Ibanez, Blanton Help Phillies Beat Blue Jays 13-7
DUNEDIN, Fla. (AP) -- Joe Blanton settled down after a shaky start, Raul Ibanez hit a two-run homer and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Toronto Blue Jays 13-7 on Tuesday.
It wasn't all good news for the Phillies, though. Third baseman Placido Polanco re-injured his surgically repaired left elbow in the first inning and came out of the game. He said he doesn't think it's anything serious.
After squandering a four-run lead, Philadelphia rallied for five runs in the eighth -- three on Wilson Valdez's double. The teams combined for 30 hits.
Rajai Davis hit his third leadoff home run of the spring for Toronto and finished with three hits. Blanton allowed two runs in the first, then threw three shutout innings. He gave up seven hits, struck out three and walked none.
Ibanez connected off Blue Jays starter Jesse Litsch in the third inning and Ben Francisco had a solo shot off Jason Frasor in the fifth as the Phillies built a 6-2 lead. Two of their runs scored in the fourth on a wild pickoff attempt to third by catcher J.P. Arencibia.
Winston Abreu gave up Valdez's double in the eighth and Michael Martinez chased him in the ninth with a two-run double.
Toronto pulled ahead 7-6 in the seventh on Anthony Gose's two-run triple down the first-base line.
Polanco hyper extended his elbow on a swing in the first inning. He stayed in to play defense in the bottom half, but was replaced by Wilson Valdez when the second inning began.
"It's just a day-to-day thing I think," Polanco said. "When I've had it before, I never stopped playing. But since I had surgery, they took me out."
Polanco was limited to 132 games in 2010 while dealing with chronic left elbow pain. He had scar tissue and bone spurs removed from the arm when he underwent surgery in November.
"It's right where I had the surgery, but it's nothing bad," he said. "I've had it before. I've had it a million times. But the fact that I had surgery on that elbow, we're being safe. We're playing it very safe. We'll see how it feels tomorrow and the next day, take it a day at a time."
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