356 thoughts on “Open Discussion: Week of August 8, 2021”

1. The last time the same team had both an MVP and Cy Young award winner was the 2013 Tigers with Miggy and MadMax. The Phillies last had Michael Jack and Lefty in 1980. Bryce and Zack could make this season all the more memorable should they keep their current pace.

2. Not that my opinion matters but if it helps Spencer Howard to blame the Philadelphia management of his role, I sure don’t have a problem with that…… if it helps him. And I think Jim makes a great point that it would be mutually defeating for the Phillies to talk about him.

   1. I don’t love the way the Phils handled Spencer but he is playing quite the victim for a guy who couldn’t run to first base without tiring himself out for the next inning. I wonder if maybe he trained half as hard as the great Doc if he’d have the same issue? Guys like Doc do what they do because of a) talent, but also b) the incredible work ethic when the cameras aren’t rolling, and c) personal accountability and ownership.

      1. I agree with Howard’s lack of physical conditioning. The last game he pitched for the Phillies he ran the bases and then came out to pitch the next inning without any gas left in the tank. So far a great trade by DD.

3. I was glad to see our old friend Trevor May is having a good season with the Mutts and pitched a good inning against us. Good example of a highly rated SP prospect turning into a successful RP.

   1. Trevor May got paid (2 years, $15.5M) but I wouldn’t consider him to be that great a reliever. His current WAR is 0.4 which means he’s pitching just as well as our old friend Hector Neris. May converted to be a full time reliever in 2016 and he’s only posted a WAR over 1 once. Ryan Madson, who I consider to be the benchmark of a reliable reliever, generated 6 seasons of WAR over 1 for the Phillies.

   2. Tony, May certainly had a stronger arm than Ben Revere.

4. Say what you want about the handling of Spencer…..but the Phillies are not the Os, DBacks, Twins or Pirates….they were in a pennant race from early on……all hands on deck, especially when it came to the last part of June.
   The thing that natter was wins.
   Spencer was given ample opportunity in starting…plus the fact, the physical aspect of going from LHV to Philly and back again ……a one hour drive commute …..should not have taxed anyone if that were the issue.
   If there were any questions in the handling of Spencer, then it must be pointed to Caleb Cotham, Dave Lundquist or Aaron Fultz. They would be the only ones that worked with him on a daily basis.

5. This weekend the Phillies starters went 17.2 innings while giving up 6 hits and 1 run. Relievers not named Llovera went 9 innings with 1 run and 4 hits.

   1. Yeah, but our concern is the starter who gave up 5 runs in 5 innings on Thursday.

      1. Very true, good Nola at home bad Nola away.

6. So what do we have with this Phillies team for the long term? Is this a team on the rise, that will continue to get better the next few seasons or a team that benefited from a weak division that is catching lightning in a bottle?

   I am enjoying the ride but are they World Series contenders in the near future? Would love to see that but just not sure if the minor league pipeline is there to backfill. Can’t keep plugging holes with free agents.

   1. Sign Verlander

      1. I definitely think a Dombrowski/Verlander reunion could be in the cards this winter. If the Phillies look like a contender this season, that would help DD in that pursuit.

         1. Verlander is 38 going through TJ. He would have to have a showcase first to prove that he’s somewhat close to healthy.

   2. the foundation of the phillies is not structurally built as a championship contender. the minor leagues are awful. scouting and development has been a disaster. hopefully some changes are being done right now to right that ship.

      as a big market team, DD is doing a good job until then. other than maybe an occasional sell off, if they’re really bad during the midseason, there is no reason a big market team should go into a total rebuild. it’s baseball, and with the playoff system as it is now, you stay competitive and hope to get lucky and see if you can add a piece or two, because sometimes you can just get hot.

      until your minor leagues get caught up to speed, use your money to stay in the game and flexible. don’t sell the farm, going after anything now.

7. Dodgers’ right field ball girl tackles and flips streaker over wall…arena football style:

   https://nypost.com/2021/08/09/la-dodgers-ball-girl-takes-down-fan-who-ran-on-the-field-during-game/

   1. She is the leading candidate to start as one the OLBs for the Eagles.

      1. She did have some courage to stand there confronting the guy.

         1. Not like some Eagles tacklers of the recent past.

8. Fun must see baseball returned to the Park this weekend. What a treat. And for all of you who didn’t like the trade (and hated moving Suarez to the rotation), Gibson’s 2 starts have been just what was needed. He kept us in games, that’s what’s expected from a good veteran pitcher on most days. And Suarez has been exactly what I expected. His innings will go up and he’s pitching very well. His last start, the ump called an extremely tight zone early (although he expanded it late in the game – bad ump) which ate up his pitch count. He got upset by the ump because he knew he was on a pitch count. Next time out, I bet he does better. An unheralded recent contribution has been from our friend JD Hammer. He has been terrific and will certainly stick around.
   It was really fun playing well this weekend while we watched and listened to our alumni players, discussing their winning teams. The Dodgers the next 3 games will be a real test. Let’s get 2/3 and stay in first.

9. With approx 10 starts left in the season for most starters…Wheeler is, so far, ahead in bWAR and assume CY Young voting for National league pitchers.
   . Wheeler • PHI…6.0
   Miley • CIN…5.4
   Woodruff • MIL…4.9
   . Buehler • LAD …4.9
   Gausman • SFG…4.7
   deGrom • NYM…4.5

   1. Wheeler also has more fWAR than any pitcher in baseball.

      It’s pretty much unanimous. Wheeler has been the most valuable pitcher in the big leagues this year (he’s not quite as good as deGrom, but he’s pitch so many more innings that he has brought more value to his team).

      In terms of value, Fangraphs said Wheeler has been worth almost $45m to the Phillies this year – yeah, that’ll do!!!

      1. Yep…Wheeler and Harper have out-performed their contract value this season.
         And for that matter, surprisingly even Jean Segura

         1. Wheeler yes, Segura yes, Harper not really. Harper’s defense is bringing his WAR down to 3.4. So as of right now, he’s pretty much performing at the rate of his contract ($27.5M). Now if he continue on this pace and ends up in the 4-5 range, that’ll do.

10. What a series. I had identified 15 games that I thought were supremely important and so far we are 3-0 in those games. Even better I emotionally connected with the team I saw on the field.

    Last night Sunday night baseball was on ABC. As I watched the South Siders play the Cubbies I thought wow that team sure has a lot of guys from a number of trades. Sale, Quintanna and even Adam Eaton returns are starting to pay off for them.

    Hard to say how good they really are as the AL Central has been pretty bad the whole year.

    1. DMAR … I watched some of that game too. The a$$ kissing given by Alex Rodriguez to Tony LaRussa was getting a little gross. He just kept going on and on and on about how terrific the almost octogenarian manager is, and what a great hire he was. The comments were unbelievably political.
       Rodriguez is very close with White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf. As a matter of fact … last year, Reinsdorf did all he could to try and nix the Mets’ sale to Steve Cohen so that ARod (and JLo) could buy the team. Eventually, I just had to turn the channel.

       1. I was right there with you Hinkie. Not that think age has anything to do with a good manager but LaRussa and his multiple DUIs rub me the wrong way.

          His managerial style and results I cannot argue. He has that team playing well and gelling at the right time

11. For those of you who are talking having both NL Cy Young and NL MVP . . .

    NL MVP
    Tatis Jr +100
    Harper +270
    Muncy +460
    Turner +850

    NL Cy Young
    Wheeler +160
    Buehler +370
    Woodruff +500
    Burnes +750

    and while i’m looking . . .

    NL East
    Phillies -155
    Braves +240
    Mets +390

    NL Champion
    Dodgers +140
    Giants +380
    Brewers +460
    Phillies +800

    World Series
    Dodgers +350
    Phillies +1800 (Tied7th best odds, 9 teams ahead)

    1. By current numbers, Tatis certainly has the edge over Harper but should the Padres fade by season’s end while the Phillies ride on Bryce’s back into October, that would go a long way to determine the MVP. The award is based on regular season performance only, so health through September for both candidates could factor in as well. Then of course there’s media bias toward one or the other.

       1. Tatis may be moved off shortstop and into the OF for these last 7/8 weeks from reports out there.
          They are not sure how his shoulder will hold up.

12. I cut Ranger a little slack. He got upset by the Ump, who was terrible for both teams. Losing his cool is not something that Ranger does often. From what I hear. one of his best traits is his ability to stay cool. So, he gets a p[ass for that game. The umping was Exhibit A to bring in the robot, or whatever they call that system they are trying out in the Minors. Just a great weekend of baseball. Wheeler was just terrific yesterday.

    1. Ranger is one of those guys who comes out of nowhere and could be a very valuable long-term player here.

       His FB/Sinker sat 93-95 and touched 96 and his command is generally very good. If he adds a bigger breaking pitch, like a curve or slider, he could be lethal.

       I mean, the guy’s ERA is under 1. What more could we ask of him?

       1. I’m not sure “coming out of nowhere” is the correct description because he looked like a valuable relief piece back in 2019. Between him and Seranthony, it seemed like we had a potentially excellent, and also cheap, back of the bullpen in the works. So of course Dominguez immediately got hurt.

          But if Ranger works out as a starter long term, that is definitely a big win for us. He won’t stay under 1 ERA forever, obviously. But he’s been legitimately excellent so far, and if he can be even remotely good for the rest of his time as a starter, we’re looking at a #3 at least.

          1. Yeah he did come out of nowhere in the sense he was viewed as a middle reliever or 7th inning guy and now he’s a mid-rotation piece? That’s a HUGE upgrade in his profile – something that was never predicted for him.

             1. Calling him a mid-rotation piece is getting ahead of ourselves. Him sitting 94-95 isn’t something he’s been doing all year even though his velocity is up from past seasons. I think he’ll probably settled back into the 92-93 range and we also don’t know how his stuff plays going through a lineup multiple times. If he’s a #4 starter that would kind of mean he hit what we thought his ceiling was back in his prospect days. That’d be great.

                1. It’s fair to say he hasn’t established himself as a mid-rotation piece. True enough. But he’s showing that he might have that ability, which is a huge shift in his ceiling. Also, you say he will probably drift back into the lower velocity range, but I wasn’t seeing that at all in his starts. When a pitcher hits his mid-20s and increases velocity, I tend to believe those gains are sustainable. But, whatever we call him, he’s been so much better than anyone ever reasonably expected.

    2. If you look at the box, the ump was actually dead on most of the time. I was impressed. If the pitched was a couple inches outside it was being called a ball; Ranger wanted pitches that were off the plate. There were like two pitches that were “missed” but unfortunately one of them was ball 4 on Ranger’s third walk.

