281 thoughts on “Open Discussion: Week of May 8, 2022”

1. I’m open to anything at this point. One thing we do know is that its not likely we get the proverbial “fire the hitting coach” reaction to all this

   I was thinking about this the other night as well and thought the best interim solution would be either Bowa or Charlie.

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   1. Bowa! those who don’t remember the past are doomed to repeat it

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2. Why leave Nelson in so long when we had 2 straight rain outs and everyone was rested? And, Joe’s post game comments didn’t make any sense. “After we won the first game, the 2d was there”? What is that supposed to mean? And, great we won game 1, but still only got 4 runs in the DH. I have been a Rhys Hoskins fan since he came up. But, this season, so far, he has had some of the worst ABs you can see. And, I don’t know the numbers, but is there anyone who takes more first pitch strikes than him? He’s hitting a buck 89 not because he has hit into bad luck. He has earned it with lousy ABs. And, I don’t know if he has a future here anymore.

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   1. matt13…put Rhys on the 60-day IL with ‘swingandmissitis’ syndrome, and bring up Darick Hall.

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      1. I’ve loved Rhys for years too and when he gets in his groove he’s awesome, but that’s less and less often and he’s gotten worse in between.

         If the Phillies haven’t dramatically improved, I’d trade him in June/July for as good a prospect (s) as DD can get. Then bring up Hall and let him start most but platoon some with either JTR or Schwarber or Bohm,etc.

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         1. John K – with all due respect, your analysis suffers from extreme recency bias. Hoskins was very, very good last year and in 2020. He’s just off to a slow start this year, as many hitters are with a cold month and dead ball.

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            1. His RISP is very mediocre to below average over his career:
               242/.367/.475….over 600PAs

               Hitting 242 with runners on third or second base really is not noteworthy.
               And RISP production is bread- and- butter what a power guy is suppose to live on.

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               1. Gotta disagree on that one. An .842 OPS is not mediocre and is within .090 of his lifetime OPS (so it’s not like he’s “choking” in those situations – he’s the same guy). If you had a team full of .842 OPS players you’d lead the league in scoring every year. This is more proof that people have just made up their minds about Hoskins and just spin the stats in ways that don’t really work to confirm their feelings. Hoskins suffers from a similar syndrome that plagues Aaron Nola. We are down on really good players because we judge them based on our expectations of who we thought they would/could/should be rather than who they currently are, which is actually quite good.

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               2. Huh?
                  ….that OBP inflates that OPS……BBs are not productive for RISP.
                  They only set up GIDPs and slow momentum that team may have..
                  His 19% BB rate in RISP is un-productive.

                  BA is the one metric that separates the great players from the mediocre players when it comes to RISP.
                  If there is anything that screams ‘clutch’ it is that one metric.

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               3. What? On base percentage IS half of OPS – so it doesn’t inflate anything.

                  Here’s where you are 100 percent wrong – BBs are ALWAYS productive. The most important job of a hitter is virtually always not to make an out and to get on base. With RISP he did so at a .367 clip, which is excellent and his slugging was .475 which was also very good. Again, an .842 OPS is extremely good and a line-up full of .842 OPS hitters would score more runs than any other team in baseball. So, yeah, he has been a good hitter with RISP and without RISP. He’s a very good offensive player, contrary to your contentions.

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               4. We agree to disagree.

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               5. Indeed we do.

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      2. Leave it to Romus for the funny of the day. I have never heard of that syndrome but a lot of players in the game today suffer from it. LOL.

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3. John K, you said it very well. The groove is less often and his in between is worse than ever. And, there are dozens of guys who can hit 28 HRs and bat .220.

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4. Ahh . . here come the Hoskins haters.

   Rhys has gotten off to terrible, slow start. He was on pace to be a 3 WAR player last year. When he gets hot, he can carry a team for a month. Hoskins is a very good offensive player. He has played to a career 125 OPS plus and he was a 138 OPS+ in 2020 and a 130 OPS+ last year. Those are outstanding OPS+ numbers. To give this some context, Catellanos’ lifetime OPS+ is 116 and Realmuto’s is 111.

   If he is still struggling in late, July, they will need to do something. In the meantime, they need to be patient for him to return to the excellent offensive player has been for quite some time now and particularly the last 2 years when he’s been really good.

   I’m not saying they need to sign him to a long term deal, but I am saying he is most likely the best option at first for the next two years.

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5. catch, not a Hoskins hater, at all. I happen to be a big fan, who is extremely frustrated, and think he is hitting worse than ever so far this season. I have always taken your approach, waiting for his hot streak, and yes, during those, he can carry the team. I would like to see him prove me wrong and turn it around. I would also like to see him attack first pitches more, especially when he is going bad. I am not a Hitting Coach, but it seems he is letting the best pitch of his ABs go without a swing. It is in our best interests as fans of the team that Hoskins plays 1B at the level we believe he can. This season has, so far, been tough to watch!

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   1. Yes, but there’s crazy recency bias going on in these posts. Hoskins was really good last year and the year before. He’s off to a bad start – but there’s no reason to think he can’t turn it around and have a good year. He’s done this many times before. If this cold spell was happening the middle of the year we wouldn’t be as fixated on this.

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6. It’s a shame, I thought Girardi would be a good pick after Kepler…. Meanwhile kapler turns out to be better. Smh. Feels like the Amaro to klentak/Mcphail regime. We complained about the previous only to replace it with something worse. Amaro was better, evidence is mounting. Middleton signed Harper so … klentaks best moves where trading for realmuto, signing wheeler over cole, and not trading Nola. Other than that … plenty of mess ups.
   I believe Nola, Efflin, Sir A, Hoskins, Quinn, are Amaro guys. I might be wrong about the last 3. One of klentaks best chances to shine up his performance is Moniak, Bohm, and stott. They are trending up so will see.

   On the manager, yeah,

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   1. Tac3…you are not wrong.
      Amaro’s drafting ending after the 2015 draft (Cornelius Ramdolph)…Klentak’s started in the summer of 2016 (Mickey Moniak)

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      1. Romus, another error posting.

         I did mean to get in there that I’ll take Wathan as interim, but his window for being a good fit was likely when Cozens was smashing. When the team was expected to be mostly homegrown with Crawford, Hoskins, Cozens, quinn, kingery etc. Now, it’s highly paid stars, it’s a different ballgame. Give wathan the chance but this situation is doing him no favors imo. That’s said, he gets a chance, so he’ll have to run with it.

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7. With so many people pushing for Dusty Wathan as the interim manager, I find it ironic to note that he is a pretty horrible third base coach – one of the worst we’ve had. I don’t think that really is a fair indicator of whether or not he would be a good manager. I have zero idea whether he would be a good manager or not, but I find it interesting that on the only objective thing we can say about his on field abilities is that he’s a bad third base coach. And so he’d be a good manager because . . . . why?

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   1. because he was a pretty good minor league manager, maybe, for Phillies minor league teams that weren’t necessarily that talented?

