Lee Dominates, Flyers Hold a Fire Sale

Welcome back to another round of Phour for Phour!

This week will take a look at Cliff Lee throwing back-to-back-to-back shutouts, the Flyers making headlines by trading their team captain and Oswalt being back on the disabled list.

We also want to point out that it was "Winner's Weekend" for Patch readers, as five readers who won tickets to a Phillies game got to see Halladay dominate the A's, and another pair of readers watched the Union stink up the first half, only to have them play their best ball of the season in the second.

Be on the lookout next week for another pair of free Phillies tickets, but until then, let's get down to business.

Game on!

The Good

Back to Back

Cliff Lee seems to have knocked off the rust, as he put together back-to-back-to-back complete game shutouts for the first time in his career.

The last person in the MLB to throw back-to-back shutouts was Roy Halladay as a Blue Jay on Sept. 30, 2009.  Before that?  None other than Roy Oswalt, who nailed his second complete game shutout in a row on Sept. 11, 2008 with the Houston Astros.

In accomplishing this feat, Lee joins Halladay and Hamels in the sub-3 ERA club, and he leads the league in shutouts.

Question:  How long can Lee keep the shutout streak alive?

Mollie Jane

Patch reader Jackie Barger won a pair of Phillies tickets last month, and decided on taking her husband Ed and four-month-old daughter Mollie Jane to the June 26 matchup against the Oakland A's.

Fortunately for little Mollie, Roy Halladay was pitching during her first visit to Citizens Bank Park, so losing wasn't a likely outcome.

Be sure to check out the accompanying photo gallery to get a glimpse of the Phillies newest fan!

Question:  How old was your son or daughter when he or she went to his or her first Phillies game?

The Bad

Lil Roy version 2.0

Last week we speculated that the clock may have run out on Roy Oswalt, who left his heart in Mississippi following a tragic string of devastating tornados.  This week, we're updating the story to include another shelling and a new DL stint.

After getting destroyed by the Cardinals in only two innings, Oswalt left the game with a bulging disc in his back.  Throughout his career, Oswalt has always battled injuries, but this season's injuries are more severe, and come at a time when he's already stressed emotionally.

The performance of Halladay, Lee and Hamels will help offset the loss, but get used to seeing Vance Worley as a starter. 

Question:  Have we seen the last of Oswalt?

The Ugly

Two Fly the Coop

The Flyers made headlines last week, trading the team's best scorer and their team captain — both in the same day.

Now that the draft has taken place and things have begun to simmer, fans are desperately trying to make lemonade out of lemons.

On the upside, the Flyers picked up a franchise goalie in Bryzgalov, a stud minor leaguer in Brayden Schenn, a plus-player in Voracek, and a high draft pick, which they used to select Sean Couturier.

On the down side, they Flyers lost their best scorer in Carter, and their team captain in Richards.  What about Bobrovsky?  Wasn't he going to be our franchise goalie?

I can understand the Carter trade, as he's a notorious under-performer when it comes to playoff time, but cutting Richards makes far less sense.  Just a few years ago he signed a monster contract as the new face of the Flyers, and now, after a collapse to Boston, he's gone.

It seems a bit kneejerk.

Bobby Clarke believes the Flyers are better today than they were a week ago, but that's quite a stretch.  In the long run, they may come out on top, but in the short term, these moves may set the team back a bit.

Question:  What are your thoughts on the trades of Carter and Richards?

Quote of the Week

"Really starting to get annoyed by everyone keep saying to me that "it's just business." - former Flyer Mike Richards via Twitter.

Video of the Week

This never gets old.

Looking Forward

This Phillies face off against the Red Sox at home before heading to Canada for the three game series against the Blue Jays.

Wednesday: Phillies versus Red Sox, 7:05 p.m. on CSN and ESPN2

Thursday: Phillies versus Red Sox, 1:05 p.m. on CSN and MLB

Friday: Phillies at Toronto, 1:07 p.m. on CSN

Saturday: Phillies at Toronto, 1:07 p.m. on CSN; Union at D.C. United, 7 p.m. on FSC

Sunday: Phillies at Toronto, 1:07 p.m. on PHL 17

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