Fastball

This spring has been a study in breaking balls for Cole Hamels. He wanted to improve his curveball, which became almost nonexistent by the end of last season, and add a cutter to his repertoire. Lost in all that is his need to locate the fastball, something he struggled with in yesterday's 9-7 victory over the New York Yankees. Hamels allowed seven runs (six earned) in four innings. Hamels said he threw more fastballs than he had in any start this spring - even in situations in which he would normally throw a breaking ball.

The Phillies played the New York Yankees yesterday afternoon at Bright House Field in another spring-training rematch of last year's World Series. Beyond Frenchy's Tiki Bar in left field, a collection of Phillies players likely targeted for double-A Reading played in a game of equal or perhaps even more importance at the Carpenter Complex. That's where Brad Lidge was sent to continue his quest to strengthen his arm in preparation for a 162-game season that is likely going to start without him. Lidge, the loser in Game 4 of last year's World Series and the closer who is trying to recapture his 2008 form, pitched just one inning against a collection of Pittsburgh Pirates minor-leaguers.

When he's catching Mariano Rivera, Jose Molina doesn't really have to put a finger down. "We just put it down for location," the Yankees catcher said yesterday. Even that sign barely seems necessary. Rivera's cut fastball, one of the great pitches in the history of the sport, is back in the World Series, about to bust in on some Phillies hitter's hands. "You hope it's not a cold night because you know a jam shot's coming real soon," said Phillies pinch-hit specialist Matt Stairs, who faced Rivera in his American League days with typically limited success.

Brett Myers said last night his hip problem was at the root of his shaky start to the 2009 season. Myers said it affected him "a lot" en route to a 4-3 record with a 4.66 ERA before he went on the disabled list in May. He also had given up 17 home runs in 63 2/3 innings before his trip to the DL. Yesterday, in his second rehab start since June 4 hip surgery to repair a torn labrum, Myers worked a scoreless first inning for the Lakewood BlueClaws...

As pinch-hitter Matt Stairs worked the count to three balls and a strike against Los Angeles Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton, Pat Burrell began to fantasize in the Phillies dugout. "I'm thinking, 'Gosh, what if he hits a home run here?' " Burrell said yesterday. "In the back of my mind I'm thinking he might hit one. " Stairs took his only swing of the night and caught Broxton's 95-m.p.h. fastball perfectly on the barrel of his bat. It rose in a beautiful arc and landed halfway up the right-field bleachers at Dodger Stadium.

Poof. The fastball that made Brett Myers a first-round draft pick in 1999 is nowhere to be found. The pitch that hit 95 m.p.h. suddenly cannot break 88 m.p.h. That is a concern for Myers and the Phillies, who finished 5-2 on their seven-game road trip after Myers lasted just five innings in a 5-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates yesterday at PNC Park. "He's supposed to be one of our aces," manager Charlie Manuel said. "I'm lost," Myers said. "I'm lost throwing 88 m.p.h.

Freddy Garcia and Ryan Madson have something in common. Both are searching. Garcia is trying to rediscover his fastball. Madson is trying to find a consistent third pitch. Both pitchers worked in a 6-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays yesterday. The results were mixed. Madson, who has scrapped his curveball in favor of a slider, had his best day yet with the pitch. He threw a half-dozen of them and got three quick outs in the sixth inning. Garcia, however, didn't wow scouts with his fastball as he went three innings and did not strike out a batter in his first official Grapefruit League start.

In the past, the Phillies have not been afraid to draft high-risk, high-reward talent. Is Kyle Drabek that type of pick? The Phillies selected Drabek, a talented righthanded high school pitcher from Texas and the son of Cy Young Award winner Doug Drabek, with the 18th overall pick yesterday in the first-year player draft. Drabek had some off-field issues that might have caused him to drop to the Phillies, but the Phils say they have done their homework and are comfortable with the selection.

Bruce Sutter was a struggling minor-league pitcher in the Chicago Cubs organization when an instructor named Fred Martin approached him during spring training in 1973 and said, "Try this. " Sutter, desperate to add a pitch to a below-average repertoire, wedged the baseball between his index and middle fingers and threw it as hard as he could. That was the birth of one of the most devastating weapons a pitcher has ever had. Sutter didn't invent the split-fingered fastball, but his success with it helped him become one of the greatest relievers ever, and inspired countless others to learn the pitch that remains a staple in the game today.

It's that time of year again. The World Series is just around the corner, and television sports shows will soon be showing highlights of great Series moments past. You'll see Bill Mazeroski approaching home plate as euphoric teammates wait to mob him, Carlton Fisk waving that home run fair, and Joe Carter dancing around first base after breaking the hearts of Phillies fans. You'll see Yogi Berra embrace Don Larsen, Willie Mays chase down Vic Wertz's blast, and Boston Red Sox players sprint out of the dugout in unbridled joy after ending 86 years of futility.