Game Recap: Phillies 2 Red Sox 0

The Phillies took a road trip to Ft. Myers today, one-hitting the Boston Red Sox en route to a 2-0 win over the best team in the majors (on paper). Most of the starters were out of the game letting some of the youngsters stretch their legs a bit, but it was Cole Hamels and the pitching staff that really stole the show. Here are some quick notes:

• Hamels was slated to throw 45-50 pitches today and he did just that with a final line of 4 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 3 K, 50 pitches (29 for strikes). The rest of the squad combined for just two more walks and five strikeouts. Check out this video on Phillies.com for Cole's thoughts on his performance.
• Jeff Larish smoked a 2-run double in the second inning, driving in the only two runs of the game.
• Ben Francisco had another impressive game as he gears up for more responsibilities in the outfield this season, going 2-3 and scoring a run in four innings of play. He is batting .308 with 1 homer and 5 RBIs so far this spring.
• John Mayberry, Jr. continued to make his case for a spot on the 25-man roster as he played the role of the DH today. He went 1-3 with a hit, a walk, and a strike out, but made a statement with a hard steal of second in the sixth.
• Domonic Brown remains hitless this spring, and reached base on a walk in the eighth. It’s still entirely too early to make any predictions about the future of Brown as the Phillies’ every day right fielder, but it was speculated over the winter that he would spend some more time with the Iron Pigs working out the kinks before taking over right field full-time. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see an Ibanez/Victorino/Francisco/Mayberry outfield team when the regular season rolls around, but there is still a lot of baseball to be played before then.

Joe Blanton takes the mound against the Pirates tomorrow at 1:05 PM. You can listen to the game on MLB.com or with the MLB At Bat app on your mobile device. Pin It Now!