The Phillies don't exactly have the best minor-league system in Major League Baseball. In fact they tend to be rated in the bottom 3rd when it comes to prospects. Baseball America puts them at 21st out of 30 for their minor league system and Baseball Prospect only gives them 2 players in the top 100 prospects in baseball (#96 Joe Savery and #68 Carlos Carrasco). Neither project as more than a #3 Starter at this point. That being said, here is a quick list of the "healthy" prospects in the Phillies system. I say healthy because I'm not even gonna talk about the bevy of young arms the Phillies have that have had Tommy John surgery in the past year and are thus huge questionmarks from here on out. In case you're wondering Kyle Drabek and Scott Mathieson are on that list. So here goes:
Clearwater Threshers:
LHP Joe Savery: Has been dominant so far in 3 appearances (20 IP, 0.90 ERA, 13 Ks) and will probably end up in AA before long. As one of the Phillies top pitching prospects he will probably be rushed to the majors as soon as possible...he needs to be as he is already 22 years old and in Single A. His K rate is a little low for A ball but overall he has been impressive.
LHP Antonio Bastardo: Has also been dominant in the first couple weeks especially against leftys. Leftys are batting .000 against him with 7 Ks in 8 ABs. Overall he has 17 Ks in 10 IP with an ERA of 0.90 in 2 starts. He's 23 years old so he needs to get moving. In 2005, he struck out 63 batters in 38 innings in Rookie ball where he was used as a closer. He throws a power fastball with movement in the low to mid 90's but his secondary pitches need work. He's also undersized at 5'11", 180lbs. I'd love to find out more about him as his numbers make him look dominant.
2B Adrian Cardenas: Possibly the 2B of the future and one of the Phillies top position prospects. By the time he makes the majors (he'll be 21 this October, Utley will likely be the 1B so it won't matter. He's off to a hot start in Single A batting .378 in 45 ABs. One troubling sign...he's only walked 1 time in 46 plate appearances. Also he only has 3 extra base hits out of 17 total hits. He needs to learn patience at the plate or he'll never make it to the majors. One good thing is that his K rate (6 Ks total) is also very low so he's a very high contact hitter who probably should be in AA.
OF Matt Spencer: Huge power threat from the left side of the plate. He projects more as a 1B than an OF but we'll see. He also strikes out a ton (similar to Ryan Howard). He's off to a pretty good start in Clearwater but his power numbers are down early on. Line: .300 AVG, .340 OBP, 3 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 3 BB, 7 Ks in 40 ABs. He turned 22 in January.
Reading Phillies:
RHP Carlos Carrasco: Rated as the Phils top prospect and projected as a middle of the rotation guy (i.e. 3rd starter). He's been strong so far. In 2 starts he's pitched 11 innings and struck out 14 while walking 4 with an ERA of 2.45. He could be on the MLB roster by the end of the season.
LHP Josh Outman: Another of the Phils top pitching prospects...he projects as a #4 or 5 guy or bullpen reliever (the Phillies system is kinda thin). He throws low 90's with his fastball and throws a good slider. He needs to work on his control though. In 2 starts he's piched 11 innings and struck out 12 while walking 6 for an ERA of 1.64. He's also allowed alot of hits (14 total in 11 innings) so he hasn't been dominant as much as hes gotten lucky to have such a low ERA.
LHP Fabio Castro: Rule V guy who should be in the majors right now if only he had any control of his pitches. Still he's been good so far with 12 K in 12 IP with "only" 6 BB and 6 hits allowed for an ERA of 0.75. He's another guy who we could see in a Phillies uniform if there are injuries and/or Kendrick completely collapses.
RHP Andrew Carpenter: He wowed Manuel and Gillick in that last spring training game but he has struggled so far at AA. (3 Starts: 16 2/3 IP, 22 H, 7 BB, 9 Ks, 5.94 ERA). He is better than those numbers suggest and will probably improve drastically as the season progresses.
OF Greg Golson: So far he's off to a good start in AA but he still is striking out a bunch and not taking a walk. He will be a bust as a prospect if he doesn't learn some discipline at the plate. So far he's batting .326 with an OBP of .356. He's also struck out 12 times in only 43 ABs with just 2 BBs. He is a perfect 7 for 7 in stolen bases though.