13. It was great to sweep the Mets, and move into first place. But … even more important IMO … the Phillies were able to pick up a game on the Braves (who were hosting the depleted Nationals for three games this weekend). Phillies and Braves both host the Reds this week. Cincinnati is going really good right now. They are capable of winning either series, so they’ll have a significant impact on the NL East this week.

    1. Mets also have it pretty rough after Wash tomorrow…..then it is the Dodgers this weekend and out to the West Coast vs the Giants and then the Dodgers again.
       Next 12 games may spell the end for them.
       May be the Braves and Phillies battling out .

       1. Oh, yeah. In my mind, the Mets were cooked about a week ago (when they were in Miami). The Phillies just put them out of their misery. I expect the Phillies and Braves to go back and forth/in and out of first place for rest of the season. An injury to either team could play a major factor into who wins the division.

          1. …and best of all, there’s nothing quite like shutting up the Met fans. Yankee fans are downright congenial compared to the obnoxious ones from Flushing Toilets….I mean Meadows. At least the NYY folks have legitimate bragging rights, and seem good natured for the most part. That’s my experience, anyway.

             1. I wouldn’t say Yankee fans are good-natured, per se. I know plenty of extremely nice Yankees fans personally, and generally their interactions with Phillies fans are mundane. But that has a lot to do with the fact that they’re PHILLIES fans. They don’t consider us rivals; or consider us at all, really (outside of when we actually play them). Put them together with Boston fans and, uh… not pretty.

                They’re still not as bad as Mets fans (and neither NY team even touches Dodgers and Giants fans, to be honest). But yeah. I’ve seen a lot of ugly fan behavior for every team.

                1. IMO, the best natured fans….fanbase of teams from the Central in both leagues.

             2. Philadelphia fans have a reputation for being the worst fans in sports. They have nothing on Yankees fans. I have always said you haven’t experienced a baseball game until you have sat in the bleacher seats at old Yankee Stadium.

                I don’t know what new Yankee Stadium is like but at old Yankee Stadium the bleachers were right behind the opposing team’s bullpen. The fans get drunk, belligerent, and shout obscenities at the opposing pitchers all game long. I once saw a fan get so drunk he punched a security guard. That didn’t end well for him.

                In 1987. I was sitting along the left field line and for the entire game someone was yelling “Nice ass, Rickey. nice ass!” at the left fielder the entire game. That was aimed at Rickey Henderson the YANKEES left fielder.

                1. One of the funnier fan interactions . . .

14. Suarez’ next start, I believe, is Friday against the Red Legs. If I recollect correctly, his first major league start was against Cincinnati. It was a Friday night and they roughed him up pretty much. It’ll be good to see how he deals with them for hopefully 4-5 innings.

    1. Really encouraged by Suarez in the rotation so far. His stuff has looked great but command hasn’t been there. Seems like he’s struggling with a consistent swing and miss pitch as he was running some deep counts against the Mets. I look forward to him making the adjustment. What a weapon he will be if this team makes it to October.

       1. At the game it was easier to see that the Mets’ strategy was to not swing at anything, in order to get his pitch count up as fast as possible. The umpire’s zone didn’t help.

       2. Okay, yeah, he didn’t have the best command against the Mets and he was squeezed by the umpire. But it’s just one start. Overall, he’s had excellent command this year, including the prior start where he breezed through 3 innings on barely more than 30 pitches. In fact, of the Phillies’ pitchers, I’d say that only Wheeler has had better command than Suarez. Command is his entire M.O.

          1. Spot on…..command and also his ability to control and limit walks.
             All thru Ranger’s minor league career his BB/9 was virtually always in the 2 area

    2. With the day off today, and with Chase Anderson on the IL, I was thinking Suarez would get moved to Thursday on normal rest

15. I don’t want to turn this into a bash Spencer Howard discussion but really, regardless of whatever role the Phillies asked of him (and I’m sure it was annoying to go from starting to relieving to starting to minors… whatever) regardless of the role they only ever asked for 3 solid innings from him and he could barely, if ever give them that. If a starting pitcher can’t maintain his stuff for 3 innings how is he expected to be counted on for 6-7 consistently. Great trade by Dombrowski. In my eyes he’s a reliver. Maybe that’s all Crouse is but I’ll take a blank slate with our new pitching development team.

    Spencer didn’t earn a role. They gave him a shot at one last year but he didn’t have the stamina. You can blame COVID but the Phillies established starters didn’t have an issue maintaining their stuff for 6-7 innings last year… the front office only ever asked for 5. Plenty of other rookie starters came up and had success. He had an entire offseason to fix the issues he ran into last year but he didn’t for whatever reason. The Phillies were competing this year and the needs of the team trump an individual at the MLB level. Maybe he’ll find success in Texas pitching every fifth day but for me his exit interview with Texas proved he never would’ve succeeded here. Bottom line this is a results based industry and he wasn’t getting results for a team trying to compete for a division title. If he had ever succeeded in any of his assigned roles I’m sure the Phillies wouldn’t bounce him around… why would they?

    1. Yes….you nailed it.
       Your last sentenced summed it very succinctly.
       I wish him well as his career progresses
       In Texas, there will be less pressure for him in these next few years.

    2. Yeah, I got beat up several weeks ago when I said put him in AAA, “I was so wrong it was scary, someone said”! Heh, heh, well, guess DD had similar thoughts. I hope he gets straightened out and realizes his dream, I really do. MLB is a tough dream to realize, it really is a tough row to hoe!

16. Wednesday night in Seattle battle of what could have beens for the Phillies #4 starter Tyler Anderson and #5 Spencer Howard.

17. Ed Benkin
    @EdBenkin

    The Phillies have 50 games left.
    20 are against last-place teams (Marlins, Pirates, D-Backs, Orioles).
    Ten are against 4th-place teams (Nats, Cubs, Rockies).
    The Mets and Braves have only three games left against the Phillies head-to-head.
    It should be a Red October.
    #Phillies

18. I hold no ill will towards Spencer Howard and am not surprised he’s not happy with the Phillies. No doubt a shock to the system going from #1 prospect in the organization to out the door in 3 months.

    That being said, I also have no interest in how well he does with Texas or any other team moving forward. If he does well, then good for him and Texas for unlocking the potential that’s in there. For the Phillies, he wasn’t getting to where he needed to be due to some combination of poor player development and individual player failings.

    Better for the Phillies in 2021 with the players they got in return and better for Spencer getting a new start elsewhere.

19. Just watched a SH interview. He sure threw the Phillies under the bus didn’t he? Not going to bash him because he’s in the majors living his dream and I am sitting at my kitchen table 🙂 The interview struck me like Pivetta’s where he said the Phillies didnt know how to win.

    1. watching Pivetta shut out the Blue Jays through 6 innings a couple of days ago I wish he could have pitched that way for the Phillies, but regardless IMO the trade where we got him was always going to be a big win through “addition by subtraction:

20. Wheeler:
    “I think I’ll always have that little chip on my shoulder [about the Mets]. We’re all human, We know what time of year it is, we know who we’re playing and what’s at stake. When you’re in that position to get a sweep, you’re really bearing down, no matter who it is. But it’s my former team, so it feels a little better.”

    After Wheeler signed the 5yr/$118M contract in Dec, 2019 after spending the previous seven years with the Mets’ …. since-fired Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen said he didn’t believe Wheeler was worth that contract, adding “the value for what we thought the investment was didn’t line up.”

    1. To be fair, a decent amount of Phillies fans thought the same thing.

       1. Not sure if it was Klentak’s sole doing or more John Middleton …but right now, looks like a good signing.

21. Philadelphia Phillies
    @Phillies

    Congrats to Daniel Brito, Jhailyn Ortiz, Ethan Lindow and Arquímedes Gamboa on being named Phillies Minor League Co-Hitters, Pitcher and Defender of the Month, respectively, for July
    \
    Brito, Ortiz, Lindow and Gamboa earn organizational honors for July.

    1. Has Gamboa put himself back on the map in your mind,….Romus?

       1. Skeet…….he can pick it in the field with the best of them…..his bat may be coming around……sometimes takes a little longer for some guys, seems especially Phillies’ Latin prospects.
          Is he back on the map?
          I guess he is if a team is looking for role players like a Luke Williams or Nick Maton or a Ronald Torrejes….i think that may be his calling card to get to the majors as he approaches his 24th birthday.

22. Spencer Howard has moved on Good luck except in any way it hurts Phils. Phils fans don’t turn into eagle fans when someone leaves eagles they become public enemy number one. Ie Andy Reid, Wentz. Some guys like Wentz were not raised here and can’t deal with radio scrutiny. And I understand it

    1. I mean… a LOT of Phillies fans booed Werth just because he took the best contract offered to him after the Phils refused to pay both him and Cliff Lee (based on rumors). He deserved better than that. Maybe not a standing ovation every time he came back like with Chase, but at least some claps.

       But at least we’re not insulting our former superstars’ newborn children, so we got that going for us.

       1. Remember Werth standing on the back end of the parade truck with jugging that beer in his one hand and the large styrofoam hand with a finger pointing as number one on the other.

          1. Truly a man of the people.

23. Here’s a Hinkie Far Out Forecast (put money on it at your own risk): the Phillies and Braves will face off in the NLCS this October.

    1. Hinkie……if so,…..doesn’t that mean one of the West teams of LAD, SD or SF does not make the play-offs?

24. I think the Hinkster is predicting the Padres are going to flame out.

    1. Padres IMO will get caught.

25. 1st it was Hamels, then Scherzer now 38 YO with TJ. Guys move on, into the new way of thinking. New game now, move younger for once think of building not competing this year or maybe next. Atlanta, L.A, SF, Cin build for more than 1 or 2. We already are stuck with Moore, Anderson, Kintzler contracts and after last year with Embree ,Workman Hale you think DD would learn, but doing the same thing and expecting different results you know. Build Build
    Nola, Wheeler, Gibson, Eflin
    Suarez, Brogdon, Falter, JD,
    Dominguez and JO JO

    NERIS?

    THINK BUILD FOR CHAMPIONSHIPS NOT CHAMPION

    1. Seth, DD was not hired until early this year so he could not have made those moves. It was McPail and Klentak who did those deals

    2. In what world is signing older depth pieces a bad idea? Hamels signed for the PRORATED PORTION OF $1M. There is literally not a team in baseball that would take on that contract and have it block them from signing anyone else.

       Oh, also you mention LA builds for more than 1 or 2 years… and yet they’re the team with BOTH Hamels and Scherzer. Young talent is important, but there’s nothing wrong with augmenting what you have with some veterans.

26. The core the Phillies are now have came from the old regime — FA, trades, farm system: Wheeler, Harper, JT, Segura, Didi, Cutch, Hoskins, Bohm, Eflin, Nola, Ranger, Neris. It appears that the new regime is doing some fine tuning. Klentak and McPhail were hardly asleep at the wheel and perhaps some belated credit is due.

