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Phillies Notes: Playing time tough for Taguchi to get
By Todd Zolecki
Inquirer Staff Writer
Jul 24, 2008
NEW YORK - So Taguchi is no fool. His clutch pinch-hit double Tuesday helped the Phillies to a dramatic 8-6 victory over the New York Mets at Shea Stadium. But Taguchi doesn't expect one hit to persuade manager Charlie Manuel to put him in the Phils' lineup.
"Nothing has changed," Taguchi said, smiling.
He remains the fifth outfielder in a four-outfielder rotation. He knows that Pat Burrell will play every day in left field. He knows that Shane Victorino is the centerfielder. And he knows that Jayson Werth and Geoff Jenkins will continue to platoon in right field.
So he knows he must continue to wait and hope for the best with very limited opportunities to hit - and that's not easy.
Taguchi hasn't started since June 1 against Florida. He had just five at-bats in June, and entered last night's game against the Mets with just five at-bats in July.
That's 10 at-bats since May 31.
"It's kind of a tough season," Taguchi said. "But this is a good experience for me, I think. It's totally different from last year. I need a different approach. I have to find my way in this situation."
Taguchi had 306 or more at-bats in the previous three seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals. He hit .282 in that span, and led the majors with a .407 average as a pinch-hitter last year.
He has had just 68 at-bats this season, a pace that would have him finish with just 110. That could explain why he is just 1 for 17 as a pinch-hitter.
"I realize he got 300 at-bats" in St. Louis, Manuel said. "It's been tough finding playing time for him, but it doesn't mean he can't go in and play."
In other words, nothing has changed.
Maybe, maybe not General manager Pat Gillick said it "sounds like somebody's dreaming" Tuesday when asked about the rumored blockbuster that would have netted the Phillies outfielder Matt Holliday and lefthander Brian Fuentes from Colorado.
The Phillies also have had interest in Pittsburgh outfielder Xavier Nady (.327 with 12 home runs and 56 RBIs) and lefthander Damaso Marte (4-0 with a 3.55 ERA in 46 appearances). But it appears that if the Phillies make any deal before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, it will be for bullpen help. Holliday and Nady are unlikely at this point.
Sticking with it Manuel had Chase Utley batting third and Ryan Howard fourth 88 times in the team's first 99 games. But in the last two games, he has had Utley batting second, Burrell third, and Howard fourth.
"Burrell's been hitting good, and I wanted to split [Utley and Howard] up because of the lefties they'll bring in on us," Manuel said.
The Mets have three lefthanders in the bullpen: Billy Wagner , Pedro Feliciano and Scott Schoeneweis , which also was why Manuel had Greg Dobbs bat fifth, Victorino sixth and Jenkins seventh. Manuel said he could keep this lineup if the Phillies' offense caught fire.
"I might stick with it all the way," he said. "You never know."
That's a long time The Phillies have been in first place in the National League East for 53 consecutive days. That's their longest stretch since 2001, when they were in first for 78 consecutive days (April 10 to June 26).
Don't run on me The Phils lead the National League with 24 outfield assists. Only the Minnesota Twins have more (26).
Burrell is second in the league with nine. Jenkins and Victorino each have five, Werth has four, and T.J. Bohn has one.
Everybody's watching Comcast SportsNet's telecast of Tuesday's dramatic 8-6 victory over the Mets delivered the highest-rated game on the network this season. Its 8.5 rating was the second-highest rated program on broadcast or cable in the Philadelphia region between 7 and 10:30 p.m., with 253,000 households tuned in. The game peaked with a 12.3 rating (366,000 households) at 10 p.m. as the Phillies rallied in the ninth inning to take the lead.
Contact staff writer Todd Zolecki at 215-854-4874
or tzolecki@phillynews.com .
Read his blog at http://go.philly.com/phillieszone .
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