Phillies-Blog.com: Blog Commentary from Real, Passionate Philadelphia Phillies Fans

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It’s been a while since we last posted anything on here, but there’s a new-found desire to write after recent events. 

I’ll get to Jimmy Rollins later, but, what a good friend of mine likes to call a “poop and pee” offense needs to be addressed. How can we have one of the “best” offenses in the major leagues not have a legitimate .300 hitter in their lineup? The best 2 hitters in our lineup are only hitting in the .280s (Victorino and Utley). Ryan Howard’s average continues to plunge as his strikeout total rises towards his own single season strikeout record. Our reigning MVP is hitting a mere .266.  It’s tough to see where a turnaround is going to come from. Chase Utley shows signs of life, but can’t seem to turn things completely around. Pat Burrell is completely lost. And Ryan Howard, stick with that long, un-adapting swing that can only hit up in the zone fast balls and hanging breaking balls from right handers…

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Jimmy Rollins’ made some comments about us “front-runners,” many of which have been rooting for the Phillies before he even sniffed a varsity baseball field. You want cheering, Jimmy? Check out the campaign the bloggers “We Should be GMs” have started. If that’s what you want Jimmy, maybe we should cheer for every one of your 1-pitch ABs with the bases loaded?

A friend of mine sent me an article this weekend about a bet between two friends, one a Phillies fan and the other a Brewers fan. The bet was about which team would have the best record after the 2007 season. The Phillies fan won out, and this guy, Chris Jollay, had to go homeless for one week. You can find the WUSA news story right here.

My friend, Steve Heckman, was a pretty integral part of the bet and the documentation of it. Check out his website, SteveHeckmanOnline.com, for the entire account.

Not sure if I would be willing to take the Phillies end of that same bet again this year.

So we’re through 5 full with the Phillies leading the Cards 3-1. Gary Matthews just got done blatantly hitting on Alyssa Milano in the pressbox. Apparently he got to see 3 of her 6 tattoos. Good for you, Sarge. He may be getting old, but the man is not dead.

After their third straight loss to the Mets the Phillies stand 1.5 games ahead of the Marlins and 2.5 games ahead of the creeping Mets. As much as everyone would love for Adam Eaton to cut it, he isn’t, and anyone that expects him to is dreaming. By my count, this leaves the Phillies’ two major holes in the rotation.

Phil Sheridan writes that the Phillies are in need of an A-list pitcher to fill out their rotation. We counted on the biggest acquisition coming from within this year, but now Myers is down in the minors. I know I’m hoping he returns to the rotation in the form that we all expected him at the beginning of the season, but at this point, any production from him will be a bonus (though he did have a decent start last night).

It looks as though the dream of getting an A-list pitcher will simply stay a dream. Gillick has mentioned the Phillies will most likely be looking to the B-list for pitching help. He points to the pickup of Kyle Lohse last season. Sheridan writes:

“Funny, that. Now that he has a contract with (and 10 wins for) St. Louis, the Phillies are touting Lohse. During the winter and spring, when he was extremely available, they weren’t nearly as enthused.”

No, the Phillies need someone from the A-list. Yes, it might cost us something in the future, but that looks like a risk they’ll have to take to give the Phils a good shot down the stretch. Keep your eyes on the rearview mirror.

So a lot has happened over the 4th of July weekend. Namely, the Phillies have lost 2 of 3 to continue their season-long woes against the Mets. Jayson Werth provided the Phillies’ fireworks with a 2-out 2-run homerun off Billy Wagner, but Fernando Tatis hit one of his own in the 12th, securing a 4-2 win for the Mets.

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The Phillies have a chance for some redemption tonight as Adam Eaton sets to face off with the aging Pedro Martinez. Was anyone else just happy that Ryan Howard did not strike out 5 times in last night’s game? Sometimes he looks absolutely lost at the plate. I know he’s supposed to hit homeruns, but he is obliterating his strikeout rate from last season. Anyone think that 230 Ks is out of the question?

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So Chase Utley and Brad Lidge will represent the Phils in the All-Star game. Pat Burrell has the chance to make it with the final vote. If you ask me, Cole Hamels (9-5, 3.22) was snubbed from the All-Star roster.

The Phillies just announced that Brett Myers has been optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He will make his first start tomorrow night. Myers could have denied the option, but has agreed to accept the demotion.

This is not how I envisioned things playing out, but I can’t say that I’m disappointed. With this demotion, it’s possible that Myers can work things out and be able to contribute later in the year. It also gives them the chance to throw someone out there who might give the Phils a better shot at winning games. It hasn’t been indicated who the Phillies will take on, but I would assume JA Happ will be a stop-gap replacement. It’s pretty clear that the Phillies now need to make a significant move to bolster this starting rotation…

As of early this morning, the Brett Myers situation is unresolved. According to Todd Zolecki, a decision should be made at some point today.

It’s most likely that the Phils will skip his turn in the rotation, going with Hamels on Thursday on his normal rest. The question is: what do you do his next turn in the rotation? They could simply skip his start and give him the ball his next time around. If they decide to replace him in the rotation, Zolecki thinks the two options they have are spot-starting Chad Durbin, or bringing up J.A. Happ from the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs. I’d personally like to see J.A. Happ take his spot in the rotation, for now. He’s having a decent year at Triple-A. Durbin is too valuable in the bullpen. I would not want to see Brett Myers in the same situations that Charlie Manuel uses Durbin.

If Myers comes out of the rotation, he will most likely go to the bullpen. They could designate So Taguchi for assignment, though this may leave the bench pretty thin. I think another viable option (though I believe unlikely) is to send Brett Myers to Triple-A for a while and let him try to work things out where the stakes aren’t so high. Whatever the Phillies do, they need to get Myers out of the rotation. It’s time to start pulling things together. The Marlins are now a 1/2 game back. The Mets are 3 1/2. The Phils are 5-1 against Atlanta this year. A turnaround needs to start tonight.