Thursday, June 7, 2012

Mired in Mediocrity


It’s been almost a month since my last blog post and I have been struggling to come up with an angle for a story. Since my last post the Phillies have continued to tread water and basically stay mired in mediocrity. Currently, they are playing the worst baseball they have played all season. After losing 5 straight (most in heartbreaking, or at least terrible fashion), they are 28-30 and 6 games back of the first place Washington Nationals.

The biggest news regarding the Phils over the past few weeks has been anything but positive. Roy Halladay started the season in his traditional brilliant fashion, but when he blew a 6-0 lead against the Braves a month or so back every one watching knew that something was up with Doc. He continued to struggle in almost every start (struggling for Doc is allowing more than 2 runs) and finally in a start against the Cardinals two weeks ago he only made it through two innings after giving up 4 runs in the first and was pulled from the game. The silver lining to Doc landing on the DL was that he did not tear a rotator cuff or have an injury that would put him out for the season. Apparently, he just pulled a muscle in his shoulder and he is supposed to be able to join the club sometime after the All-Star Break.

One not-so-funny anecdote from watching the Phillies telecast was the second-to-last game Doc started. It was May 22nd and the Phillies were hosting the Nationals at Citizen’s Bank Park. The Phils took an early 1-0 lead which generally means a W when Big Roy is on the hill. Not-so-much this season. With a 1-0 lead in the 3rd inning the Phillies’ GM Ruben Amaro joined Chris Wheeler and Todd McCarthy in the booth to discuss what was currently happening with the litany of role players, pitchers, and superstars the Phillies are paying to sit on the bench. As Amaro started to discuss the guys most fans could care less about (Mike Stutes, Mike Martinez, Jim Thome), Doc started to fall apart. Balls were flying around the ballpark as Amaro was delivering news on the progress of these guys. By the time it was 2-1 Nationals, Amaro was cracking jokes about how he did not need to ever come back to the booth if Halladay was going to perform like this when he was granting interviews.

The not-so-much-fun did not stop there. Wheels was not about to let Amaro slide while on air by giving a report on Mike Stutes. He summoned some gumption and asked the questions everybody else wanted asked. When is Ryan Howard coming back? And while we’re on the subject.. When is Chase Utley coming back? It seemed like as soon as he asked these questi- BOOM! Bryce Harper triple in the gap scores 2 runs. Amaro explained there is no time-table for Ryan Howard and the wound from his surgically repaired Achilles tendon has been the biggest obstacle Howard has faced in his rehab. This is maddeningly frustrating to me. I’m not going to pretend to know much of anything about rehabbing an injury like this, but how the hell does a wound from a surgery get infected on a player who is worth $25 million a year to a ballclub?!? Was nobody monitoring this? How did they let something like that happen? Meanwhile, a sacrifice fly and a home run by Ian Desmond made the score 4-2 Nationals as Amaro explained that there was also no time-table for Chase Utley’s return.

The Utley situation has me the most frustrated. I guess I understand that his injury is degenerative and it is “hard to say” when he can expect to come back, but the secrecy surrounding this guy is nuts to me. The only things you ever seem to hear are that he is getting stronger. He feels better at this time this year than he did last year. He is resuming baseball activities. Blah blah blah. It’s basically, we don’t know anything about when he can come back, and if we did we’re not telling anybody who would possibly tell the media. In this scenario the “we” represents Amaro, Utley, Charlie Manuel, and the rest of the Phillies brass.

At this time, it is nice to report that Howard and Utley are in Clearwater playing extended spring training games. Your guess is as good as mine as to what an extended spring training game is like. I heard Utley is slamming the ball in these games, but then just like recess or some weird little league, somebody else is running the ball out for him? I’m really just guessing on that, but that’s what I’m picturing in my head from the reports I read and hear. I’ll take the good with the bad and just hope he gets back after the All-Star break at the latest.

Meanwhile, Cliff Lee just can’t catch a break. He only missed 3 starts for a brief stint on the DL so he still qualifies to be among the league leaders in the pitching categories. He is 4th in the NL in WHIP, he has a 2.92 ERA, and he is striking out more than a batter per inning. Guess how many wins Cliff has? ZERO! A big fat goose egg! I can’t explain the guttural reaction I have to the putrid offense the Phillies have when Cliff is on the mound. He pitched 10 shutout innings and got a no-decision earlier in the season. GROSS! He was dominant Tuesday night against the Dodgers in a game I attended. The Phillies scored 1 run in the first and then took the rest of the night off on offense. With literally no margin for error Lee gave up a two run double in the 8th that cost the Phillies the game. Cliff Lee is the last person to blame for this loss. He threw 122 pitches, 93 for strikes! And struck out 12 batters. He took the loss to fall to 0-3 for the season. It makes me want to throw up.

