Recent articles by Paul Boye

 

2014 Phillies Report Card: Ryne Sandberg

Grading players is easy. Every little thing a batter or pitcher does throughout the course of a season is run through a spectrometer whose readings spew statistics that traverse the visible range of objective (and subjective) evaluation. What’s left is a full color palette, hues unblended, from which an encompassing picture can be painted. There is
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2014 Phillies Report Card: Reid Brignac

A bit more than a decade ago, Reid Brignac began his professional baseball career with plenty of promise. A second-round pick of the then-Devil Rays in 2004, Brignac flirted with top prospect status after an excellent 2006 saw him chip in a .321/.376/.539 line between two levels as a shortstop at age 20. Not bad,
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2014 Phillies Report Card: Cesar Jimenez

Did you find yourself watching one of the 16 games Cesar Jimenez appeared in this season and experiencing a certain feeling of malaise or gently lingering dread? Did a wave of resignation sweep over you as you suddenly started feeling a little more sleepy than you initially realized? It’s not just you! Jimenez had the
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2014 Phillies Report Card: Maikel Franco

PERSPECTIVE. What does that word mean to you? From artists to politicians to baseball people, this multifaceted word wields lots of power, and calibrating it properly is critical. As it relates to baseball – and, specifically, Phillies rookie Maikel Franco – perspective is important for realizing exactly what a given thing means at a point
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2014 Phillies Report Card: David Buchanan

On May 21, Cliff Lee hit the disabled list for the first time. Their pitching depth in the upper minors thin, the Phillies turned to a 25-year-old rookie to fill Lee’s spot in the rotation, an unheralded seventh-round draftee who made an impression in the spring. That rookie, David Buchanan, would go on to spend
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2014 Phillies Report Card: Ben Revere

I am a malcontent idiot when it comes to baseball sometimes. I watched Ben Revere last year and saw only an empty-average, speed-compensating-for-instincts center fielder and thought, “well, I can put up with that, I guess.” At some points during this season, I still found myself biting a lip at his walk totals or banging
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Deadline “Success” and Racing to Resolution

As of this post, the Phillies are no closer to making a trade of any substance than they were a week or two. They’re concrete in their stead, apparently, holding out for the moon and stars in return for Cole Hamels, all while having to weather the opposing forces rebuffing their attempts to dump the
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The End of Things

With any luck, you weren’t paying attention. Mid-Thursday afternoon, following the Phillies’ 2-1, sweep-avoiding victory over the Giants on the back – and left arm – of Cole Hamels, the Ryan Howard era came to an end. A few years down the road, the line of demarcation for the end of the era of reverence
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Fait Accompli

The fatalists among us figured this was the way it was always going to end. The Phillies’ signing of Jonathan Papelbon in the waning months of 2011 – and, as I’ll never forget to remind everyone, a single week before a rule change would have kept the club from forfeiting their draft pick to do
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Aaron Nola and Young Pitching

The Phillies did not surprise anyone with their selection of LSU RHP Aaron Nola with the seventh overall pick Thursday night. Nola had long been linked to the Phils, despite his profile as a college pitcher being a rather distinct departure from the club’s particular tastes of toolsy high school athlete-types. His selection was predicted,
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The Extension Parade and Domonic Brown

You might have noticed that a lot of young players – most of them Braves – have been inked to long-term, pre-free agency extensions recently. Freddie Freeman, Michael Brantley, Julio Teheran, Craig Kimbrel and Andrelton Simmons were each signed to a deal of four or more years this month, and while none of those players
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The Reinvention of A.J. Burnett

Following the 2011 season, A.J. Burnett wasn’t looking so hot. Three years into a five-year deal signed prior to the Yankees’ 2009 World Series-winning campaign, Burnett had provided the Yankees with 584 innings of 4.79 ERA (92 ERA+) and a K/BB ratio under 2.0. With two years and $33 million remaining on the deal, Burnett
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Ryan Madson and the Arm That Was

Former Phillies reliever Ryan Madson is a free agent, a nearly forgotten man who has missed the entirety of the past two seasons, owing to some obviously serious elbow issues. That kind of time away from the game can dull memories of what once was and, in Madson’s case, that’s a special shame. Madson was
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The Goldilocks Zone of Losing

There is a point at which all things break, or melt, or freeze. There is a point at which something’s physical state becomes changed, transformed into something atomically similar to what it once was, but usually not physically or visually reminiscent of past form. In 2012, the Phillies resembled the early stages of 2003’s disaster-porn
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Phillies Avoid Arbitration with Ben Revere

The Phillies closed the books on their arbitration season Friday, reaching an agreement with center fielder Ben Revere on a $1.95 million deal for the 2014 season. This is Revere’s first year or arbitration eligibility. Revere, 25, was acquired last offseason for pitchers Vance Worley and Trevor May, and played in 88 games before breaking
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Four Years Later: Halladay/Lee Day

Four years ago today – December 16, 2009 – the Phillies made one of the strangest pairs of deals in club history when they acquired Roy Halladay from the Toronto Blue Jays, and subsequently dealt Cliff Lee to the Seattle Mariners.