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8. I do not think Dave D will give Dusty a long term contract as the manager, if Dave D does in fact, let Joe go and instills Dusty as the interim at some point this season.
   I believe Dave D will go out of the system ,and find another guy for 2023 and beyond.

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   1. Yeah, he could make him the interim or could make some other guy in the organization or that he’s worked with and known before the interim. The nice thing about a guy like DD is that he has connections everywhere and has tons of experience with people in different organizations. But, anyway, right now I’d have to think Girardi’s job is hanging by a thread. If the team plays like this for another month, it’s hard to imagine he’d still be here.

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9. I like the Sam Fuld idea. And, no, I do not wish we still had Kapler. He was not good here, and however he has grown in the job in SF, good for him. It would not have happened here. And, JoeG not doing a good job doesn’t make Kapler appear better to me. It just means there were 2 mistakes.

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10. We have been down this road before. We fired Doug, Brett Brown, Gabe and I don’t know how many Flyers coaches. Does firing the coach really change anything?

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11. Wow, this thread just exploded because of Hoskins!

    Look, Hoskins is in a bad place right now. He’s missing fastballs and you’re hoping that he can get out of it sooner rather than later. He has a career .851 OPS, so he’s hitting .200 points under that. Yes, it’s hard to watch. Yes, his defense is still not great. But he’s still the best 1B option for 2022. If Joe G wants to give him less ABs, so be it.

    If the Phillies feel that there are better options at 1B, that will be revisited during the offseason. Rhys will only have 1 more year left of arbitration and the Phillies might decide that he’s too expensive relative to his production. I still believe that the Phillies will let him walk into FA. He’s not Freddie Freeman, Paul Goldschmidt, or even Anthony Rizzo. And Rizzo is already in decline.

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    1. Losing the Hoskins we hoped to have does hurt the strength of the Phillies offense but … it might give some improved to the defense.

       Bryce being hurt limits it right now, but if and when he gets better

       Schwarber – DH
       Bohm – 1B
       Harper – LF
       Castellanos- RF
       Realmuto – C
       Segura – 2B
       DD- 3B
       Stott -SS
       Quinn/Moniak/Herrera CF

       I’d rather Hoskins be Hoskins, but if he is going to command big dollars, which he will even with a crap season, you have to explore flipping him if the teams out of it or rolling back potential offense for improved Defense is better for the playoff run. If Darrick Hall is racking, it might be more tempting. Again my preference is for Hoskins but a bad year for a slump. Does he know it’s a contract year? 🙂

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    2. Generally agree with all you’ve said. Hoskins will likely be worth retaining through next year – but after that, who knows?

       As for Rizzo, he has a 169+ OPS this year and 9 homers, so don’t write him off just yet, but agreed he wasn’t all that great the last two years.

       I also find it funny people are already concluding Hoskins will not be good this year. We have so much of the year to go. Bryce Harper didn’t even make the all-star team last year and look how he finished. It’s early people.

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12. Lots of anti Hoskins and Girardi talk. I agree that Hoskins has been terrible so far this year but he’s in a slump and he always looks bad in his slumps. He can also carry a team when he’s hot which he will get. There’s still a long way to go. They’re a frustrating team because we thought they’d be better than this. I’m disappointed in the job Girardi has done and wouldn’t be upset if they fired up but I doubt they will at this time. The lack of hitting and fielding prowess is not his fault nor is the lack of speed. The team was built to hit and they haven’t. The pitching has been about what we expected (although the Thursday loss was just brutal). They’re going to warmer weather, let’s see if they start to hit there, against very good pitching. If you change manager, they’ll likely want someone with some fire. Bowa is too old and has never won as a manager. Charlie is not the guy either but either is a minor league guy so I don’t know who that guy is.

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    1. Murray I was right where you were with Girardi until about a week ago. The way he managed the first game in the Mets series was indefensible and, when you think about it, he is just awful at managing pitching changes. He is so bad that it frequently costs the team games they have no business losing. Aside from that, I agree he isn’t the cause of the off and on pitching and hitting but a good game-day manager has to make smart decisions in those big games. Too often, his decisions on when to lift a pitcher and who and when to replace him with is so bad it offsets any good he does as a manager.

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13. What would Haskins value be on trade market? Is Baum a better first baseman then Haskins and what about Cora as manager???

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    1. Right now, Hoskins trade value is minimal. He’s making $7.7M with negative WAR.
       Not too many teams would be willing to give the Phillies anything of value.

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       1. Hoskins , in a trade, may have to be part of a package that would include a prospect, along with a pitcher…three-fer trade
          Agree….a one-for-one trade may not have much return value.
          Even ig=n a good year for him ..right now, just not many teams are looking for a first baseman …contenders that is.
          Then there are tams in rebuild….like the Reds who would gladly give the Phillies Joey Votto and his remaining contract thru ’23, for Hoskins.
          So trade options are limited…perhaps in the off-season.
          Jon Heyman said more or less the same today….Hoskins will probably be moved this off-season.

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14. Hoskins is what he is. He is in his age 29 season. He is a career .238 hitter. He has hit over 30 HR’s one time in his career. He has had over 90 RBI’s 1 time in his career. He is a power hitter, with a little above average power & a little below average hit tool. He is basically a mistake HR hitter. He can’t hit good pitching from the right side but throw him in the 7 hole this year and let him lift some over the fence. Obvi we move on from him after the season. There is absolutely zero downside in firing the manager. Literally the only thing that could happen is we play better. Just need some balls to fire him…

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    1. Let’s be more accurate on what Hoskins is. He’s a hitter that goes into prolonged slumps where he looks awful and a hitter that can carry a team for a month. As for “he only hit 30 once”, let’s be real. He hit 18 in 50 games, 34, 29, 10 in 41 games, and 27 in 107 games. That’s an average of 35 per 155 games. As for RBIs, he’s averaging 98 per 155 games. Give him time, he’ll come out of this slump and be the hitter he has been.

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       1. Hoskins has a loopy swing that leaves him with a huge hole at the top of the zone. He is what he is. I am ready to move on.

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15. To be clear, on Rhys, I am not advocating he be benched now. I just want him to change his approach. I meant in my prior comment that I am no longer positive that his future is as our First Baseman. As he gets expensive, and that will be coming pretty soon, a LTC may not be in the offing. And, I hope I am wrong, and he is that 3 WAR player that catch mentioned. I need him to be better than tied for 75th in the National League in RBIs. And if that stat isn’t en vogue any longer, it still means a heckuva lot to me.

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    1. Matt…I agree on Rhys and his taking the 1st pitch which is to him quite often the best. To go one pitch farther I have seen over the years Rhys take the 1st two pitches for strikes mostly fastballs and then swing at a pitch not even near the strike zone. I watch lots of games and I have seen that situation many many times over the past few years.

       I am not a Rhys hater by any means. I think he does ok at 1B. Not great but ok.
       Maybe one of the things that has hurt his career the most is those 1st few weeks he had when he came up to the bigs. Everything he hit was a HR. Our expectations became too great for him as a player.

