what ERA+ is? I saw Myers now has a ERA+ of 106….what does that mean?

  11. Anth Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 10:39 am

    Great game, lets keep the Mets off the scoreboard. Another good question is how much will Hanna play a role in the series this weekend?

  12. Derek Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 10:42 am

    I was reading an SI article and came across this…..any thoughts anyone

    “The free agent game is such a tricky one, and so many GMs have been burned by it. Towers said the one GM who plays it best is Pat Gillick because Gillick thoroughly researches everyone he pursues. ”

    That Towers is the Padres GM

  13. Bear Mike Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 10:54 am

    Brett Myers – Phenomenal job last night! Great way to start this series. Phillies must win 2 of 3. This upcoming week is going to be very difficult. Here is some food for thought:

    Free agents for 2009: Starting pitchers
    Kris Benson (33)
    A.J. Burnett (32) – can opt out after ‘08 season
    Paul Byrd (38)
    Roger Clemens (46)
    Matt Clement (33)
    Bartolo Colon (36)
    Ryan Dempster (32)
    Shawn Estes (36)
    Josh Fogg (32)
    Freddy Garcia (33)
    Jon Garland (29)
    Tom Glavine (43)
    Mike Hampton (36)
    Mark Hendrickson (35)
    Livan Hernandez (34)
    Orlando Hernandez (43)
    Jason Jennings (30)
    Randy Johnson (45)
    John Lackey (30) – $9MM club option for ‘09 with a $0.5MM buyout
    Jon Lieber (39)
    Kyle Lohse (30)
    Braden Looper (34)
    Rodrigo Lopez (33) – club option for ‘09
    Derek Lowe (36)
    Greg Maddux (43)
    Pedro Martinez (37)
    Jamie Moyer (46)
    Mark Mulder (31) – $11MM club option for ‘09 with a $1.5MM buyout
    Mike Mussina (40)
    Carl Pavano (33) – $13MM club option for ‘09 with a $1.95MM buyout
    Brad Penny (31) – $8.75MM club option for ‘09 with a $2MM buyout
    Odalis Perez (32)
    Oliver Perez (27)
    Andy Pettitte (37)
    Sidney Ponson (32)
    Mark Prior (27)
    Kenny Rogers (44)
    C.C. Sabathia (28)
    Curt Schilling (42)
    Ben Sheets (30)
    John Smoltz (42)
    Tim Wakefield (42) – perpetual $4MM club option
    Kip Wells (32)
    Randy Wolf (32)

  14. Tim Malcolm Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 11:10 am

    Derek: ERA+ is the ratio of ERA against the league. An ERA+ of 100 is league average. Below is below-average; above is above-average. So Myers’ ERA+ of 106 is above average. When sent down, it was at 76.

  15. Derek Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 11:18 am

    Thanks Tim

  16. NJ Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 11:58 am

    Can anyone find anywhere to see highlights of that ‘play’ in the field by Burrell?

  17. Geoff Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 12:01 pm

    theyre not going to spend the money for a top line pitcher unless they undergo a fundamental change in philosophy. they will resign burrell. but their philosophy is not to spend top money on STARTING pitching, period. even brett myers is signed cheaply compared to the market now. they probably wont even resign cole hamels or brett myers. they NEED TO CHANGE THEIR PHILOSPHY. pat gillick, ed wade and ruben amaro did not believe in spending money on top tier pitching. theyll spend money on offense, but they wont on ryan howard.

    brett myers needs to be resigned in the middle of next season if he shows stability down the strech and into next year. i think hamels needs to be resigned, however, i also think hamels will have a major injury next season or the season after if he does not train for improved stamina. so caution is needed.

  18. mikemike Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 12:05 pm

    Geoff Says how many blog are you going to say the same thing on we get it hamel will get hurt. Now go and take you nap kids your age should take a nap. and drink there milk/

  19. Geoff Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 12:06 pm

    what was that garbage? it was totally incoherent.

  20. NEPA Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 12:08 pm

    mikemike, what language was that?

  21. Tommy A Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 12:29 pm

    Hey mikemike — here’s an idea: Try reading what you write before you post it you lazy putz.