Despite all this, let me break down why I think the Phils will still make a run for the division title if they can get everybody back on the field and healthy by the All-Star break. First of all, the team the way it is currently constructed has done a decent enough job by staying in contention. They are in last place, but 6 games is not a ton of ground to make up when we are still in early June. The return of arguably the Phils three best players in Halladay, Howard, and Utley should have a gigantic effect on the entire team. If you think about it, right now the guys who have to carry this ballclub offensively are Hunter Pence, Jimmy Rollins, and Carlos “Chooch” Ruiz. These three have all demonstrated this season and in prior seasons that they are more than capable major league hitters. But with Howard and Utley out of the lineup pitchers know that they really have focus on getting these guys out. If opposing pitchers do, then they can get easier outs with guys like Freddie Galvis, John Mayberry, Ty Wigginton, and whatever other utility non-everyday players the Phils have to play everyday.

When Utley slides into the 3-hole and Howard follows him batting cleanup the pressure on Pence, Rollins, Chooch, and Shane Victorino is alleviated to an extent. This team is obviously playing a bit tight offensively and there’s nothing like getting perennial All-Stars back in your lineup to take the edge off what could be a disastrous season if it continues the way it has in the first few months.

The same is true for the pitching staff. Right now Cole Hamels and Cliff Lee are pitching like All-Stars but the Phillies have basically wasted any efforts from Lee by not scoring any runs when he has pitched. I mean literally, here are the total runs scored in Lee starts so far this season for each start: 1, 2, 0, 6, 4, 1, 5, 10, 1. The large totals are deceiving because they did not score those runs until Cliff exited the ball game. They have not given him more than a 2 run lead to work with all season. That leaves Joe Blanton (currently close to the worst pitcher in baseball if you have seen him lately), Kyle Kendrick (“I love to leave my 89 MPH fastball up in the zone over the middle of the plate"), and Vance Worley (just recently back off the DL) to get the Phillies wins. Needless to say, having Doc back in the rotation would give either Kendrick or Blanton the boot (we’ll see if either can get an ERA under 5.00 before Doc gets back to see who wins that coveted 5th starter spot) and the Phils can start being favored in almost every game again.

The first 60 games of the season have not been all bad, however. Chooch has been nothing short of outstanding at the plate. He leads all catchers in batting average and is third in the National League at an astounding .358 clip! A week ago he pinch-hit for Cliff Lee when the Phillies were down 3-1 in the 7th against the Mets. Cliff certainly could have stayed in this game, but Charlie gave Chooch his shot. And boy did he take advantage by smacking a 2 run-game-tying home run to left. The flood gates opened from there and the Phillies won that game 10-6, of course Lee did not get the W. Cole Hamels is tied for the National League in wins with 8 and should be headed to another All-Star game. New closer Jonathan Papelbon has been brilliant in the 9th inning going 15-15 in save opportunities and has a 2.31 ERA. He should join Hamels and Chooch on the All-Star roster.

In summation, I have to refer back to two blog posts ago. There is a lot of waiting going on. We, as fans, are all waiting for the Phillies 3 big stars to return to the lineup so the Phillies can rise to the top of the division for the 6th year in a row. For now, we’re just sitting here watching the wheels go round and round. 

17 comments:

  1. And if Howard and Utley are done? Where are we then? Halladay may yet live to pitch the remainder of the season, but who knows on the other two. It is a concern. I think they have the talent to do better but maybe lack leadership or drive?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Alex, I like your positive attitude. Go Phillies!

    ReplyDelete
  3. As I continue to watch them sink into oblivion, now 6 games back the one "shining star" has been the guy currently on the mound as I write, Cole Hamels. Sign him, sign him now! He has kept us this close, as bad as we are. Again in baseball, a long, long way to go in the season but getting dangerously close to being double-digits behind is asking for disaster. Even with the big three back, who knows how they will be? Howard and Utley will take a while to get back in the groove. Unfortunately Utley has all the making of a DH and sadly, we should look at trading him. I doubt he can play the field again, at least to his level. Enough rambling, I need a blog!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I have to agree with Sharon here, I think the biggest reason they are so hush hush about these injuries is that these guys may not be back this year...I heard about moving Chase to LF which is crazy but with the way Galvis plays defense could be a real option. What we miss most is the big bat in the 4th hole all the Howard haters out there before this year are now seeing why we paid him so much money. I am trying to stay as positive as possible with this team but those C Lee stats make me downright sick to my stomach. If we can get Howard and Halladay back by july I will feel we have a much better shot at the playoffs and luckily they added another wild card spot...Great read Alex keep em coming (maybe a flyers article once in a blue moon??)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Nice article Riley..although im not a phillies fan still really enjoy reading the blog. To give an objective look, I think that if you can get one of those two annual all-stars back and productive you'll be okay and make the playoffs. Riley's point about the 4 hole relieving pressure off of the rest of the players was on point. It's only June, people (particularly philly media) every year seem to forget what a marathon the baseball season is. Also I believe there is an extra wild card this year correct? Could help if the Nats don't fall off because of their youth. Chooch is your MVP by far at this point and the best catcher in baseball to me - no question. Good luck the rest of the year. What's everyone's take on Hamels and the Dodgers simply planning to outbid the Phils? Is it absolutely necessary for the Phillies to retain him, or can they use the money elsewhere?

