22 - 1

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Boy, this was nice to see!

The Phillies achieved the baseball equivalent of stomping a mud hole in their opponents and walking it dry this evening, defeating the Cincinnati Reds by 21 runs, 22-1! Bookending the attack with a 10-run first inning and a 6-run eighth, the Phils hit four homeruns, including a grand-slam from Jayson Werth. The team pounded out a season-high 21 hits, including a 3-for-4 night with two walks for the finally rejuvenated Jimmy Rollins.

On a night where the Phils were campaigning to have CF Shane Victorino voted into the All-Star Game next Tuesday alongside fellow Phillie All-Stars Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Raul Ibanez (even the ball girls were dressed in Hawaiian shirts in support of Victorino!), Shane himself started the scoring with a two-run homerun in the first inning, following a lead-off walk to Rollins. Greg Dobbs added a two-run homerun, and Utley a three-run blast before the first inning was over. Starting pitcher Cole Hamels contributed a two-run double to the opening frame's festivites, marking the fourth time in club history the Phils have opened with a 10-spot.

For the Reds, it was not a good night at all. 5 hits and 1 run (on a Jonny Gomes homerun in the 2nd) were all they could muster, and by the end of the night backup shortstop Paul Janish was pitching. It was Janish who threw the grand slam ball to Werth; Janish gave up 6 earned runs in his single inning on the mound, giving the position player a lifetime ERA of 49.50!

The Phils had not scored this many runs in a single game since scoring 26 runs against the New York Mets on June 11, 1985.

It was especially nice to see this kind of offensive display happen at home this year, where the Phillies have not been playing well. My only hope is that this doesn't foretell another offensive drought - this team has been known to slug out a huge burst of offense like this and then fall dormant in hitting for a stretch. Last year they had a 20-run game vs. the St. Louis Cardinals and then did nothing for a considerable stretch; I'd hate to see that happen again.

Rather, I'm hoping that this game, coming on the heels of a sweep of Mets, is a sign of building momentum that they can carry through the All-Star break and into a successful second half. Regardless, it was an awfully fun game for a lifelong Phillies fan like me to watch!

Check out the box score here.