    Otherwise you come off sounding like a Nxjys7a59d dh40ltxi (in other words, makes no sense).

    Get my drift????

  22. NJ Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 12:31 pm

    The Phils don’t ‘need’ to sign a frontline starter like the entire future of the franchise rests on it like some here suggest. Moyer will be re-signed so unless Kendrick is beat out by Carrasco or Happ our rotation will look the same going into next season.

    Sheets is he the guy we really want to head the rotation? I think the Phils will be well placed signing a frontline starter and sending Kendrick to AAA to develop his repetoire but I don’t see it happening. Houston, Texas and a few other pitching starved teams are going to throw a lot of money and years at him and I don’t think a deal of around 50/3 would do because those other teams will go to 5/6 year options at the minimum to get him. An interesting 1/2 year pick-up if he isn’t snapped up would be Garland but the Phils most of all need know what their doing with Carrasco and the controlability of the pen needs to be stablized.

    If the Phils can get someone to slot in before Hamels and Myers great but is there really anyone on the market who stands out? I think a lot of people are falling on love with Sheets a little too much, he’s great when he’s on the mound at 110% but your going to get 2 or 3 extended periods when he’s very beatable or worse cannot take the mound. Is our bullpen set up to protect a guy like that?

  23. NJ Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 12:36 pm

    *To throw into the discussion Drabek’s back and healthy.

    so Carrasco, Happ, Drabek, Savery, Bastardo, Naylor, Carpenter, Edgar Garcia… Where are these guys going to fit in or are we going to continue to undersell prospects as trade bait?

  24. Geoff Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 12:58 pm

    yeah they wont get sheets or sabathia or even burnett. lowe is too old to throw a lot of money at, but im still not convinced moyer will return so lowe as a 4 or a 5 is ok. hes had a good year, and may want to leave it at that. so if he leaves you have to hire him as apitching coach, hed be WAAAAAAAAAAY better than rich dubee. hes perfect for that role actually. perfect. blanton, kendrick, are the 4 and the 5. i dunno they gotta trade for someone if they cant sign one. you need beastly pitching.

    now, myers may become the ace hes supposed to become. but you CANNOT bank it all on that. thats their mistake this year. it took until recently for him to come around. it cost them dearly.

  25. Phil Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 1:02 pm

    Moyer will be resigned…

  26. Geoff Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 1:14 pm

    carrasco or happ will probably surpass kendrick next year actually

  27. Phil Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 1:19 pm

    Next years rotation

    Hamels
    Myers
    Blanton
    Moyer
    Kendrick/Happ/Carrasco

  28. NJ Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 1:21 pm

    Myers is slotted to open next year in the same role as this year, unless things change dramatically it’s a foregone conclusion. Moyer and the Phils is a perfect marriage, he’ll want to stay in Penn and the Phils will offer enough for him to return without denting the payroll.

    Lowe would be a great pick-up and would have been at the deadline if he was available. Hamles/Myers/Blanton/Lowe/Moyer would be painful to face. LV is a poor team and I wouldn’t have any objections to Happ/Carrasco/Kendrick honing their stuff next year with a decent support staff ready to fill the empty spaces the following year with the departure of Myers and Moyer.

  29. Geoff Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 1:29 pm

    thats just not good enough, to have this be the same rotation

    with all due respect to moyer, you need somebody to go 7 innings REGULARLY. he goes 4 or 5 half the time and blanton and kendrick do that too. really, they wont be any good at all with the same rotation. even if blanton improves and myers is what hes supposed to be, thats STILL not enough. you need INNNINGS. having just one more guy can help that. otherwise the bullpen will wear down again.

  30. NJ Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 1:30 pm

    come on you cant say that… That’s like saying:
    Hamels
    Myers/Sheets/Burnett
    Blanton
    Moyer/Happ
    Kendrick/Carrasco/Durbin/Carrasco/JD Durbin/Rich Dubee/Santana Claus/Mr T (and the longmans a toss up between Adam Eaton, Carl Pavano and Michael Jordan)

    Unless major chanes happen the rotations pretty much set unless the new reigm is willing to send down Kendrick in which it’s Happ. Carrasco is going to have to go some to make the opening day rotation.