    1. I’m thrilled the Phils are in first place, but 59-53, with more runs allowed than runs scored, after a 7+-year rebuild . . . I think Klentak and McPhail have received all of the credit they are due.

       1. I agree with you 100%. It often mystifies me that people on this site continually rail on the pitching and I will acknowledge our BP has had their less than stellar moments. Our #4 and 5’s might be sub-std., but runs are what wins baseball games. The team that scores more runs than the opposition wins!

          1. The team that allows fewer runs than the opponent also wins.

    2. Nola, Eflin, Neris and Suarez were brought in while Amaro was the GM.

       1. and FWIW Amaro also was GM for Bailey Falter and Luke Williams drafting

          1. Agreed. Klentak and MacPhail were brought in to really rebuild the team – that would mean executing draft picks and bringing in younger players. A true overhaul.

             They did a really bad job of that. Most of the successes have been holdovers from the Amaro years.

             So what great thing(s) did K&M do? Well, the Zack Wheeler signing was phenomenal. Typically, you don’t get better than a “B” for signing a free agent, because it’s, by definition, cherry picking. But they got way more value so far than they paid. It was a rare A+ big ticket FA signing. He’s been better than the guy who got over $300 million that offseason.

             Harper was a Middleton signing – we all know that. The Segura trade has been good – give them a B+ for that. I love Cutch, but he’s been worth about what they paid – perhaps slightly less due to the injury.

             But you watch even a part of a year of DD in charge and, yes, you understand how much better he is than his predecessors. Do you think that Klentak could have executed the Gibson/Kennedy/Crouse trade? I don’t believe it for a minute.

             1. I get a strange feeling that if Klentak were in charge this season, the trade would have been Howard+ for Foltynewicz and Sborz (and no return prospect) instead…

             2. I think DD has the cache in and around the league. I try to tell the youngsters in my orbit that there is no substitute for experience and wisdom and both of those things can only be acquired through time and repetition.

                Its possible MK would have been better at his job had he had a more seasoned group of scouts around him and maybe a better president than McPhail.

                Its so hard to judge with our organization. In years past it was a lot of too many chiefs and not enough Indians. I thought maybe that was over when JM took the helm but clearly Arrieta and Harper dispelled that notion.

                Obviously one of those was good and the other just meh but the ripple effect of that through the organization and among agents is that it cuts the legs off your GM.

                We see this a lot not just in baseball but in corporate and government positions. Put someone green in a position with only the perception that they are in charge that way the real power people get to absolve themselves of any bad decisions.

27. The hottest teams in MLB right now are the A’s Jays Phillies Rays and Yankees 8-2 in their last 10

    Teams holding a playoff spot or just a few out that are struggling

    Astro’s 4-6
    Red Sox 2-8
    Mets 2-8

    1. The Braves and Phillies worry me in reference to the Phillies playoff chances

       1. The Braves are about to get D’Arnaud back and they’ve been getting virtually nothing from that position. Alex did well to sure up his loss of Ozuna by adding Duval and Eddie Rosario. Rosario hasn’t played yet because he’s injured.

          I guess the Braves are in the same boat we are with the Bullpen. Will it hold up for the remainder of the season.

          1. Almost forgot about Pederson. Ynoa was pitching really well before he lost his temper and punched a bucket or something with his throwing hand. He’s due back any day.

             They are a playoff seasoned bunch who will be formidable for the Phillies down the stretch.

28. With regard to our departed prospect. I’ve never understood not taking the high road. I’ve never understood burning bridges behind you. I may never.

    Insecurity in ones own skin perhaps.

    1. It doesn’t reflect well on him. He should just move on.

29. UPDATED PLAYOFF ODDS:

    ▶ Fangraphs

    Phillies … 57.1% playoffs 55.9% division
    Braves …. 26.0% playoffs 24.6% division
    Mets ……. 20.4% playoffs 19.4% division

    ▶ Baseball Reference

    Phillies … 60.1% playoffs 58.5% division
    Braves …. 37.3% playoffs 36.0% division
    Mets ……. 04.9% playoffs 04.8% division

    Also … the Phillies haven’t had a positive run differential since April 16 (116 days ago). They’re currently 5 in the red. Can they turn that number black this week? Not likely to happen tonight with Scherzer pitching, but may happen later this week.

    1. I’m not one that understands betting odds all that well but does this mean if I bet $10 on the Phillies my payout would be less than $10 on the Braves?

       I’m not one that bets much if at all either so if I did put down a bet it would be against my team for the no lose scenario LOL

       1. I don’t know about the playoff odds above. But, the +/- on betting odds on daily games are centered on $100. You have to bet the minus to win $100 and bet $100 to win the plus. The minus is the favorite, the plus is the underdog.

          For instance in the Scherzer/Nola game tonight, you have to bet $160 dollars on the Dodgers to win $100 or you can bet $100 dollars on the Phillies to win $140.

          At least, that’s how I understand it. However, in all my visits to Vegas, I have only bet on football, never baseball.

          1. That’s the most easy to understand explanation I’ve ever seen Jimmy thanks

             1. Of course, the only consistent winner is the book. They collect no matter who wins.

                If 100 people bet on the Dodgers they have to place $16,000 in bats, and if another 100 people bet on the Phillies, that’s another $10,000 in bets. So, the book takes in $26,000 and only has to pay out $10,000 if the Dodgers win or $14,000 if the Phillies win.

                Now, they rarely have an even split on betting like that, although they set the lines to try and induce that kind of breakdown. If bets are laid too heavy in one direction, they alter the odds to keep their variance as close to the middle as possible.

                And, they are pretty good at it. They have decades of betting info on how people bet to set and alter their betting lines.

                1. LOL it’s why whenever I have play money I buy stock in a company I like.

                2. Correct me if I’m wrong, but wouldn’t the book payout in that example be $26,000 if the Dodgers win and $24,000 if the Phillies win? So the book breaks even if the Dodgers win and nets a profit if the Phillies win; i.e., a no-lose situation.

                   If I got this wrong, please advise.

             2. And to piggy back on jims comments you wouldnt see it like this on the sports books. Even long term bets like playoffs and champs get converted to the +/- based on 100 numbers. For example, i am a suns fan, and they had a very unlikely chance in the preseason to win the nba finals. They were +4000. So for every 100 i would bet i would get 4k back. The betting odds for baseball would look similar so those percentages would make a mets bet a huge lotto ticket and the phils would probably have a – number, so bet the – number to win 100.

          2. Bingo Jim.

             1. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but wouldn’t the book payout in that example be $26,000 if the Dodgers win and $24,000 if the Phillies win? So the book breaks even if the Dodgers win and nets a profit if the Phillies win; i.e., a no-lose situation.“

                No, based on jims hypothetical the assumption, what vegas wants, is 50/50 betting. Using his numbers, the take is 16,000 of dodger bets and 10,000 of phillies bet. 26 total. They pay EITHER 10,000 if dodgers win or 14,000 if phillies win. There is only 1 winner in the game obviously so only 1 payout.

30. Assuming the usual necessities – including health and minimizing defensive and baserunning gaffes, I see these 3 keys to the Phillies success from here on…

    1) AARON NOLA must regain a level of consistency, not Ace caliber but well above replacement level.

    2) BRYCE HARPER has to sustain his pace and buoy the offense with continued support from veteran bats like JTR, Miller and Segura.

    3) The BULLPEN can’t implode, and at least one of the backend relievers need to emerge, with a pleasant surprise from someone like Matt Moore(?).

    1. I’ll buy that Mark…

       I also think Didi could surge. He’s well below his career averages and with guys like that I like to think they will be the back of their baseball card by seasons end.

       He’s 48 points below his avg, 46 points below OBP and a whopping 73 below career OPS

       1. DMAR…….look at you!
          Being optimistic on Didi…never saw that coming.

          1. LOL you guys or this team not sure which has me feeling a little better about what might be. I can enjoy the short term presented to me and still feel like the long term sustainable success I crave still needs to be addressed. Micro vs. Macro

             And it can be in the offseason

    2. The Phillies also will, hopefully, get reinforcements with McCutchen, Eflin, Brogdon, Coonrod, Falter and Dominguez off the IL list. A key bat, and lots of pitching help there.

       1. Very true – the pitching could very well hold its own and as hitters get better, this team gets even more lethal. There’s no reason they can’t finish out the season very well. As long as they keep hitting the Braves are going to have their hands full.

    3. Add 1 additional – they need support – aka solid, not spectacular performance from Hoskins and Herrera. (1) You can’t have massive holes in the lineup, (2) You can’t allow Harper, JTR to be pitched around, and (3) production from the top – Herrera – sets up middle.

31. He is, from what I read, DMAR, still suffering from the effects of the pseudogout he had, lethargic, and not quite feeling right. That could play a big part in his performance.

32. I agree with DMAR – the team needs Didi to ramp it up – even a little bit. However he has been dogged all year with one injury or situation after another. He doesn’t have to look like the Yankee version – just a 70% version of last season.

    Nice article in Athletic about Freddy Galvis. He always thought he would return to the Phillies, “his home,” and frankly – I did too. It would be nice to see steady Freddy late in some of these games in the middle infield. Hopefully it will be sooner than later.

    1. I’m not really expecting a lot from Luke Williams but I hate to see a young guy sit on the bench when he should be getting experience and at-bats (in AAA). If nothing else I hope Freddy gets healthy so Williams can get some playing time.

       1. What are you expecting from Luke Williams? If you think that his ceiling is a bench player, he’s exactly where he’s supposed to be. It’s up to him to prepare accordingly for his role (like Ronald Torreyes).

          If you think he’s starter level, then yes, send him back down to Lehigh.

          1. Agreed. Luke Williams has no prospect cache any longer. There’s nothing wrong with that, but he now projects as a bench guy/AAAA player. If he wants to be more than that, he’s going to have to become quite a hitter and play lots of positions very well.

          2. I don’t think it is as pure as a starter versus reserve question. Williams was probably called up a little before he was ready because of team need. Now his performance has suffered (or dropped back to expectations) in a bench role. He just may be a bit of a tweener without enough defense to be a good middle infielder and without enough offense to be an outfielder or 3B.

             His role though now is more of an outfield reserve so he is not that well suited for that if Jankowski is playing well. Being right-handed helps of course since the bench lacks much of that. I’d be fine with sending him down when Freddy is ready though Maton probably goes down first. Then one of those 2 can come back along with an extra pitcher (Seranthony?) when the rosters expand to 28.

          3. Similarly, Nick Maton fits into that category as Luke Williams.
             When Freddy is ready….send them down for more ABs..

          4. Regardless of his future potential, I think he has a better chance of reaching it if he gets more reps while he’s not too old.

             1. I agree, but the Phillies need his versatility more now. And I’m pretty sure Luke is not complaining picking up a nice game check.

