Philadelphia Phillies

The Big Piece is showing signs of his 2009 form. Photo by: Ian Riccaboni Pop quiz: Over the last seven days, which Phillie has led the team in on-base percentage? How about the last 14 days? 30 days? If you guessed Ryan Howard, you cheated. Or figured it out by reading the title. Over the last 30 days, Howard has reached base at a nearly .400 clip (.398), good for 17th in the MLB and tenth among NL players. In his MVP 2006, Howard reached base at a .425 clip and, in his fantastic 2007 follow-up, reached base at a .392 rate. Obviously, in such a small sample, Howard may not and likely isn’t going to be able to sustain this clip but it has put him in the positive in fWAR (0.6) for the year and has put him ahead of Albert Pujols in all triple-slash categories except for an 8 point OBP deficit. On Monday, our Pat Gallen suggested that General Manager Ruben Amaro took shots at Howard. But Howard’s last 30 days has changed the direction of his season and has shifted the conversation a bit. Last week, I wrote of Ben Revere‘s change of fortunes and how it was time for Phillies fans to put Revere’s slow April behind them. In the last 30 days, Revere is third in the MLB in steals with nine and is hitting .296/.321/.333. Like Revere, Howard has quietly turned his season’s fortune around in a big way in the same time period. In the last 30 days, Howard has hit .330/.398/.534, putting together impressive play and contributing positive value in the field as well according to the unstable in super-small sample sized UZR. Howard isn’t mashing home runs, but his eight doubles in this time period has led the team, good for sixth in the NL, and two triples, good for sixth in the NL as well. His ten walks, none of which were intentional, are good for 21st in the NL, while he is 12th in BA, tenth in OBP, 13th in OPS, 14th in wRC, 10th in wOBA, and 12th in wRC+. You’re probably thinking: “Ian, what is your point? Domonic Brown is first in a lot of those categories and is higher in just about all of them than Howard.” My point is: if you limit this exercise to just NL first basemen, Howard has been one of the best in the NL in this stretch. In the last 30 days among NL first basemen, Howard trails only Freddie Freeman in each of those categories listed. That’s right: Howard has been among the best NL first basemen in the last 30 days. Kind of surprising, no? I leave you with a hypothetical: so much has been made of Howard’s contract. No matter which way you slice it, even if Howard was the best NL first baseman and continued at a pace at or better than this, he wouldn’t be worth the $27.6 million average annual value. But compared to some of the other big contracts recently handed out to big time sluggers, does this stretch make you feel any better? Is it starting to change the perception? BA OBP SLG 2013 fWAR Remaining Years AVV Howard 0.276 0.327 0.469 0.6 3.5 $27.6 mil Hamilton 0.213 0.269 0.388 0.1 4.5 $24.6 mil Pujols 0.266 0.335 0.458 0.5 8.5 $24 mil Fielder 0.289 0.389 0.494 1.1 7.5 $23.7 mil Looking at these numbers, it could be worse. Howard and Pujols are both 33 years old but have produced very similar numbers this year, both OK, but neither close to expectations and neither worth anywhere near $15 million yet alone $24 or more million. At 32, Josh Hamilton‘s production has stalled with a change of scenery while Prince Fielder at 29 has been hitting well but is slightly off the pace of his career numbers. Look – this doesn’t absolve the Phillies for giving Howard the extension they did. However, they may have avoided larger traps in both money and length. The Howard contract was bad when it was signed, nobody will argue that, but this recent stretch gives Phillies fans hope that something close to the Ryan Howard they knew and loved from 2005-2009 may be emerging.

