Open Discussion: Week of May 6, 2018

Weekly Discussion

Since the Phillies high-water mark of 14-7 (.667), they have shown an inability to win series within their division and have gone 4-8 the last two weeks.  They are 7-13 in the division.

They are also one game behind first place Atlanta, who as a team are hitting 40 points better than the Phillies.

Maybe Carlos Santana has turned a corner.  He’s 4 for his last 12.

Organizational News and Changes

Mark Leiter pitched one rehab inning in Clearwater on Sunday.

The Phillies signed six more international free agents.  They released four from their DSL teams.

Spring Training

The Phillies’ XST schedule is available here.

Minor League Report

The GCL Phillies East and West begin their seasons on June 18th and 19th.  I have their preliminary schedules.  You can see them here.

Key Dates:

  • June 4-6, 2018 – 2018 MLB Draft
  • June 15, 2018 – Williamsport’s home opener v. State College
  • June 18, 2018 – GCL Phillies East home opener v. GCL Yankees West
  • June 19, 2018 – GCL Phillies West home opener v. GCL Yankees East
  • July 13-17, 2018 – All Star Week
  • July 17, 2018 – 89th All Star Game
  • August 19, 2018 – Phillies v. Mets in the Little League Classic in Williamsport
  • December 10-13, 2018 – Winter Meetings at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas

Transactions (recently reported transactions in bold): (40-man stands at 40)

  • 5/618–Phillies sent RHP Mark Leiter on a rehab assignment to Clearwater
    5/618–David Parkinson assigned to Lakewood from Williamsport
    5/618–Lakewood placed LHP Damon Jones on the temporarily inactive list
    5/518–Erick Heredia released from DSL Phililies Red
    5/518–Jorbin Romero released from DSL Phililies Red
    5/518–Melvin Nunez released from DSL Phillies White
    5/518–Ramiro Soto released from DSL Phillies White
    5/4/18–Phillies signed Curtis Mead as an international FA; assigned to GCL West
    5/4/18–Clearwater placed LHP Jeff Singer on the 7-day DL retro to 5/3/18
    5/4/18–RHP Alberto Tirado assigned to Clearwater
    5/4/18–Lehigh Valley activated C Logan Moore from the 7-day DL
    5/3/18–RHP Spencer Howard assigned to Lakewood from Williamsport
    5/3/18–Freddy Francisco signed as an international FA; assigned to DSL Red
    5/3/18–Michael Guzman signed as an international FA; assigned to DSL Red
    5/3/18–Nicoly Pina signed as an international FA; assigned to DSL Phillies Red
    5/3/18–Eduar Segovia signed as an international FA; assigned to DSL White
    5/3/18–Garrett Cleavinger transferred from Reading to Williamsport
    5/3/18–Tim Berry transferred from Williamsport to Reading
    5/2/18–Sutter McLoughlin opted for voluntary retirement
    5/2/18–LHP David Parkinson assigned to Williamsport from Lakewood
    5/2/18–Mani Boekhoudt signed as an international FA; assigned to DSL Red
    5/1/18–Williamsport traded 1B Wilson Garcia to Frederick Keys
    4/30/18–Phillies recalled LHP Zac Curtis from Lehigh Valley
    4/30/18–Phillies recalled RHP Zach Eflin from Lehigh Valley
    4/30/18–Phillies placed RHP Victor Arano on the 10-day DL retro to 4/29/18
    4/30/18–Jake Thompson optioned to Lehigh Valley
    4/30/18–Dixon Gutierrez released from DSL Phillies Red
    4/30/18–Ronald Torrealba released from DSL Phillies Red
    4/30/18–Derwuin Marchan released from DSL Phillies White
    4/30/18–3B Heiker Meneses assigned to Lehigh Valley from Reading
    4/30/18–Reading activated 3B Brandon Bednar from the 7-day DL
  • The organization’s rosters,
  • The organization’s injury list, and
  • The organization’s Rule 5 eligibility list (these are only current as of 5/6/2018)

Here’s the open discussion thread for Phillies’ talk and other topics.

268 thoughts on “Open Discussion: Week of May 6, 2018”

  1. Curtis Mead SS Aussie interesting game tape . His dad played pro ball in Australia.Phillies just signed him.

  2. Yesterday’s game vs the Nats would have been the most satisfying W of the season so far but instead became the toughest loss. We’re not playing the Reds and Marlins now. The bullpen seems to be lights out in games that have been decided early. But I’m not a Neris guy, nor a Luis Garcia guy. Hunter? Jury is deliberating but….

    Can’t wait to get Neshek back. Let’s see if Klentak addresses the need for a legit closer while we’re still pondering meaningful baseball in August and September.

    1. I guess it really depends on where the Phillies are come late July. I could see them going for a rental closer depending on the cost. But if Neris is that shaky until then the likely won’t be in contention. I think the long term goal is to have Seranthony take over the role sometime next year.

      1. I think Seranthony will be the closer by July. Neris really does have the pitches to be a closer and I think he’s going to have a long career (because he throws maybe the best splitter in the majors and has a decent FB), but he’s too damned inconsistent.

        1. I say this w/o doing any research … Neris’ splitter seems to have lost a grade. It usually doesn’t look enticing enough for batters to swing at. In the past couple of years, the pitch looked like a strike out of his hand, before it would drop off a table. Batters now seem to have an easier time laying off it. As a result, he’s walking more batters.
          IMO, he needs a time out. Put him in the corner, and let Garcia or/and Hunter close.
          Agree that the club sees Ser-Ant’ny as the eventual closer.

          1. Hinkie….according to Brooks he still throws it about half the time and at the same velo around 86/88 for the last three years. Like you mention…batters are not biting or maybe they know when he throws it. Hopefully he is not telegraphing it.

            1. He doesn’t throw enough strikes to force batters to swing at it. Batters aren’t going to chase the splitter when they are sitting 2-0, 3-1 in the count. The splitter is effective only if he can prove the ability to throw a low fastball for strikes..

          2. He could not find his correct arm slot the last 2 games and the pitch just had some side movement and stayed high.

          3. I don’t know what has happened to Neris’ splitter. It does not show the same bite that it did for most of 2016 and the beginning of 2017. It has been lost for about a year now. So much side to side movement, less up and down.

        2. I don’t know if Seranthony has the stuff to be the closer. But I do know that Luis Garcia should get first crack at the job after Neris, and that it would be preferable if Seranthony was closing at Lehigh first.