                Anyways, Luke will be at ST and we’ll see if the Phillies give him a chance to compete for a starter job. If they don’t, then you’ll know how the Phillies feel about him.

33. No mention of Hoskins. Don’t we have any hopes or expectations from him?

    1. My hope is that he shows up, along with Harper, in September.

       If he’s going to hit a cold snap, it’s now and not next month. Preferably the cold snap doesn’t happen.

34. My expectations of Rhys is he’ll get hot then cold, as usual.

35. Looking forward to seeing Harper vs Scherzer tonight. I think Girardi needs to bat Harper either leadoff or second in the order to get him as many ABs as possible right now.

    1. That would be a good game plan…he is on fire.
       Two weeks ago Max came into the Bank and dominated the Phillies ….I like to think that the Phillies will get some revenge tonight.

36. LOL! This Mets fan has become a meme for her reaction to Pete Alonso’s AB late in Friday night’s game at CBP.

    My first Mets game in like 15 years and I become a Twitter meme lmao #lgm
    pic.twitter.com/JzX0cILJK3

    — your friendly neighborhood izzy (@iognibene) August 7, 2021

    .

    The Athletic did a story on her (and the Mets collapse). Pretty funny … especially if you’re not a Mets fan.

    ‘That’s all of us right now’: How a Mets fan and her face-palm captured the worst stretch of New York’s seasonhttps://t.co/D571H0SkYe pic.twitter.com/HLEp6BmwUj

    — Tim Britton (@TimBritton) August 10, 2021

    1. That is great Hinkie…

    2. That is super funny.

37. LSU weather tonight which will translate to a good Aaron Nola start.

38. The Phillies need a fifth starter sometime this weekend. Is it possible that they bring up Medina for that start? He’s stretching out and his two rehab starts have both been very encouraging. Wouldn’t it be great to see Medina contribute? Okay, who says I’m crazy?

    1. My guess is that Saturday will be a bullpen game with Moore starting.

       1. I really, really, really hope Joe isn’t considering Moore any longer as a starter. He showed some high velo out of the pen last week and it could be that pleasant surprise to see him down the stretch as that (well, now 3 batter minimum) LOOGY that we thought Bastardo would be.

          1. ….sans the delay between pitches, of course.

          2. A bullpen game as Moore starting but being told in advance he’s only pitching 2-3 innings could produce the same effect in terms of velocity. No one is saying it’s ideal but given the options this is what I believe Girardi will ultimately decide for a variety of reasons.

       2. I hope they announce that ahead of time so I can be sure to not watch the game.

    2. ciada….I with you….but think Joe is not.
       It is close to crunch time and he will probably go with veterans.

39. Rhys on IL, not sure if it is back dated. And Mickey coming up.

    1. There’s literally never a reason NOT to backdate an IL placement. All it means is they’re allowed back sooner. They don’t need to come back if they aren’t ready at the first available date.

    2. Don’t understand why Mickey Mo’s being brought up if he’s not going to play. Yes he’s on the 40 man, but still…Cutch is out and Doobie’s been doing alright….so does Mickey get some of Janko’s reps?

       1. It’s definitely because of the 40. The Phillies have to choose between Moniak, Vierling, or Marchan. And it’s an easy choice.

          1. Due to need for right handed hitters maybe Vierling would have been better than sitting Moniak on the bench.

40. Been watching odds line for this game 2 days. Was up to -170 dodgers yesterday now down to -145 at most houses. Smart $$ comes in late and appears to be on phils

    1. Mookie Betts is out for tonight, and Turner will likely miss this series.

       1. Hard for me to grasp how much Bellinger has fallen these last two years.
          Wonder if the Dodgers will try to move him or listen to offers for him..
          Not a free agent until 2024….but his arb numbers are close to $29M

          1. $20M ….not $29M

41. I just wanted to know when he could come back, if he gets healthy, and it’s the 17th. Hoping for one of his hot streaks when he gets back. Didi back at SS, Torryes at 3B, and Odubel in LF

42. I’m predicting a 4-1 Phillies win tonight…Nola goes 6+, 9 Ks. Bryce and Bamboo take MadMax deep. Book it!!

43. RUH-ROH. Aaron Nola’s first three pitches (all FBs) right down the middle. Fortunately, Trae Turner fouled all three off.

    1. Nice adjustment as Nola better commands the FB, and K’s the side on three CBs.

       1. Man, poor Nola. He’s dealing against one of the best teams in the game and a rain delay may ruin it.

44. I’m really not sure why Moore and DLS are still on the big league roster. They are both straight up brutal.

45. Damon Jones has defied the odds as an 18th round pick and made his ML debut. Unfortunately, he was as advertised. He can’t repeat his delivery and he was too wild. He turns 27 next month so not sure how many more chances he will get. At least he can say he made it to the bigs for one night.

46. Dodgers are a quality, well-coached team with multiple reasons their record is so good. Instead of that game where I was Yankees/Royals game was being televised and with both teams on fly balls the outfielders would lope into position with no regard of being in good position to throw after the catch towards the infield or home plate with runners on base…. or maybe even momentum towards home plate. Is that just a playing style that is gone along with black and white tv?

47. Sucks that the rain washed Aaron Nola away. But, the Dodgers had to deal with losing Max Scherzer too.
    Phillies offense just never showed up. Too many swings and misses. Alec Bohm’s pinch hit appearance was pathetic. He swung through three straight (93-95 MPH) FBs right through the center of the zone..

    1. Bohm missed those balls by so much it was like he was playing third base…

    2. Am I wrong when I say Nola’s MO this season appears to usually be just one bad inning?

       1. A lot of times – he’s just not having a good year for him. People often forget that even great players – Hall of Fame players too- have bad years or a few in succession. Carlton was okay to mediocre the three years after his 27-10 year. It happens. But Nola still has a great future. You don’t strike out 10 batters in a row without elite ability. He just needs to be more consistent with his command.

          1. Even with his struggles he’s pitched to a 3.1 fWAR, so, like pizza, even when Nola is bad, he’s still pretty good.

             1. I like that…

       2. Except on the road where it’s been mostly bad innings. At home he’s been pretty good save a handful of starts (which is fine). If he could find the road consistency he’s lacked since 2018 he’d be fine.

48. Fifty four outs, thirty strike outs, fifteen on each side including three by Harper who maybe tries to do a little too much in big games. Moore, like most of us, probably wishes he stayed in Japan.

49. Right now, the Phils basically have 5 relievers they can use in games that are competitive- Kennedy, Bradley, Neris, Alvarado, and Hammer. They have 4 others that they can’t rely on at all – EDLS, Jones, Moore, and Llovera. That is a terrible situation to be in but the good news is a September bullpen of Kennedy, Bradley, Dominguez, Neris, Brogdon, Alvarado, Falter, Hammer, and Coonrod, with VV, Moore, and Anderson as mop up guys, could be a really strong 9 deep bullpen. I actually believe the bullpen could be a strength down the stretch if those guys come back healthy.

50. Does anyone know anything about Falter? Why does it seem like months he has been out? Getting him back will be a big help, and there is optimism that Ser’Anthony could be back in September.

    1. There was an article by one of the beat writers where it was disclosed by Falter that he not only had COVID with symptoms but that he had it pretty bad. He already has it in his mind that he will not come back as a starter or long reliever but as a short innings reliever per the article. I think it was Gelb/Athletic.

       1. Jim. Thank you for The Bailey Falter update. Cannot wait for his return, but he needs to return when he’s Right, not Hurry. Hopefully that is Soon. No one knows the affect on these athletes .
          Brogdon, Falter will mean Success

       2. Jim – there was an article in the Athletic on Aug. 3. In it Falter is quoted as saying, “Whatever that role may be. If that’s starting, or out of the bullpen again, doesn’t matter to me. I just want to get back and get back healthy.” At the end of the article it said, the Phillies were hoping for more from Falter, but they will accept whatever he can offer in the stretch run.

    2. Bailey Falter update
       Rehab AAA against Yankees
       20 pitch’s (20/12) 1 IP, K, infield hit, groundout , K
       He’s Back👍👍👍👍👍👍

51. Ouch tough loss but no concern here for winning the division. 12 key games remain in division and they have to dominate those series and tread water in the rest of their games.

    It does say a lot when you look out at the Dodgers and compare that roster to ours. They have stars all over the field and sure they may not all be clicking at the same time but its that type of depth that keeps them on top.

    We don’t have that yet but we need to get there somehow

    1. Dodgers have a payroll approaching $300 million which about $75 million more than the next team. Will add a lot of stars to a lineup

52. Bohm ? I simply cannot figure out why he can’t hit a fastball anymore. Any ideas ? What happened ?

    On the Dodgers – Trea Turner ? How in the world were they able to get him ? Not like they needed him. He is arguably the best shortstop of all those available in free agency and they get him for another year ? He is a game changer.

    1. It’s weird with Bohm. For me, it looks like he’s taking too long to see what the pitch is. And his bat is not catching up.

       If you saw yesterday’s game, once Muncy realized that Llovera was giving him a high fastball, his bat flew through the hitting zone. Something I’m not seeing from Bohm.

       As for the Dodgers, there’s a good chance that they will let Seager walk into FA. Then they can shift Turner to SS in 2022.

    2. RU….
       Apparently, Friedman and Dodgers are prepared to lose Seager to free agency…Turner slides right into shortstop at that point.
       How they got him…..Rizzo must have caved in for Ruiz, since MadMax was a rental.

       1. The Dodgers have so much organizational depth. They must have excellent scouting and/or exceptional player development. How they can turn the non-prospect players like Max Muncy into high impact major league players – over and over – and remain perennially relevant in championship contention is impressive. Who can we steal from that system? No, not talent but talent evaluators and coaches. Yeesh!

          1. How about Orel Hershiser to call games?
             Now that would be a beautiful thing.

          2. The Dodgers have done this with 3 guys: Max Muncy, Justin Turner, Chris Taylor. It’s an impressive feat that’s for sure, but they haven’t been able to do this lately.

             Dodgers will have a lot of decisions to make as the following players are FAs: Kershaw, Jansen, Seager, Taylor, Knebel, Sherzer. Bauer is likely gone and looks like the Dodgers will have to give $20M to an underperforming Bellinger for arbitration.

             1. – Kershaw, I assume, will give them a nice home-town 2, maybe 3 year discount deal.
                – Jansen they may let walk.
                – Seager probably gets a QO and they probably cross their fingers and hope he does not accept it.
                – Taylor they probably give him his rasie for arb4
                – Knebel. gets a buno up I would assume to stay
                – Schezer…..have no clue what happens bewteen him and Friedman

                Trea Turner will probably get a raise to $17/18M

                1. No organization (Rays are close) has a track record of player development like the Dodgers.

                   mark … you asked who we could steal from the LADs organization. The answer is … we already did. We hired their director of player development four years ago. Unfortunately, John Middleton fired him in 2019. He’s now managing the SFGs to the best record in MLB. 🙄

          3. Dodgers have done a super job scouting other team’s players who they acquire and turn into stars : acquired through trade; Muncy, Taylor, Justin Turner, now Trea Turner. They gave up nothing for any of them. Now if you want to redefine/rehab your career – you sign with Dodgers when you are injured, Knebel, Jimmy Nelson, Hamels, even David Price – who nobody else would take (accompanied Betts as a throw in for Verdugo).

