A couple days of Phils stuff

Interesting developments...

• Shane Victorino was the winner in the NL All-Star Final Vote. Apparently he came up with the idea for the Phillies to team up with the Detroit Tigers, whose Brandon Inge was the AL winner. The "Bran-Torino" campaign apparently worked...except since I voted hundreds of times, including non-stop in the 2 hours before voting closed, it really was me who put him over the top.
• Jayson Werth is also going to the All-Star game; he was named as a replacement for the Mets' Carlos Beltran, who is missing the game due to injury. This is surprising, because I would've expected that LA Dodger Matt Kemp, the only other outfielder on the Final Vote ballot. But clearly NL All-Star game Charlie Manuel is playing favorites and rewarding his players, between this choice and that of Ryan Howard at first base. Must be good to be the king. (With Victorino and Raul Ibanez, this is the first time since 1972 that one team has had three outfielders in an All-Star game.
  
• Ibanez has been activated from the disabled list; in a very surprising move, catcher and author Chris Coste was designated for assignment to make room for Ibanez, and Coste was claimed by Houston.
• The Phillies are interested in free-agent pitcher Pedro Martinez. He's struggled with age and injuries in recent years; this year he pitched in the World Baseball Classic and has sat waiting since then. I don't know that he'd be much of an upgrade over the starters they already have. I'd much rather they trade for Toronto's Roy Halladay now that the Blue Jays have intimated that they might try and trade him.
• Oh, and they've now won 7 of 8 on this homestand after tonight's 3-2 win over the Pirates, with me in attendance (and I'll be there tomorrow also), and now lead the NL East by 3 games.