          1. Luis Garcia is not a closer. He has the same problem as Neris – inconsistency, plus a tendency to fold in high-pressure situations. I would have no problem with trading Garcia.

          2. Garcia is just fine with his mid/late inning role. Why put him in a position to struggle?

            1. Just because I say that Garcia is going to get first crack at the closer’s job, doesn’t mean that I want him to be the closer. Garcia has the experience and the skills to be the next man up if Neris is out. Let the record show, I don’t want Neris or Garcia to be the closer long term.

          3. “Next man up” is not the way this works. It isn’t a union seniority thing.

            1. Great point. Being a closer is about mindset much more than big league experience. I’ve gotten so annoyed when managers live by an unspoken code of loyalty to veteran players simply because they’ve been around, regardless of how ineffective they have become. If Seranthony has the balls to go out there in high leverage situations, let him at it.

    2. Neris can be inconsistent at times and he’s in a rough stretch right now. He’s pitched the last 2 games and struggled in both. Will be interesting to see if he’s available tonight.

  3. I’m going to be out for most of the day. Don’t know if Jim is going to put up a draft thread. If you do … you can move this/these there, Jim.

    About a year ago, I was getting flack from some posters on here for counting down the Phillies reverse magic number. They claimed it was wrong for me to root for losses. Is it even more wrong for me to now root that an eventual MRI on Casey Mze’s elbow comes back questionable/iffy/possibly injured ??? That’s the only way he’s getting to 1-3. I mean this guy is sooooo far better than every other draft prospect, it’s not even funny. On Friday night, he tossed another complete game (110 P). He allowed Vanderbilt just 1 R on 4 H, 0 BB, and K’d 15. Between his 96 MPH FB, nearly unhittable “splitter”, plus cutter, and CH, Mize has authored one of the greatest pitching seasons in the history of college baseball. For the year, Mize is now 84 IP, 50 H, 7 BB, 119 K, .167 OBA !!! All that in the best conference in America (SEC). Are you kidding me ? If you (and you posters know who you are) had just allowed me to keep on tracking the Phillies reverse magic number last season, Casey Mize could have been throwing at CBP this summer if the club somehow remained in contention (yeah, that’s how good I think he is). If they don’t remain in contention, hopefully they fall far enough in the standings to land one of the three big time college 3Bmen (Josh Jung, Bryson Stott & Drew Mendoza) available in the 2019 draft 🙂

    The guy who seems unanimously mocked to the Phillies is Alec Bohm. The Wichita State 3Bman had a pretty good weekend. He went 5 for 12 (including a HR), 2 R, 4 RBI’s vs Cincinnati. Bohm is now slashing .333/.430/.563, 10 HR’s for the season. He’s walked/HBP 31 times and has only K’d 20 times.

    The guy I would pick (assuming Mize is gone) is Nick Madrigal. Madrigal spent the weekend raking at Washingtom State. The little 2Bman went 7 for 13 (all singles), 3 R, 5 RBI. Madrigal is up to .438/.481/.695 for the season.

    Other Phillies options (players some of you have said you prefer) were also in action over the weekend:

    Georgia Tech catcher Joey Bart was 6 for 10 (3 doubles), 4 BB’s, 2 R, 3 RBI’s against Radford. He’s now at .364/.480/.634 (12 HR’s)this year.

    Brady Singer was excellent in a complete game shutout at Texas A&M … 9 IP (111 P), 0 R, 6 H, 0 BB, 5 K. Singer’s season looks like this … 81 IP, 51 H, 17 BB, 86 K, .177 OBA !

    Logan Gilbert tossed one of his best games of the season on Friday night against Jacksonville … 8 IP (122 P), 1 R, 1 H, 2 BB, 12 K. For the year Gilbert is 78.1 IP, 49 H, 16 BB, 109 K, .178 OBA.

    The wheels have fallen off the Ryan Rolison bus. I have been high on the Ole Miss soph since his dominant summer on the Cape. But his stuff has backed up and he’s been getting hit lately. He got lit up at South Carlina on Friday night … 3.1 IP, 8 ER, 10 H, 3 BB, 3 K (ouch).

    And … this tweet/scouting report is for you, rocco …

    1. Had to throw these two tweets in here. Follow along, it’s kind of mind-blowing (especially with so many posters freaking out over how bad they feel our prospects look)!

      BTW … I had posted last summer and again this winter that I would have taken Jose Soriano and Brandon Marsh for Cesar if the Angels were unwilling to trade Tyler Skaggs. I still think that proposal would have been fair/helpful for both teams. The Angels ended up signing Zack Cosart and Ian Kinsler. Neither of those two guys are doing much in LA. At this point, Klentak looks like he’ll ride out Cesar’s arbitration years (2019-20), and get a compensation draft pick (early 30’s) for him after that.

      1. Depending on what the team does until then….Matt may not be around to make that pick

      3. So if Medina is Mize then Sixto IS ? The Phillies had a better second half last yr because of there young players. Voting for the Phillies young players is natural. Cheering for the Players to not sucessed so they can Pick 1 player not named Trout is nuts. Imo

        1. @tim – while I’m at least a year ahead of Hinkie for the Phils starts spending and acquiring, there is really an advantage to position yourself to be on the top of the drafting since a) you’ll get one of the the biggest (if not the biggest) $$ pool to sign prospects; and b) no lottery system so the team is guaranteed to pick in the top of the order every round.

          Tanking as a strategy really got a bad reputation, but actually it is a decent strategy to restart your team. I will not agree (again) on a Hinkie-like tank by stripping the team with players and replaced them with gypsies.

          But I will support the losing if the FO decided to use the season to evaluate the young players/prospect they have in the team and in the farm to see which one can be part of the next contending team and which are the ones who can hold value for trade purposes. If the FO sign any FA, it is for one-year with the intent to trade at the deadline.

          As of now, I think the Phils need to start to put some pieces together and prepare for a long run starting 2020.

  4. Regarding the bullpen, I agree with Jayson Stark that Velasquez would be a good multi inning reliever. I think the idea he would make a good closer doesn’t take into consideration his mental makeup. But let’s get him against 8-10 hitters in middle relief and see what he’s got.

    1. Personally I would try to include him in a deadline trade (IF we can acquire a starter) and sell him as a reliever.

      1. You won’t be able to sell VV as a reliever until he becomes a reliever and proves that he can do it.

        1. I believe many MLB execs already think VV is better suited for the bullpen. Some think he’s a closer though Stark doesn’t agree, nor do I. There are no secrets in MLB. Except perhaps to this organization 😶

          1. Just because he’s better suited for the bullpen, it doesn’t mean he can do it or he’s willing to do it (at first). Not only that, the trade value for a non-elite reliever is not great. You’ll get pennies on the dollar. In that case, what’s the point?

