Phillies' Bullpen Shuts Down Astros for Fourth Straight

Phils manager Larry Bowa says when a team is going well, luck just seems to follow it. But when a team is playing poorly, everything that goes wrong just gets compounded even more.

"Good teams make their own luck," the Phils skipper said after a come-from-behind victory over the Colorado Rockies last Saturday. "When you lose, you don't get any breaks."

	Tomas Perez slides in for the go-ahead run on a wild pitch, Tuesday night . (AP)

Right about now, following a 7-4 win over the Houston Astros Tuesday night in Veterans Stadium, the Phils' bullpen is using a good, old combination of luck and skill. The five-headed monster of Cliff Politte, Hector Mercado, Carlos Silva (earned first major league win), Ricky Bottalico and Jose Mesa shut the Astros down for five innings, allowing no runs or hits and just two walks as the team won its fourth straight.

"Doing the job is contagious for everybody," said Politte, who pitched for the first time in 13 games and struck three in two innings. "We've learned not to put pressure on ourselves."

At the same time, the bullpen has pitched 16 1/3 innings, dating back to May 1, without allowing a run. This month, the bullpen has compiled a 0.49 ERA, which is a far cry from the 5.08 ERA it put together during a rough April in which the Phils lose a franchise record for the month.

"Sometimes one outing does it," Bowa said. "I don't have an answer."

It helps when the bats get moving, too. The Phils batted around and broke a 4-4 tie with three runs in the seventh thanks to some breaks and savvy base running. They plated the go-ahead run when Tomas Perez led off with a double, moved to third on a ground out and scored on a wild pitch by reliever Hipolito Pichardo (losing pitcher, 0-1). After Doug Glanville singled and stole second, Bobby Abreu walked setting up a double steal of second and third. Rolen was intentionally walked to load the bases, which allowed Travis Lee to stroke a two-run single to left to cap off the night's scoring.

"If we keep swinging those bats, anything can happen," said shortstop Rollins, who went 2-for-4 with a double and triple. "Lately, we've been seeing the remnants of last year."

Still, whether Bowa or anyone can find the answers, it was the bullpen's night. Its new-found effectiveness helped the team not only break a 4-4 tie with the three-run seventh, but it has the team's offense feeling confident that once it gets a lead it will keep it.

"You feel real good because you know if you get a lead, it's going to be awful tough for the other team to come back against you," Rollins said.

That wasn't the case during April, however. After finishing fourth in the National League with a 3.88 ERA and keeping the team in the hunt for the NL East title until Game 159, the Phils 'pen coughed up 10 leads as the team fell to dead last.

This month it's night-and-day. Bowa credits it to sticking with the same veterans who frustrated him throughout the season's first month.

"I had to keep going with guys who did it last year," Bowa said. "They did a good job. We still have to get back to .500. We have a long way to go."

But that trip doesn't seem as long and arduous as it once did. Buoyed by the four-game winning streak, the team has the same spring in its step that it had last May when it jumped out to an eight-game lead on the rest of the NL East. With the pitching and wins have come nearly six runs per game as the team, at 13-19, is within five games of the first-place Montreal Expos.

Not that anyone will admit that they are remembering the bad times.

"We don't live in the past," said Travis Lee, who drove home two key runs in the game-breaking seventh. "We just have to show up again tomorrow and play good baseball."

But with the way the Phillies came out swinging, it didn't appear that this game would be won with relief pitching. Scott Rolen drove home a run in the first and then a three-run second, highlighted by Pat Burrell's lead-off homer and triples by Marlon Anderson and Rollins made it 4-1.

Starter Terry Adams just could get it done.

Perhaps the best example of how good things are going is the fact that Bowa was complimentary of Adams, who failed to get into the fifth inning. Still winless as a Phillie, Adams saw fours all over the place during his outing. The right-hander allowed four runs (two earned), four hits, four walks and left with the game tied at 4 during his four-inning stint.

Adams' problem, according to Bowa, was that he had to warm up twice before the second inning because of a 23-minute rain delay in the bottom of the first. Still learning his way after working as a reliever for six-and-a-half of his seven previous years in the Bigs, Adams' stamina isn't quite there.

"He probably threw harder than he has all year but warming up twice really took a lot out of him," Bowa said.

Adams allowed a first-inning run on a two-on, one-out ground out by Lance Berkman, another in the third on a no-out double by Berkman and two more in fourth set up by his two-out throwing on a dribbler hit by Brad Ausmus that brought in Julio Lugo and allowed Orlando Merced to knock one in with a single.

For the Astros, Shane Reynolds lasted six innings allowing four runs and seven hits. Pichardo took the loss by giving up the runs in the seventh in just a third of an inning.

"The ball can bounce any way," Rollins prophesized. "There is a lot of luck in this game."

The Phils and Astros play the middle game of the three-game set Wednesday night when Brandon Duckworth (2-2, 5.06) tries to make it two in a row against Tim Redding (1-2, 8.18). Last time out, Duckworth earned a 3-2 win over the Rockies by pitching 6 1/3 and allowing two runs.

Redding will make his fourth start of the season and first in his career against the Phillies on Wednesday. In 11 innings, the right-hander has allowed 10 earned runs and 15 hits. However, Redding looked sharp his last time out. Against the Expos, he went six innings and retired the last 10 batters he faced for his first win.

Notes: Five of Burrell's seven homers have come at the Vet. ... Abreu walked four times, Tuesday night, and is the first Phillie to walk four times in a game since he did it against Milwaukee on July 4, 1998. ... The Phils made three errors. ... Astros' first baseman Jeff Bagwell had the night off, and Merced took his spot in the lineup.

John R. Finger
ComcastSportsNet.com