C Lou Marson: This is the guy will be the Phillies starting catcher in probably 2-3 years and Ruiz will be the backup...he's better than Ruiz in all aspects of the game including hitting. So far he's been pretty good in Reading batting .333 with an OBP of .438 in his first 8 games. He's the catcher of the future and the reason that C Jason Jarromillo in AAA probably won't ever start for the Phillies...oh and he's turn 22 this June.
SS Jason Donald: He projects as a utility player right now but could turn into a competent 2B (most scouting reports I've seen project him as a 2B not a SS. Rollins and Utley are blocking him in the majors so its kinda tough to figure where's he's gonna play. He's playing pretty well right now batting .269 with an OBP of .387. He'll be 24 in September so he's not exactly a young prospect
2B Brad Harmon: An Aussie import who projects as a utility infielder with a little bit of power and average defense. He's off to a slow start batting .171 in his first 11 games.
Lehigh Valley IronPigs:
First off, the Phillies don't have any real prospects in AAA so here goes:
LHP Travis Blackley: Blackley could probably be in Philly right now as the 2nd lefty in the Pen if the Phillies needed him. He has dominated leftys so far in the minors (.100 in 6 2/3 IP against leftys). The problem is that right handed hitters turn into Rogers Hornsby against him batting .353 so far this year. He's striking out exactly 1 batter per inning and his walk rate (the reason he didn't make the roster instead of Condrey) is bareable with 4 BBs in 10 IPs. He might end up doing a spot start as the options for spot starting this year are him, JA Happ or JD Durbin.
C Jason Jaromillo: He's the only other player on the IronPigs roster who should ever see a Major League uniform. He's off to a dreadful start but he's still an outstanding defensive catcher. He'll probably end up as a backup somewhere in the majors in the next few years. Right now he's batting .138 with a slugging percentage of .345. His biggest problem is that he'll be 26 this year and he is not a young prospect anymore. He did bat .271 last year in Scranton and he could easily replace Coste as the backup right now if something were to happen. The phillies are set at Catcher for the next several years between Ruiz, Jarromillo, and Marson
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008
Weekly Wrapup
Well, after weeks of speculation, the Phillies signed LHP Steve Kline to a minor-league deal and he will report to the AAA Lehigh Valley IronPigs next week. Considering how often pitchers go down with injury and/or are ineffective, Kline could very quickly find himself on the big league roster as long as he performs in Allentown. RHP Ryan Madson has been complaining about soreness in his pitching shoulder (the same injury that forced him to miss 2 months last year) and both Tom Gordon and Clay Condrey have been somewhat ineffective so far this season. Gordon had a streak of 4 scoreless appearances going into last night where he gave up the winning run in 1 2/3 IP. Granted that run came on a horrible call by the home plate umpire but a run is a run is a run and the Phillies always need more pitching.
In other news: RHP Kris Benson continues to throw off the mound in Clearwater and looks to start in a minor-league game in hopefully two weeks if everything goes well. Considering how poorly SP Kyle Kendrick has pitched thus far in the season, Benson could quickly find himself in the starting rotation.
Huge Surprise of the Year: SP Adam Eaton has pitched in two games so far and both have been quality starts (6 IP, 3ER or less). He has posted a 3.91 ERA so far. Perhaps this will be the year that he figures it all out and somewhat earns his $8 million a year in salary. Or perhaps he will give up 10 runs in his next start...with Adam you never know.
Its About Time: SP Brett Myers was quoted as saying that he will be a "Closer for 9 innings on Saturday". Basically he means he's gonna go out there and just rear up and throw fastballs. Hopefully the Cubs don't read the Daily News and just sit fastball on him but hey if he can bring it, let him. It would be nice to see him stop throwing 90 MPH fastballs and actually get some mustard on the ball.
Weekly Awards:
Player of the Week - LF Pat Burrell: LF Pat Burrell has simply been on fire this week going 9 for 21 with 7 BB, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 4 R, and 20 Total Bases. For that math impaired that's a .438 AVG/.571OBP. Burrell has been the most consistent hitter for the Phillies so far and he looks to build on excellent second half in 2007. Over the past couple season, Pat has cut his strikeout rate and raised his OBP each year and those trends seem to be continuing as he becomes a much more patient hitter than the free-swinging days of his early career.