  5. Hinkie, Thanks for all of the Draft stuff. Why are we not higher on Brady Singer for the Phils? Doesn’t he seem healthy? The performance this year has been very good. He threw 110 pitches the last time out.

    1. matt … Singer has been good this season. However, there are a couple of concerns about him:
      1. His velocity has been inconsistent.
      2. After being drafted in the second round by the Blue Jays 3 years ago, an MRI showed enough concern for Toronto to pass on signing him. Must be pointed out that Singer has been healthy at Florida.

  6. Would like to see Rhys getting some time at 1B…which is where he belongs.

  7. woof. 6 players in the Lakewood’s starting lineup today batting less than .200

  8. hinkie, thanks for that extra part on the end. i want libby. if mize is gone, even if singer is there, i might want liberatore. phils need “go to” lefty. he’s the one.

    1. Hs pitchers are really tough to pick. I like this kid. but I just don’t know at three if I would take him. I thinking of 4 yrs ago I believe. I saw Harvey pitch and Bundy. I told romus how great I thought they would be. but injuries just kill these pitchers. so at three I am really on the fence with a hs kid.

  9. Off topic, but while the Dodgers might go after Manny, would they dangle Kershaw who’s beginning to show wear and tear? This is going to be an interesting trade deadline throughout MLB.

  10. I’m cautiously optimistic on Maikel Franco, but I need to see him do it for the whole year.

    1. Very cautiously optimistic. We’ve already seen this movie way too many times. If he’s batting .240 at the all star break, it’s time to move on.

      1. It’s true but he does seem to be making genuine progress. He’s laying off more close pitches that he can’t hit and I have seen less of the swing and lose the helmet at bats. He really seems to be working hard to get better and the same can be said of Alfaro – they are free swingers who are trying hard to develop plate discipline and it’s going to take some time. But they are clearly working on this.

        1. Perhaps Santana has more of an influence on them than one would think.

          I just hope at the end of an inning when Santana uncorks that throw across the diamond to Franco he does not inadvertently clunk the pitcher coming off the mound on one of those rockets.

  11. FULL CONFESSION – As much as Doobie gets under my skin (yes I’ve been a dissenter of his) I must admit my admiration for his fearless approach at the plate. If our entire roster played with that bravado, we’d be kicking serious butt offensively. He’s one helluva hitter.

    There, I said it. No disclaimer.

      1. The Mets could rent him but probably won’t sign him long term – they have too many money problems to do that.

      2. Romus, Joe Giglio seems like a good guy, I enjoy his enthusiasm on the radio, but I can’t recall him ever getting the scoop on a story or a prospective trade or signing. And it always involves a NY team and occasionally the Phillies. Grain of salt.

  12. Orioles acquired C Wilson Garcia from the Phillies for cash. Might that be international money?

    1. My guess if it were for international money…probably the minimum, $250K.
      Wilson was not really assigned to a team…left unprotected last November, became a minor league FA and Phillies signed him to a minor league contract in January and played a few games with CLW, then was put on the Williamsport roster for administrative purposes at the trade 10 days or so ago.

            1. That’s not good. Lat strain will probably mean an eventual trip to the 60 day DL.

  15. Curtis is the only LhP on the team then. Wouldn’t be smarter to bring up Austin Davis or Liebrandt imo

    1. Better question how good is Cesar .Herdanez ,lot of talk about trading both him and odubel. cause we had babe Ruth coming up in kingery.

      1. I wanted Cesar traded for a bit but was extremely wrong. The guy should lead off for the next 5 years

      1. See my FULL CONFESSION comment posted above at 1:56 PM….

        ….and feel free to post your own opinions once in a while.

        1. ….and to clarify further – you trade a player of higher value because of the value to be acquired in return, NOT because he’s unwanted or disliked. Are we clear?

  17. Seranthony pitched in the 8th and he looked impressive. It didn’t seem like he was throwing hard until you see the gun register 97-98. I don’t know if he throws a cutter because I swear some of his fastballs cut and sank. That was ridiculous. His slider could be a little tighter but I’m just nitpicking. He’s ready for the show.

    1. A couple of thoughts.

      On Seranthony. You know I’ve learned a lot from other posters on this site. One of the most thoughtful comments someone made about 5 or 6 years ago is that there is no such thing as a relief pitching prospect. When I asked what the person meant, he said that as soon as a hard thrower develops a good breaking pitch, he will soar through the minor leagues and be ready for bullpen action. It was true of Ken Giles and it’s true of Seranthony, who has similar stuff. And, yes, I saw the pitches that were 97 or 98 and had the breaking action of a cutter – I’m not sure I’ve ever seen that before from any pitcher. Is it a cutter? Is it natural movement? I don’t know but that thing looks unhittable.

      I love how the new pitching coaches permit and encourage hard throwers to pitch up in the zone. I HATED that Bob McClure insisted that all pitchers keep their pitches down. That’s insane. Why should guys with rising fastballs only pitch down in the zone? How does that help a Nick Pivetta or Zach Eflin. Thank goodness he is gone.

      Anyway, between his added velocity and willingness to pitch up in the zone, Zach is finally missing bats (as I thought he would someday), and this makes him an entirely different pitcher. And he’s now breaking off some impressive curves. It’s fun to watch a guy take his game to the next level.

      1. What shocked me about Eflin’s performance yesterday was how the hitters were so late to his fastball. It was almost as if Eflin’s fastball had late life to it. Once he established his fastball, Eflin mixed in his other pitches and the Giants were done. A really good start against a solid veteran team (Belt, Posey, McCutcheon, Longoria, Crawford).

        1. It does have late life. He’s throwing a 4-seemer and he’s throwing it harder. That pitch makes him an entirely different pitcher, as you could see from the swings and misses. His curve has also developed a lot.

          1. sorry, 4-seamer. It’s thrown with 4 SEAMS and doing that makes it SEEM faster.

  18. Ser-Ant’ny is the second minor leaguer Gabe Kapler has had a major hand in getting to MLB. Scott Kingery was the first. The good news for Romus is … Kapler is now openly speaking about/complimenting Darick Hall.