  31. NJ Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 1:36 pm

    Geoff the innings our starters are pitching is pretty comparable around the league, the reason the pen has been taxed in unexpected relief is the instability with the 2 spot.

    What do you mean Happ/Carrasco will surpass Kendrick? Their not experimenting with Kendrick at the back of the rotation hoping he’ll blossom into a top of the rotation pitcher.

  32. Geoff Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 1:36 pm

    i just think that moyer and kendrick are UNACCEPTABLE as the 4 or the 5 BECAUSE blanton is wildly inconsistent. he can go 8 and allow 1 run or go 4 and allow 7 runs, AND it doesnt matter against which team either. completley random. having him as your 4 or 5 isnt really that bad. but kendrick even in his good starts routinely goes 4,5,6 innings. and moyer usually doesnt go more either. that KILLS the bullpen over a long season. yu just need more than that. mr t goes 8 innings regularly, thatd be nice.

  33. Geoff Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 1:38 pm

    i think one of happ or carrasco will take his 5th spot next year. UNLESS kendrick seriously improves

  34. KM Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 5:27 pm

    this team will never sign a frontline starter because:
    - it is not their philosophy to spend a lot of money on ANYONE
    - it is not their philosophy to spend top dollar on pitching
    - any pitcher that would come here would have to be overpaid to play in this ballpark and it is clear they will not do that
    - they are stuck dealing with the failed signings of previous years

    I am sure there are a hundred more reasons, but they all come back to this organization being cheap.

    I think we shouldn’t worry about improving the pitching next year, because this organization sure won’t. The only pitcher out there worth the money is going to be Sabathia, and it is laughable to think the Phillies will have a chance to get him(although they will lie, and say that they chased hard after him ala Manny Ramirez, CC Sabathia, etc.). I am more worried about the amount of strikeouts in the order, and how we can improve that going into next year.

  35. » Myers Comes Up Big as Phillies Shut Out Mets | Blogging-Baseball.com Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 6:16 pm

    [...] Phillies Nation’s Tim Malcolm offers these additional comments on Myers’ performance;  He struck out 10. He hit the strike zone early and often. His curve was devastating. Mets hitters had no answer. Frankly, Myers has become a dominant pitcher, and considering the only pitchers with a better (or equal) post-trade deadline resume are CC Sabathia and Rich Harden, Myers has become one of the majors’ best arms. [...]

  36. Mark Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 6:16 pm

    Way to go Myers. Go Get ‘Um in Sunday’s doubleheader/

  37. KM Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 6:41 pm

    I agree with Tim on what Myers has done LATELY, but would I EVER put him the in same category as Sabathia – absolutely not. Myers has pitched well his last 5 or 6 starts, but Sabathia has poise and is a cy young caliber arm. Myers has been fine lately, but he has been hit around and got out of trouble, which hopefully shows that he . Sabathia is constantly pitching 4 hit or less complete game shutouts, while Myers pitches 7-8 innings of 10 hit ball.

    I don’t want to take away from what Myers has done recently, he has been great. He has been hit around a bit, but he keeps teams off the scoreboard, and that’s what really counts.

  38. mikemike Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 6:43 pm

    I still can’t believe that the phillies think blanton is a good starting pitcher. I know they will control him at a low salary, but he just gives up too many hits and runs. He is to me know better than kendrick, but with kendrick there is still hope he develops a third pitch. The announcers and mitch williams say he needs to have a good changeup to lefthand bats. Hopefully that will happen. But for this team to go all the way they must get a top starter.the money is there . They have to change there ways.They need to pay the money ace starter command if they want a world series/

  39. mikemike Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 6:49 pm

    Tommy A . You are right. My writing was bad, its just when I see someone talk stupid like Geoff it makes me so mad especially that he goes on all the blogs with the same stupid remarks.

  40. Richie Allen Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 7:18 pm

    Boy thank god we signed Kris Benson this year….the only thing good about that fiasco were pictures of his wife..

  41. Richie Allen Says:
    September 6th, 2008 at 7:19 pm

    And the phillies went for Blanton because he was CHEAP…same old story

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