             1. RU……I do not take for granted or sell short anything Rizzo does…..on first look it appears the Dodgers got a steal with Turner in the trade…and this year it will be that way, but Rizzo knew he could not bring back Scherzer…..so basically he gets LAD’s two best prospects for Turner.
                It may not work out for them now, but maybe in 2/3 years…..he decided already this year was a loss.

             2. ummm wasn’t David Price a huge, huge salary dump by the Red Sox…. that few teams could afford to take, even for the incomparable Mookie?

          4. Far be it from me to have an opinion on anything but player development is so over rated. Scouting and talent evaluation is paramount. I’m really good at walking but GD I cannot get that rock in my yard to move for nothing.

             I suppose its not enough to just be talented to some degree. You have to have a good culture and people that understand the human element to bein a young person in a foreign place with immense expectations on them to succeed.

             and Hinkie I can’t believe you went there…

             1. Yeah, that was cold.

                1. Someone needs to tell Hinkie….Giants success this year is all smoke, mirrors and coconut oil.

                2. Yeah Hinkie…..I give credit to Gabe for this season and the Giants….I just do not see long term sustained success with the obviously aging ( and those key free agents after this season) current group of players he has right now.
                   Kind of reminds me of the Phillies ’93 team and their last hurrah.

             2. LOL, DMAR. You guys can bury your heads in the sand … but … it is what it is.

                It's August 1st and Gabe Kapler is managing the best team in MLB

                Kapler on track for manager of the year for the Giants pic.twitter.com/FOKRQBGEQm

                — Jeff Skversky (@JeffSkversky) August 2, 2021

                1. Romus … LOL. If by smoke and mirrors you mean the Giants aren’t as talented as the LADs and SDPs, I completely agree. Gabe Kapler has to get a lot of credit for the Giants 4 game lead (with 49 left to be played).

                   You gotta’ separate your personal feelings about Nick Francona’s problem with Kapler from Gabe’s performance this season as Giants manager.

                2. You are the man Hinkie 🙂

                   Gabe’s a charmer I will give him that and he’d probably have more than half of us with our pants around our ankles given any amount of time with us in a room.

                   I stand by what I said before and that was Zaidi is running that show. He just has to sit there look pretty and be the pom poms flailing from Farhads wrists

                3. DMAR … You’re the man too, but I’m sitting here SMH.

                   I sure hope MLB forces Kapler to immediately hand over that Mgr Of The Year trophy to the Giants’ POBO. And if the Giants go 20 games under .500 next season, I guess we’ll have to blame Farhan Zaidi’s. 😎👍

                   BTW … it’s possible both Farhan Zaidi can be a very smart POBO/GM and Gabe Kapler can be doing a great job as manager. These two things are not mutually exclusive.

                4. You’re probably right, Hinkie…or maybe we were Kapler’s mulligan ala Tito Francona. Wouldn’t it be nice to get a first time manager who gets it right the first time?🤣

    3. I don’t think I’ve seen a better run organization in sports over a 5 year period, outside of the Patriots, than the Dodgers. They produce so much talent and then bring in more from outside. Plus they have such deep pockets I’m not convinced they’re going t let Seager walk. Justin Turner is 36 and he can’t play 3B forever.

53. Can someone mansplain to me why the Mets game was suspended and not called off due to rain? Why are they resuming the game and not starting from scratch?

    1. Because they played a full inning. Why would you start from scratch?

       Imagining pitching that to the Nats. “We know you jumped out to a 3-1 lead early, but that doesn’t count. Try again.”

    2. New rule that went into effect last year is still in effect.

       1. If I had to expound on that I would say that it is one of the pitcher-saving, game-shortening rules they implemented for the 2020 season that is still on the books. It’s not an unusual circumstance for minor league fans. Games are hardly ever replayed because of the weather. Suspensions are extremely common. They are usually made up as part of a doubleheader down here. The suspended game (if started as a nine-inning game) is completed as a nine-inning game, and the second game is seven innings.

          1. I agree with the prior commenter. No game should be cancelled and replayed absent extraordinary circumstances. All weather events in games that have already started should be deemed suspensions and the game should pick up another day where it left off. If it’s played, it should count. That it used to be common for these innings/games not to count is, to my mind, unfathomable. Such an idiotic practice even though, I know, there are weird aspects to that too (including issues with players who started the game and perhaps are no longer with the team and how you deal with players who left the game, etc. . . ).

             1. Yeah, some wonky stuff can happen. But the previous practice also sometimes forced players (and fans) to sit around for hours hoping that the rain would stop so they wouldn’t have to re-do the entire game. I definitely think suspensions are the way to go. And it’s a fairly easy matter to make some rule changes/exceptions for those situations (letting the team call up a temporary replacement for any player who is no longer available, for example). We already do it for double headers, anyways.

                Let all parties involved get some sleep so they aren’t exhausted the next day.

54. it is a shame that the 8 game winning streak is going to be negated by a sweep by the Dodgers. Very frustrating. Braves are getting hot.

    1. Dang….no faith in Gibson tonight?
       Though weather forecast came out with another possible thunderstorm for southeastern PA again.
       https://patch.com/pennsylvania/media/s/hq4hg/severe-thunderstorm-watch-issued-in-eastern-pa?utm_source=alert-breakingnews&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=alert

       …so look for another delay.
       Time for Big John M. to take some of his pot of gold, and invest in a retractable roof.

       1. One of my vivid memories from my trip a couple years ago was that the only rain delay I got caught it was in Milwaukee… and they have a retractable roof.

          Which is not to say don’t get one, but I guess even that isn’t foolproof. But with the way the weather is these days, maybe just close it so we can cool off for a few hours.

          1. It would surely come in handy for early April games….and late October play-off games.:)

    2. Haha they will win at least 1 of these 3…

       Price is a shell of his old self. He will nibble nibble nibble. Lay off and force him to the middle of the plate and don’t miss your pitch.

    3. 3 losses (which haven’t happened yet) negate 8 wins?
       Phillies have won 8 of 9 but we should sweat now because the Braves are getting hot?

       Ahh…the new math.

55. Easy, Dan K, easy. I only asked a question. I agree with you. All games stopped because of weather should be continued with the stats on the books. I’m a believer that even games stopped after five innings when the “game is official” should be played to completion. I didn’t realize the rule had been changed last year so sue me.

    1. Sorry, I wasn’t trying to sound berating or belittling or anything. Just explaining the reasoning of the rule which I thought you knew about (since it was in effect last year and came into play).

56. HaHa! I’m pretty sure I’ve seen this umpire behind the plate for a few Phillies games this season.

    He couldn't believe this call 😂 🤣 pic.twitter.com/ibIHwM679h

    — SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 11, 2021

57. Phillies announce: Jose Alvarado to IL with shoulder impingement. Damon Jones to triple A. McCutchen and Brogdon are active.

    — Jim Salisbury (@JSalisburyNBCS) August 11, 2021

    1. Cutch in the cleanup spot to tee off on David Price tonight! (My prediction last night was negated by the weather.)

       1. …and the fact that the bats decided to pack it in after the rain delay.

          1. Speaking of rain delay…better check out the radar…..another 30 minutes, could be another deluge…..getting dark

58. Watching on ESPN. Saw Realmuto get his bell rung…..twice an go out. What happened to Gibson?

    1. We’re saving him!

59. Very nice outing from Mark Appel tonight.

60. Watching Red Sox and Rays. Sox were up 14-1 so Rays bring in position player Mejia to pitch the 8th. Score goes to 20-1. I realize you want to save your staff but position players should not be allowed to pitch.

61. I guess I can understand no comments this morning, it was kind of a lackluster game. Described as when the kids were babies as “laying a stanker”!

    Maybe, I was wrong about Bohm playing 1b, he looked bad on both sides of the ball and his demeanor shouts “lost”.

    The backup catcher looks like he’s looked all this year. Very poor performance, wasn’t good either way. Didn’t seem to be on the same page with Kyle……..and the bunt……uggghhhhh.

    1 or 2 of the relievers are finished and I look for 1 to be released today as the results are always the same.

    Hope JT tests out good, that was scary.

    Truss up boys, the Tomahawk Chop is coming!

62. Still say we’re gonna regret this trade!

    Abraham Gutierrez slash since trade (after posting a 1.021 ops in July).

    .455/.571/1.162ops

    Why did we need/want Ogle? A Gutierrez is an improving prospect that was growing into his initial billing.

63. I don’t get how we experiment with Bohm at 1B during a Playoff run. This isn’t ST. He looked fundamentally bad, not just error prone. And, the hitting has left a lot to be desired these 2 games. We need to salvage a game today. Go Ranger!

64. So Chris Davis did the Orioles a solid by retiring. He was still owed $21.1M for 2022.

    1. He’s still getting his money, so now he just gets to stop pretending to be a baseball player (nothing against him as a person or what he’s accomplished. Just that he hasn’t hit over .180 since 2017, and not for lack of PAs). It also, theoretically, helps the Orioles stay under the luxury tax, but well… yeah.

       By the sounds of it, they’re restructuring his payments, though, so maybe it WILL help them spend more in the near future if they so choose. But I doubt they will so choose.

       1. Chris Davis could have easily just stayed hurt for the rest of the season and next, and collected that $21.1M. Now the Orioles are off the hook for his salary for 2022, although the Orioles can still pay him that money if they so choose. The Red Sox paid Dustin Pedroia his final year of his contract even though they didn’t have to.

          1. Yes he could have, but it’s being reported that he’s receiving the full amount of his contract which helps explain his decision. It no longer counts towards the LTT (as far as I know), but the Orioles are still paying him it. They just slightly adjusted how his deferral payments work.

             I’d guess if they didn’t offer to pay out the full amount, he would have just stayed un-retired and never played again. Could be wrong (some people feel guilty about doing that, and he’s made enough where he doesn’t NEED to do so), but that’d be my guess.

             1. Maybe they will use the ‘Bobby Bonilla’ clause on deferral payments.

                1. “Davis Day” does have a nice ring to it.

65. David Paulino? brought up, and Nick Maton back down. Coonrod to the 60 day IL.

66. Not really understanding why Joe went to Llovera last nights game, short Pen but if your throwing the towel throw a position player. Llovera thru 33 pitch’s the night before last night 30?. Brogden coming off IL because of overuse!!! Did we not learn?