Heading into the second half of the Minor League season, there might not be a hotter hitter than Phillies' third baseman Maikel Franco. The 20-year old hit .333 with 5 home runs in his last 12 games, and he may be poised to make a jump to Double-A during the second half of 2013. After ranking in the middle of the Phillies system' to start the season, Franco is not only looking like the top prospect in the organization, but he also looks like one of the best infield prospects in all of the Minor Leagues. The Basics Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 6'01" Weight: 180 lbs. On 40-man roster: No DOB: 08/26/1992 (Age-20 season) His History Despite running more like a church-league softball player than a professional baseball player in his workouts, the Phillies still liked Franco enough to sign him for $100,000 out of the Dominican Republic in 2010. He signed in time to get some at bats in the Gulf Coast League, hitting .222 in 51 games. In 2011, he began the year in the New York Penn League, batting .287 with some gap power before struggling in a late season promotion to the South Atlantic League. Last season, Franco spent the first half of the season back in the South Atlantic League with similar results, hitting just .216 over the first three months. Then, around July 1, something seemed to click as Franco hit .357 with 26 XBH over his final 58 games. So far this season, the hitting onslaught has continued with Franco hitting .296/.344/.568 with 23 doubles and 15 home runs through 63 games in the pitcher-friendly Florida State League. The Scouting Report Franco presently has two plus tools, with the chance for three above-average to plus Major League tools. His hands are incredibly quick at the plate, squaring up better velocity and generating easy bat speed despite average size. The ball just sounds a little differently coming off of his bat, and his batting practice is a daily event because of his raw power. What's more exciting, though, is Franco is beginning to translate that power into games. Like many young players, Franco is overly aggressive at the plate, something that has been tough for him to work on because he gets the barrel to the ball on pitches in and out of the zone. As he moves up he will need to be more selective, but most scouts see his hit tool becoming at least average, with some saying it can be a 60 grade if everything falls right. Defensively, the Phillies initially thought about trying him behind the plate due to his terrible foot speed and outstanding arm strength before sticking him at the hot corner. At third he won't inspire any Brooks Robinson' comparisons, yet the growing consensus is he should be passable at the position with below average range but good enough hands to make the routine plays. If he can't stick at third, he will have to shift to first base because his legitimate 20-grade speed won't work in an outfield corner, even in Citizen's Bank Park. What's the Future Hold? Entering the season most publications ranked another Phillies third baseman, Cody Asche, ahead of Franco, but now I think you'd be hard pressed to find an evaluator that wouldn't rather have the 20-year old. Sure, he's riskier, but he has the kind of ceiling that you look for in a frontline Major League player. As I alluded to above, there's an outside shot that Franco finishes this season in Double-A, but more than likely he'll play the full season in the FSL and start next year as one of the youngest players in the Eastern League with his big league debut probably sometime in 2015. Two things will make or break his eventual outcome - his bat, specifically his pitch recognition and approach, and his ability to stay at third. If they both turn out as hoped, which I believe they will, Franco can be a .285+, 25-30 home run player, and the first All-Star third baseman that Philadelphia has developed since Scott Rolen. For more on the Phillies and their prospects, be sure to check out The Good Phight. Andrew