 

A Bullpen Without Papelbon

The news is starting to come out: Jonathan Papelbon is on the block, and the Phillies want to move him. Whether they’re able to is one question, whether they should is a question answered before Pap even signed with the Phillies. Because the contract never should’ve existed. That’s what I’m getting at. Bad deal. Bad. But
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Robinson Cano and Chase Utley

At the time of my writing this, Robinson Cano is almost definitely a member of the Seattle Mariners, the club just hasn’t confirmed it. He’s jumping aboard for a 10-year, $240 million or so contract, a massive statement by the Mariners that could just be the beginning of a huge offseason in the Pacific Northwest.
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Phillies Tender Contracts to Arbitration-Eligible Players, Sign Frandsen

The Phillies announced this evening that they will tender contracts to Antonio Bastardo, Kyle Kendrick, John Mayberry Jr. and Ben Revere, and signed utility infielder Kevin Frandsen to a one-year, $900 thousand deal with incentives.

 

Ryan Howard and 30 Home Runs

Thirty homers. It’s a nice, round number. It’s a decent benchmark for power during the season, and it’s a level Ryan Howard used to reach regularly. And he thinks he can do it again. His contention is that injuries have kept him from being full strength (understandable) and that age is really just a number
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Delmon Young

Pull up a chair, we’re about to have a little chat. You might remember that, back in January, the Phillies signed a player named Delmon Young. The former first-overall draft pick of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2003 was a free agent for the first time, but would need to miss the start of
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Pete Orr

Pete Orr, much like Michael Martinez, just completed his third year in the Phillies organization. Unlike Martinez, the perception of Orr is that he could be a contributor of something positive; at least, that he could contribute more than Martinez, which shouldn’t be difficult. Like, at all. Luckily, Orr does have an OPS roughly .100
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Phillies Introduce New Analytics Hire

At long last, we have a name to pin at the point where the Venn diagram of the Phillies and advanced metrics finally overlapped. Scott Freedman, formerly of MLB’s Labor Relations Department, is the new face of the next generation of analysis in the Phillies organization. At least, that’s the hope. The scope and breadth
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Can the Phillies Win the East in 2014?

Dan Szymborski ($) seems to think so. Szymborski’s argument for not counting out the Phils making a serious push to the top of the division hinges around payroll flexibility, acknowledging that Roy Halladay‘s money is off the books and a new television deal is on the horizon, so even though Ruben Amaro has made it
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Casper Wells

Casper Wells came to the plate 76 times in 2013, 26 of those as a member of the Phillies. He arrived via waivers in early August, making Philadelphia his third club of the season. Perhaps the greatest thing about his arrival is that the concurrent move was designating Delmon Young for assignment, a transaction greeted
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Mike Stutes

Michael Stutes was an interesting player in 2011, an ascending young reliever who debuted in late April and stuck the rest of the year. He wasn’t appreciably better than, say, pre-injury David Herndon, but he looked like he might be able to stick around for a bit. Injuries seriously derailed the intrigue. After undergoing arthroscopic
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Humberto Quintero

After the 2012 season, the need for a backup catcher was an obvious one. Brian Schneider was departing, Carlos Ruiz was to serve a 25-game suspension to start the year and Erik Kratz appeared to be the only viable option in-house. So, in late November, the Phillies inked veteran caller Humberto Quintero to a minor-league
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Cliff Lee

In mid-December 2010, I was a little downtrodden. I was at a bar called Jersey’s, the same place where, just two months earlier, I’d watched Ryan Howard take strike three from Brian Wilson to send the Giants to the World Series and the Phillies packing for warmer weather than southern New Jersey would offer in
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Roger Bernadina

Roger Bernadina was one of 15 different players to see time in the outfield for the Phillies this season. He’s one amongst a crowd of underachievers and injury replacements, yet he somehow managed to be the most divisively graded player to date in this series. Signed two days after his release from the Nationals in
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Jonathan Papelbon

It’s admittedly a bit tough to see Jonathan Papelbon‘s name on the roster. The man is a fine relief pitcher, and has turned in two good seasons for the Phillies. But the elephant in the room that won’t leave until it expires is the massive burden of a contract Papelbon was signed to prior to
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Michael Young and the Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Playoff Game

Friday night, former Phillies infielder Michael Young entered Game 1 of the NLCS in extra innings. He would have two plate appearances. The first one, with one out and men on first and third in the 10th, went like this. The second one, with one out and men on first and second in the 12th,
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Chad Durbin

As a birthday present to me this year, Ruben Amaro decided to sign Chad Durbin. This was just under a week removed from the everlasting Delmon Young signing, capping off a week of deals that amounted to relatively little baseball money but relatively lots of anguish and gray-hairing. Durbin was inked to a one-year deal
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2013 Phillies Report Card: Kevin Frandsen

Kevin Frandsen‘s 2012 season was a better effort than anyone – anyone – expected of him when he was signed as a minor league free agent in 2011, especially with how that 2011 season started. It appears, though, that 2012 was a fine slider-size piece of Kobe beef wedged between a now-stale top bun and moldy
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Amaro Hints at Analytics Incorporation

