Game 108 Open Thread: August 4, 2005

suppan burnett
10-7, 4.28 8-6 3.30

word is that morris has been tipping his curveball; the card dugout brass caught the tell last night and corrected it, after which morris pitched five strong innings. i take that story with a grain of salt; seems to me it's the fastball, not the curve, that has been the problem. morris had a bit more zip on the heater last night than in any of his previous three or four starts -- high 80s -- and for the 2d straight start he made adjustments after a rocky beginning and kept the cards close. this time the lineup redeemed him.

in his first 8 start this year, morris struck out 44 guys in 51.2 innings. in his last 12, he has struck out just 42 in 79 innings. his walk rate remains stellar, but he's yielded six homers in his last four starts (25 innings) . . . . definitely bears close watching. if he can just keep the ball in the park he'll be okay i think, but i'd sure like to see him start getting his fastball past hitters on the inside corner again, like he was doing before the all-star break. come october, he's gonna need that weapon.

ray king, oy . . . . . .i see where billy wagner is giving the phillies till aug 31 to sign him to a long-term deal; otherwise he's signing elsewhere in the offseason. the phils are fading again, back to 3 games over .500 and fifth in the wild-card race. that sucker may shake free yet, you never know. but has he gotten through waivers. . . ?

hey, weren't we just talking about stl's lack of comeback wins? there's one forya, gang ....

fish stripes has an interesting take on tuesday night's dontrelle-carp matchup.