Philadelphia Phillies

Brad Lidge will be appearing on murals and den walls for the rest of time. Sep 20, 2011; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Brad Lidge (54) delivers to the plate during the eighth inning against the Washington Nationals during game one of a doubleheader at Citizens Bank Park. The Nationals defeated the Phillies 4-3 in 10 innings. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports Fists in the air, knees on the ground, a delirious Chooch thundering toward him, his mouth somewhere in the middle of screaming “OH MY GOD WE DID IT.”  It was the World Series victory that spawned 28 years of restrained celebration, a couple of flaming cars, a pretty bad concussion for this guy, and the idea that Brad Lidge is perfect. Brad Lidge is not perfect, as we learned in the subsequent three years of his Phillies career.  But he achieved for himself a lifetime pass to the city of Philadelphia, going 48-for-48 in save opportunities in 2008, and fetching this town a World Series title. So it makes sense that he will retire as a Phillie on August 1 at home against the Giants, throwing out first pitch to – he hopes – Carlos Ruiz. Brad played six years for the Astros, four years for the Phillies (He was pitching for us as recently as September 2011. Why does that sound so recent?), and one part of a year with the Nationals, who brought him in just to turn him around and make him say stuff like this. He finished up with 225 saves and an accumulated WAR of 7.8.  But all of that pales in comparison to that one moment in which he’d answered when the next World Series win would come, and just before we’d start waiting for the next one that wouldn’t.

The Phillies have won 7 of 10 games and find themselves just a game behind the Nationals for second place in the NL East, but have a tough weekend ahead of them in Washington. Jordan Zimmermann goes for the Nats in Game 1. The underrated righty leads the NL with seven wins, is third in ERA (1.62), third in WHIP (0.87) and first with three complete games. The opposition is hitting .202 off him. The Phillies have hit Zimmermann around,...

I've heard fans express the opinion that Michael Young is doing well this year: getting on base, being a professional hitter, and playing a surprisingly competent third base. While in the same breath bemoaning that Rollins is having a terrible year so far. Is this really the case? Michael Young has largely delivered on what was expected. Many of us were quite concerned about what the Phillies might get from him this season. He is 36 and coming off a year in which he was quite literally the worst player in baseball to get regular playing time. And even before last year, he's been overrated, excelling in the higher profile stats like hits and batting average while falling short in areas that don't get as much scrutiny, like walks and fielding. But so far this year the Phillies could really not have asked for anything more than he's provided. A .287 average, along with the pleasant surprise of a very uncharacteristic 12.8% walk rate, have combined to put him on base at a .378 clip -- the 16th highest figure in the NL (and in the top 10 until just a couple of days ago). Young's defense has not been atrocious, and he at least looks better than the worst case scenario that many were afraid of (i.e. something like 2012's Ty Wigginton). He's caught most of what's been hit at him, and has even made the occasional spectacular play. But his range is limited, and when taking all of his defensive contributions into account, he's been below average. Rollins on the other hand is doing about what we expected: he's hitting close to the league average (wRC+ of 92), and playing better than average defense at a premium position. Wins Above Replacement is a handy way to add up their contributions, and whether you use the version from FanGraphs (fWAR) or Baseball-reference (rWAR), Rollins has the higher WAR: by fWAR: Rollins 0.8, Young 0.7 by rWAR: Rollins 0.5, Young 0.3 Their Fangraphs summaries: Essentially Rollins' fielding advantage offsets Young's advantage at the plate, and Rollins gets about an additional 0.1 WAR bump for playing the more premium position. In addition, they seem to be headed in different directions in recent weeks, as Young has cooled off, while Rollins' hitting has warmed up after his customary slow start. Rollins' career stats: 1st half: .263/.320/.410 (.317 wOBA, 90 wRC+)2nd half: .277/.337/.461 (.344 wOBA, 107 wRC+) Now, as we know, WAR is meant to be used as an approximation, and differences of tenths of a win are not really meaningful. All we can say is that Rollins so far would have the more credible claim for being more valuable. His new contract proved to be a bargain in 2012, when (based on fWAR) he was the second best shortstop in the baseball. Even with the slow start, he seems to be on his way to earning the contract and then some again this season.

