Dugout Digest – the fade of Roy Halladay

Roy Halladay turned in his second straight disappointing performance on Monday, and unlike his first start of the year in Atlanta, there weren't many good takeaways from this one. Halladay allowed seven runs on six hits in four innings, walking three and striking out three. Halladay did get ten whiffs on his 99 pitches, but threw first pitch strikes to just 11 of the 22 batters he faced, and his ERA for the season now sits at a cool 14.73. It looks like the Doc that dominated the majors for years is a shell of his former self.

PIC OF THE DAY

Brandon Phillips of the Reds, caputred in mid-air fielding a Carlos Beltran grounder (Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports).

Game of the Day: Reds 13, Cardinals 4. Joe, how can a nine-run win be the game of the day? Well loyal reader, I'm glad you asked. The Cardinals led 4-2 after six in their opener at Busch Stadium, and things turned sour after that. Cincinnati cut the lead to 4-3 in the seventh, scoring a run after a Chris Heisey double. They tied it in the eighth after Xavier Paul singled in Jay Bruce off of reliever Trevor Rosenthal. Then in the ninth, the Reds took a blowtorch to Mitchell Boggs and Mark Rzepczynski, scoring nine runs without even homering. All in all, the Reds outscored the Cardinals 11-0 over the last three innings en route to the win.

Pitching Lines of the Day: Paul Maholm dominated the Marlins in Atlanta's 2-0 win, allowing one hit in seven scorless inning, walking three and striking out seven. Clay Buchholz threw seven shutout innings in Boston's 3-1 win over Baltimore, allowing three hits, four walks, and striking out eight. Matt Harvey countered Halladay's disappointing outing by allowing one run on three hits over seven innings, striking out nine and walking two in the Mets' 7-2 win over the Phillies.

Hitting Lines of the Day: Robinson Cano had himself a good day in Cleveland as the Yankees beat the Tribe 11-6, going 3/4 with four runs scored, a walk, a double, and a pair of homers, while Travis Hafner went 2/3 with three runs, four RBI, two walks, and a homer in his return to Cleveland. Justin Upton continued his hot start to the year for the Braves by going 4/4 with two runs scored, a double, and a monstrous homer. Brandon Phillips went 2/5 with two runs, two RBI, a walk, a double, and a homer in that Reds blowout over the Cardinals. Daniel Nava gave the Red Sox all the offense they needed, going 2/2 with a walk and a three-run homer.

Other Games: The Brewers beat the Cubs 7-4 despite another near bullpen meltdown. The Royals rallied late to beat the Twins 3-1. The Rangers beat the Rays 5-4, thanks in part to a horrific ninth inning strike zone called against Ben Zobrist. The Mariners shut out the Astros 3-0. The Pirates finally got some offense and beat the Diamondbacks 5-3. The Giants cooled off the Rockies with a 4-2 victory.

What You Missed: Tis the season for overreaction! Albert Pujols, and a beautiful thing.

Today's Games: Jake Peavy of the White Sox takes on Gio Gonzalez and the Nationals. Kris Medlen gets the start for the Braves in Miami. Brandon Morrow and Anibal Sanchez will duel in Detroit. Andy Pettitte starts for the Yankees against Carlos Carrasco of the Indians. Josh Beckett starts for the Dodgers in San Diego. Cliff Lee starts for the Phillies against the Mets. Jarrod Parker takes on CJ Wilson in Anaheim. James McDonald of the Pirates takes on Brandon McCarthy in Arizona. Tim Lincecum and the Giants host the Rockies.

National TV: Dodgers-Padres (6:30, MLB Network), White Sox-Nationals (7:00, MLB Network [alternate]), Athletics-Angels (10:00, MLB Network), Astros-Mariners (10:00, MLB Network [alternate]).

Enjoy your day of baseball, everyone.

About Joe Lucia

I hate your favorite team. I also sort of hate most of my favorite teams.

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