Pitcher of the Week - SP Cole Hamels: SP Cole Hamels went 7 strong innings on Monday afternoon picking up his first win of the season snapping a two game losing streak and salvaging a 2-2 series split with the Cincinnati Reds. He struck out 4 and gave up 1 ER getting the win. Reliever Chad Durbin was a close runner-up pitching 5 innings in 3 appearances with no runs scored. He continues to be strong out of the Pen.
Goat of the Week - 1B Ryan Howard: Despite Victorino's struggles at the top of the order, Howard has actually been worse this week going 4 for 28 (.148 AVG) with 11 K. The only bright spot is that he has hit 2 HRs with 4 RBI but otherwise Howard looks lost up at the plate.
In other news: RHP Kris Benson continues to throw off the mound in Clearwater and looks to start in a minor-league game in hopefully two weeks if everything goes well. Considering how poorly SP Kyle Kendrick has pitched thus far in the season, Benson could quickly find himself in the starting rotation.
Huge Surprise of the Year: SP Adam Eaton has pitched in two games so far and both have been quality starts (6 IP, 3ER or less). He has posted a 3.91 ERA so far. Perhaps this will be the year that he figures it all out and somewhat earns his $8 million a year in salary. Or perhaps he will give up 10 runs in his next start...with Adam you never know.
Its About Time: SP Brett Myers was quoted as saying that he will be a "Closer for 9 innings on Saturday". Basically he means he's gonna go out there and just rear up and throw fastballs. Hopefully the Cubs don't read the Daily News and just sit fastball on him but hey if he can bring it, let him. It would be nice to see him stop throwing 90 MPH fastballs and actually get some mustard on the ball.
Weekly Awards:
Player of the Week - LF Pat Burrell: LF Pat Burrell has simply been on fire this week going 9 for 21 with 7 BB, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 4 R, and 20 Total Bases. For that math impaired that's a .438 AVG/.571OBP. Burrell has been the most consistent hitter for the Phillies so far and he looks to build on excellent second half in 2007. Over the past couple season, Pat has cut his strikeout rate and raised his OBP each year and those trends seem to be continuing as he becomes a much more patient hitter than the free-swinging days of his early career.
Pitcher of the Week - SP Cole Hamels: SP Cole Hamels went 7 strong innings on Monday afternoon picking up his first win of the season snapping a two game losing streak and salvaging a 2-2 series split with the Cincinnati Reds. He struck out 4 and gave up 1 ER getting the win. Reliever Chad Durbin was a close runner-up pitching 5 innings in 3 appearances with no runs scored. He continues to be strong out of the Pen.
Goat of the Week - 1B Ryan Howard: Despite Victorino's struggles at the top of the order, Howard has actually been worse this week going 4 for 28 (.148 AVG) with 11 K. The only bright spot is that he has hit 2 HRs with 4 RBI but otherwise Howard looks lost up at the plate.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
A Night Best Forgotten
I live in Vermont which means I don't have the privilege of watching the Phillies on local TV whenever I please. So when they are nationally televised in HD like they were last night, I tend to block off that time so I can enjoy the game uninterrupted. I figured I would be in for quite a treat as the Phillies were looking to make it 10 straight against their division rival, the NY Mets. To say the least, I was somewhat disappointed by their lackluster effort in all aspects of the game. UT Eric Bruntlett was brutal filling in from MVP SS Jimmy Rollins. Bruntlett committed two little-league level errors in the games and looked out of place in JRoll's shoes. 3B Pedro Feliz, AKA Rally Killer maintained his place as the Phillie most likely to end any potential run scoring in the course of a game. He was only saved from grounding into another inning ending doubl-play when the usually surehanded Jose Reyes muffed an easy ground ball. However, not to be undone, Feliz promptly hit a weak popout to second base when he came up to bat in the top of the 8th with the bases-loaded and 2 outs. From here on out, I will never use Rally Killer's true name. He will need to earn that privilege back and I kinda doubt that it will ever happen.
