Another Heartbreaker

As seen on Phillies Nation.

One strike. That's all the Phillies needed to win the game. But one swing was all Brian Roberts needed to give the Baltimore Orioles the lead.

J.A Happ pitched six solid innings. He allowed two earned runs on eleven hits and four walks, however he avoided further damage by escaping jams unharmed.

The Phillies offense struggled, having only one hit into the sixth inning. The Phillies rallied in the seventh, getting everybody off their seats.

In 2006, Ryan Howard was ill and forced to pinch hit against the Cincinnati Reds. In that game, he hit the tying home run and the eventual go-ahead run in extra innings. Three years later, Howard suffered a 104-degree fever. Pinch hitting in the seventh, he smoked a three run home run to give the Phillies a 5-3 lead and a good feeling for a win.

In the top of the ninth, Greg Zaun homered to put the Orioles within one. Ryan Madson got two outs and was ahead in the count 1-2 to second baseman Brian Roberts. Roberts smoked the 1-2 pitch into the right-centerfield seats. 6-5 Orioles, and that was how it stood. Yet another tough one to sink in.