The system doesn't have a seemingly infinite number of Catchers, as it seems to with Starting Pitchers, but I do need some line to act as a base, so I'll limit it to guys 25 or younger (no Kratz, no Lerud) who have played in the US. Again, I will do my best to include no bias in the overview of players, and players will be listed in alphabetical order. Tommy Joseph - Currently playing in Triple-A Strengths: Plus power potential for a Catcher. Strong arm, athletic. Reknowned for his leadership, considered one of his primary strengths. Strong defensively. Weaknesses: Patience is an issue, low BB, high K player. Negates some of his power. Power has been spotty and only really blossomed in the California league, the most offensive environment in the minors. Won't hit for average. Gabriel Lino - Currently in Extended Spring Training Strengths: Potential for Plus power, plus throwing arm, and, with considerable work, maybe plus defense. Has exhibited good plate discipline in the past with fairly low K rates, combined with good walk rates. Good pop times Weaknesses: Swing gets long and causes him trouble with off speed pitches, which could make moving up the ladder in the Minors challenging as off speed pitches become more common and better. Defense is very raw, struggles with blocking pitches and occasionally drops more routine pitches. Big player who could grow out of Catcher as he continues to grow. Athletic enough that defense can be expected to improve, may need some swing overhaul. Cameron Rupp - Currently in Double-A Strengths: Solid defensive catcher with a strong enough arm for the position. Exhibits good footwork behind the dish. Coaches have spoken positively about his leadership ability. Patient hitter who will take walks. Weaknesses - Oldest of the Catching prospects in the Phillies system at 24. Some of his success at the plate could be the result of being on the old side for the leagues he succeeded in. Gets tied up by inside fastballs. No individual tool stands out as being particularly good, but no particular tools stands out as being particularly awful either. Sebastian Valle - Currently in Double-A Strengths: Plus to even plus-plus power potential is Valle's calling card. Valle has grown into a solid defender behind the plate with plenty of arm for the position and enough athleticism that he can move to other positions if needed. Only 22 years old. Weaknesses: Valle does not walk (his walk rate is abnormally high this year at ~6%, which would be low for most serious prospects). Valle is not an elite contact hitter and strikes out at a roughly 25% clip. Plus power is nice, but if you can't make consistent contact it is difficult to harness and show up in games. While young, the clock is ticking as he has to be protected on the 40-man roster. Poll Which Catcher will have the best MLB career? Tommy Joseph Gabriel Lino Cameron Rupp Sebastian Valle 35 votes | Results

Phillippe Aumont’s turn has ended in the bullpen. May 9, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Philadelphia Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz (51) talks with relief pitcher Phillippe Aumont (48) during the seventh inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports In 13 innings of work, Aumont has struck out 15 and allowed 17 hits. Six earned runs have been the result.  It’s not an airtight bullpen the Phillies have out there this year, and the more earned runs that cross the plate, the more it seems like these younger prospect arms are interchangeable mediocrity. It is a shame; Aumont’s slider is terrifying when worked effectively, and his fastball has the velocity to blow the shutters off a house.  But his issues remain in the realm of control, where seems to lose his footing more often than not.  As a guy appearing later in games, asked to hold leads, and then begged to hold leads, the Phillies would love it if he could find the control that would make him a suffocating relief option. The real question is, who does this bring up?  Theories are already flying that it’s now Michael Stutes’ time to shine.  This is a positive development, as Stutes is a new option, and may even be a good one.  After 10 appearances, Stutes has allowed a single run. He will most likely be promoted Friday, when the team is in Washington, and sent out to take on the presumed NL champion Nationals in a series that could very well determine some new placement in the NL East. Also, Nationals suck.