Unfortunately for the Phillies, they got absolutely no support from SP Kyle Kendrick. Kendrick, a second-year player, lacked control for most of the night and got pounded when he did manage throw strikes. Kendrick is somewhat of a mystery. No one ever expected him to make the Major League roster last year, let alone win 10 games. He lacks an true out-pitch and gets by on hitting his spots and not walking anyone. He cannot afford to walk anyone as hitters bat .280 off of him with around a .330 OBP. As he also doesn't strike anyone out, his numbers don't project him having a very long career. I think alot of Phillies fans are going to be greatly disappointed by Kendrick this season. Last night, he threw a decent sinking fastball that stayed in the 89-92 MPH range and hit 93 MPH on occasion but he couldn't locate either his changeup or breaking ball with any consistency. He managed to walk 6 batters (a career high by the way) in just over 2 IP. He loaded the bases in both the 1st and 2nd innings on walks and in the 3rd on hits and errors by his defense. He was pulled in favor of RP Chad Durbin after 2 1/3 innings. Luckily for the Phillies, Durbin was able to stop the bleeding and contributed 3 2/3 strong innings with no runs allowed despite pitching the day before. Durbin also lowerd his ERA to 1.13 over 8 innings in 6 appearances in the Phillies first 9 games. He has thus far shown himself to be Manager Charlie Manuel's best option out of the pen.
Overall, the Phillies bullpen has proven to be very deep early in the season, especially after the return of CP Brad Lidge. Durbin, Lidge, Romero, and Gordon have all been excellent. Gordon's only bad game so far came on Opening Day. Since then he has not given up a run in his past 4 appearances. Rudy Seanez looks to be a fine addition to the back end of the pen and RHP Ryan Madson should also contribute. So far, the 12th pitcher Clay Condrey is the only reliever to be really concerned about and I honestly doubt he'll see much meaningful action for the Phillies.
New and Notes: LF Pat Burrell continued his early season tear going 2 for 4 last night raising his average to .400 on the year with 3 HRs/9 RBI. Much maligned starter Adam Eaton looks for 2 strong performances in a row as he faces off against SP John Maine tonight at 7:10 pm. CF Shane Victorino took a step backwards last night going 0-5 with 1 K lowering his average to .162. 1B Ryan Howard continues to struggle at the plate and is batting .188 so far this year. RF Geoff Jenkins made a spectacular diving catch in the 3rd inning last night to help stop the bleeding and the RF platoon of Jenkins and Werth appears to be working out so far early this year (Combined stats: .278 AVG, .381 OBP, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 3 R)
Unfortunately for the Phillies, they got absolutely no support from SP Kyle Kendrick. Kendrick, a second-year player, lacked control for most of the night and got pounded when he did manage throw strikes. Kendrick is somewhat of a mystery. No one ever expected him to make the Major League roster last year, let alone win 10 games. He lacks an true out-pitch and gets by on hitting his spots and not walking anyone. He cannot afford to walk anyone as hitters bat .280 off of him with around a .330 OBP. As he also doesn't strike anyone out, his numbers don't project him having a very long career. I think alot of Phillies fans are going to be greatly disappointed by Kendrick this season. Last night, he threw a decent sinking fastball that stayed in the 89-92 MPH range and hit 93 MPH on occasion but he couldn't locate either his changeup or breaking ball with any consistency. He managed to walk 6 batters (a career high by the way) in just over 2 IP. He loaded the bases in both the 1st and 2nd innings on walks and in the 3rd on hits and errors by his defense. He was pulled in favor of RP Chad Durbin after 2 1/3 innings. Luckily for the Phillies, Durbin was able to stop the bleeding and contributed 3 2/3 strong innings with no runs allowed despite pitching the day before. Durbin also lowerd his ERA to 1.13 over 8 innings in 6 appearances in the Phillies first 9 games. He has thus far shown himself to be Manager Charlie Manuel's best option out of the pen.
Overall, the Phillies bullpen has proven to be very deep early in the season, especially after the return of CP Brad Lidge. Durbin, Lidge, Romero, and Gordon have all been excellent. Gordon's only bad game so far came on Opening Day. Since then he has not given up a run in his past 4 appearances. Rudy Seanez looks to be a fine addition to the back end of the pen and RHP Ryan Madson should also contribute. So far, the 12th pitcher Clay Condrey is the only reliever to be really concerned about and I honestly doubt he'll see much meaningful action for the Phillies.
