Roster officially set; Gload update
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Roster officially set; Gload update
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
The Phillies will carry 11 pitchers on their division series roster and chose Joe Blanton over David Herndon for the final spot.
Blanton pitched seven innings in September after being sidelined since May with an elbow injury. He allowed two runs, struck out 11 and walked none.
Herndon appeared in 45 games and posted a 3.32 season ERA. In 29 innings after the All-Star Break, Herndon had a 1.55 ERA and held opponents to a .216 batting average. But the Phillies decided Blanton offered more as the final pitcher.
Pete Orr and Erik Kratz will travel with the team as extra players. Brandon Moss, Joe Savery and Justin De Fratus were sent to Clearwater to stay active in case of an emergency.
The roster:
Catchers (2)
Carlos Ruiz (R)
Brian Schneider (L)
Infielders (7)
Ryan Howard (L)
Chase Utley (L)
Placido Polanco (R)
Jimmy Rollins (S)
Ross Gload (L)
Wilson Valdez (R)
Michael Martinez (S)
Outfielders (5)
Raul Ibanez (L)
Shane Victorino (S)
Hunter Pence (R)
John Mayberry Jr. (R)
Ben Francisco (R)
Pitchers (11)
Roy Halladay (RHP)
Cliff Lee (LHP)
Cole Hamels (LHP)
Roy Oswalt (RHP)
Vance Worley (RHP)
Ryan Madson (RHP)
Antonio Bastardo (LHP)
Mike Stutes (RHP)
Brad Lidge (RHP)
Kyle Kendrick (RHP)
Joe Blanton (RHP)
***
Ross Gload had an injection of anti-inflammatory medicine Monday to allievate pain in the muscle tear in his right hip that has bothered him all season. Ruben Amaro Jr. said Gload is completely ready to play in the division series.
Gload had a productive September, hitting .321 (9 for 28) with three doubles. He led the majors with 18 pinch-hits in 2011.
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I would have gone with Blanton and Herndon, and not Kendrick, who was BAD out of the pen. But if it gets down to these guys, things may not be going so well.— VicM- Is Herndon in Clearwater working out to - or did they send him home?— dankil13
- Hey lonewolf I don't feel your pain for Herndon but you knew Blanton is making big money so they had to put him on the playoff roster. I'm glad that 3 young guns made it Worley, Stutes, and Bastardo because they earned it. Herndon had his chance.— male
- Oh yeah and I'm glad they put domonick brown back in the oven because he is not ready yet.— male
- LONEWOLF SHOULD HAVE HIS OWN REALITY TV SHOW...— lewisbratspis
- phillies in 4 but you never know what the genius can do. Larussa is brillant and gets most out of his players— mike64
- If the Phillies are going to be reliant on the pen, then they will be in trouble, so the poor Lone, Lone, Loney wolf family need not be so glum!— BEMiller
- Face it, if the Phils are using Blanton and Kendrick a lot, they are in deep do-do. It's nice that they're there, but let's hope we don't see them.— Rhomicronbeta
- Face it, if the Phils are using Blanton and Kendrick a lot, they are in deep do-do. It's nice that they're there, but let's hope we don't see them.— Rhomicronbeta
- Not fair for Herndon. He was not someone I felt comfortable with but he battled.
I think they went with Blanton so he could pitch to a righty and get strikes. But he also throws home run balls.
Herndon was not consistent in throwing strikes, that was his problem.— martyhenry - I rarely stay long on this site -- due to the obnoxious videos that you can't even turn off. Go Phillies!!— Rmyklo
- I rarely stay long on this site -- due to the obnoxious videos that you can't even turn off. Go Phillies!!— Rmyklo
- cholly plays whom cholly likes. always was, always will be. as has been noted here, 7 starters vs 4 relievers. uneffingbelievable. look what happened when oswalt was put in as a reliever last year. then again, cholly has been the luckiest mgr in the biz past few years. choose luck over skill or smarts any day, right?— bubba church & granny hamner
- WHAT? No John "Big Bow Wow" "Bowser" Bowker? Thank goodness! I hope they got his uniform after the last game, so he doesn't ever show up again.— SEEK313
- I can see I'm in the minority, and let me be clear, I'm not a fan of either Blanton or Herndon, but look at history here - in psat post seasons every time the Phills used a starter in releif, they got bombed. Herndon spent all season mentally preparing as a reliever - Blanton only pitched as a stater (except the last few meaningless games). I'd rather have a reliever relieve than a starter - thats all.— NCTony