With the way Major League Baseball operates in the year 2013, little things like this shouldn’t necessarily be news. But given the organization’s stubbornness and obstinance vis a vis the incorporation of analytics into player evaluation, this quote from a piece by MLB.com‘s Todd Zolecki feels important: “We’re going to make some changes,” Amaro said. “I
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The Afterthought Lies In Wait

This has been a ripe year for trivia questions we’ll ask ourselves years down the line. Can you name every player who played center field? How many players had first names starting with J? Who were the two Steves that saw playing time? Test your friends! It’s a forgettable year, but one that was expected
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Relievers and This Winter’s Checkbook

The bullpen! It needs help! And although the lingering fear is that the best fix is to go with an influx of external candidates, pouring free agent money out the taps and dishing pint after pint of it to the latest and greatest relief arms to grace the free agent pool, there may actually be
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What Clicked For Hamels?

You know the story by this point in the season: Cole Hamels had himself a bumpy ride through April and May, limping into the summer with a 4.86 ERA, a five- and six-walk game to his name and four starts of five earned runs or more. There were a couple good starts thrown in to
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The Gelb 40-Man Exercise

An exercise: How many of the 46 current players on the Phillies 40-man roster will be on the 40-man roster come opening day 2014? — Matt Gelb (@magelb) August 27, 2013 Alright, I’ll play. Won’t you join me?

 

The Right Field Solution

We’re rapidly approaching the point in the season where looking ahead become the norm. It isn’t about scoreboard watching anymore; now, it’s about calendar watching. Hope for a positive end to this season ended long ago, even with more than 30 games still left to be played. But hey, we still want to be productive
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Doctor Peppered

Honestly, I miss Roy Halladay. There comes a point in every injured player’s recovery period where some fans sort of forget that they’re not around. It’s almost like you’ve become used to their absence, and the phantom limb feeling you get in the time immediately following their disappearance from the roster dissipates. It’s a bit
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J-Droll

If there’s one thing the Phillies aren’t short on in the organization, it’s middle infielders. From Chase Utley to Jimmy Rollins to Cesar Hernandez to Freddy Galvis to (if you grin and bear it) Kevin Frandsen, that’s a handful of players under control in 2014 that can, feasibly, play up the middle. The only problem,
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The Tuesday 10: Embrace the Sell

Trying to be objective, or thinking you’re being objective, can be difficult sometimes. You don’t like losing, I don’t like losing and professional players don’t like losing. The people in charge of said professional players also don’t like losing, of course, because their pockets and reputations are damaged as the losses pile up. So, naturally, it seems against nature
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The Tuesday 10: 10 Minutes to Midnight

Ruben Amaro was a polarizing general manager before he was even officially offered the job. The baseball world was made well aware that Pat Gillick would not be reprising his role at the helm after the 2008 season concluded – and winning a World Series probably helped with that transition out of the captain’s chair – and that
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Slip Sliding Away

Antonio Bastardo is not having his best season. The hope for the 27-year-old coming into the 2013 season was that he would continue to be the mostly-shutdown lefty who could be counted upon, coming into games to handle the likes of Jason Heyward or Bryce Harper (and keep righties muted, too). Instead, Bastardo’s strikeouts are
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The Tuesday 10: Cheese Me

Over the weekend, I made pilgrimage to the great lands of Milwaukee and Chicago, the former of which being close to where current penman extraordinaire Michael Baumann resides. We, along with another friend from the east, had been planning this trip for some time, and considering the poor guy has already been in the cheese state for more than
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If the Phillies Hadn’t Played the Marlins…

The Phillies have had some success against the Miami Marlins in an otherwise uninspired year. They’ve gone 8-4 against the Fish, 21-24 against all other contenders entering Wednesday. Many players have also enjoyed their best (or worst) personal success against the Marlins in 2013, who are quite easily regarded as one of the more hapless
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The Tuesday 10: Domonation Station

The 10 is back and cozy in its usual home. Moving into a new apartment, as it turns out, can be a preposterous hassle! I’ll spare you the details, but most of it involves me being holed up in said apartment, growing a Justin Vernon beard and breaking up wood planks for fires and warmth.
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The Tradeability Index, Volume 1

Those of you expecting to see your regularly scheduled Tuesday 10 today, we’ll return you to your weekly broadcast next week. Instead, I’ve got something a little different for this week. This weekend, I put it to Twitter to help me out with an interactive project: rank 20 members of the Phillies’ current 40-man roster on how
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The Tuesday 10: I Am the Unlucki-Horst

The first week of May is over. It’s a little weird to think we’re almost 1/4 of the way through the season already, and frankly, given how slowly the offseason crawls by, I’m inclined to deem it “unfair.” Spoiled. Anyway, dive in, the water’s (not quite) warm (but it’s getting there)!

 

The Tuesday 10: Go Left, Young Man

The Phillies swept the Mets! That’s really cool! Even in a season that’s been tinged with a bit of malaise out of the gate, taking a series like that in New York is pleasing, without fail. Some players – Halladay, Hamels, Brown – are showing some signs of turnaround, albeit conditional turnarounds. Chase Utley is
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