    1. Well they could start Hoskins in left , Herrera in center , Hall in RF . Herrera covers alot of ground.

    2. Hope Kapler does not start to dictate to the GM when to promote the minor leaguers.

    1. barring major injuries and with ptichers returning from DL,, don’t see a spot for him right now.
      needs to work on his consistency but looks like a potential contributor

  20. I really like what I’m seeing from Eflin. must better with use of 4 seam FB . I’m sure healthy knees helps.
    needs an out pitch against lefties.
    can we bring back cole hamels just to teach all these guys how to throw a changeup?

    1. I Never knew Eflin had that kind of stuff. I couldn’t believe his stuff last night.

  21. great point! I would love Hamels back for any number of reasons, and that is a very good one. Eflin has been very impressive, and I really was impressed with Seranthony. His motion is fluid and easy and you don’t know it went as fast as it did until you see the radar gun hit 97.

    1. Cole Hamels should come back for the same reasons Nick Foles came back. If the price isn’t too crazy he would be exactly what they need. And they should do this sooner rather than later because Hamels is bouncing back already as I knew he would.

    2. and how about that Yacksel Rios throwing 98-99 heater to pair with his good SL? We never talked about Rios as a prospect during his time in the minors. If Rios can lower his BB rate, he is still young enough at 24 yo to be one of the key components in the pen.

      1. KuKo…..”We never talked about Rios as a prospect during his time in the minors.”…that is correct…probably because he was a relief pitcher…..and they are kind of like the ‘Rodney Dangerfields’ of farm systems.

        1. I’m actually quite impressed with their young bullpen arms
          ramos, morgan, seranthony,arano, rios

          1. Bullpen is really becoming a strength with the team. What more if the Phils decided to convert Kilome, Vinny, Anderson and Pivetta to the pen.

            I talked about Edgar Garcia for the last 2 prospect rankings as I have him the back of my Top 30 for the last 2 years. Edgar Garcia’s SL is showing plus with a good mid 90-s FB. He will added to the 40-man this season and will be another additional to the high leverage arms in the pen.

            Mauricio Llovera in another LA find that can throw upper 90s hitting 100s with his FB. He might be up there too.

            1. Yes! Why is Llovera not getting more Llove(era)? He’s dominating and we are all basically ignoring him (me too!). He needs work on his control but he’s very close to being a big time prospect.

      2. If you compare Yacksel to Seranthony yesterday you can see the differences. Yacksel throws really hard, but the fastball is straight. Most of Seranthony’s fastballs had late movement (which again is ridiculous). Yacksel has a looping breaking pitch which is not that great. It seems to be a show-me pitch at this point. Seranthony has a better breaking pitch (slider) and it’s good enough to K batters when paired with his fastball.

        1. there’s no comparison between Seranthony and Rios. We’ve discussed Seranthony since he was in Low A and he’s been in the top 20 for the last couple of years.

          I noted Rios because as i said, we never talked about him ever. We’ve discussed about JDT but not Rios — and just like you said his stuff is not that good enough. His FB is straight and his breaking ball is looping.

          But at 24 yo and see his 4S go up that high, and the breaking ball can bite at some days, Rios suddenly holds some value to the Phils.

      3. Wow – thanks for pointing that out. I taped the game and went back to see Seranthony, but will watch the reply tonight to see Rios.

        Yes, it’s funny how some guys just fall beneath the radar or get better when we least expect it and are not part of the ongoing site narrative. Clearwater is the best example of this. The most celebrated hitting prospects on the team – Moniak and Haseley – are performing well below expectations. Yet there are some really good hitters there, including Hall, Listi, Cabral, Lartigue, and Gamboa (who might end up being the best major leaguer of the bunch over time). I am watching both Lartigue and Cabral like a hawk – it’s not typical for catchers to hit this well anywhere and both are raking.

        And speaking of beneath the radar – our old friend Mitch Walding, who I gave up for dead in Clearwater a few years ago, has made himself into a prospect. He’s a fringy prospect and he still strikes out too much, but his walk rates are great and if you’ve seen him play he’s impressive on the field. Chances are he never makes it in the big leagues, but he’s very much worth following.

  22. Kudos to Gabe Kapler. With a huge lead, he could have let Eflin get the last out in the 7th inning. Instead, he pulled him with 2 outs, and let the kid get a well deserved standing ovation.

    1. Don’t think he made the move for the curtain call but rather because he just walked a guy on 4 pitches and was at pitch 109…

  23. I have to say overall I’m happy with Kapler . his positive energy is great for a young team ( might be annoying with a team of veterans) and for most part, most of his moves ( other than nola on opening day) have a logic to them even if they are not the moves I would make.

  24. i agree that I like Kapler’s positive take on things – I think this is good for young players. It appears that the players are slowly “buying in.” On the other hand, like Tony La Russa, he “over-manages” with all the pitching changes. Enough already.

    Also – I am continually surprised by the pitchers Phils bring up as they seem to be throwing much harder / velocity wise than we are accustomed to seeing them. Never thought I would see Eflin throw 96 ? Rios 97/98 ? just like Morgan, 97 ?

    1. i think we have to get used to ” over- managing”. its the trend of the new baseball. I do think Kapler has shown the ability to learn from his mistakes which is a good sign

      1. I have concerns about Klentak, not Kapler. The former has put the latter in a bind with this roster. He needs to re-allocate the value/talent – which there is significant – and get us either a #3 or some minor league bats.

      2. He’s definitely learning. At this point, the lineup is pretty much set. There is somewhat of a platoon in RF. There might be a platoon at SS once JP comes back. The rest are getting regular ABs which is great.

        The Phillies are carrying 8 relievers so he can afford to mix and match, but it’s still annoying.

    2. This is the new era of relievers. If you’re not throwing mid-90s, you’re not going to make it in the bigs, especially if you’re RH. Seems that every reliever that comes up is throwing 95+.

      1. The baseball era of the Tyler Cloyds and David Buchanans have now come and gone.

        1. True. If Eflin has figured out how to pitch at this level (of course he’s teased us before) than we have something going here. I don’t think Pivetta has “figured it out” yet. We still need a larger sustained sample from both. When Eickhoff returns, a decision may have to be made regarding Velasquez (bullpen?). Of the three, Eflin engenders more confidence as a ‘pitcher’ in the truer sense of the craft, IMO. Guys like Lively and Eshelman become less of a factor in the long term.

          1. Eflin use to be a 2Smr guy in the Pads’ org and the Phillies to start…but says knees and legs are now healthy and stronger he is able to use them to push and can throw that 4Smr with more velo. Both him and Pivetta have the stuff and both have the poise and make-up out there. Eickhoff has the poise and if his CB is not on the low 90s velo doesn’t play.
            Vinny…probably could use 2mg of Diazepam before a start.