New and Notes: LF Pat Burrell continued his early season tear going 2 for 4 last night raising his average to .400 on the year with 3 HRs/9 RBI. Much maligned starter Adam Eaton looks for 2 strong performances in a row as he faces off against SP John Maine tonight at 7:10 pm. CF Shane Victorino took a step backwards last night going 0-5 with 1 K lowering his average to .162. 1B Ryan Howard continues to struggle at the plate and is batting .188 so far this year. RF Geoff Jenkins made a spectacular diving catch in the 3rd inning last night to help stop the bleeding and the RF platoon of Jenkins and Werth appears to be working out so far early this year (Combined stats: .278 AVG, .381 OBP, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 3 R)
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Phillies Ruin Mets Home Opener
Well the Fightin' Phils managed to win again. They were able to come from behind and defeat the Mets 5-2 despite a very strong performance by Mets Lefty Oliver Perez who went 5 2/3 innings without allowing a run. It was truly a team effort as SS Jimmy Rollins, 2B Chase Utley, and CF Shane Victorino each chipped in on offense with key contributions. In particular, Victorino had his first multi-hit game of the season going 2-5 with 1 BB and raised his batting average to .188 on the year. Utley reached base 4 times with 3 HBP and an RBI double to deep right that cemented the Phillies lead in the later innings.
Most importantly, the Bullpen came up strong again in what appears to be a growing strength for the club this year. RHP Chad Durbin pitched another scoreless inning lowering his ERA to 2.08 and LHP J.C. Romero and RHP Tom Gordon pitched the 8th and 9th innings to seal the deal for the Phillies. Gordon has not allowed a run since Opening Day and he appears to have gotten stronger with each outing which is an excellent sign for the bullpen. He recorded his first save of the season as Closer Brad Lidge was unavailable for work as he had pitched the previous 2 days in a row coming off the DL. Romero has continued his excellent pitching for the Phillies this year and Chad Durbin looks well suited to the middle-relief/right handed setup role that he has been given so far early in the season.
SP Kyle Kendrick will take the mound tonight for the Phillies as they try to make it 10 in a row against the NY Mets. Gametime is 7:05 pm EST and will be broadcast nationally in HD on ESPN2.
Most importantly, the Bullpen came up strong again in what appears to be a growing strength for the club this year. RHP Chad Durbin pitched another scoreless inning lowering his ERA to 2.08 and LHP J.C. Romero and RHP Tom Gordon pitched the 8th and 9th innings to seal the deal for the Phillies. Gordon has not allowed a run since Opening Day and he appears to have gotten stronger with each outing which is an excellent sign for the bullpen. He recorded his first save of the season as Closer Brad Lidge was unavailable for work as he had pitched the previous 2 days in a row coming off the DL. Romero has continued his excellent pitching for the Phillies this year and Chad Durbin looks well suited to the middle-relief/right handed setup role that he has been given so far early in the season.
SP Kyle Kendrick will take the mound tonight for the Phillies as they try to make it 10 in a row against the NY Mets. Gametime is 7:05 pm EST and will be broadcast nationally in HD on ESPN2.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Pat Burrell Powers Phils to Victory
Pat Burrell hit 2 HRs and drove in 3 as the Phillies defeated the Cincinnati Reds 5-3 this afternoon. SP Cole Hamels delivered his second straight impressive performance going 7 innings and allowing 2 runs (1 earned) while striking out 4. There were alot of positives for the Phillies in this game. Both Jimmy Rollins and Pat Burrell continued their strong starts and RF Geoff Jenkins hit his first HR of the season and is proving to be a fine pick-up by GM Pat Gillick. However, CF Shane Victorino continued to struggle, going 1 for 5 which raised his batting average to .143. Perhaps a move down in the batting order would benefit the Flyin' Hawaiian for a couple of games until he can get his timing down. Or perhaps not. Its still very early in the season to be concerned with this type of slump. In related news, Ryan Howard is struggling somewhat at the plate as well; He went 1-4 with 3 Ks lowering his average to .208 on the season.
Positives:
1. Burrell and JRoll have both started the season fast out of the gate.
2. SP Cole Hamels had another dominant performance.
3. Closer Brad Lidge got his first Save of the season pitching 1 inning and allowing no earned runs.
Negatives:
1. The Phillies defense continues to be atrocious committing another 2 errors today. Both errors were by newcomers with OF So Taguchi and 3B Pedro Feliz each committing one. Both players were brought on board mainly for their defensive skills so go figure.
2. Victorino is off to a horrid start.....143 average in the first 7 games of the season.
3. Howard is also struggling batting .208.
Tomorrow, the Phillies start a 3 game series in NY against the Mets and SP Jamie Moyer will take the mound against SP Oliver Perez. After that they are back in Philly for a 9 game homestand against the Cubs, Astros, and Mets.
