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reprint or license thisMadson can't locate curve, but settles down after shaky start
By MARCUS HAYES
hayesm@phillynews.com
CLEARWATER, Fla. - Ryan Madson fell behind leadoff hitter Dewayne Wise. Madson delivered a fastball that caught too much of the plate. Wise deposited it on the rightfield berm.
And that was all Madson allowed in his second start of the Grapefruit League season, as the Phillies defeated Cincinnati, 4-1, yesterday. He wasn't dominant over his 3 2/3 innings, and he tired as he hit 60 pitches, but his sharp curveball and typically nasty changeup were good enough to allow the visiting Reds only one run off three hits and a walk.
In his bid to win one of the two open spots in the back of the rotation, Madson struck out four Reds despite throwing first-strike pitches to only five of 14 hitters.
"My changeup was really working today," Madson said, but that wasn't the goal: "I was trying to throw my curveball more than usual."
That's how, he said, pitching to Wise, "I got behind, 2-0. I don't like pitching in those counts," Madson said, paused for effect, and continued; "As I did for the rest of the day."
Madson hopes to be sharper with his breaking ball from the start of his next game by reverting to the pattern he followed between starts in the minors, where he shined before converting to the bullpen the past two seasons.
Madson currently throws a comprehensive bullpen session the second day after he starts, then stays off the mound until he starts again 3 days later.
"It seemed like forever between starts," he said.
Madson had success, he said, throwing a fastballs-only bullpen session 2 days after he started, then getting on the mound the very next day and throwing only changeups and curveballs. He would then rest 2 days before his next start.
He bore down after Wise's shot, and, "That was a big hurdle for him," said bench coach Gary Varsho, filling in as manager while Charlie Manuel attended a memorial service for Kirby Puckett in Minneapolis.
Four straight hits to start the bottom of the first, including RBI singles by Pat Burrell and Ryan Howard, gave the Phillies a 2-1 lead over starter Justin Germano. The lead grew to 3-1 in the fourth when Alex Gonzalez hit his third home run, a solo shot that scattered patrons of Frenchy's tiki bar beyond the leftfield stands.
Thanks to their offense and some well-timed good pitching, the Phillies (7-4) overcame their characteristic sloppiness and poor execution, too: Jimmy Rollins' error and Arthur Rhodes' subsequent two wild pitches; Shane Victorino's botched bunt attempt; Jason Jaramillo's inning-ending baserunning gaffe.
"We dodged a few bullets," Varsho admitted.
Injury update
Cole Hamels (back) came out of Saturday's live batting practice healthy and optimistic. The lefty awoke yesterday feeling "awesome," he said. He is scheduled to pitch two innings in an intrasquad minor league game tomorrow, his first game action since July.
David Bell (back) reported no ill effects after resuming baseball drills late last week. Bell's chronically bad back flared March 1, delaying his Grapefruit League season for the second straight year. He could begin playing in minor league games within a week.
Chris Booker, meanwhile, pitched to hitters for the first time yesterday. Booker, coming off minor knee surgery, could pitch in a game by the end of the week. He is a Rule 5 draft pick who will be offered back to the Nationals if he doesn't make the Phillies' 25-man roster.
On Saturday
Ryan Howard hit two solo home runs off Astros starter Brandon Backe and Ryan Franklin pitched a crisp 3 2/3 innings in the Phillies' 4-3 win in Kissimmee. However, 23-year-old righthanded prospect Gavin Floyd remained inconsistent and non-aggressive in his two innings. Floyd adjusted his mechanics last week after two outings in which he was similarly cautious and inconsistent.
"I was trying to be too fine - trying to put them away with the first pitch," Floyd said.