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think what happens the rest of the year will dictate what they do with Hamels. If they make another run and Howard/Utley/Halladay look like they can contribute past this year then they should/will sign him. If Utley is garbage (very possible) they will probably look to trade him to the AL where he can DH, then not sign Hamels and go in another direction.

    I'd like to see Chase play leftfield when he gets back to take some pressure off his knees. Galvis' glove is better than anybody else we have and his average hasn't been great but he's been more clutch than anybody but Chooch, you can't teach that. Hopefully he is only sidelined for a bit because more than 2 weeks of a Mike Fontenot/Pete Orr platoon I might have a conniption! Where is Wilson "Exon" Valdez when you need him? Mike Martinez wouldn't hurt either.. Euhhh

    The extra wild card will be huge this year, but I'm still holding out hope for the division! I'm more worried about the Braves than the Nats. The Nats have yet to cut their teeth in big games and most of their stars are very young, so it will be interesting to see if they have poise in September. They will need a healthy Jayson Werth to look to for some experience and know-how in big games, I believe we all know he has that. No doubt they will be very formidable going forward after this year.

    ** There will be no Flyers blogs ever posted by me. For the record.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Michael Martinez is up with the Phillies last I saw, I think we need to cut Thome bring up Dom Brown (dont think hes getting any better in triple A) we can either try to get his value up and trade him or best case he starts to hit and can play some OF and we use him in OF next year if we lose SHane...if we lose Hamels this team will drop back to middle of the pack but thats just my opinion. I dont know how much longer I can deal with our lineup having Pierre (57 years old) Thome (60 years old) Wiggington (45 years old) and Schneider (53 years old) making me go cray

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. love the ages of these players (sad to say pierre is third best bat in line up) I am shocked to see that no one has brought up the lacklustered phillies D... forgive me for not having actual stats to back me here but wasnt the phillies D the best in the NL if not all of MLB the past 3,4,5 years? (fielding pct/errors/etc.)

      I heard a putrid number spout out by a slurring LA yesterday about 10 errors in the past 6 games... wiggington had 9 on season alone. We are in the middle of the pack in fielding and many of these blunders are coming a costly time.

      that aside, think the phils will do their thang in July/August and pull it out... i will do my best to not pay attention to rest of games in June.

      Delete
    2. The defense has been getting overlooked because they are not winning and everybody is hurt. At this point though, the defense has been literally costing them games.

      I think most fans are used to seeing the kind of defense we have seen the past few weeks and chalk it up as "Oh well." We, on the other hand, are used to our defense saving us games so when Ty Wigginton keeps booting balls at 3rd in EXTRA INNINGS! And Hector Luna gets referred to as "stone hands" in the Inquirer its time to make some changes.

      Change number one - Bring Dom Brown the F*CK! Up!! There is absolutely zero left to lose at this point. Mayberry was amazing in the second half last year but he clearly isn't anywhere near sustaining that this year. The rest of the players they play are stop-gaps, veterans, and hangers-on. What's the difference if we lose with Dom Brown or Mike Fontenot? The difference is Dom Brown is getting big leauge experience while Fontenot just aint never going to get it done. What are they waiting for?!?!?

      Delete
  8. No matter if some one searches for his required thing, so
    he/she needs to be available that in detail, so that thing is maintained over here.
    My page - Como Conquistar A Una Amiga

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow, this post is fastidious, my sister is analyzing these kinds of things, therefore I am going to convey her.
    Here is my web blog : Interior Design Ideas

    ReplyDelete
  10. What's up to every one, because I am really eager of reading this blog's post to be updated on a regular basis.
    It carries pleasant information.
    Here is my webpage mortgage aid

    ReplyDelete
  11. Malaysia & Singapore & brunei finest online blogshop for wholesale & quantity korean accessories,
    earrings, earstuds, locket, rings, hair,
    bracelet & bracelet accessories. Deal 35 % wholesale price cut. Ship Worldwide
    Also visit my weblog Epic

    ReplyDelete
  12. Malaysia & Singapore & brunei best on-line blogshop for wholesale & supply korean add-ons, accessories, earstuds, pendant, rings, bangle, hair & trinket
    add-ons. Promotion 35 % wholesale price cut. Ship Worldwide
    My page - http://sittercitypromocodes.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  13. Thank you a lot for sharing this with all folks you actually realize what
    you are talking approximately! Bookmarked. Kindly additionally talk over with my
    website =). We will have a link exchange arrangement among us
    Feel free to visit my site ; best general contractor orlando florida

    ReplyDelete