Positives:
1. Burrell and JRoll have both started the season fast out of the gate.
2. SP Cole Hamels had another dominant performance.
3. Closer Brad Lidge got his first Save of the season pitching 1 inning and allowing no earned runs.
Negatives:
1. The Phillies defense continues to be atrocious committing another 2 errors today. Both errors were by newcomers with OF So Taguchi and 3B Pedro Feliz each committing one. Both players were brought on board mainly for their defensive skills so go figure.
2. Victorino is off to a horrid start.....143 average in the first 7 games of the season.
3. Howard is also struggling batting .208.
Tomorrow, the Phillies start a 3 game series in NY against the Mets and SP Jamie Moyer will take the mound against SP Oliver Perez. After that they are back in Philly for a 9 game homestand against the Cubs, Astros, and Mets.
Breaking News!!!
Tom Gordon pitched an entire inning and didn't give up any hits or runs...and it was in a meaningful part of the game.
~feels the ground~
Kinda cold. I guess Hell did freeze over.
~feels the ground~
Kinda cold. I guess Hell did freeze over.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Phillies Win in 10 and Weekly Awards
So the Phillies showed that they do give a damn about the season and the offense came alive for them finally. The Phillies actually showed great composure in what could be a huge come from behind victory beating the Nationals 8-7 in 10 innings. It was good to see and it was a good sign to see the much questioned bullpen come up huge.
Positives:
1. Shane Victorino finally got his first hit of the year
2. Bottom half of the order came up huge (Jenkins/Feliz/Coste went 7 for 14 with 4 runs scored and 2 RBI)
3. Bullpen looked solid
Negatives:
1. Tom Gordon took 34 pitches to retire the Nats in the 9th. He managed to load the bases but not give up any runs. Scary.
2. 4 errors in the first inning and a third. The Phillies still don't appear ready to be playing meaningful games.
3. It basically took everything the Phillies had to eke out a victory against a mediocre team and salvage a 1-2 split of the Series. For the record, by the 10th inning the Phillies had no one left on the bench and only RHP Tim Lahay in the bullpen.
Weekly Awards:
Let me start off by explaining how this will work. Every Friday I will give out awards to top performers on the Phillies for the week. This is a somewhat shortened week but typically the period will run from Friday night - Thursday Night for stats and key contributions. That being said:
Pitcher of the Week - Chad Durbin: Now this could easily be Cole Hamels for his dominant 8 inning performance but I'm gonna go out on a limb and say Chad Durbin. Durbin has appeared in all 3 games so far in relief and given up no runs in 3 IP. He has positioned himself to be a go-to guy out of the Pen for the rest of season with his performance.
Player of the Week - Jimmy Rollins: Yeah I know, he's only batting .231 so far in 3 games. However, his huge 1st to 3rd gamble in the 10th inning paid massive dividends yesterday afternoon and positioned the Phillies to win their first game. Also his 7 Total Bases leads the team and he's tied for the team lead in Hits, Runs, RBIs, 2Bs, and HRs.
Positives:
1. Shane Victorino finally got his first hit of the year
2. Bottom half of the order came up huge (Jenkins/Feliz/Coste went 7 for 14 with 4 runs scored and 2 RBI)
3. Bullpen looked solid
Negatives:
1. Tom Gordon took 34 pitches to retire the Nats in the 9th. He managed to load the bases but not give up any runs. Scary.
2. 4 errors in the first inning and a third. The Phillies still don't appear ready to be playing meaningful games.
3. It basically took everything the Phillies had to eke out a victory against a mediocre team and salvage a 1-2 split of the Series. For the record, by the 10th inning the Phillies had no one left on the bench and only RHP Tim Lahay in the bullpen.
Weekly Awards:
Let me start off by explaining how this will work. Every Friday I will give out awards to top performers on the Phillies for the week. This is a somewhat shortened week but typically the period will run from Friday night - Thursday Night for stats and key contributions. That being said:
Pitcher of the Week - Chad Durbin: Now this could easily be Cole Hamels for his dominant 8 inning performance but I'm gonna go out on a limb and say Chad Durbin. Durbin has appeared in all 3 games so far in relief and given up no runs in 3 IP. He has positioned himself to be a go-to guy out of the Pen for the rest of season with his performance.