        2. i agree romus. the pen is where velocity is a MUST since you will be facing a batter one time so you have to blow him out as much as possible. although location is still the key since a straight FB is the easiest pitch to hit.

    3. Amazingly, Rios is close to 100 – I’m not sure how to explain that, but good for him.

      Morgan got the bump of going from starter to reliever. Some guys do that and don’t add velocity, but he did.

      Eflin could always throw 96 or 97, but he couldn’t do it consistently and he wasn’t maximizing that velocity by throwing 4 seam pitches up in the zone (thanks for nothing Bob McClure). Now’s he’s doing that and changing the eye level – very promising.

      1. Agreed – Eflin’s health and better knees have helped everything. I’m happy for him – he seems like such a nice guy.

        1. Aside from the mid-90s FB, Eflin CU is showing at least above ave potential so a solid breaking ball can give him a #3 ceiling. However, like Vinny, he needs to manage the velocity (or break) of his CU – since he is throwing the CU at higher 80s so if it doesn’t break, it will look like a soft FB.

          1. Remember Mike Pelrey of the Mets from 10 years ago in his early years, before the UCL started fraying and then the TJ surgery…that is who Eflin reminds me of….but with a few ticks higher on the FB.

            2. I remember Pelf. A big dude who didn’t really throw that hard considering his size. Was more of a contact guy with his sinker. But man, he can get rattled on the mound. I’ve seen him meltdown several times against the Phillies.

  25. Herrera is becoming one of the top 5 CF in the game . Santana moved to the 5 th and now ranking . Williams with 2 hits maybe he’s starting to get hot.

    1. Tim….Herrera is on pace for an 8bWAR season. Now in the past he has been a little of a streaky hitter, so will have to see if he can keep this pace.

      And now he conducts interviews without the translator.

    2. Phils facing lefty SPs in 3 of next 4 games. Altherr will surely start those. But it would be nice to see Williams start picking up some quality ABs, get into a groove. Hoskins and Santana both may need a breather. Let Williams face a lefty somewhere.

  27. If the Phillies can manage to win 2 of these remaining 3 games vs SF (doable with Cueto and Bum on the shelf) and 2 of 3 vs Mets (Thor vs Eflin Sat will be tough), our record at the quarter pole would put us on pace to win 93 GB games. Let’s assume that pace isn’t sustainable. BUT it still makes the 84-88 win range much more attainable. Just supposing….

  32. Rhys gets a much needed breather tonight. And both Altherr and Williams are in the lineup.

    2. Hoskins is getting a steady diet of non-fastballs and he needs to adjust. I remember an AB a few weeks ago when he K’d on 6 straight changeups/sliders. Made him look real bad.

      1. On another disappointing note, Hoskins is easily on track to be -2 dWAR in LF. Playing out of position is going to damage his value. Check out Pat Burrell’s career dWAR of -11.

        1. That’s until Santana says adios after ’20. Then Hoskins will likely assume 1b. The outfield is usually the most fluid part of a roster. I’m sure we’ll see a buffet line of young players patrolling LF in the years to come.

          1. If Darick Hall or even Zach Green keep on hitting, they may take 1B and leave Hoskins in LF.

  34. Game scores since Monday for Phillies minor league pitchers.
    Irvin 68
    Ranger 56
    Seabold 79
    Rosso 77
    Liebrandt 61
    Arauz 66
    Medina 72
    De Los Santos 82
    Romero 58
    I believe anything above a 50 score is better then avg . Now that’s some minor league pitching.

  35. Does not look great right now:
    @MattGelb
    Pat Neshek suffered a setback. He’s had a shoulder injury but now has a forearm strain. Shut down for at least a week.
    4:12 PM – May 9, 2018

    1. Romus your killing me. 82 for that start isn’t right. I did the math seven times its 81, or am I wrong??

      2. rocco…..try it once again…make sure you follow the formula in proper sequential steps:
        • Start with 50 points
        • Add 1 point for each out recorded (or 3 points per inning)
        • Add 2 points for each inning completed after the fourth
        • Add 1 additional point for every strikeout
        • Remove 2 points for each hit allowed
        • Remove 4 points for each earned run allowed
        • Remove 2 points for each unearned run allowed
        • Remove 1 point for each walk allowed

  36. rocco….by George!….your are partially correct….it looks like it should 79 not 82

    IP7.0….H-1…..R-0…..ER-0….BB-2….K-6…Enyel De Los Santos’ line
    50+21+6+6…..83…..-2….-2 = 79

  37. The game score is on every milb box score the 82 was for them . Still very good pitching .

    1. This is the general Fangraphs breakdown:
      Game Score Rules of Thumb
      Game Score Rating
      0-10 Unspeakable
      10-20 Awful
      20-30 Bad
      30-40 Poor
      40-50 Below Average
      50-60 Above Average
      60-70 Good
      70-80 Great
      80-90 Excellent
      90+ Make Sure Your Friends Are Watching

      And their own formula, which is slightly different than Bill James’ which I have used:
      GSv2 = Constant + 2*Outs + Strikeouts – 2*Walks – 2*Hits – 3*Runs – 6*HR

      1. Constant= 50
        “The constant is designed so that the average game score in each league, each year is equal to 50.
        However….in 2015, the constant for both leagues was 38. In 2014, the AL constant was 37 and the NL constant was 36”
        Not sure what the constant MiLB was using…assume it was 50..

  38. The results say that Pivetta had a good game, but I was not happy about it. From the first pitch, he was nibbling. He showed no aggression at all, and looked timid. He got better as the game went on, but the Phillies gave him a lead so I’m sure that helped.

    1. I’m pleased that both Pivetta and Velasquez have improved and giving the team a chance to win. However I remain unconvinced that they are long term answers to the rotation. And with Eflin showing pitchability as a starter, and with Eickhoff soon returning and at least given the opportunity to show shades of himself from 2 years ago, and with Kapler itching to see De Los Santos later this season, there will be difficult decisions to be made unless the DL makes it for them, which it often does.

        1. No it won’t – many of the starters go 7 or 8 innings and they are using a 12 or 13 man BP. And Pivetta won’t always throw as many pitches. If he has good starts like that we’ll be fine.

      2. Did you see that game? That first inning was real dicey. If the Giants got a clutch hit, the flood gates could have opened. I’m convinced that the problems with Pivetta is all mental.

