Joe_blanton

Christian Rivera is a freelance writer and graphic designer for myphl17.  Follow him on twitter @rivaldesign

Having a few of your hottest players on the DL creates a little pressure for the rest of the team.  Luckily, in last night's 9-6 win over the Reds, they thrived on that pressure. 

With Placido Polanco and Chase Utley out of the lineup due to injuries, someone needed to really step it up and it was the bottom of the lineup that took the reigns.  Wilson Valdez and Brian Schneider each hit 3-run shots in Tuesday's win at Great American Ball Park, effectively calming worried fans with a swing of the bat. 

But we all know very well that it's never that easy.

With a score of 6-3 in the bottom of the 9th, Brad Lidge gave up a 3-run HR to Joey Votto in dramatic fashion, effectively reviving that worry the fans felt before the game.  Luckily, the Phillies were able to bounce back and score 3 runs in the top of the 10th to win it 9-6.  J.C. Romero finished things up for the Phillies bullpen.   Brad Lidge undeservedly got the win.

Joe Blanton pitched a fairly decent game allowing 8 hits and 3 runs in 7 2/3rd innings. 

The Phillies will have to play on without some heavy hitters in their line-up until at least after the All-Star break.  It's no piece o' cake, but they've shown so far that it's not impossible to handle.

Both the Braves and Mets lost tonight putting the Phillies only 2.5
games behind first place.  Despite the injuries, we've still got a pretty solid race
on our hands in the NL East.

Christian Rivera is a freelance writer and graphic designer for myphl17.  Follow him on twitter @rivaldesign