The Phillies’ signing of Delmon Young was met mostly with negative reviews. It wasn’t the money as much as the notion that the front office and manager considered Young a legitimate everyday starter. Young wasn’t signed to play in a platoon. He was brought here to provide right-handed power behind Ryan Howard. The problem is that he has never really been all that powerful, and whatever power he does possess is canceled out by abysmal fielding and below average baserunning. From an overall value standpoint, Young has little to none, as is evidenced by his career -1.1 WAR. He wasn’t even an upgrade over players already rostered, either — his numbers have been bested by John Mayberry over the last few seasons. Mayberry isn’t just an upgrade in the field and on the bases either. He has better numbers at the plate in the on-base and power departments. Save for the 2010 season, when Young hit a career-high 21 homers and tallied 1.6 WAR — still below what’s considered the league-average threshold — he has been either replacement level or below every year. Here are his WAR totals since 2007: 0.0, -0.8, -1.1, 1.6, 0.0, -0.9, and he is currently at -0.8. Approaching the midpoint of the season it is time for the Phillies to cut ties with Young as an everyday player. If the team wants to use him against lefties in a platoon role, or as a designated hitter in a road interleague series, fine, but he should not be viewed any more favorably than Mayberry, Laynce Nix or Kevin Frandsen. And while I know some are tired of hearing Nate Schierholtz‘s name around these parts, Young is also vastly worse than the player the Phillies simply non-tendered; the player who makes slightly more than Young this season and currently leads the Cubs in WAR. It’s time to either get rid of Young or permanently relegate him to part-time duty. The Phillies have too many holes in this lineup to consistently allocate playing time to a player whose perception far outweighs his contributions. The major issue with signing Delmon Young is that the move was symptomatic of the issues that plague this front office, which seems to value areas that don’t translate to true productivity. We’re well past the days where value was determined primarily by offense, and we’re well past the days when offensive value was determined solely by batting average or home runs. Since 2009, Young’s -39 fielding rating is better only than an Alfonseca-handful of players. His baserunning ratings rank near the bottom of the leaderboard as well. His walk-rate is the fifth-lowest among qualified players and his isolated power is barely higher than Jimmy Rollins‘. Young is a downgrade from Jeff Francoeur, which is a pretty difficult feat to accomplish, yet this Phillies front office thought of him as an everyday outfielder on a contending team. This isn’t a good move that simply didn’t work out. The writing was on the wall from the moment he signed with the Phillies, and the fact that so many analysts easily predicted the Phillies and Young getting together speaks volumes to the issues this front office has with player valuation. Signing Young maybe makes sense if the team thinks of itself as .500ish and is willing to take a $1 million flier in the hopes of helping him turn his career around. It makes absolutely no sense if better players are already on the roster and the team thinks itself close to contention. Confounding the matter is the odd perception that he is some power maven. He has played over 150 games in four of his six full seasons between 2007 and 2012, and has topped 20 home runs just once. Sure, he had a great playoff series last year, but fans in favor of this move were likely conflating his power output with that of Josh Willingham. Young’s career Isolated Power is .142. Mayberry’s is .193. Some have speculated that the Phillies may be giving Young playing time as

The Phillies are hoping to keep their home game win streak alive tonight with a sweep of the unlikable Nationals. Kyle Kendrick and Gio Gonzalez will square off. Jayson Werth will get booed, hit a home run, and then say something to the media about the fans. Probably. Dontrelle Willis (left) and Chase Utley will both be playing baseball tonight. There are other interesting and entertaining options going on in local home stadiums tonight, too. For instance, a twi-night doubleheader at Campbell’s Field with Dontrelle Willis starting game 2, and Chase Utley rehabbing in Reading. The Long Island Ducks are in town to play the Riversharks, who get a brief, 4 game homestand before spending another week on the road. The rain last night postponed the second game of the set, and they’ll be making it up with the doubleheader tonight, starting at 5:35 – gates open an hour earlier. One ticket will get you both games, and there are still seats available. I’m of the mindset that you try not to miss the D-Train because he’s so goddamned entertaining to watch. I’m a fanboy. I also recommend standing behind the dugout and begging Delwyn Young for a ball, or Wilson Valdez for an autograph, because I love their reactions to begging fans. Also, Burt Reynolds. And then of course, the moment before the moment all Phillies fans have been waiting for – the return of Chase Utley… is imminent. Sort of happening today, take a ride out to Reading to see the Fightin’ Phils take on the Portland Sea Dogs, who thankfully put a space between “Sea” and “Dogs.” They managed to get their games in yesterday so this is just a single 9-inning game, as the gods intended, starting at 7:05pm. You can buy your tickets here. Click on the little green “T” square, ya knucklehead. It’s a Campbell’s Field is much closer to Phillly, but I know a lot of people are so scared of scary Camden. It’s bullshit. Stop living in fear, life is more rewarding. You hardly have to go into Camden at all. Take PATCO. Take the ferry. Drive and make a right turn off the Ben Franklin and another right and you’re in the waterfront area. It’s well-lit, it’s safe, stop being a puss and go watch some baseball.