    Llovera 3 game line
    3.2 IP, 8H, 6R, 6ER, 1BB, 4K, 5 HR 9.95 ERA.
    Feelin for the kid, DJU

67. Seth … you forgot Llovera’s FIP. His 13.08 may be a MLB record.

    Sounds like Coonrod is done for the year (TJ maybe?).
    Bailey Falter out on a rehab assignment. They could use him again ASAP (and keep a mask on him).

    Alec Bohm is in a Cole Hamels 2009 situation. His season as spun so out of control, the only thing that will likely straighten him out is the offseason. Joe G has got to do the best he can to hide Bohm this month and next.

    And the drop from JTR to Andrew Knapp is like falling off the Empire State building. I can understand/accept Knapp’s physical limitations, but the mental farts are inexcusable. What could possibly have been going through his mind last night when he decided to bunt w/ 2 Ks? Just brutal. Hopefully the old “he’s due” philosophy comes into play this afternoon because this team is currently in need of a hero … even an unlikely one.

    1. Hinkie……..the bottom of the 6th and you walk Jankowski (load the bases) to get to Knapp. This is when you know the “whole world knows”!

    2. That bunt was Odubel-esque

68. Relying on the C position for a large portion of your offense is always risky. Paying highly for that offensive production at the position even riskier.

    I hope JT will be ok. We know so much more about concussions its hardly worth the risk.

69. Amazing how the Dodgers can toss us around without Justin Turner 867 OPS and Betts 899 OPS

    1. I mentioned Bellinger was having struggles for awhile now….and he explodes last night.

       1. Dropped him in Fantasy, he swings like a Jr high hitter, head flying out towards 1b dugout.

    2. We missed Cutch for 1, JT for basically 2 full games, and Rhys for all 3.

70. Cubs released Jake Arrieta.

    1. Now the Rays/Dodgers will pick him up and he’ll post a 0.01 ERA with the highest K% of his career.

71. The Dodgers are giving Alec Bohm zero respect. They are just pumping in fastballs and he can’t catch up. Bohm really needs to get demoted and bring up Maton. Bohm is really lost right now. You can’t have Bohm on the becnh when he can’t hit.

72. Anybody but Knapp next year…PLEASE!! JTR’s absence may cost us at least one game if LAD win this freaking game today.

    1. If Knapp is gone…then assume it is Marchan…though three well traveled vets will be out there and assume healthy…..Suzuki, Romine and Gomes….all glove first catchers.
       Joe already knows Romine from the Yankees for a number of years.

    2. Who is it that routinely touts Knapp? He is awful, what’s pathetically sad is he is 1 of our best 2nd round picks this century.

73. One thing I’ve seen from the Dodgers, they have no qualms walking the bases loaded to get to a guy that they want to face.

    1. Why not…they already won the series.
       This game is house money for them

74. are you kidding me ump?

75. Pitching and defense win ball games.
    Great outings by Ranger Danger, Hector, and Bradley. And Didi was outstanding at SS.

    .

    … and discovered Alphonso Marquez does little league games too.

    He couldn't believe this call 😂 🤣 pic.twitter.com/ibIHwM679h

    — SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 11, 2021

    1. Marquez should not be doing any postseason games. He missed 2 strikes, that’s inexcusable.

       1. Ian Kennedy recorded 5 outs to get that Save. Simply horrific umpiring.

    2. LMAO….

       1. That is too funny. Was Tom Glavine pitching?

76. After a defcon 30 stress level performance by our Closer, we got a W in this Series! What a 9th inning! 2 BBs and a HBP. Reminiscent of Mitch Williams, except his FB is 94, not 99. BTW, What a valuable player Torryes has been!

    1. Kennedy had to get 5 outs, and this time it wasn’t because the Phillies defense was terrible. Alphonso Marquez was pathetic.

    2. Found rocco on vacation.

       .

       Have fun, rocco. See you back here soon.

       1. I wanna say this guy is on every beach I’ve ever been to

          1. Is that Angelo Cataldi down at the Shore in Jersey?

77. A W is a W but man, that was one UGLY save.

    1. Yeah, but that wasn’t on Kennedy. As Hinkie said, he had to get five outs thanks to being squeezed. Both BBs should have been K’s.

       1. An ABS cannot come soon enough for me.

          1. Agree……without ABS, I am getting IBS.

78. Normally I would say if road team wins first 2 than the third is a gimme for home team. Road team usually start packing bags early but Dodgers are as professional as it gets right now. So I think good win for Phils. I gotta feelin Nola gonna amp it up last third of season. Maybe he wants to finish strong after last couple years.

79. No ABS keep it human. Break that dam union to get better umpires.

    Next thing u know Romus will get a robot to clean garage. Then where to I hide my empties

    1. LOL…….umps can still squat back there and make the ball and strike hand signals.
       A joke around like Cowboy Joe West does.
       But with an ABS in place….the union also saves one less optometrist visit payment for its rank and file..

    2. Wait a minute…that humor and spelling seem familiar….Rocco, is that really you?

    3. I love Hawkeye in pro tennis, keeps things moving no arguing. I’m all for it for balls and strikes.

    4. I’m fairly pro-union, but the umpires’ is one of the few I’d like to be disassembled (they can start a new one that cares about performance).

       But that’ll never happen, so bring on the robo umps. And I say that as a fairly big purist (I’m anti-DH in the NL, and anti-extra innings runners, for example).

       1. Interestingly ….local Philadelphia attorney Richie Phillips was involved in the MLB umpires union as their chief counsel ..even their decertification about 20 years ago.

80. Speaking of Rocco, where has he been? Is this the time of year he goes to the South of France, Romus?

    1. matt13….was thinking the same……maybe on vacation somewhere…..assume where there is a race track close by.

81. Regarding Rocco, the last interaction was this –

    Rocco: Romus acccording to mlb Dave D was working the phones looking for hookers
    Romus: rocco……you are teetering on the edge of extinction again. 🙂
    Rocco: Romus if i cant joke you right i should leave, ty m8

    This was on July 28th soon after a heated discussion among many participants regarding a topic I will not mention here.

    When I saw and removed the comments, I also announced that I was blocking the individual who started the inflamed discussion.

    For the record, that person was NOT Rocco.

    I don’t where Rocco is, but doesn’t he go on vacation for two weeks around this time of year?

    1. Don’t worry, Jim. Rocco has been outspoken about that topic, but ONLY in response to others starting the conversation (as far as I’m aware). I don’t think anyone believes he was banned. Just worried that maybe he had a health issue or something.

       Hopefully he’s just enjoying better weather somewhere.

    2. Jim…think you are correct….usually goes away for a few weeks.

82. Reds doing us a solid and demolishing the Brave tonight after dropping the first two against the Braves. I’ll take it.

    I expect the Braves to be in first at some point between now and the end of the year, but hopefully not at the end of it. So any loss other teams can hand them is appreciated.

83. BTW … he takes a lot of flack here, but Keith Law (over the past number of years) was the high man on Ranger Saurez and Rhys Hoskins while they were working their way through the farm system. He was a consistent Hoskins believer, while never buying Dylan Cozens. I also remember asking him to rank the Phillies’ MiLB arms. He ranked Ranger #2 at the time, behind only Sixto Sanchez, and ahead of Adonis Medina and JoJo Romero.

    1. Agreed. Having recognized Ranger’s talent above the more ballyhooed prospects deserves credit.

    2. Dylan Cozens name again. Thoughts of what could have been. Remember speaking to reliable sources in spring training a couple years ago saying that DC was too hard headed and wouldn’t take critical teaching. Hoskins was a different story. See results.

    3. Did anyone really ever buy into Dylan Cozens? My memory isn’t perfect, but as I recall Cozens always had some pretty big red flags (e.g., K rate and splits versus lefties).

       Keith Law gets flack on this site mostly because his views of many Phillies prospects aren’t are rosy as many here would prefer. I generally defend Law, as he is right far more often than wrong, but I also won’t give him special credit for not buying into Dylan Cozens, as that case was obvious to most everyone.

       1. Cozens was a personal friend of the family and he was very good with my 2 grandsons. But he was very frustrating as a player. Good luck with football.

       2. A lot of the community here were Cozens believers but nationally he was never looked at as a top prospect. I think people just loved the idea of what they thought he could be: basically a left-handed Aaron Judge. It was never realistic though.

          1. I mostly remember 2 or 3 people who were believers, while the rest of us were just kind of hopers. Cozens had the physical tools to be a huge impact bat, but most of us never thought he was our best prospect or anything. I could be misremembering, though. But even in the Reader’s Poll, he only ever got in the top 10 of our lists once (#9 in 2017). Which seems high, but that was after he hit .276 with 40 HRs in AA, so he had helium at that point.

             Other than that, the discussion was always about whether he could bring the K’s down enough to tap into that monstrous raw power.

             1. Agree. He swung in a zone and if ball hit bat watch out, otherwise big swing and a miss he struck out!

84. Loving White Sox/Yanks Field of Dreams game. 9 year old watched the movie a week ago and is over the moon watching how the players came out if the cornfield. To grow the game MLB needs more out of the box ideas like this.

    1. That was an amazing production from MLB. The South Siders are my adopted AL team.

       Speaking of bad umps that one last night was pretty brutal and interestingly they didn’t have the strike box up for that broadcast. I guess the technology to get that set-up wasn’t put in place.

       Smart on Hahn’s part to hedge himself with Kimbrel.

       Eloy’s listed age is 24 but man that guy looks a lot older than that. He is a mountain of a man though. Next time you guys are watching them tell me what you think.

85. Btw White Sox are filthy with a lead after 6 in the postseason rolling out Kopech, Kimbrel, Hendricks. I could see them playing LA in October.

    1. Hendriks with now 6 blown saves after Stanton’s HR….so they have their own quasi-version of a Hector the Protector.

    2. Kopech is the right handed version of Alvarez. Great stuff obviously but he needs to become more of a pitcher less of a thrower. Some guys also can work at a super high intensity level others would be better taking a more cerebral approach.

       He let that umpire and that missed strike call get the better of him

       1. I like the way they built that team…..a little like the Dodgers….with good trades, good international signings and quality drafts.
          Rodon is a free agent this off-season, maybe the Philies ought to kick the tires with him….shoulder issues not withstanding.

          1. No doubt they have had their share of pain out there. Think about that first trade Eaton to the Nats flipping him for 3 pitchers Lopez, Giolito,and Dunning who they then used to grab Lynn.

             Then came the Sale trade followed by the Quintanna trade. Nabbing Luis Robert. By the way the South Siders do well with Cubans in large part because they employ El Duque aka Jose Contreras who the Phillies had for a few seasons 2010-2012. Chicago also has a pretty strong Cuban culture I can personally attest to.