        1. Well good then because confidence and aggression (Mental) is something that can be developed.

          Young players require patience. Both Pivetta and VV have shown improvement this year both in performance and results.

          1. That is quite possibly true. Before this year I didn’t think Gerrit Cole had it mentally. Although I think he benefits from not being the ace of the staff (and there has been speculation that his added spin is pine tar induced).

  39. To those on here who said Nola isn’t an ace . . . can we finally put that to bed and call that a bad take?

    1. Uh yeah. I didn’t say anything bad about Nola (the moment I saw him pitch in Reading I knew he’d be at least a mid-rotation guy), but I was always concerned about his health and didn’t peg him as a guy who could be more than a #2. I don’t think anyone had him ticketed as a big league ace so he’s raised his ceiling.

        1. yeah! baby yeah! roccom!! Nola is still young and when he physically matures in 5 years time, his can still gain 2-3 mph in that heater.

          seeing Nola the first time just reminds me of a young Cole Hamels in his demeanor in the mound. that CU is just becoming a nasty pitch and Nola doesn’t even need to use his wicked CB to get 12Ks.

          2 potential plus 2 pitches in CU and CB and at least above average FB due to movement and location — that’s a front line starter to me.

          minor concern for me is — Nola is like a Diesel. He can start cold but once he gets going, he’s dealing.

          1. I don’t see Nola throwing any harder (it’s possible but very unlikely), but it doesn’t matter. He has an elite CB, plus change and plus FB – that’s sort of the definition of an ace.

          2. Don’t worry about the slow starts, almost all the great aces were like that. You either hit them in the first or second inning or you were toast. Maddux, Seaver, Halladay, Clemens, and Glavine were all like that. Once they got into a rhythm they were virtually unhittable – just like Nola.

            1. Wait, I thought Nola was removed from Opening Day because he wasn’t good the third time through the line-up.

        2. one prospect that doesn’t get much attention is Drew Anderson. Too bad that he’s hurt (again) but he got a nice combination of pitching ability and composure too.

      2. yeah, nobody project Nola as an ace but i know somebody who said the he can be a perennial CY young candidate and got blasted.

      1. I was on that Nola train too . He has incredible control & command plus his pitches move alot .Very happy with him .

  42. The substandard performance of C, Moniak and Haseley is really a bummer. The team is really thin in OF play makers unless Quinn and Cozens live up to their potential.

    I’m in the forefront of the Doobie trade since he will get a good amount of prospects in return (close to Adam Eaton type) because I expect that one of Quinn, Moniak and Haseley will be the future CF and Mike Trout (as FA sign) as a reasonable fallback.

    I haven’t changed my position with Doobie (and Cesar too), but the FO as a team really need to make some hits in the OF position and the early picks in particular.

    1. Aren’t we trying to win now? So you’re trading our best offensive and defensive player for what? Starting pitching? And I don’t know why you think Quinn, Moniak, Haseley will get it done. They are either injured or stinking it up right now.

      We have pitchers in the minors who are on the rise (Medina, Sixto) or who are close (De Los Santos). We don’t have any OF who deserves to take time away from any of our current OFs.

    3. This is a joke right? This is almost as bad as saying trade Hernandez bc of Kingery (Good think that move wasn’t made. Kingery needs to go down to AAA and get back to work). You want to trade him bc of Moniak, Quinn or Haseley? None of them are projected to put up the numbers Herrera is putting up now and you really can’t say that their D is better than Herrera either. You DO NOT trade someone who is not a top 5 CF in baseball, maybe even top 3. NO, NO, NO, NO, NO.

    4. This again.

      Doobie is 26 and has amassed 12 fWAR in 3 full seasons + a month and a half of 2018. He is a solid defender. He rakes, is drawing more walks than ever before and has a good amount of pop in his bat. He is under team control for LONG time at a very REASONABLE rate. He is THE catalyst on this team right now. He and Hoskins are the only to ABs I truly never want to miss.

      Trading Herrera for anyone short of Mike Trout would be very misinformed.

            1. That will be hard to do.
              No low hanging fruit out there.
              Kershaw looks to stay with the Dodgers i would think.
              The other LHP of note Sale is not going anywhere either for a long time.
              Do not care for David price.
              Drew Pomeranz is a FA, along with Gio Gonzo….not too appealing.
              I use to like Danny Duffy….but he has gone off the rails.

            2. rocco & Romus … Yusei Kikuchi is part of the Hinkie 2019 FA game plan. 27 YO, LH, and all it will take to get him is money (no prospects).

              Hinkie 2019 FA game plan:
              1. impact bat – Manny Machado
              2. LHSP – Yusei Kikuchi
              3. LHRP – Zach Britton (or Jake Diekman)

            4. Hinkie….he looks like a viable LHP starting candidatee…now lets hope Matt K. doesn’t forget.

            5. Hinkie – make it happen. Sounds as good as any other plan I’ve heard. Replenish the system by trading Franco. Pay it forward.

  45. Well, before he was recalled I said Dominguez would be the closer by July and I have no reason to second guess that call now. He’s completely the real deal. His weird 97-98 MPH cutter or 2 seamer or whatever the heck it is is one of the hardest sharp breaking pitches I’ve ever seen in my life. I have never seen a pitcher throw a ball 97 or 98 MPH with that much last second break. Ever. It means he has a chance to be truly special.

    1. He definitely has the stuff, but I’m leaning toward 2019 for him to be the outright closer.

    3. Wait until this weekend, you’ll see some nasty movement on a high 90’s fastball from the guy they call Thor.

      1. The trouble with Thor be can’t walk anyone or give up a single. You can steal on him at will still.

      1. I know this pitch is “only” 95, but he can throw harder with movement. I think both Garcia and Dominguez have closer stuff, but Garcia doesn’t have closer command. Seranthony might get there eventually. For now I’d like to see him in a multi-inning role.

        1. I can remember when Jeanmar was struggling….and the call then was for Hector because he had closer stuff.
          Relievers can be working in such a fluid career.

    1. NL batting leader and MVP candidate! (You are reading that correctly 🤩)

      ….and we just put MLB on notice!!!!

  47. Rhys needs to catch the lightning in a bottle again.
    He is getting dangerously close to 30%.

    1. Rhys is learning to adjust to big league pitching. It could be a year or two before we see the full Rhys. It takes a while.

      1. Yes…..I really hope his adjustments is in a matter of a few months and not years.
        This little funk must be a first for him.