Player of the Week - Jimmy Rollins: Yeah I know, he's only batting .231 so far in 3 games. However, his huge 1st to 3rd gamble in the 10th inning paid massive dividends yesterday afternoon and positioned the Phillies to win their first game. Also his 7 Total Bases leads the team and he's tied for the team lead in Hits, Runs, RBIs, 2Bs, and HRs.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Ouch
So 4 errors through the first 4 inning today for the Phillies defense. "Gold-glover" Jimmy Rollins now has 2 in his first 3 games as does 2B Chase Utley. "Gold-glove" 3B Pedro Feliz committed his first error of the year today as well. So officially the infield has 5 errors and 6 hits in 3 games. Impressive performance so far by the the Fightin' Phils. Considering that hitting and offense were supposed to be this team's strengths, their pathetic performance at the plate is somewhat concerning. Subpar performances by starters Brett Myers and Jamie Moyer have only compounded the situation. I am fully confident that Kyle Kendrick and Adam Eaton will be able to stop the bleeding this week and give us two solid outings...or more likely the Phillies will start the season 0-5.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Pedro Martinez Injured
So the Mets lost their 2nd best pitcher and the lynchpin of their rotation last night when Pedro Martinez came up clutching his thigh after a pitch. The part of me that started him in my fantasy league was sad but the Phillie Fan in me rejoiced at the injury. Major injuries to key players is honestly the only way the Phillies have a chance to beat the Mets this year. Injuries to their pitching staff in particular are huge as they really don't have that much depth. Hopefully, for the Phillies sake, Pedro is gone for at least a couple of months. He has an MRI scheduled today and hopefully we'll know more by tonight or tomorrow morning as to how severe it is. However, 36 year old fragile pitchers with extensive injury histories aren't exactly known for bouncing back quickly.
In other news, Cole Hamels will take the mound tonight against the Nats and hopefully he has a good outing because as we all know, the rest of the Phillies staff isn't exactly reliable so a 2 game losing streak could easily turn into a 5 game streak in the blink of an eye. I will boldly predict a strong outing from Hamels and a win for the Phightin' Phils tonight.
Rookie to Watch: I know this is a Phillies Blog, but I just had to mention rookie CF Carlos Gomez of the Minnesota Twins. He had a spectacular debut on Opening Day for the Twins and made the Santana trade look a little less lopsided with his 2 H, 2 SB, and a couple of spectacular defensive plays in center. If he learns how to consistently hit, he could be an All-Star for years to come.
In other news, Cole Hamels will take the mound tonight against the Nats and hopefully he has a good outing because as we all know, the rest of the Phillies staff isn't exactly reliable so a 2 game losing streak could easily turn into a 5 game streak in the blink of an eye. I will boldly predict a strong outing from Hamels and a win for the Phightin' Phils tonight.
Rookie to Watch: I know this is a Phillies Blog, but I just had to mention rookie CF Carlos Gomez of the Minnesota Twins. He had a spectacular debut on Opening Day for the Twins and made the Santana trade look a little less lopsided with his 2 H, 2 SB, and a couple of spectacular defensive plays in center. If he learns how to consistently hit, he could be an All-Star for years to come.
Injury Update: Mets SP Pedro Martinez is reportedly headed to the DL and is expected to miss a minimum of one month assuming everything goes perfectly with his rehabilitation.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Phillies Acquire 39-Year-Old RHP Rudy Seanez
The Phillies apparently feel that they don't have quite enough washed up aging relievers so they decided to sign Rudy Seanez, who was cut by the Dodgers earlier this week, to a contract. Seanez is expected to be in uniform for the Phillies tomorrow. Seanez was signed to a 1 year - $550K contract with $750 K in possible performance bonuses back in February of this year by the Dodgers. However, after a poor Spring, he was cut on Sunday. The Phillies will be responsible for his contract this year after claiming him off waivers.
I'll go out on a limb here and guess that Tom Gordon will be on the DL with a "previously undiagnosed" injury within the next 2 weeks as Seanez will be thrust into his setup role. Its pretty sad that it's Day 2 of the 2008 Season and Pat Gillick is already picking up Arms from the scrap heap. Not a good sign for the rest of the season.
I'll go out on a limb here and guess that Tom Gordon will be on the DL with a "previously undiagnosed" injury within the next 2 weeks as Seanez will be thrust into his setup role. Its pretty sad that it's Day 2 of the 2008 Season and Pat Gillick is already picking up Arms from the scrap heap. Not a good sign for the rest of the season.
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