Or maybe Cinco Ocho said that.

Well, we know one of them picked up their National League-leading 12th save in tonight’s 6-4 victory over the Red Sox. Papelbon tried to downplay the fact he faced and beat his former team for the first time. Asked if the night felt any differently, he said, “There was a little extra buzz in the ballpark tonight, a weekend game. But other than that, no.” Asked later if he planned to send any text messages to his former teammates, he said, “No. We’ve got to win the series.”

Papelbon is a focused man, but that could be said for the entire team. The Phillies are 7-1 since Charlie Manuel held a team meeting May 9. The offense is averaging 5.4 runs per game in that stretch. They are hitting .286/.364/.473. The pitching staff has a 2.84 ERA. Starters have a 2.41 ERA, while relievers have a 4.24 ERA (remove Jake Diekman‘s effort Thursday in Chicago and the bullpen has a 2.20 ERA).

So the meeting made a difference, Pap?

“Of course. Shoot, yeah,” he said. “He’s the skipper. He runs the ship. You tell me. We started winning games after that didn’t we? … I think the facts speaks for themselves.”

Papelbon has three saves in that stretch. He hadn’t pitched with a save opportunity before that since May 1.

“If I’m in the game, we’re playing a good game probably,” he said. “We’ve been on a good little streak here, and we’ve got to keep this train rolling. Like I said earlier in the season when we were struggling, we’ve got the capability to put 10 wins on the board real quick. We’ve got to keep staying at the task at hand.”

Since Manuel’s meeting:

• Carlos Ruiz: .560 (14-for-25) with one double, two homers, 10 RBIs, .621 OBP and .840 SLG.
• Placido Polanco: .316 (6-for-19) with two doubles, one homer, two RBIs, .350 OPB and .579 SLG.
• Freddy Galvis: .300 (9-for-30) with four doubles, one homer, six RBIs, .364 OPB and .533 SLG.
• Juan Pierre: .292 (7-for-24) with two doubles, one RBI, .292 OBP and .375 SLG.
• John Mayberry Jr.: .269 (7-for-26) with three doubles, one homer, four RBIs, .345 OBP and .500 SLG.
• Hunter Pence: .258 (8-for-31) with one double, three homers, five RBIs, .361 OBP and .581 SLG.
• Shane Victorino: .226 (7-for-31) with one double, one triple, two RBIs, .333 OBP and .323 SLG.
• Jimmy Rollins: .219 (7-for-32) with one double, one homer, one RBI, .342 OBP and .344 SLG.
• Ty Wigginton: .111 (2-for-18) with three RBIs, .320 OBP and .111 SLG.

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, Wilmington, Del, 2 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.

Major League Baseball suspended Charlie Manuel one game for his involvement in Tuesday’s “on-field incident” in the eighth inning at Citizens Bank Park. He will serve that suspension tonight against the Red Sox.

But MLB also suspended umpire Bob Davidson one game for “his repeated violations of the Office of the Commissioner’s standards for situation handling.”

Guess that means Davidson did not handle that situation and others very well.

I imagine Manuel got suspended because the brim of his cap appeared to graze Davidson’s forehead. Or maybe it was just what he said. But it seemed more than fair that Davidson got dinged, too. Clearly, the Phillies bench thought Davidson interferred with Brian Schneider on the play, but Davidson escalated the situation immediately. You can hear him yelling back at the Phillies dugout on the replay.

Manuel hasn’t said anything about the incident, but it’s interesting that while he was saying something to Davidson from the dugout he didn’t seem to be overly heated. He was just kind of sitting there talking to him. But once Davidson tossed him Manuel charged out of the dugout.

You can see some expletives exhanged at that point, especially from Davidson.

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, 4801 Concord Pike, Wilmington, Del., 2:00 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.

Here is what he said:

Q: How did you feel taking grounders?
A: Ground balls went pretty well yesterday. I plan on doing some more today. I ran a little bit earlier today, which was nice. It was good to wake up feeling pretty good. That’s a good sign.

Q: You said in Washington you’d start taking ground balls, but it didn’t happen for a couple weeks. Why?
A: I was doing some things inside. I’m trying to get to a point where when we start going for it, I feel pretty comfortable. I’ve realized over the course of this time that the more I push it and feel uncomfortable, the worse it can get. We try to make small progressions. Taking ground balls yesterday was a good sign. I felt pretty good today.