       I know some here disagree on this but as one who played and coached baseball in some form for lots of years I always as a player and as a coach taught young hitters to be very aggressive on the 1st pitch fastball. Confidence is a big thing and hitting the best pitch thrown to you is going to instill that. I know everyone in todays game wants the pitch count to add up so teams take strike after strike and swing at ball after ball late in the count.

       I want all the guys to do well. I really thought Girardi would be good. But looks like I missed badly there. I was thinking this morning that Hinkie and I predicted 90 wins. That looks like a pipe dream now. But if the Mets play at this pace they will win I believe 108 games if my Math was correct this morning. I think the chance is greater for them at 108 than the Phillies at 90.

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    2. As much as we like to think that Hoskins will be a 3 WAR player, his defense will always bring him down. This is his 6th year with the Phillies, and he’s never had a WAR greater than 2.2. His total WAR in 6 seasons is now 7.9!

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       1. That WAR suggest a starter- player.
          2.4WAR on average over 162 games.
          And his best was his rookie year. (2.2WAR -50 games)…than the league adjusted to him in 2018 and later.
          Bottom-line…..he probably will not be here long term….team would have already made him a substantially attractive LTC offer if they felt he was a future core piece.
          Even Boras would have to consider an offer now based on Rhys’ current production.

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          1. In general, 2 WAR is starter level so it’s ok. But obviously you’re looking for more and at 1B, you’re looking for a lot more since it’s a power position. A 2 WAR 1B sounds ok but the reality is, it’s not. I don’t think anybody is walking around saying that Josh Bell is elite and he had 3.1 WAR last season.

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       2. Everyone is misquoting me. I said he was on a pace to play to a 3 WAR last year, which is true, but he got hurt. He was also on pace to play to at least a 3 WAR in 2020. Boras is going to tell him that his best chance of getting big money or more money to is to play well this year and especially next year. I don’t think the Phillies should commit anything to him at this point. They should let it play out and, I agree, it’s doubtful the team signs him to a long-term deal, especially if he doesn’t play especially well this year and next. No argument there.

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16. Its funny how so many of the same people who thought Kapler was too into advanced stats and how the game is played on paper are defending Rhys. If you watch the team game in and game out, which I do even though it is self-torture, you can just ask yourself the question: when he is up, are you happy, or is the other team happy? I would say that he is a guy who opponents are not at all afraid of. He may hit a HR now and then off some back end starter who would never start a playoff game, but overall after watching him for years now, I just don’t feel any sort of confidence when he comes up. That is the “baseball sense” that so many talk about. The walk numbers dont move the needle for me

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    1. Having said that….Id move on from Joe before Rhys in a heartbeat.

       What about Raul as an option? He wasnt mentioned above but hes a dude I would love to check in on

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       1. He has had a few interviews, but nothing yet in the way of a manager’s job.
          If it were scoring as in horse-shoes ….he would be piling up the points.

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17. Nit to beat a dead horse, but Middleton made a bad decision when he fired Gabe Kapler.
    For me, the name at the top of the list for the next manager of the Phillies should be Eduardo Perez. Not sure if he’d take it in season. But he’d make a great front man.
    Sam Fuld is a really smart guy, and would be another great choice, but I’m not sure he’d want it. He’s first in line to inherit Dombrowski’ s power when the POBO calls it a day.

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    1. I agree on Sam Fuld. He is set up to have the gig of a lifetime as the Phillies GM if all goes according to plan. Why would he risk all of that to be the field manager when he has no managerial experience? He should stay right where he is. I also don’t know if Eduardo Perez would be a good manager, but he is one of the most impressive voices on baseball broadcasts – he’s smart, smooth, knowledgeable, sophisticated and very authoritative. I’m very impressed with him.

       Also, I think it’s an outstanding sign that, a month into the season and having struggled early on after a limited spring training, Suarez is sitting with a 3-1 record and 3.68 ERA. When he’s on, he can put up zeros with the best of them. If Suarez can predictably pitch like a 2 or 3, this rotation is as deep as any in baseball and, sooner or later, as you noted Hinkie, this team is going to hit.

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       1. Sam Fuld is already the GM.

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18. Hinkie, I would want, and I think Sam Fuld would only accept, an Interim job, and then back to the Front office. It would give him a chance to evaluate the team from the bench. I believe this was Jim’s idea, that I am pilfering!

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    1. Yes.

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19. The way this team is built, they are going to have a lot of frustrating nights and you will think they have no shot and then they will rip off a 10 game win streak and 18 of 20.

    I keep telling myself not to get too low or too high. It is a long season. They will get hot at some point and it will make everyone think they are a contender. The truth lies somewhere in between.

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20. Francisco Morales = young Dellin Bettances. Debut tonight: 12 pitches,. 8 strikes,. 2 strikeouts!!!

    after one batter I have deemed Francisco Morales to be good pic.twitter.com/eqQgbZZwMe

    — Absolutely Hammered (@ah_pod) May 10, 2022

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    1. Sterling MLB debut for No. 10 @Phillies prospect Francisco Morales:

       2 IP
       0 H
       0 R
       1 BB
       3 K pic.twitter.com/H6vTNO6oU5

       — MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 10, 2022

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       1. Morales came back out for a second inning. Nice.

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          1. His slider was as advertised. It’s a true out pitch. However, he was throwing his fastball at 93-94. I thought he threw harder than that.

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             1. I always take velocity readings on a player’s first appearance with a grain of salt. Some guys hold back, trying to “stay within themselves”, and intentionally don’t throw with effort. Other guys ride a wave of adrenalin and throw harder than they ever have (or ever will) – such as Antonio Bastardo who, as I recall, was on fire in his debut.

                We need a reliever or two from the farm this year so it would be great if Morales could be that guy or one of those guys. Brogdon still hasn’t recovered his velocity from last year, so who knows what will happen with him.

                And watch out for Bailey Falter, he’s probably going to get one of these starts missed by Eflin or Wheeler. He’s been lights-out in AAA for two years. He’s ready for a great outing in the bigs.

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                1. But I tried to tell folks on here that, if he kept doing what he was doing, Morales was likely to pitch with the Phillies this year. Once a minor league reliever shows a dominant pitch and another good pitch, his developmental time in the minors is essentially over because, as a reliver, he doesn’t need a solid third pitch, nor does he need to be stretched out over many innings So, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if Morales sticks here in Philadelphia for the balance of the season.

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                2. @Catch, much like Muzziotti got an opportunity only because Herrera and Moniak was hurt, Morales got the opportunity because Eflin got Covid and Brogdon’s velocity is down. I’m not saying that Morales didn’t deserve it, but he came up more of necessity and not because he forced his way up.

                   Anyways, I would be plenty surprised if he was up for the rest of the year. He likely won’t be pitching ahead of the big 5. You don’t want him to be the long man. Norwood has been doing mop up duty and Bellatti hasn’t been getting a lot of consistent opportunities. Send Morales down to Lehigh and make him the closer.

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                3. If Falter hadn’t pitched on the 6th, I’m sure he would have been called up for the doubleheader instead of Sanchez.

