Comments on: Well, Now That That’s Over

By: Bill B.

Bill B. — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 23:54:37 +0000

Shooter, always glad to see you.

#16 won’t be the Pirates!

Re: Santana, let me put it this way… I made a bet with a highly biased Phillies fan and someone I would say is under-educated when it comes to baseball. He put $100 on Santana not having any “meaningful effect” on the Mets. I laughed and eagerly made the wager.

Everyone outside of Philly is over-stating Santana’s effect; everyone inside Philly is under-stating his effect.

By: ShooterB

ShooterB — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 22:44:58 +0000

“Pitching-wise, overall, I expect a middle-of-the-pack performance, perhaps 9th out of the 16 National League teams.”

Geez, let me guess who # 16 is going to be…

Just had to stop in and see what you had to say about the Phils. Perhaps an understatement to say that the Johan deal “changes things”. Still has the makings of an interesting pennant race, contrary to popular belief. I think most are ready to hand the title to the Mets tomorrow.

Maybe they will have better luck than last year. Who knows what would have happened if they could have stayed healthy…

Take it easy…

By: MoonDog

MoonDog — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 13:21:22 +0000

If Lidge can return to his 2004/2005 form, the Phils will be OK. Lidge hasn’t been the same since Albert Pujols hit that moon shot against him in Game 5 of the NLCS.

Not to mention, the Astros moved him out of the closer role for a while, did they not?

The Phils will win a lot of games because they can outscore the other team, not because they can hold the other team to 2-3 runs.

Later.

By: Neduol Caz

Neduol Caz — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 00:38:19 +0000

The day Ruiz and Victorino each hit 20+ HR’s is the day a crappy giants team wins the super bowl, oh wait… Regardless, I don’t see either of them approaching 20+ HR’s, especially when considering the playing time they are likely to get. I agree that our rotation is weak, however. I like Myers and consider him to be a durable and reliable number three starter. Hamels has never made it through a season (minors or majors) healthy, so I am not sure why we are all counting on him to do it this year. Kendrick is a number five at best, last year was a fluke. Check out his BABIP. Moyer is Moyer, also a number five at this point. I feel Eaton will bounce back to be servicable, as his career numbers are only slightly below league average in the NL.

By: Bill B.

Bill B. — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 17:00:57 +0000

Rollins’ defense is overrated. Gold Gloves aren’t a good way to determine defensive prowess. Check out Rafael Palmeiro in 1999 with Texas: he won the Gold Glove award and he played 28 games at first base, and 135 as the DH.

Rollins ranked 9th out of 14 eligible NL SS in Revised Zone Rating (RZR).

I think we’ll get 6-7 innings on average from Hamels and Myers; 6 from Kendrick; and 5-6 from Moyer and Eaton. I don’t think the bullpen will be out of gas, it’s surprisingly deep.

By: xfactor

xfactor — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 16:56:46 +0000

Rollins provides Gold Glove defense at shortstop, not “average to slightly above average”.

Also, the bullpen is always a problem with the Phillies. Expect them to be overworked again in 2008 because the starting rotation is weak after Cole and Brett.

Finally, I wouldn’t be surprised if either Ruiz or Victorino also hit 20+ HR.

The Phillies can compete with anyone, but it will be a fight to finish again because they lack the starting pitching to shut teams down into the late innings.