Q: Is the next step taking grounders several days in a row?
A: One thing is, you don’t want to overdo it. Today, I’ll take some ground balls. Tomorrow, maybe I’ll slow it down a little and pick it up again. It’s all going to depend on how I’m feeling. Right now I’m feeling pretty good.

Q: Were you taking them at full speed yesterday?
A: I wouldn’t say it was full speed. It was fairly light. It was just good to be out there taking ground balls with the guys. I forgot how much fun it is to take ground balls.

Q: So how much discomfort do you feel in the knee right now?
A: Not much. There’s a little discomfort, but that’s a part of the whole process. Last year when I started taking ground balls, it was a little uncomfortable as well, but the more I did it, the better I became at it.

Q: Can you run at game speed?
A: Again, that’s a progression to work toward. I was doing some long striders, pushing the pace a little bit. Not quite 100 percent but close to it.

Q: When you leave for Florida it’ll still be to play in games?
A: Yes.

Q: Will you want to be pain free at that point?
A: Ideally, it would great to be. But over the past year or so I know what pain, the pain threshold I can play at. And right now I’m in the good zone.

Q: Is it a quick process once you begin taking grounders to getting to Florida?
A: I wish I could tell you, obviously the better I feel, the shorter it will take. But it’s still going to take a little time to get to game speed, obviously.

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, Wilmington, Del, 2 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.

Consider:

- He leads big-league catchers in batting average (.343), slugging percentage (.610), OPS (.999) and game-winning RBIs (four).
- He is tied for first with A.J. Pierzynski with 24 RBIs.
- He is tied for first with Carlos Santana with six go-ahead RBIs.
- He is second in home runs (six). Only Matt Wieters (seven) has more.
- He ranks third in on-base percentage (.390).

And those are just his rankings when he is hitting as a catcher. His .990 OPS overall — it’s a bit lower than his catcher OPS because he is 1-for-3 as a pinch-hitter — ranks 12th in baseball. His .602 slugging percentage is 10th.

Simply put, Chooch is one of the best hitters in baseball right now.

I know a lot of people have been asking why Charlie Manuel does not hit Ruiz third. Good question. But much like Jimmy Rollins being more comfortable hitting leadoff (despite the fact he’s hitting just .247 since his return to the top spot) and Hunter Pence being more comfortable hitting anywhere but fourth (his career .711 OPS hitting cleanup is the lowest of any spot in the order) I think Manuel believes this: Ruiz is tearing the cover off the ball. He’s comfortable. So don’t move him into a spot where he might feel more pressure to produce.

Manuel has had Ruiz hit fifth four times and sixth four times since May 5. Before this stretch Ruiz had hit higher than seventh only 31 times in his career. I say keep hitting him fifth or sixth. The Phillies are hitting .276/.328/.438 since April 22 in San Diego. They are averaging 4.9 runs per game in that span, which ranks fourth in the National League. They are scoring runs more consistently, and Ruiz is producing where he is.

Don’t screw that up.

*

Since Kyle Kendrick allowed six runs in seven innings in Toronto last July, he has a 2.96 ERA in 13 starts.

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, Wilmington, Del, 2 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.

The Phillies said Worley has inflammation, but no structural damage in his right elbow. They think it is mild, so they will keep him from throwing for a week. If he looks and feels OK at that point, he could begin his throwing program. They are hopeful he misses only a few starts.

But what happens if Worley doesn’t come back as expected? Or what happens if the Phillies lose another starter?

Who do they turn to? The Phillies don’t have much depth at all after Kendrick.

“The depth is an issue for us,” Ruben Amaro Jr. said. “I think it is for a lot of clubs, but depth is an issue, and if we’ve got to reach down and grab somebody else if somebody else goes down, we’ll have to get somebody who’s pitching as well … and make that assessment of who that guy is.”

Worley’s injury brought up an interesting name today: Roy Oswalt.

Could the Phillies bring him back, much like they brought back Pedro Martinez midseason in 2009? I speculated they could do just that during Spring Training. But one issue with Oswalt is how much he would want to be paid. I’m sure the Phillies would like to save some money for the bullpen or a bat come trade deadline time.