                   That said, I don’t understand wtf the Phils are doing. In four MLB appearances, he threw 32, 32, 29, and 10 pitches. In two LHV appearances, he’s thrown 37 and 40 pitches.

                   Are they stretching him out? At this rate, he’ll be ready to throw 60 pitches in 7 weeks.

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                4. Guru, maybe you should take a look at Morales’ stats this season. You might want to consider retracting your “not because he forced his way up” statement.

                   I think Morales has a good chance of staying up. If Joe finds more opportunities to get Morales into games and Morales continues to pitch well, he could become the “Suarez” to this year’s bullpen that Suarez was to last year’s rotation.

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                5. Agree with you, Jim. It’s a real head scratcher the way they’ve handled Bailey Falter. He should pitch count should extend (by maybe 15 pitches) each time out. Not sure what their thinking has been.

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                6. @Jim, There was no doubt that Morales was pitching well at Reading. But this was his first season being a full time reliever, and I stand by my statement that he was up only because Eflin got Covid AND he just so happened to be on the 40 man.

                   Would it be great that Morales stays up and pitches well? Yes. But I don’t think there will be enough innings to go around, especially now that relievers have to face 3 batters. The starters should be all stretched out to go at least 6 innings. That means you’re spreading out 3 innings per game to 7 relievers (I intentionally removed Nick Nelson, the long man, from the equation). At best, I estimate Morales pitches 1 inning every 2 games. But I think he’s closer to 1 inning every 3-4 games. Is that ideal for his development?

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                7. He was pitching every third or fourth day in Reading. So, yeah it would not be detrimental to his development to do similar with the Phillies. Do you even look at a player’s stats/game logs before you type?

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                8. Having said that, I will concede that you are probably right that Morales gets sent down. Girardi’s preference for veterans over rookies will probably limit Morales to one appearance a week in a blowout win.

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       2. Loved seeing him pitch well. Would be great to have a young elite reliever.

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21. Hopefully they will stretch Morales out, thru the season…I can see him taking the Suarez route eventually into another opportunity to be a starter…if not this season, than next ST.

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22. How’s Chaim Bloom doing?

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    1. Use one name and one name only or you will get blocked, smart guy.

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23. How’s Chaim Bloom doing?

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    1. I think he may have doe better in Philly ilo of Klentak….but that is Monday mornign QBing.

       Right now the Sox are in a slump…..and Devers will want to get paid….having a big market $$$$ team can be a blessing and a curse.

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       1. done vs doe

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          1. Buddy … LOL. You waited this long for the one year Bloom’s team wasn’t winning to ask how he’s doing? Go visit Baseball Reference, and compare Bloom’s Rays and Red Sox clubs to every Phillies squad since Andy McPhail hired Matt Klentak over Chaim Bloom in 2015.

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             1. And BTW this one down year in Boston could result in the Red Sox landing Dylan Crews in the 2023 draft thanks to the new lottery that goes into effect next year. Even in a down year, Chaim Bloom “could” end up winning.

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                1. Agreed. I don’t think there’s any team in the majors who can tank, re-load and compete better or faster than the Red Sox. They are never down for long.

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       2. For sure it’s a a double edged sword. You can get almost any player in FA but if the player declines, you’re now stuck with an albatross contract. It’s big market problems. For example, the Nationals with Corbin and Strasburg.

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24. Kudos to Morales, and to whoever was part of the decision to move him to the BP this year. We hit the ball all over the field last night, and it would have been nice to see Schwarber participate in that. Are we getting Mickey Mo back this month? I have a good feeling about him. We have some tough teams to play this road trip, and I hope the bats waking up last night signals a trend! Both Schwarber and Stott can both hit the ball, and they will get it going at some point, hopefully soon.

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    1. Mickey didn’t make the trip with the team out west. He was at the Complex on Monday. Hopefully, he can get some at bats in with the extended kids and the Threshers this week.

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       1. hey Jim and all.. it looks like they plan on Mickey starting to play mid next week with Threshers. He is healing up well.

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          1. That’s good news, Matt. Thank you.

             We have three question marks in centerfield. Now, we only have to wait and see if Girardi brings Mickey back in the capacity that he earned in the spring. This is another situation where I don’t trust Girardi’s judgement.

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25. I still support Rhys Hoskins. I’m sure within 2 weeks of Derrick Hall, we will be demanding another solution.

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26. For the past five years that Adonis Medina was on the organization’s farm, he was a starter in every game that he pitched. The Phillies release him and the Mets pick him up and immediately make him a reliever which he seems to have adjusted to very nicely.

    Hinkie, you were always big on Medina, especially after his appearance in the Futures game a few years back. Do you think the Phillies missed the boat on Medina and do you feel that he will be a big piece in the Mets bullpen or in the bullpen for some other team.

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    1. ciada … at the time, Medina was throwing mid 90s (as a starter) w/a plus CH. His SL had excellent movement, but still a work in progress. Along the way, he lost a few ticks on the FB velocity. The other night, when he pitched at CBP, I think he may have hit 96 a couple of times. I believe his CH is a constant (really good/reliable pitch). He’ll need to get back to the 95-97 range, and work on his command to have success IMO. But sometimes a guy needs a change of scenery to succeed for many reasons. I loved Nick Pivetta too, but I realized it was never going to happen for him in the Phillies organization.

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       1. Before the Mets swooped in and picked up Medina, he was claimed off waivers by Pittsburgh who eventually optioned then DFA-ed him. Apparently, he couldn’t make it with the ever-solid Pirates. Then, the Mets traded for him after his designation. Since then he has thrown seven innings for Syracuse, two as a starter and five in 3 appearances as a reliever. He was their 29th man for doubleheader in April, and their 27th man this past weekend. He’s already back at Syracuse. So, yeah, the Phillies really missed the boat.

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          1. Maybe the SS Minnow.

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       2. its not happening in boston either….pivetta is becoming there exactly what he was here; a guy who shows flashes of being an elite pitcher but who is his own worst enemy and always falls apart.

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       3. Hinkie…felt the same way about Pivetta…he wanted out and needed that change……unfortunately for him, looks like he has trended down this season.

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27. Phils purchased Corey Oswalt a 28 year old pitcher from the Giants. He pitched 10 innings for the Mets last year, he will be at LHV.

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28. Man reading the comments: Morales was going to pitch in philly this year as long as he was healthy. Sure, injuries probably escalated that by a few weeks, but he was always going to come up, and potentially have a key role. I think back to Seranthony’s rookie year when, by the time the dust settled, he was the team’s best reliever. Could see something similar…he and Dominguez is a pretty nasty 1-2 punch. and LOL of you think a guy like Bellatti or even Norwood is gonna keep him off the roster long term.

    I don’t think hes going anywhere, nor should he.

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29. For all you Hoskins apologists out there, here are Hoskins’ stats with RISP over the past 3 years.

    2019 .219/.374/.331/.705
    2020 .206/.372/.529/.901
    2021 .231/.298/.417/.715

    And, here are Harper’s for the same period.