Chase Utley, who hasn't played since May 20 because of an oblique strain, will begin a rehab assignment Wednesday at Reading. Utley should be back by the weekend, finally giving the Phillies their entire projected starting lineup. It will be interesting to see where he bats. The assumption here is that Ben Revere will continue to lead off, and Utley will either bat second or third. Utley batting second would prevent the Phils from having three straight lefties 3-4-5 in...

News just breaking that the Phillies are moving Franco up to AA.  It has been a real breakout year for Franco with him showing more opposite field approach without sacrificing any of his game.  His strikeout rate has dropped and there have been more positive opinions on his defense.  There wasn’t a 3B to block him in AA so it is an easy decision. This may be the first of many promotions or a single promotion, we will see over the coming days.

Charlie Manuel won't have to wait much longer to have his starting eight all together again. The Phillies announced that Chase Utley will begin a rehab assignment with Double-A Reading tonight. The second baseman, no stranger to the disabled list, has been out since May 21 with an oblique strain. Utley is hitting .272 with seven home runs and 25 RBIs in 44 games. If there are no setbacks, itwouldn't be a surprise if Utley were activated this weekend for the Mets series.

Per Todd Zolecki Chase Utley will begin his rehab assignment at Reading tonight. It should be a short one, and he should be back in time, barring any setbacks for the weekend series against the Mets. Which is good, since they beat the Braves twice yesterday. Also, CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! DO ME A FAVOR AND GET YOUR DOG FIXED AND TAKE HIM OUTSIDE AND THROW A DAMN FRISBEE WHILE YOU WAIT FOR ME TO COME BACK AND BASH LIKE A WORLD F'IN CHAMPIONCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY!CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY!CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEYCHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY!CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! CHASE UTLEY! SERIOUSLY ITS NICE OUTSIDE GO WASH YOUR HANDS OF THAT ORANGE HAZE AND STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER NERDS! CHASE F'IN UTLEY!

Masterful, dominant ….you name it and it was Cliff last night. Won his seventh straight game and didn’t walk a batter, the sixth time he’s picked up a win without allowing a walk. Since 2010, he’s won 10 games without issuing a walk, most wins in the majors. Once again Cliff gave a clinic in pounding the strike zone. He threw 110 pitches in eight innings. 83 were strikes. Young pitchers should take note. The Phillies didn’t hit a home run at home for the first time since May 18 but they put runs on the board using doubles, a bunt base hit, sacrifice, sacrifice fly and a pick-me-up two-out single by Fransden. The Phillies had loaded the bases in the sixth with no out but Ryan and Domonic both struck out. Kevin came through with a clutch single to left. Michael Young had three doubles, a first for him since 2006 and a first for the Phillies since Mayberry in 2011. The Big Piece’s RBI was #957, tying him with Sam Thompson for fifth place on the Phillies all-time list. Chuck Klein is fourth, 984. Minor League Report **Lehigh Valley blanked Toledo, 3-0. WP: Carlos Zambrano (1-0), 0 R, 5 H, 7 IP, 1 BB, 6 SO . . . SV: Phillippe Aumont (2), 2 H, 2 SO, 1 IP . . . 2B Cesar Hernandez, 2-4, 2 RBI, 20th steal. **Reading split a pair with Portland, 4-1 win and 3-0 loss. RH Seth Rosin (4-4) was the 1st game winner, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 SO, 7 IP. **Clearwater was pounded by Daytona, 14-8. 3B Maikel Franco, 16th HR, 3 RBI, 52 for season. Leads organization in HR, RBI. **Lakewood on 3-day All-Star Game break. **Williamsport lost, 7-3, to State College in 11 innings. 3B Zach Green was Williamsport’s offense, 2 doubles, 1st HR, 3 RBI in 5 AB.

Hey guys, we did it! Our very own Philly Daily News finally said what we’ve been saying all along. At last, we have been WOW’d. Eat your heart out, Jon Heyman.