        1. I mentioned a month or so ago that it would be interesting to see if the pitchers might adjust to batters that were being instructed to loft the ball more to take advantage of a juicd ball. I thought that they might throw more high fastballs to counter the up swing. I wonder if this might be happening. Hard to time that high FB mixed with a high in the zone CB .

        2. I don’t mean he won’t make some adjustments soon just that it may be a year or two before we see him truly peak. But he should be good this year.

  48. Aces Battle:
    Aaron Nola (5-1, 2.05) and Jacob deGrom (3-0, 1.87) are the pitchers in the final game of the series on Sunday.

  49. Zac Curtis sent down for Jake Thonpson. I don’t get this move. Thompson has done nothing and there is not a Lefty on the Staff. Curtis is far from great, but this makes no sense to me.

    1. matt13…i guess with the next three games vs the Mets (without Bruce, a slumping badly Conforto and just having basically An. Cabrera as LHBs) and then the next two games vs the Os without much LHB strength…they felt they could go without a lefty in the pen.

    2. Zac Curtis also threw almost 50 pitches in 2 innings. That demotion is totally on him.

      1. Yeah, they probably just figured that Curtis isn’t going to be able to pitch for a few days so they got a fresher arm in there.

    3. Yesterday Matt in the game , Kapler likes Hunter against lefties because of his spitter. they do have Liebrandt and Austin Davis maybe they move Curtis off the 40ty man.

  51. Any reason why the comments are disabled on the last two Box Score Recaps?

  53. Glad to see Spencer Howard rebound from that last morning outing in Rome, and throw an exceptional 6 inning masterpiece. And Jake Scheiner is starting to show some power

    1. Two words: Spencer Howard !!!
      So far this season … 25 IP, 18 H, 3 BB, 36 K in games starting after noon. My theory on his one bad outing is … the game started at 10:30. He’s a California kid. !0:30 eastern time = 7:30 AM west coast time. Obviously, the kid just isn’t a morning person. Maybe Mr. Howard (if you are reading this) can confirm (or deny) this.

      … and … Three words: jaKe the caKe !!!
      In his last eight appearances, the kid is … 15.1 IP, 25 K, 1 BB. Don’t judge him on one bad spring training outing. Look at the Hefty Lefty’s career track record of chewing up and spitting out batters.

      Also, great to hear Grany Dyer may be close to returning to action.

      1. You are correct…Spencer is not, and has never been a morning person but I think he was prepared for that game. He told me he was not getting the calls on the corners and it got in his head and took him out of his game. Lesson learned.

        1. Thanks for the confirmation, Mr H. I believe your son will be in Reading within a month.

      2. watched the game on Milb.tv, Howard was impressive, he was sitting 94/95 mostly but hit 96/97 a couple times.

        1. I think Spencer Howard is the real deal – a possible solid TOR guy. As bad as some of the recent draft picks have been, I think this one was outstanding.

        2. Daniel – was the viewing angle for that game from behind the pitcher or from somewhere up in the stadium? You can learn almost everything you need to know about a pitching performance from the former angle and almost nothing about the pitching or hitting from the latter angle.

          1. no they have a few cameras, it’s the first year Lakewood has had them but so far so good other then a snafu they had getting it to work at the first week of the season.

  54. Cole Hamels has his ERA under 4.00 and pitches tonight vs Houston. Time to start keeping track whether he should be a trade target as a solid #3. He would cost us next to nothing since we would take on his salary. Todd Zolecki speculated about it this morning. Jeff Todd of MLBTR answered a chat question yesterday to the same effect. If we’re in the playoff race by the all star break, it’s a reasonable move to make if only for his post season experience. So long as he maintains a respectable performance.

  55. He is already a trade target on my list. Now, the Phils need to keep playing well and staying in the Playoff chase so the FO gets him in July. He should not cost much prospect wise.

    1. matt13…agree.
      Rangers’ Jon Daniels will probably take a minor league pitching prospect or two.

      1. I’d trade a guy from our current pen not named Seranthony, any minor league starter other than Sanchez or Howard, and maybe a guy like Canelo.

        1. I’d have a hard time giving up Medina, Morales or De Los Santos for Cole in addition to the names you gave. We’d be taking millions in salary off the Rangers for an aging pitcher. There’s no need to give up a blue chip prospect.

          2. It’s a good point – perhaps you are right. And a lot depends on how strong the team is playing at that point. One way or another, you are going to overpay if you do this, the question is whether you should do it at all and how much of an overpay should you agree to. If you can get him without dealing even one blue chipper, that would be great – but I think it’s going to take at least one top 10 prospect to get it done because someone else will need a lefty starter too and there’s going to be a market for him for sure.

            1. That’s true, Catch, but not as much of a market if he didn’t have a limited trade clause, which includes the Phillies but not the Yankees.

          3. True I love to have Cole back . Phillies wouldn’t have to give up much.Mills maybe a rp prospect.

  56. From KLaw chat yesterday:

    Burt Reynolds: Is Sixto Sanchez hype more built around projection than present day skills? Obviously he is still young for his level but I have not seen any stats that stick out saying this kid is a #2 pitcher.
    Keith Law: Kid was 96-101 at age 18 last year without much effort and good control, and struck out a man an inning in low-A before he was promoted. How many 18-year-olds can say all of that? Maybe one or two a year?

    Tim: I’m excited about Seranthony Dominguez simply because if his name. Can he pitch? Bullpen the final destination for him?
    Keith Law: Legit two plus pitches with pretty good command. Bullpen guy.

    .

    … and … cover your ears (or hide your eyes), Romus

    .

    Scott: Have you seen Darick Hall? 28 HR last year at low A, already 10 at high A this year and walking more. I can only read the stat line, but the numbers remind me of Ryan Howard in that he’s pretty one-dimensional with a lot of power.
    Keith Law: Yes. Older kid without any other tools. He’s nearly 23.

    1. I am just baffled by the Sixo hate after 4starts this season 2 of whic lh have been very good.

    2. Hinkie…….yes, he does get a bad rap.
      Bat will have to carry him since running, throwing and some glove work are not his strength….but he does have 60/65 power..
      And technically…..this is his age22 season , since his 23rd is in July,a month after the 30 June cut-off.

        1. Yes…you would think he get a better arm grade…but suppose they look at it from a first basemen’s throw to 2nd or to 3rd base..
          Haseley, same thing..pitcher at VU but only gets a nominal arm grade of 50..

          1. Yet Hasley throw out 2 base runner the other number night.Hall being LH showing elite power and more obp.klaw missed on Goodie and Hoskins so .