Who is hot, and who is not for the time period of May 16 through May 22….Some ramblings…the concern for Austin Wright grows as he comes off the DL with another troubling performance…Mitch Walding is heating up but needs to hit with some power to be considered a legit 3B prospect….Darin Ruf has been struggling and his average is down into the .260′s with alot of strikeouts….Good to see names like Rosin, Hernandez and Garner in the hot starter list…Again, why can Durbin/Aumont/Rosenberg do that Mike Stutes can’t. The Phils bullpen only becomes stronger with him in it. Hot Hitters: Pete Orr (.500, 7R 2HR 8RBI, SB), Zach Collier (.412); Mitch Walding (.368, 4R 6RBI); Art Charles (.364, 6R); Jim Murphy (.348, 4R 2HR 5RBI); Willie Carmona (.333, 8R 1HR 4RBI); Maikel Franco (.333, 2HR); Josh Fields (316, 6R). Honorable Mention: Asche, Hewitt, Dugan Not Hot Hitters: Jose Mojica (.000); Darin Ruf (.091); Cameron Perkins (.133); Chace Numata (.143); Edgar Duran (.150); Carlos Tocci (.160); Carlos Alonso (.182) Hot Starters: Jesse Biddle (7IP 3H 0ER 4BB 9K); Greg SMith (11.2IP 11H 1ER 1BB 3K), Nick Hernandez (6IP 3H 1ER 1BB 8K); Seth Rosin (8IP 3H 2ER 1BB 8K); Shane Watson (5IP 2H 0ER 2BB 4K); Jon Musser (5IP 3H 0ER 3BB 1K); Ethan Martin (7IP 8H 2ER 2BB 6K); Perci Garner (6.2IP 7H 2ER 2BB 6K) Not Hot Starters: Austin Wright (2.1IP 5H 5ER 4BB 1K); Tom Cochran (4.1IP 6H 5ER 5BB 5K); Hector Neris (4IP 6H 4ER 0BB 4K, 3HR allowed); Miguel Nunez (2 starts, 10.2IP 20H 8ER); Cesar Jiminez (4.1IP 2H 3ER 4BB 3K) Hot Relievers: Luis Garcia (4.1IP 3H 0ER 1BB 5K, SV);  Geoff Broussard (4.1IP 5H 0ER 0BB 3K); Jeb STefan (4IP 1H 0ER 0BB 6K); Jordan Guth (3IP 0H 0ER 2BB 4K); Severino GOnzalez (3IP 2H 0ER 0BB 3K); Mike Stutes (4.2IP 4H 1ER 1BB 4K, SV), Chris Nichols (2.1IP 1H oER 0BB 2K).  Honorable Mention: Diekman, Simon Not Hot Relievers: Joe Savery (2.2IP 4H 5ER 2BB 3K); Juan Sosa (3IP 4H 5ER 4BB 2K); JC Ramirez (3.2IP 7H 5ER 4BB 2K); Steven Inch (1.1IP 1H 2ER 1BB 1K); Mauricio Robles (1.2IP 3H 2ER 1BB 1K); Felix Santos (2.1IP 3H 2ER 1BB 0K); Delvi Francisco (2.1IP 3H 2ER 2BB 2K). (Dis)Honorable Mention: Cooper