“We think he’s throwing,” Ruben Amaro Jr. said of Oswalt. “I guess he is. But right now what I’m worried about is our team playing better. That’s my focus right now. I feel comfortable with the starters we have. If we get to the point where we’re not comfortable with him then that might be something we explore. But I will tell you that right now I’m happy with our guys the way we are right now, unless something changes. I think we’ve got other fish to fry right now.”

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, Wilmington, Del, 2 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.

The Phillies got into town last night following a 4-3 victory over Houston in 10 innings. Some crazy things happened in that game, but perhaps none as crazy as Hunter Pence‘s error in the ninth inning that allowed the tying run to score and his game-winning homer in the 10th. (To be fair, a double followed Pence’s error, so the tying run would have scored anyway, but Pence has had his troubles in right field this season and fans have let him hear it.) Elias Sports Bureau found that over the last 30 years only two other players have hit a game-winning home run after making an error that allowed the tying run or go-ahead run to score.

The others? Drum roll please …

Juan Uribe (Aug. 8, 2007) and Jimmy Rollins (June 23, 2010).

*

The Phillies today placed Vance Worley on the DL with right elbow inflammation. Worley said yesterday he wasn’t worried, but whenever a pitcher has discomfort in his elbow it’s a concern. We don’t know how serious the injury is, but we should learn more today at the ballpark, so check back later for an update.

*

Jake Diekman looked great in his big-league debut yesterday. The Phillies put him into a high-leverage situation and he excelled. If he continues to pitch like that it will be interesting to see how quickly he moves up the bullpen’s food chain because the Phillies desperately need late-inning stability. Antonio Bastardo has looked much better recently, which is encouraging, but Chad Qualls has a 7.36 ERA in his last nine appearances dating to April 24 and Jose Contreras isn’t reliable. He has a 9.00 ERA in 10 appearances, allowing at least one base runner in eight appearances.

One thing on the Phillies using Jonathan Papelbon in a non-save situation Monday: the Phillies often use their late-inning relievers after they have warmed up, even after the game situation has changed. I thought they might have used Diekman in the ninth Monday, but when Papelbon entered the game I wasn’t like, “Holy crap! What are they doing?!?!” I said, “Well, I guess they wanted Papelbon to pitch because he’s already warmed up.” I’m not sure if Papelbon would have been available to pitch Tuesday if he hadn’t pitched Monday, but in my opinion it comes back to this: It wouldn’t be an issue if they had more reliable arms in the bullpen. For example, in 2010 Charlie Manuel and Rich Dubee could chose from Brad Lidge (2.96 ERA), Ryan Madson (2.55 ERA), Chad Durbin (3.80 ERA) and Contreras (3.34 ERA). Manuel and Dubee are incredibly shorthanded right now, which is why they really could use Diekman to step up.

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, Wilmington, Del, 2 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.

But Vance Worley (3-2, 3.07 ERA) did not make the team’s trip to Chicago this evening and will miss tomorrow night’s start against the Cubs at Wrigley Field because of soreness in his right elbow. Worley will be examined tomorrow in Philadelphia.

Left-hander Joe Savery reportedly is on his way to Chicago, and could replace Worley on the roster if it is decided he needs to be placed on the 15-day disabled list.

Right-hander Kyle Kendrick will start tomorrow.

Worley said he has felt some discomfort in the elbow for about a month, but has been able to pitch through it.

“It’s something I can pitch on, but it’s just bothering me enough where I want another opinion on it,” he said.

Asked how concerned he is, he said, “I’m not worried. I just want to confirm what it is. That’s all.”

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, Wilmington, Del, 2 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.

If the game is postponed, I’ll let you know via Twitter ASAP.

*

Joe Blanton allowed one run in seven innings in last night’s 5-1 victory over Houston. The Phillies have won three of his last four starts, and Blanton has not taken a loss since April 22. What is interesting about that is the Phillies have not won a game Roy Halladay has pitched since April 16 — a stretch of five consecutive starts — and they have not won a game Cliff Lee has pitched all season.

Of course, that is not entirely the fault of Halladay or Lee. The Phillies scored a combined three runs in Lee’s first three starts before the bullpen blew a lead Wednesday against the Mets. Halladay has a 4.59 ERA in his last five starts, but remove that brutal effort against Atlanta on May 2 and he has a 2.89 ERA in the other four.