             It hasn’t all been roses of course they had some bad drafts Rodon 3rd overall in 2014 didn’t materialize until just this year after they got him back as a FA on a 1 year deal. Collins 10th overall in 2016 and who will forget Tatis Jr.

             That said the anatomy of a rebuild relies heavily on both drafts and trades of high water assets as well as a good bit of luck. It probably also helps that Reinsdorf answers to no one and he leaves his baseball operations up to Ken Williams and his staff. Yeah he sets his budgets and there isn’t an open checkbook out there but he will spend within reason.

          2. At this point I’d rather they didn’t sign him just so he doesn’t have a career ending injury.

             But yeah, there’s a few interesting options for SP depth next year. Rodon might pitch himself out of our financial comfort zone. But there’s also Dylan Bundy, Zach Davies, Jon Gray, Robbie Ray, Eduardo Rodriguez, Aaron Sanchez, Marcus Stroman, Thor, and Alex Wood as guys in their prime with some upside.

             Obviously there’s varying amounts of risk in that list, so it’ll ultimately come down to identifying the correct target(s). We’ll see how that works out. But how hilarious would it be if we took Syndergaard from the Mets for another relatively short contract and he started competing with Wheeler for CY votes?

             1. That list of free agent pitchers is intriguing … especially since Matt Moore and Chase Anderson have really been a disappointment.
                Even the two Giant pitchers could be available Guasman and Desclafani if the giants do not resign….but I am sure they will be QO.

                1. I don’t personally trust either of the Giants pitchers to replicate their success away from the Bay. But if they do hit they market, they will at least make it even more likely that a good pitcher will be taking a discount deal. Hopefully with us.

                   That then begs the question of what to do about our rotation. We clearly lack depth, but signing one of the aforementioned pitchers means we have to bump somebody (because they aren’t signing here to NOT start unless we overpay them to do it). Suarez seems like the obvious candidate, but I don’t want to keep jerking him around. Eflin gets hurt a lot, but when he’s healthy he’s generally very good and we can’t assume he won’t be healthy to start the year. Wheeler and Nola are, obviously, locks (assuming no major injury, knock on wood). Do we ask Gibson to switch roles? He’s new to the team and probably wouldn’t be particularly happy about it. Plus his bottom line results have been excellent so far. But he doesn’t have a great track record, and there are some red flags about his performance for us thus far.

                   It’s a tough call, but we definitely need some starting depth. Because there WILL be injuries. And we can’t keep taking our effective relievers to plug the holes because… well, we’re running out of them.

                2. It will be very interesting to see what Dave D does this off-season.
                   So many variables right now…and I am sure at least one or maybe two short contracts for starting pitching will be on his agenda..

86. Nice to see total of 4 relief pitchers with total of no hits.

87. Speaking of relief pitchers, I think that is one of the main reasons how the Dodgers separate themselves from the pack as do the Giants and the Padres. With Avocado on the IL and Suarez now a starter, do the Phillies have a lefty in the pen? One last thing about the Trolley Dodgers, they are probably the whitest team in MLB. As Seinfeld said, “Not that there’s anything wrong with that”.

    1. Let’s not go down this road please.

    2. ciada…that is an issue the Commissioner has addressed….the declining number of black MLB players…less than 10% I think now.
       They are trying to get more black youngsters into the game….but competing against football/basketball and all the other activities kids do today…is daunting.
       Just look at the Little League Worlds Series which is going on today….not many black kids on the teams.

       1. Cost of admission is way too high to be competitive with basketball, especially. One of the reasons soccer is the most popular sport in the world is because it’s cheap to play; you just need some space and a ball. Basketball is almost as easy.

          But baseball, not only do you need space to play, but also some fairly expensive gear (when I was in little league, the CHEAP bats were $80+. The gloves were 40-50, not to mention catcher gear…), AND you need a lot of kids to play it. You can kinda skimp by just rotating position players to bat and skipping a couple positions, but there’s no 2-4 person games of baseball.

          It’s a tough problem to solve. But it would definitely help to heavily subsidize it in elementary schools. Make it essentially free for schools to have a team, and kids will definitely sign up.

       2. Romus, just looking at MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL, without a doubt MLB (with its white, black, latino, and asian stars) is BY FAR the sport whose demographics most match the country as a whole. No other sport has the broad representation that baseball does.

          1. Yeah,,,I think the Commissioner wants the numbers to be close to and into the 20 percentile for black participation.
             Like DanK says above……the sport itself is tough to sell because of all the expense and greater amount of resources required to field teams.

             Plus…..the sport is BORING to a large segment of l kids now.
             High schools teams barely have a bench….a kid if not starting and playing rather be at home on his action pack game devices

    3. The Dodgers are more aggressive (and successful) with waivers than the Phillies. There’s probably plenty of pitchers we could’ve claimed this year that are upgrades over our AAAA guys.

       Same with the Giants. They make a lot of fringe moves that end up being successful.

       1. true- ive always been intriqued by a sidearmer reliever Jimmy Herget, who was DFA’d by Rangers today- hasnt had success in majors in limited opportunities but always had good numbers in the minors- with the guys we are throwing out there….

88. Cornelius Randolph at DH and Haseley in CF for today’s FCL game!

    1. also wanted to add that 3rd round pick Jordan Viars is at 1B

89. I just remembered that 2 weeks ago I surmised/hoped/begged for Phillies to win 3 out of 4 from Nats and 2 out of 3 from Mets and we would be in first last Monday morning. They did better than that and we were in first at that time. Now barely in first, I am hoping for a Phiilies sweep over Reds, Nats sweep Atl in Wash. Dodgers with best 3 pitchers sweep Mets in NY. Widen that lead this coming Monday morning.

    1. 2 of 3 from the reds would be more realistic imo. They are a pretty decent team

90. After 115 games:
    2020…..60-55
    2019…..59-56
    The critical month of September and its past ghosts,
    is when the Phillies need to pull away.

    1. Not 2020…but 2021…hah

    2. What will be remembered about the rest of the season is how the Phillies faired in games versus the weaker teams left on their schedule. If they manage to play .500 ball against the .500+ teams, they should be ok. They host 3 – count ’em…THREE 4-game series against Arizona, Colorado and Pittsburgh, plus another 3 games each against the O’s and depleted Cubs at CBP! That is a ridiculously faborable schedule. They also play 6 games in Miami including the season’s final weekend, and 3 in DC. That’s a total of 27 games versus lesser clubs remaining. If they can finish 10-10 in the 20 more competitive games, 18-9 against the dregs would put them at 88 wins. That may be enough to win the division if the Braves can’t overcome the loss of Acuna and a more difficult schedule. But the key, as always it seems, is will the Phillies play to the level of their competition?

       1. I will be interested in seeing how Joe manages the team in these last 45 games or so….more so the pitching…..starters and bullpen.
          And also especially comparing the results to how Gabe managed them in ’18 and ’19 in their ultimate Sept collapses.

91. Ultimate insult, Hembree nails the lid on the coffin.

92. This division will come down to who best filled their injured positions which means team in Red in trouble. The more part time older guys play the more u see why they re part time. Miller last night.

    I’m over 60 and I can’t remember a time Phils farm system so bad. Our by far two best farm hands are were a maybe left fielder who becomes a slightly above avg hitter and a flawed starter who got you a number 4 type starter for year and a half. Jeez.

    If I’m Middleton DD I shoot for moon next year or 2. Then everyone is tradable and I’m eating salaries to get better prospects and start all over again.

93. Despite an easy schedule and possibly some momentum (which may be waning now) it will all come down to injuries as to which team wins. If Rhys, and the injured bullpen pitchers return – including the long-missing Falter and possibly Eflin (I have my doubts), and NO ONE else gets injured — they have a good shot. It would help if some of the Braves new additions, or even one of their starters, gets banged up. But it will likely be the injuries, or lack of, that makes the real difference.

    1. Falter (strength) and Eflin (knee) are pitching/throwing with no issues now.
       So it sho=uld be soon for both.

94. So you wonder how in the world can the Dodgers get not only Scherzer…but Turner in that deal.
    Well…seems Turner wanted Lindor money this off-season….Nats said no way…..now the Dodgers will have to negotiate that contract buying out his last arb year, plus four or five tacked on.
    Will be interesting to see how Friedman navigates all these contracts coming up

    https://clutchpoints.com/nationals-rumors-trea-turner-wanted-francisco-lindor-type-money-from-washington/

    1. great point Romus, of course maybe it was partially a negotiating tactic by Turner to force the Nationals to trade him, and if he likes the clubhouse and management in LA….. and the team success, hisasking price might go down a bit. Their cutting off negotiations, I’m guessing didn’t grow warm feelings for the Nationals! But maybe I’m thinking wayyy more deviously than a sports agent would

       1. Yeah…Nats’ Rizzo does not cave…did not to Harper, did not to Rendon.
          He is fortunate they won the WS a few years ago or else he may be skating on thin ice.
          Turner…..probably will lower his price….the deal is he still has the last arb year, so he did not want to go into the 2022 season as his last before free agency.
          Freidman will have Turner for one more year, Seager and Chris Taylor have to be resigned also…then they will have to find space to play Lux eventually.
          Friedman will need to play chess.

       2. Lindor got 10 years, $341M. Turner’s price is still going to be a lot, at least 8 years, $240M. Not too many teams can afford to give $30M per year.

95. Also wonder how much longer LA is going to be a destination team. Drought, fires traffic u can have it. The Northeast is relatively benign weather wise when u look at other parts of country. Know a lot of firefighters from northeast have been spending parts of their summers fighting forest fires in Colorado Montana California Arizona and far northwest. Maybe northeastern teams will eventually have a geographical advantage

    1. Uh…I don’t think so. $$$ in any part of the country speaks the loudest, not the elements.

96. Really u think it’s only $$ for everyone. There are people in this world who look at quality of life and where their family lives. Some baseball guys are family men and want to live with their families during the season.

    1. True, but your point was how much wild fires, no rain and heavy traffic on the west coast will become a deterrent to free agents. Yes, family certainly will factor into their decision along with money, but not how dry the climate is.

    2. Money talks for like 98% of the people. And there is considerable pressure from your peers and the player’s union to maximize your value i.e. get as much money as you can. If the Royals or Pirates decided to give a FA SS a $350M deal, Story and Correia’s agents would be calling them right now.

97. It’s LA, playing in the 2nd largest US market, ability to expand your “brand” with Hollywood(movies, tv, commercials), beautiful weather, playing in 1 of the 3 iconic MLB ballparks, they spend in the top 2-3 every year, contend for a WS every year. Yeah they have a few things to offer.

    1. How do you figure there’s only 3 iconic stadiums and why is Dodger Stadium one of them?

       1. Fenway, Wrigley and Dodger Stadium, I suppose….they are also the three oldest.
          Yankee Stadium has two remakes and a slight re-location.