    2019 .357/.459/.690/1.149
    2020 .233/.485/.488/.973
    2021 .330/.488/.545/1.033

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    1. Not sure why he the ‘ apple comes up’ in those situations, after so many years still.
       Maybe puts too much pressure on himself…and squeezes the wood out of the handle.
       Like last night….nobody on in the 2nd, nice and easy golf swing for a HR.

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       1. There’s no doubt hat Rhys needed that HR in the worst way, but Flexen did Rhys a favor by throwing him 3 curveballs. And Rhys homered on the 3rd one.

          I can’t believe Flexen had so much success last season. He’s throwing 90-92 so he needs to have really good control. Last night, you saw what happened when Flexen didn’t have his best stuff. He got lit up.

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          1. Yes……he may have had a little luck last year….his FIP was almost 4 and gave up a lot of hits per innings pitched…..BBs were good however, so he did have command last year….but as you say, he is not much of a velo guy for RHP. (2021….92.8)

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       2. I just call him “Hans” anymore! As in Hans Solo. Two nights running.

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    2. Well, Jim, almost everyone is going to look bad when you compare them to a reigning, and two-time, MVP and future Hall of Famer. Rhys has his limitations, but he’s been a good player. It remains to be seen whether he will be worthy of a big contract, but there’s a good chance that, even if he is, it won’t come from the Phillies.

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       1. Well, Catch, I didn’t introduce Harper into the discussion. You did. I just used him because they were teammates for the three previous seasons. Maybe you would prefer McCutchen? He’s quite a bit removed from his MVP season.

          2019 .281/.489/.438/.927
          2020 .292/.352/.500/.852
          2021 .271/.401/.514/.915

          Or. maybe Realmuto even though most Phillies’ fans think he’s the best catcher in baseball.

          2019 .241/.276/.400/.676
          2020 .235/.288/.500/.788
          2021 .293/.413/.466/.879

          The only other player on all three teams is Segura. That wouldn’t be fair. I mean, he’s just a second baseman.

          2019 .298/.348/.430/.778
          2020 .298/.431/.489/.920
          2021 .292/.382/.425/.807

          I don’t dislike Hoskins. I’m only in this thing because you decided to call anyone criticizing Hoskins a “Hoskins hater”.

          But, now that I’ve done all this research, I don’t buy that a player with his numbers with RISP can carry a team through an extended period of time. Maybe he gets a big contract. But, I hope it’s not a multi-year, $20M per year type with the Phillies.

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30. I’m looking at the Mariners roster and you can argue that they are a young team on the rise. But their prospects have had their issues at the ML level. And yet the Mariners gave Robbie Ray 5 years, $115M and traded for Winker, Suarez, Frazier. You wonder if it would have been better if they waited until Rodriguez, Kelenic, Toro proved that they belonged before trying to become contenders. But looks like the Mariners are rolling with their rookies for better or for worse.

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    1. On a whole …many hitting prospects around the league are having struggles.
       They need to make their adjustments.
       Though, not sure it is the humidors affect on the balls…or the newer constructed balls themselves , or a combination of both factors.
       Then again, their swing and miss K rates could be higher than normal and the balls would not come into play in those regards.

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31. On MLB Rumors they said Oswalt might make a start because of Wheeler and Eflin. But I looked at his stats this year. He had 3 good outings and 3 bad outings. His 1 start went 2 and 2/3 and he gave up 4 hits, 3 of which were HR’s.

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    1. When I told my sons that we got a pitcher named Oswalt, he asked if he is related to Roy but I said with the Phillies luck he is related to Patton.

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32. Phillies fans rank a sobering 23rd in baseball.

    Study Confirms Which MLB Team’s Fans Drinks The Most Alcohol, And It’s NOT The Boston Red Sox (PIC)

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33. During this year’s free agent period, I was all in on Castellanos. When they signed Schwarber I was disappointed but felt we did a good job in getting Kyle in a Phillie uniform and his bat was a real need. Then they signed Nick C. and I was elated. Couple thoughts; Castellanos is a better overall ballplayer than Schwarber. No way Kyle S. could play right field with Harper out. Castellanos isn’t graceful out there but is adequate. Hustles and tries hard. We are fortunate to get him. I, like all of us are waiting for Scwarber’s bat to wake up. My next point is in reference to center field. i believe Roman Quinn should be the everyday centerfielder on this team now. If this team hits like we expect it to, then having Quinn’s bat in the lineup shouldn’t be a problem and he covers a ton of ground in center (we need that) and has a good arm. We can always pinch hit for him if we are losing late in a game but the added benefit of his defense is really needed. Never thought i would be making this statement but believe we are a better team with Quinn in center field.

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34. I know they lost this game (mostly) because of some lousy defense. But despite the four errors, the Phillies entered the 9th inning still just 2 runs down. Why is (the leadoff hitter) JT Realmuto swinging on a 2-0 pitch? He needs to get on base to bring the tying run to the plate. He needs to look at at least one strike. But for whatever reason, Realmuto swings at that 2-0 pitch, and grounds out. The next batter, Jean Segura homers. The Phillies end up losing by one run. They don’t play the smartest baseball.

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    1. Hinkie they all want to hit homeruns its no longer a team sport, its individual game, homerun hitters make the big dollars,not the baseball i grew up loving,

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    2. Hinkie…it is a very simple answer. Guys no longer are TEAM players. They are ME players. You see it all the time. I know when these guys were young players most if not all were taught what you are talking about. But $$$$s has a way of making you forget you are on a team. JT is not the only one who does it anymore. Most do because there is NO accountability for doing so by the manager.

       At least I get to go watch the high school team play almost nightly and their coach is always preaching to the kids to be TEAM players. He has a policy that he calls respecting the game that on any ball hit wherever the batter runs all the way to 1st base. So, there are some still being taught the right way to play the game.

       Baseball is really a simple game. Just do the basic right thing and usually you will get good results. Make the play you should make. I tell the kids to always think on defense to get 1 out on a play. A great play may come once in a while but do the basic play. Same applies hitting. Leading off 2 runs down you mean nothing unless you get on base somehow.

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       1. GET OFF MY LAWN

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       2. Some organically play the game the way they should and yes others no matter how much you try to stress as a coach playing for the team instead of ones self will march to the beat of their own drum.

          This doesn’t pertain to JT he by and large does play the game in a smart fashion however it sounds like this one episode was not good.

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    3. I didn’t see the at bat, but a 2-0 count is a great hitter’s count. No problem with JT swinging there.

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       1. Agree that a 2-0 count is a great hitter’s count. But maybe you missed the setup. The AB occurred leading off the 9th inning, and his team trailed by 2 runs. It’s impossible to hit a 2 run bomb with the bases empty. Realmuto’s job is to bring the tying run to the plate. The pitcher had just thrown two pitches out of the zone. The best/most sensible thing JTR could have done in that situaution is look at a strike. I guess were going to have to agree to disagree … again 😃.
          .

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          1. yes, agree to disagree. I don’t think any hitter should be an auto-take on 2-0. ever.