            2. Actually when i reread KLaw’s comment….he is not saying he is not a prospect…that only his one plus tool is power…”without any other tools”.
              Well if he stays at first base, as I assume all believe it will be, the only other tool of any significance is the ‘hit’ tool.
              And so far this season he is making adjustments in that area

              And yeah…he admits he missed the boat on Paul Goldschmidt and was a late arrival with Hoskins, as were almost all the analysts.

            4. Hinkie….???
              When you say hi on Hoskins early on ….you mean as a Phillie prospect?
              Because he did make Law’s Top ‘150’ until late, and then the Phillies called him up a few months later last season.

              keithlaw‏Verified account @keithlaw 15 Jul 2016
              is not a top 50 prospect.
              keithlaw‏Verified account @keithlaw
              He wasn’t on my top 50 prospects (http://klaw.me/2a0Oe6W )
              but I like Rhys Hoskins because he sounds like the star of a @BBCAMERICA series

              Spring 2017… on Hoskins/Cozens as the 2016 “Bash Brothers from Reading”

              Long-term, Hoskins has the better hit tool, but I think his power last year was illusory.
              Cozens remains hopeless against lefties (.197/.262/.378 with a 42 percent K rate) and is a below-average defender in right.
              Both would have made the main list if I’d gone to 150.

  57. Anyone have any scoop on the Mesa brothers from Cuba besides one is 21 and one 16? How much International $ can we spend?

    1. And can we sign the older one? Hopefully he’s the better player and we impatients wouldn’t have to wait so long.

  58. Lot of good SPs are dropping like flies. Stroman now on the DL. (I realize teams are using the 10day to manage their pitching staffs in some cases.) We’ve a few trade chips waiting in the proverbial wings. I even wonder what Velasquez might fetch. Just a thought….

  60. Neris needs to be changed to the 7 th or 8th. He was beat tonight on his slider and Fb . He’s hittable when he can’t get his splitter under control.

  61. Great outing for Sixto! I am sorry I posted here but for some reason I did have have a comment section on the Box Score Recap page. Hector Neris, without faith in his Splitter, is a mediocre pitcher. He got scared when Conforto hit one a long way foul and lost the game on his FB. Mesoraco hit a Slider. He should not be the closer. Arrieta deserved a win last night and that was hard to watch.

    1. Sixto is doing just great, but so is Gamboa. He’s freaking 20 years old and he’s really coming on and I think he could have quite of bit of hidden power in that spring. The middle infield depth in this organization from top to bottom is impressive. Speaking of middle infielders, if they are not going to play him in the majors, they should send Valentin back to AAA – he’s way too good and has too much potential to just sit idly behind Florimon. This makes no sense in May.

      2. The problem is that they need somebody to be on the bench and there’s no other position players on the 40-man roster except for Quinn and Cozens.

      3. Agree on Valentin…..let him get more ABs in LHV.
        Do not see whatever sense they have in keeping him on the bench.
        If this were August or September…so be it, but not mid-May.

        JPC’s 10 day is close at hand, and comes back soon and Florimon and Kingery (as much as I hate seeing it with him) seem to be the movable parts for versatility..

          1. It’s beginning to look that way, Romus. Hopefully, JP Crawford can get healthy, back in the lineup, and see another 300 more AB’s to give us a better idea of what he can do.

  62. Yes he needs a chance, agree but hope we can develop someone if he fails. I don’t know if we can get a machado or harper.

  63. I don’t know how much stock you put into comments by ricky bo. He was asked about Kingery, answer he is overmatched

    1. Tim don’t even try it. His stats so far are horrible. He swings at more pitches outside the strike zone then anyone in baseball. ten percent more than any other player. He right now should be in triple a playing ever day,

      1. Who do u want playing SS CH ? , Florimin the best glove . Valentin the big question mark .

      2. Kingery what has a little over 100 ATbats . I mean what it Cehe 5 yrs to devolope into an everyday ML 2nd baseball.

  67. The Brewers outfield is a little crowded. Maybe a Santana mite become available ?

  68. The Phillies re-dedication to finding LHP is beginning to bare fruit. Bailey Falter and Cole Irvin were outstanding tonight.
    Falter 6.2 IP (84 P), 0 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 11 K
    Irvin 7 IP (115 P), 0 R, 2 H, 3 BB, 8 K … Irvin actually K’d the side in his final inning. 115 pitches! Wow!
    Great job by Johnny Almaraz bringing these two (as well as JoJo Romero, Nick Fanti, Kyle Young, David Parkinson, Jakob Hernandez, Will Stewart, and Ethan Lindow) into the organization. Enough of the fire Almaraz crap.

    2. Hinkie I Still Almaraz is not a good judge of talent. not until we see falter or Irvin come up and do something, Sorry I cant defend him with the bad high first round picks. How many of these lefthanders are top 100 talents??? I Watch some of Lehigh valley game last night, Walding looked really bad, and the other guys on that team I don’t even know them.

    1. Little puzzled….six years ago his velo according to Brooks was 91-92…..then hovered at 92-93 for years with an occasional 94. Now he is at 91-92.
      Not sure where I see the overall 3 mph decline
      And as a lefty he can get away with that I would think with his his other arsenal of pitches.
      Still think the Yankees will jump all over him when the time comes.

  71. Is not commenting on the Box Score Recap the new norm? I feel like it takes away from the site to not have the discussion.

    I recognize that the opinions of some posters start to become repetitive (in this case, I assume, displeasure with recent high-level draft picks), but I haven’t seen anything I would consider to be out of line. I’ve been coming here ten-plus years, and the discourse surrounding polarizing prospects such as Darin Ruf, Matt Rizzotti, Anthony Hewitt, etc. has been far worse. There are, for the most part, smart people here with well-reasoned opinions and arguments. This is not Philly.com.

    Can this at least be addressed with a post?

    1. Agreed. I really miss the box score discussion. I’ve been coming here at least 6 years myself, and the comments have always been my favorite part of the site. Which is not a knock on the content at all – the content is fantastic & I really appreciate all the hard work Jim & the other posters put into them. It’s just that as Mike said, there are a lot of long-time, knowledgable posters who use the posts as great jumping off points for lively discussion. The just site isn’t the same without the daily community discussion.

  73. Happy Mothers Day to my Dear Friend Romus. hope you have a great day. your a real mother. lmao

  74. Romus and roccom going back and forth is a highlight of this site. Falter pitched a gem and will be in Reading before too long!

    1. Phillies look to have at least three All Star representatives this year: Odubel, Nola and Arrieta.

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