          1. If it’s just by age, then Angel Stadium and OCo are both just 4 years younger than Dodger Stadium. And in fact, Dodger Stadium is closer in age to CBP than it is to Wrigley.

             I think Dodger Stadium is a great park, but naming it one of three iconic parks is nitpicky and inconsistent, in my opinion. There’s no reason Yankee Stadium, Camden Yards, and Busch, for example, shouldn’t be considered iconic even if they’re newer. And it’s not like the old parks are unchanged, anyways.

             Also, Kauffman Stadium is criminally underrated, and it’s also about to turn 50 years old in ’23.

             1. DanK…..Dodger Stadium…..opened 59 years ago on April 10, 1962,

                1. I know. Wrigley (1914) is 48 years older than Dodger Stadium, whereas Dodger Stadium is “only” 42 years older than CBP (2004). So It’s closer in age to CBP than it is to Wrigley.

                   Put another way, 59 years old is closer in age to 17 than it is to 107.

                2. Dodger Stadium is a dump. They’ve tried multiple times to upgrade the place, but the acoustics are bad, the drive in sucks, and the concessions are dated. Dodger Stadium is a 70’s park. Only thing saving it in SoCal is the pitiful Anaheim Stadium. Next 7.0 quake, and there will truly be a ‘Small World’ in the OC. Want fun, head to Petco in San DIego, great place with energy.

             2. Yeah……they are many parks that are newer and probably can be considered very iconic in their own right…..PNC in Pittsburgh is another.

                BTW…the Yankees are the only major league team to ever lose in the state of Iowa.

                1. Yeah, PNC is also very nice. And while maybe not iconic, Great American Ballpark is another one that people should visit given the chance.

                   And I think we’re all grateful to the ChiSox for providing that statistic.

98. I just read a disturbing article in BP today. The article by Robert Arthur cites a study in which evidence is provided that umpires discriminate against non-white players when calling balls and strikes. The period covered from 2008 to 2020. Roughly 90% of the umpires were white. The author of the study finds that umpires tend to make more advantageous calls when they share the same race as the person who would be advantaged.

    As I said earlier, an ABS cannot happen soon enough for me.

    1. Huh. That had never occurred to me before, but I also have no trouble believing it’s true. Bias is definitely a big argument in favor of robotic umps.

99. Moniak back to Lehigh and David Paulino just got DFAd. Falter is back and Medina is up. I’m assuming that Medina will be able to go multiple innings in relief of Moore.

    1. While Paulino getting DFA’d doesn’t surprise me and I don’t have a problem with it. There is one candidate that is much more qualified IMO. You can guess who that pitcher might be.

100. Nine up nine down for Moore but the Reds are hitting rockets right at the fielders. Hope for one more lucky inning and then get him out of there. In the meantime, Castillo, as usual, has been dominating the Phillies until a Torreyes homer.

101. Well of course Moore would toss 6 innings of no-hit ball at the Reds.

     1. He just bought himself more time on the roster. We better at least win this game to make up for the anxiety that it will cause.

102. DanK. Agree on that. He was pitching for his Roster Spot. Happy for the Team they needed this. Just more anxiety is to come

     Why Kennedy? I know we have Monday off but these Vets going to ok in these Aug/Sept Drive

     Joe and his Vets/commitment👍👎

103. Matt Moore is like a box of chocolates … today he was a Godiva Truffle.

104. Wouldn’t it be great if Matt Moore could pitch like this in his next eight starts to the season’s end. Waited all year for this. Why did it take so long, Matt?

     And Castellanos showed why he should not be in the field. He is a DH impersonating a RFer. Harper should send over a thank you for that gift triple.

     1. if Moore going 6 no-hit wasnt shocking enough, former Phils draft pick Tyler Gilbert no-hitting the Padres through 7 in his his first big league start tops that.

        1. gilbert through 8 with just 91 pitches.

           1. It’s over. Gilbert no-hits the Padres.

              1. Great deal for McKlentak Gilbert for Kyle Garlick. That deal stinks.

                 1. The deal may have stunk, but none of us thought that Gilbert was much of a prospect in any case. Note the PP Reader Top 40 from 2020- right before the trade: https://phuturephillies.com/top-30-prospects/reader-top-30/2020-reader-top-30/

105. Watched Phils play Dodgers at Dodger Stadium early 80s. Larry Christianson pitched complete game I think. We had driven across country and pretty much broke but could afford 2 tickets. Place was awesome. In the bleachers had blast with people out there. Really cool how u drive up side of almost mountain side to a bowl where stadium is

106. To Mark couple years ago people in Southern California were fleeing for their lives from fires. I work with forest fire fighters who have gone west for the last 5-7 years to fight fires. A lot more people dying out there than u hear about. When they get heavy rains after fires people are dealing with mudslides.

     Think twice before put my family in that situation. NBA and nfl players calling shots where they want to play why wouldn’t better baseball players do same

107. I just watched the last inning of the Dodgers – Mets game. Apparently, Taijuan Walker no-hit the Dodgers through 6.1 but then with one out Will Smith homered to tie the game. Dodgers scored in the 10th and held on to win 2 – 1. Today was a double treat watching the Phillies win and Mets lose. Too bad the Braves got an easy W.

108. Former Phuture Phillie.

     Tyler Gilbert is a 27-year-old who over his previous three seasons was a relief pitcher. He made his major league debut as a reliever, too, pitching in three games for Arizona this season. The Diamondbacks gave him his first start tonight. And all he did was no-hit the Padres.

     — Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 15, 2021

     Goosebumps.

     Tyler Gilbert is the fourth pitcher to throw a no-hitter in his first MLB career start. pic.twitter.com/M76RIo838g

     — MLB (@MLB) August 15, 2021

     1. Congrats to Tyler….finally got his recognition and his place in the show…remember him once saying a few years ago…..he was not on any social media sites, ie Twitter, Facebook, instagram et al….thought that was strange but refreshing to hear, from a young guy just coming out of college.

109. The Phillies were scheduled to face Merrill Kelly on Tuesday but he tested positive for Covid. The DBacks are now doing contact tracing so it could get interesting for them in the coming days.

110. Why are they not playing Luke Williams at this point or put him in AAA at least? Janikowski is batting .162 in August. Williams seems like he can be a leadoff hitter and be a 780 ops guy. Is there even any actual leadoff types in MLB anymore?

111. Four of the Phils 2015 draft picks have reached the majors. Ranked by career WAR to date:

     Tyler Gilbert: 1.2
     Scott Kingery: 0.7
     Bailey Falter: 0.2
     Luke Williams: 0.2

     Of course, prospects also exist to be used in trades, and Gilbert got the Phils the grand total of 23 plate appearances from Kyle Garlick, to the tune of -0.4 WAR, so I’m not sure that one worked out for the Phils.

     But kudos to the scouts — from 2014 – 2016, the Phil’s six picks in the 5th and 6th rounds have produced five major leaguers, with Rhys Hoskins being the best.

112. Another comment about offseason. I like the comments about Phils being top heavy and window being next couple of years to compete. Why not try to build roster to win while possibly building the right way after this window by trading players of value now for prospects. Sign/ trade for older vets with “stupid money” for next couple of years and hope team is built right with prospects from trades this offseason. Lose money next couple of years while possibly making good money AND winning in future.

     Nola to Yankees for ss Oswald Peraza, ss Anthony Volpe, and of Everson Pereiea

     Segura to White Sox for 3b DJ Gladney

     Eflin to Astros for rp Abreu, of Barber, and sp Brown

     Gregorius and Johan Rojas to Padres for 1b Hosmer, of Hassell, p Mackenzie Gore, sp Lange, rp Lamet

     trade for MIN 3b Donaldson, cf Buxton, and ARZ sp Kelley (shouldn’t take much)

     Sign Schwarber and Scherzer. Verlander too if price is right due to the risk. They would need to sign 2 relievers. I like Lamet as closer based on 60 fastball and 60 slider. He seems to do well wherever SD puts him based on stats. Payroll would probably be 240-255M.

     2b Williams
     c Realmuto
     rf Harper
     3b Donaldson
     lf Schwarber
     cf Buxton
     1b Hoskins
     dh Hosmer
     ss Galvis

     Wheeler
     Scherzer
     Gibson
     Kelley
     Falter
     Verlander

     Moore?
     Brogdan
     Coonrod
     Alvarado
     Bradley?
     Kennedy?
     Suarez
     Dominguez
     Lamet

     1. “Gregorius and Johan Rojas to Padres for 1b Hosmer, of Hassell, p Mackenzie Gore, sp Lange, rp Lamet”…………AJ Preller will make trades for sure….but not sure he will include Gore in a trade, just to rid themselves of Hosmer’s contract.

     2. I’m sure you put a lot of thought into this but no team will make this drastic of a transformation. As for the trades, it takes 2 to tango. The Phillies are not getting Hassell AND Gore. And why would the Phillies want Gladney?

        Sherzer and Shwarber are looking to get paid. And pretty sure Philadelphia would not be Sherzer’s first choice.

        And not sure why you’re assuming the Phillies payroll would be $240M when they’ve given minimal indication that they are willing to pay luxury tax. If you look at the midseason trades, there’s only 1 team out of 30 that’s willing to pay tax.

113. Mike Schmidt is now officially the worst “analyst” I have ever heard. In the pregame he was praising Didi’s defense to the skies. Listening closely, I noticed that he watched yesterday’s game, where he did make a nice play, which makes me think that Schmidt’s “preparation” is watching the Saturday game. So when Didi made the game-changing 13th error of the season in the 8th, Schmidt was awfully quiet. Kruk went through a lazy couple of years where he relied way to much on the cranky old white guy routine, but Schmidt has been just stealing money.

     1. Yes, Schmidt is terrible in the booth.
        Almost as bad as Sean Barber behind the plate.

        The home plate umpire #phillies pic.twitter.com/SBzsPMnksv

        — RobbieRotten (@RobbieRotten21) August 15, 2021

114. Another less than stellar outing by Nola. Not only isn’t he pitching like a #2, he is not pitching like a #3. This game was lost, regardless of the final score, when he gave up a 2 out, 2 strile double, to a guy hitting.210, on a crap CB that hung up in the zone. The best pitched game was by Matt Moore! Wheeler has pitched great, so he gets a mulligan, but Nola has been more bad than good.

115. Trade to Yankees sounding better and better.

116. If Nola doesn’t turn it around on a dime and consistently give his team 6-7 strong (not lights out) innings, it won’t matter in the least how easy the Phillies remaining schedule is. The Braves schedule isn’t THAT much harder, they’ve already learned to win, and the Phillies rotation will be that much weaker if Nola can’t pitch to his career average line.

     1. And Septembers have been his weakest pitching months….oh the humanity!

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