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          2. Hinkie…..have to agree…..players need to know the situation, (runners are needed, last inning, losing a close game, pitcher could be losing some control) as they say all part of situational hitting.

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    4. Its the game now, take it or leave it. JT is an all star player in a hitters count. Hes not Roman Quinn trying to walk. I’m ok with it. You also can’t use the fact that Segura homered as logic. Lets say JT does not swing at the 2-0 pitch and ends up walking. The whole situation would be different, the pitcher would be pitching from the stretch, the pitch selection would be different, etc. You cant make the case that the home run would have been a 2 run homer because there is no guarantee that home run would have happened.

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       1. Maybe we’re not watching the same player. The JT Realmuto I’m watching is a .255 hitter, and sporting a .674 OPS. Is that the same guy you’re watching?
          The bottom line is … it doesn’t matter if you think he’s an all-star player, and he’s in a hitter’s count. It’s simple math. The leadoff batter (no matter how good or bad he is) cannot tie a 2 run game with one swing of the bat.

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    5. For sure the defense was lousy, but the Mariners essentially scored the first 3 runs on 2 broken bat singles and 2 swinging bunts. After I saw that, I knew it wasn’t the Phillies day.

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    6. I didn’t see it either Hinkie but I have to agree and don’t understand how you defend that…

       I guess it be one thing if he was swinging a hot bat but he’s not…Segura however is so even more important to try and work the pitcher there.

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       1. Excellent point, DMAR.

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35. I am suprised at this rate Bohm will only have 25 errors this yr, that would be great for him,

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    1. rocco…I detect a little sarcasm there!
       Right now he is at negative 2 DRS…middle of the pack in MLB for 3B
       Ryan McMahon of Colorado, believe it or not, is at positive 2 DRS

       https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=3b&stats=fld&lg=all&qual=y&type=1&season=2022&month=0&season1=2022&ind=0&team=0&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&startdate=2022-01-01&enddate=2022-12-31&sort=13,d

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       1. Romus at home if they scored fair he would have 5 more errors, sorry i just cant see him staying at third, Richie Allen if i am right had 44 errors at third most on throws, he had cat like reactions. but couldn’t make throw, Bohm cant make the accurate throws and his glove work is bad, his range is terrible. that’s what i see.

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          1. Rocco…I agree. IMO someone did Alec a disservice years ago leaving him at 3B. He is too stiff agility wise to make even the routine plays easily let alone the difficult ones. Alec has the hit tool so someone should have found a position that he could play at least to an average level. Most likely 1B or LF are/were the options. Game is really pretty simple. Your team makes 4 errors normally you lose.

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          2. rocco…I do think he will move off third in the future …question how long will it take before the Phillies decide to make the move……2023?

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       2. Romus…I think the Rockies announcers stated McMahon either was the Gold Glove 3B last season or very close. It was one or the other and he did have an awful series against the Phillies. But I think he got a nice contract recently. I may be wrong there.

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          1. Don…yeah..last season he was very good there.
             Ryan McMahon…848.2 innings…DRS positive 13—UZR….6.1——DeffWAR…..9.3

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36. I think it’s Bailey Falter getting the start for today’s game. Good luck to him. Hope we can finally win a Series!

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    1. Falter is starting and Vierling is optioned to LHV.

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       1. With Moniak and Herrera’s injury, Vierling had the opportunity to show that he could be the answer in CF and instead, laid a massive egg. I still think he could be a 4th/5th OF but if he wants to be more than that, he needs to go down to Lehigh and tear it up.

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37. The Phillies are 13-17, a little less than a 5th through the season. Current War projections:

    Segura 5
    Realmuto 5
    Gibson 5
    Castellanos 4
    Harper 3.5
    Nola 3.5
    Bohm 2

    The Phillies were supposed to hit but we knew that in a given season, not all players will be able to perform. So not surprised that Didi has zero WAR. The biggest issues on offense are Hoskins with zero WAR, the combined CF of 0 WAR, and the slow start of Schwarber. I think in the end, the offense will be fine. Hoskins looks to be heating up, Moniak will be in the mix for CF, and Schwarber will likely hit enough HRs to get close to 3 WAR. So it won’t be a spectacular offensive season, but definitely good enough to make the playoffs.

    The biggest issue is the rotation which was supposed to be a strength. Simply put, Eflin, Wheeler, Suarez haven’t performed. Thankfully, Gibson has been outstanding. Nola could be better, but he’s on track for his 2nd best WAR season.

    Yes, this season has been uneven, but that’s how Phillies’ seasons go it seems. There are still a lot more games to be played.

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    1. I see it the way DD sees it. Wheeler and Suarez were both hurt by a short spring training and limited ramp up time due to injury or delay into camp. Both are starting to round into form and Eflin has also been decent. The starting pitching is actually pretty good and projects to be even better in coming months.

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       1. I agree on the starting pitching. Gibson in particular has pitched well. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. He was an All-Star last year and did have a good first half.

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38. I got specifically called out on here by Hinkie 2 weeks ago on an extremely small sample size in which Bohm’s defense improved slightly. Hinkie loves to say “I know that it is a small sample size, but…”

    Personally, I don’t think that we should discuss players with a small sample size. But since Hinkie loves small sample size analysis, here is Bohm’s defensive play 30 games into the season:

    – His Defensive Runs Saved of -4 is on a worse pace than last year. If he plays the same number of innings defensively as he did last year, his DRS would be -17, it was -13 last year. Yes, that’s right, he would be worth 4 fewer runs this year than last year defensively.

    – His fielding % is the second worst in all of baseball (regardless of position). It is the worst of his career at .914. Last year his fielding % was .936

    – His Outs Above Average of -2 is the second worst among all MLB 3rd baseman and is already the same as it was last year.

    Hinkie argues his poor defense is because of a “crisis of confidence.” I believe that his crisis of confidence is because he knows that he physically can’t do what he needs to do to be good at defense.

    He is not a 3rd baseman. We can continue to pretend it isn’t the case, but hope is not a strategy. His hitting has improved this year, but his batting average after his 7 for 10 hot start is .250. Frankly even that is inflated by a few infield hits that has his BABIP at .338. His walk rate is now below what it was last year and his K rate is moving up. He has also shown very little power.

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    1. LOL. We can play this game all year where you post anti Bohm #s or videos the day after he commits an error, and then I counter with the opposite after a night he makes a nice play/stretch where he plays well in the field. As Romus pointed out earlier, Bohm is more in the middle of the pack in DRS (-2 not -4 even after last night’s miscue). He’s now 19th among 3Bmen.
       To repeat … Alec Bohm is never going to win a GG, but IMO he can be a league avg defender at 3B (at least for a couple/few more seasons). On this team, he is a 3Bman, period/full stop. He’s got plenty of arm. And while his size limits his range, his sheer length (6’5″) allows him to get to balls you may not think he could reach.⤵

       https://twitter.com/BrodesMedia/status/1520561648838356993?s=20&t=IiIzBlHmfTREbH4JSiv2tQ

       Alec Bohm with the defensive play of the night. Runs down a fly ball in left field, then throws out Adolis Garcia at the plate. pic.twitter.com/lIDLEIh58V

       — Todd Zolecki (@ToddZolecki) May 5, 2022

       .

