While Pat Burrell's return to play in Philadelphia this evening will likely lend a few nice moments of nostalgia, it's the return of Chase Utley from the disabled list that fans at Citizens Bank Park will surely be most excited about.
Utley looked to be swinging at full-strength during batting practice this afternoon and Charlie Manuel says Utley "might be 99-and-44/100ths, but that’s good enough for me.”
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Good enough for us too.
As for Pat the Bat, Burrell has been swinging a hot one as of late and is tied for third in the NL with 14 RBIs in the month of August behind only Casey McGehee (17) and Prince Fielder (15).
Burrell's return takes a back seat to the importance of the series with the Giants, who are currently tied with the Phillies for the Wild Card lead. Charlie Manuel scoffs at the notion of his club shooting for anything less than a division crown, and that's the right attitude, but that doesn't mean the fans can't keep an eye on those WC standings. Just in case.
The Giants' starters haven't registered a win in their last 12 outings, but Barry Zito (8-6, 3.44) comes in having pitched very well since the All-Star break, having allowed 12 earned in 42 innings over six starts for a 2.57 ERA over that span.
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Zito will face Roy Oswalt (7-13, 3.34) who is coming off a fabulous outing against the Dodgers in which he allowed only 5 hits, 0 runs, and struck out 5 in 7 scoreless innings en route the a 2-0 Phillies victory. Roy commented about the wonderful atmosphere at CBP in his last outing. Hopefully the fans can duplicate that effort so Oswalt can duplicate his.
First pitch is scheduled for 7:05. See you at the Irish Pub later?
Photo by Getty