Want to help a native Okie help his statesmen? Tyler Henson, infielder for the Reading Fightins, is looking for your support to do just that. Please check out this press release from the Reading Fightin Phils to see how you can help. And you can contribute directly to the Red Cross’s Disaster Relief Fund by donating here. Reading Fightin Phils infielder and Oklahoma native Tyler Henson and his wife Ashley will be hosting a fundraising drive on May 31 to raise money and goods for a pair of families in Moore, Oklahoma. Featuring donated items from Fightins players, the Hensons will be raffling off selected items at the May 31st game in VIST Bank Plaza. During the game, Ashley and Fightins staff will be manning a table in VIST Bank Plaza where autographed items including cleats, gloves, bats, and apparel will available. There will also be team autographed bats and balls up for auction. “My wife came to me with the whole idea,” said Henson before Wednesday evening’s game.  “We’re going to try to raise as much money for these two families that we both know and see what we can do to give back to them whether it be gift cards, clothes, or anything that we can do to help them get back on their feet. If you ever lost anything, you know what it’s like to try to get it back. These people have lost homes, cars, and family pictures that they’ll never see again. All of that stuff is gone.” Proceeds from the raffle will directly benefit the pair of families that the Hensons are close with. In addition to donating items, Reading Fightin Phils players Jesse Biddle (@JesseBiddle_54), Cameron Rupp (@CameronRupp), Jim Murphy (@JimPMurphy), David Buchanan (@davidb413), Jay Johnson (@jayjohnr), and Seth Rosin (@SethDanielRosin) will be donating 10 cents per each RT they receive between May 22 and May 25 on their respective Twitter accounts. “It shows character,” said Henson of his teammates support for Moore, Oklahoma. “Especially Cameron (Rupp) and (Jim) Murphy—these guys stepped up right away when I brought this to the team yesterday (Tuesday). It’s huge because not everyone is going to experience a tornado, not everyone is going to experience a hurricane, and not everyone is going to experience losing stuff. It shows a lot of character of what we got on this team“ A native of Tuttle, Oklahoma (about 20 minutes from Moore), Henson is no stranger to the devastation caused by of the path of a tornado. “I experienced the tornado on May 3, 1999,” said Henson about growing up in Oklahoma. “From what my family tells me, it’s worse than that. The city hasn’t been the same since and now, it happening again. It happened in 2003 and right now. It’s devastating.” Fightin Phils fans are encouraged to help the Hensons and the rest of the Fightins team in their efforts to raise proceeds for the victims of Moore.

They’re 11-9 so far this May whuuuuuuut

After witnessing what the Phillies bullpen is like without him, Mike Adams got back on a mound on Wednesday. March 28, 2013; Clearwater, FL, USA; Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Mike Adams (37) prior to the game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Bright House Networks Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports It could be another week before we see Adams in a Phillies uniform again, but that is relatively short tenure, given the large gaps of time other Phillies will definitely be missing.  Adams was suffering from back spasms and made himself unavailable out of the bullpen before being transplanted to the 15-day DL. Friday, Adams will throw a bullpen session, and then in the days following, will join a Threshers game for a rehab appearance.  The Clearwater roster will also be showcasing other low level Phillies prospects simultaneously, like Roy Halladay, John Lannan, and Carlos Zambrano.  Only then will he make his way north. By then, it will probably be too late.  Next week at this time, the Phillies will have finished their first series with the Nationals and be in the middle of another one of these two game splits with an AL team, this time the Red Sox.  The bullpen will have been dragged through tests from the not-quite superior Nationals and the for-no-reason talented Red Sox.  Without a stable set-up man, those tests may have been exercises in horrible futility. But it’s not like Adams has been flawless; and the Phillies continue to rotate out young arms in exchange for other, also young arms, as Phillippe Aumont was auctioned to Lehigh yesterday to make room for some fair-haired, as yet anonymous pitcher.

In their attempt to distance themselves from me because they know I’m always right, the Phillies have constantly avoided including me in any twitter based activities. So when they do #AskTheBooth, they try their best to ignore my perfectly valid questions such as this: Instead, they cherry pick the safest tweets that usually talk about how great everything is or asks a goofy inside question about Sarge. But no carefully vetted selection of softball question tweets is going to stop me. Last year, I posed an epic question to the booth: “Fuckin Magnets, how do they work?” Which lead to this (click to view): #AskTheBooth returned on Tuesday. Could lightning strike twice? Yes. resulted in this: [Drops mic] h/t @_magowan and @amiehartnett for the video.