       Again, not saying Alec Bohm is a great 3Bman. But he’s not the disaster you continually make him out to be.

       One last thing …

       Player A: .311/.353/.422, 16% K-rate, -2 DRS
       Player B: .194/.275/.380, 30% K-rate, -1 DRS

       Player A is the kid you continually bash. Player B is one of your faves. It wasn’t too long ago you felt Player B’s value (2 years of team control) dwarfed Alec Bohm’s value (5 years of team control). Sometimes, we may let our prejudices get in the way of our opinions. I’m guilty of it, and I think in this case, you may be guilty of it too.

       Here’s a clue to player B ➡ nampahC ttaM

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       1. Let’s be clear Hinkie…you were the one who started this tit for tat specifically calling me out. YOU. Not me. You started it by naming me in a post. You are the one who consistently finds small sample size stats to fit your narrative and calls me out. Not me. I never post about small sample sizes.

          Second, the game of baseball is about averages. not one play or one game. about averages. Over a large sample size, Bohm has proven to be a terrible defender. There is no evidence over a large sample size that he is improving. Maybe he has one good week of defense, but his poor technique and below average athleticism will pop up. I can’t fathom how you see a league average defender. IMO, you make up excuses for him to fit your narrative.

          also, comparing him to another player who is having a bad season doesn’t prove that he is good. it doesn’t prove anything. two players can be bad.

          he has a -4 in DRS https://www.fangraphs.com/players/alec-bohm/21618/stats?position=3B

          I have said that Bohm deserves to be in the lineup, but he isn’t a 3rd baseman. That’s a pov shared by most scouts. I have never read a scouting report by an independent source that says that he is a league average defender. I would love for you to show me a scouting report who has a 50 grade on his defense.

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          1. v1 ,,, I apologize if you felt I was calling you out. W/O going back, and searching for the post, I’m pretty sure I went out of my way to not single you out. I mentioned the army of anti-Bohm folks who were quick to post when he was slumping or making errors, but went silent when he was going good.
             I’ve told you numerous times you’re one of my favorite posters. I have a ton of respect for your opinions … both baseball opinions and non-baseball opinions (I check you out on Twitter occasionally).
             That said, I do think you hold some prejudices against some players/prospects. For instance, you passed judgement on Mickey Moniak a few years ago, and were unwilling to see things any differently. That’s not to say you were wrong because Mickey hasn’t done it at the MLB level yet. But it’s obvious he’s made greater progress than you’ve ever been willing to admit he was capable of.
             OTOH, this offseason, you proclaimed Bryson Stott was a better player/option for the Phillies than Alec Bohm. From the naked eye, Stott has been swinging through FBs at a pretty high rate so far. When Bohm went through a similar thing last season, you crucified him. So far, no mention of Stott’e struggles. And believe me, I’m rooting for Stott, and think he will work his way through this the same way Bohm has. I’m just trying to let you understand my position on some of your takes.
             As far as I’m concerned, Bohm is at least as good as Austin Riley (another big 3Bman) defensively (probably even better by the metrics). I consider Riley a league avg defender. That’s just the way I see it. In the end, it’s fine that we find another thing to agree to disagree on.

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             1. One last thing … concerning your “I have said that Bohm deserves to be in the lineup, but he isn’t a 3rd baseman” statement. On this team, (as I mentioned above), it’s 3B or bust for Bohm. He’s only rarely going to play 1B or DH, and he’s never going to find himself in LF..

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             2. First I appreciate and accept your apology. I too think that you are a great contributor to this blog and I respect your well researched opinions.

                Throughout the years I have said publicly when I am wrong. I have no problem admitting it when I am wrong. I just don’t do it on a small sample size.

                As for Austin Riley, if you think Riley is a league average defender then I guess we really just have a fundamental difference on what league average defense is. Riley is terrible defensively. And if Bohm hit like Riley then I wouldn’t really care because Riley hits at an MVP level. Bohm has improved his contact rates this year after shortening up his swing. But he still doesn’t show power and he is a poor defender imo.

                As for Stott, he is a rookie getting his first taste of MLB. He doesn’t look overmatched to me. But MLB pitching has exposed a weakness for pitches on outer third. He needs to adjust. Stott is a very good defender and a good athlete. He also plays shortstop which has a different offensive profile than 3B.

                Stott also highlights the glaring difference between spring training success and regular season success. So let’s wait to see Mickey do it in the regular season before we change the view on him. And to be clear, DD also shared a pretty low opinion on Mickey after last year. So hat tip to the kid for working hard and making an adjustment. If it plays during regular season games then awesome. We need a good CF. I would love to admit that I was wrong.

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                1. Is anybody else concerned that Bohm only has 6 XBH’s?

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                2. Yes, I’m concerned a bit.

                   If Bohm is going to have a long career, he is going to have to hit for some power, which means, for him, he’s probably going to need to do a better job of lifting and pulling some balls. He needs to walk a bit more and he needs to hit for more power, particularly if he’s going to try to succeed as a below average fielding third baseman, which really is his only spot right now. Sometimes it takes guys several years to develop power – maybe this will be the case with Bohm.

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39. Philly Trivia ….after 30:
    1980 – 16-14
    1993 – 23-7
    2008 – 17-13
    2022 – 13-17

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    1. The 1993 team got off to a blazing start. I think they were like 45-15 at some point and just needed to stay at .500 from that point on, which they essentially did.

       My view is that this team need to stick somewhere around .500 until around July. If they do and then get really hot, it’s not that hard to get to 10-15 games over .500, which will put them right in the middle of a playoff race.

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40. Hinkie just wondering i know you follow college baseball, Bohm and India were both third basemen coming out in 2018, who did you rate higher? i just dont get how scouts didnt see how little range Bohm has and lack of glove,

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    1. They did see it. Biggest ?? marks on Bohm coming out of college was his ability to stay at 3b. Phillies made the choice to take the bat and hope the defense would be good enough. Looks like they were wrong.

       there is a thread on this site for who everyone wanted to draft 3rd that year.

       2018 Phuture Phillies Draft Selection

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       1. Hah…of all the posts…one guy had Logan Gilbert as the Phillies third pick….and isn’t that a little ironic today.

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          1. You mean the pitcher that lost to Bailey Falter?

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41. Wheeler will be returning to pitch Thursday night vs the Dodgers. I’m not sure what the Covid protocols are anymore. The announcers mentioned yesterday that Wheeler tested positive. No news on Zach Eflin.

    Falter’s pitch limit will be around 60-65 pitches.

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42. Falter is pitching well but wow this Logan Gilbert kid is the real deal…

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    1. Rhys’ RISP just soared

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       1. Haha he heard some of us giving him the business. Let’s hope he goes on one of his runs and can sustain it for a while

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    2. Gilbert is legit. He throws hard and his secondary pitches are decent. I can see his changeup becoming plus.

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43. 4 strike outs after the bomb.

