Chooch Ruiz sets tone for incredible bench

Carlos Ruiz had a career high five RBI in a 10-2 win over the Braves today.

Not bad for only playing three innings.

Ruiz came off the bench in the seventh inning and connected a grand slam.

The Phillies bench has been unbelievable this season.

Consider this for a minute - the Phillies have 10 pinch hits in eight games. It took them until June 6th to get 10 pinch hits last season.  That's almost two months less.

The Phillies are 10-for-16 (.625) off the bench.

That's incredible.

The Phils were terrible last season, hitting .188 (45 for 240), the worst in the National League.

Depth is a great thing to have, and the Phillies have it.

They have power (John Mayberry Jr), versatility (Michael Martinez), speed (Pete Orr), a quality backup catcher (Brian Schneider), and one of the better pinch hitters in the game (Ross Gload).

Oh yeah, that does not include Wilson Valdez, who is starting for the injured Chase Utley, and is hitting .375.

But the big story today was Ruiz, normally a starter.  His grand slam was his first ever grand slam and first ever pinch-hit home run.

That leaves me with just one thing to say - Choooooooooch!