*

Placido Polanco became the 268th player in baseball history to reach 2,000 hits. He is the 17th active player to have 2,000.

*

Freddy Galvis had three hits last night. Since he started his career 0-for-12, he is hitting .260 (25-for-96) with nine doubles, one triple, one home run and 15 RBIs. His 15 RBIs rank third on the team. Only Hunter Pence (23) and Carlos Ruiz (23) have more. And that’s more than Placido Polanco (eight) and Jimmy Rollins (six) have combined.

*

More and more teams are using the defensive shift, but as of last week the Phillies had employed the defense just once. Sam Perlozzo explains.

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, Wilmington, Del, 2 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.

Ninety years ago today the Phillies were a .500 franchise for the last time.

That’s pretty amazing, but here is the most incredible line in that note: “To get back to .500, they’d have to average 87 wins a years for the next century.”

Of course, these Phillies couldn’t care less about that. They’re 16-19 and trying to get to .500 for the first time since May 3, and above .500 for the first time since Opening Day. They are 2-1 since Charlie Manuel ripped into his team Wednesday, but they will need to play much better against much stronger competition to make a run in the National League East. I have a lot of people asking me if I think the Phillies are cooked. I don’t believe so, but they have about two months to prove me right before Ruben Amaro Jr. potentially makes big changes before the July 31 trade deadline.

So because it’s Monday and nobody likes a Debbie Downer, here are some numbers that might leave you encouraged (maybe?):

• The Phillies are averaging 4.7 runs per game over their last 19 games. If they had been scoring at that pace since Opening Day, they would rank fourth in the National League in scoring. It’s also a better clip than last season, when they averaged 4.4 runs per game for the season. If they can keep it up they should win more than they lose, assuming the pitching is there.
• Phillies starters have a 3.03 ERA, which ranks third in the league. It goes without saying the only thing that has not been an issue this season is the Phillies’ starting pitching. It has been consistently good since the beginning of the season. (Remove that brutal start against Atlanta, and Roy Hallday has a 2.12 ERA).
• It’s the bullpen that has been awful. Its 5.12 ERA is 15th in the league. It is a very small sample size against the second-worst offense in the league, but the Phillies bullpen allowed four hits, one run, two walks and struck out nine in seven innings over the weekend against the Padres. Antonio Bastardo has allowed one hit, three walks and struck out five in seven innings in his last seven appearances. Chad Qualls said he discovered a mechanical flaw in his delivery, which he said is easily fixable. He threw two scoreless innings over the weekend. And, yes, that was Jonathan Papelbon pitching in a save situation yesterday for the first time since May 1.

Make anything of those numbers?

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, 4801 Concord Pike, Wilmington, Del., 2:00 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.

Gone from the roster are Michael Schwimer, Joe Savery, Brian Sanches and Erik Kratz. Laynce Nix landed on the DL, but we’ll throw him in there, too. Replacing them are Cliff Lee, Jake Diekman, Raul Valdes, Hector Luna and Mike Fontenot.

There are no major trades to be made in early May, so the Phillies front office tweaked a few things in hopes of improving the bullpen and providing a spark to the bench. Although it goes without saying Nix is the biggest loss of that bunch. He is hitting .326 with a .979 OPS.

The most intriguing name of the recent arrivals (not including Lee) is Diekman. The Phillies love his potential and he put up great numbers in Triple-A. If he can handle the promotion and the adjustment to big-league hitters, he could have an impact on the bullpen like Mike Stutes had last season.

*

I’m off this weekend, but Paul Hagen is covering the series. Here’s his game story from last night’s victory over San Diego.

*

John Mayberry Jr. was hitting .175 on April 22. He is hitting .314 (11-for-35) with two doubles, one home run and four RBIs since. It would be a tremendous lift for the lineup if he can get going.

*

Carlos Ruiz is third among big-league catchers in home runs (six), first in RBIs (22), first in batting average (.340), third in on-base percentage (.381) and first in slugging (.606). If Ruiz keeps this up he could be headed to his first All-Star Game.

*

Jim Salisbury and I co-authored the book The Rotation, which is now available. Check it out here! Here are our upcoming book signings:

• June 2: Citizens Bank Park, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• June 16: Barnes & Noble, 4801 Concord Pike, Wilmington, Del., 2:00 p.m.

Check out my Facebook page. Follow me on Twitter.