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44. We just need to keep saying how bad someone is playing and they will have a. great day.

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    1. Schwarber is doing awful, too many strikeouts, hitting .185 and worthless leading off and in a lineup against a left handed.👍

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    2. So true.. it feels like it happens quite frequently lately. I’m going to take this to the next level … the Phillies suck … the entire organization sucks … especially whoever is the starting lineups. They can’t do a thing other than go on losing streaks.

       You’re all welcome, I just fixed everything 🙂

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45. As I said, Rhys will get hot and he can carry a team for a month.

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    1. Yup – you and me, Murray. I get that Hoskins can go into funks that are insanely frustrating and, certainly, he is no wizard with the glove. But the slugging and OBP are really good and only a handful of players in the big leagues can carry a team when they are hot. The Phillies have 3-4 such players (Harper, Hoskins, Schwarber and perhaps even Castellanos), which bodes well for the coming, warm months. I still don’t know whether the team will be interested in extended Hoskins when he becomes a free agent, but that’s two years away. Until then, he’s an affordable, mid-lineup slugger who it makes sense to retain for now.

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       1. Rhys is good to have around, but other guys may force the issue with his being a Philie long term, outside of Boras’ demands,.
          For example….players who are limited defensively, Bohm and Scwarber for instance (who both look to be here long term)……and then soon to be 30 year old Harper needs to rein it in at times when out in the field…..he has hurt himself with the Nats in the past with his mega-aggressive defensive approaches in the outfield and on the base paths. There is something be said about a ‘Bobby Abreu’ approach in RF .
          Thank goodness for the DH now.

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          1. Oh, man, you had to bring in the Bobby Abreu approach. It’s one thing not to be foolish. It’s another thing to coast in the field the way Abreu often did.

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             1. yeah,
                … he did avoid the wall and injury, hah
                …. and his bat was what was his best attribute as his almost 50WAR with the Phillies would indicate…certainly not his defense..

                If the Phillies had gem defenders at 3rd base and LF…with also the bats, the Phillies probably would keep him long term.
                Circumstances in the field make it difficult for him

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46. 3up, thanks for posting that old thread! It was a blast to read through. Hinkie and v1 have been disagreeing about Bohm since before we drafted him. It was a lot of fun to re-read.

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    1. I went back and read it. Was really interesting. The Madrigal vs Bohm debate is still an open question in my mind:

       Career OPS:
       – Madrigal: .708
       – Bohm: .725

       Career OB%:
       – Madrigal: .336
       – Bohm: .336

       Career K rate:
       – Madrigal: 9.3%
       – Bohm: 23.6%

       Defense: Fielding %
       – Madrigal: .977
       – Bohm: .939

       Defense: DRS
       – Madrigal: 0
       – Bohm: -23

       Defense: UZR/150
       – Madrigal: 1.1
       – Bohm: -2.8

       Defense: Outs Above Average
       – Madrigal: 4
       – Bohm: -4

       So Madrigal is a clear upgrade defensively. If Bohm moves to first base, then the defensive value advantage for Madrigal becomes even bigger because 2B is a lot more valuable than 1B (https://library.fangraphs.com/misc/war/positional-adjustment/).

       While their OB% and OPS are basically the same (present season ignored due to small sample size), Bohm still has a higher ceiling if he can ever learn to translate his size into power. While both are ground ball hitters, Madrigal hits much more on the ground than Bohm. Madrigal is having a down start to 2022 due to an uncharacteristicly high K rate.

       So I would say is is pretty much a toss-up if you think Bohm will stay at 3B. A heavy lean to Madrigal if you think Bohm moves to first.

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       1. I still think there’s a good chance that Bohm ends up playing left field – but that wouldn’t be for another 4-5 years or so. He’s fast and athletic to do that job just fine, assuming he becomes a middle-of-the-order hitter, which could happen.

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          1. If the Phillies do move on from Hoskins in the off-season,
             Schwarber may be able to play first, though he has not played it much in the majors…., and they should think about moving Bohm to LF at that point.
             That would make sense to me.

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             1. Unless he is flat out awful this year, I think it is highly unlikely the Phillies move on from Hoskins before he is eligible for free agency. Odds are probably less than 15 or 20 percent.

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47. So the Phillies have scored 139, 129 against, +10 differential.
    The Padres have scored 137, 129 against, +8 differential.

    The Phillies are 14-17, and the Padres are 20-12, a whopping 8 games over .500.

    That’s a crazy difference, so I took a closer look at the Padres’ schedule. Padres are 6-0 vs the Reds, 2-1 vs the Pirates, 1-2 vs Chicago. The Padres have only played the Dodgers and Giants 6 games total.

    The Phillies have played the Mets 9 times already going 3-6. We are also 1-2 vs the Brewers. We have played 3 bad teams, (Rangers, A’s, Mariners) going 4-4 total. This is actually a good record vs interleague teams for the Phillies. The Phillies won’t be getting a break into their schedule until mid June. Again, their second half schedule is way easier than the first half.

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48. Cornelius Randolph is now playing for the Kane County Cougars an independent team in Illinois. Opening day is Friday. Also on the roster is Vance Worley. Let’s hope he finds his groove and gets back on track for an MLB team.

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    1. They also signed my next door neighbor, Jimmy Kerrigan last week

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       1. rocco…..if he wants to stay in baseball, maybe he should consider contacting the Twins and try to hook up with a coaching gig in low A ball….or even his alma mater VA Commonwealth…I think his days on the field with a MLB team could be in its last furlong as he now is 29 years old. The dream, however, is hard to give up

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          1. He is 28 and in 30 days you will be suprised, i cant say now, i dont know if he is major league player, but he has shown power and is a great fielder with a rocket arm. But that team he signed with pays 63 thousand for t he season not bad for 5 months

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             1. rocco…my bad on his age….but he must realize this may be it for him in an Inde League and he keep it in the back of his mind what his next move will be in a few years. Not many players can do the Chris Coste thing.

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                1. very true

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49. Kudos to Rhys for homering off a very good pitcher, hopefully he gets back to where he was last year. Somehow we need to insert a Mets logo in Schwarber’s glasses, man he’s struggling. Bohm looks really good at the plate, sure we’d like to see more power but this lineup needs some hitters like him. More than once I’ve cringed when these guys celebrate and I see Harper’s right arm slam into a teammates.

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50. Color me happy with that series but I will need them to really show up against the Dodgers. David asks above if anyone is concerned with Bohms XBH count. Well yes and no.

    I thought V1 did a really good job pulling apart his recent numbers. Now his L14 days have seen him trending in a very uncomfortable direction 11Ks to 1 BB.

    Nobody loved this kid more than I did from the time we drafted him. And I still do but he does and will need to start showing more power even if only gap power. Rather than it being an abrupt move to start adding some loft to his swing it should be something that comes gradually.

    I think it will. For now he’s keeping his head above water and with BH hitting behind him he’s set up for success. He just has to make it happen now.

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51. A chicken or egg question here;

    Is it that being put in the leadoff spot just makes our hitters slump, or is Joe just ridiculously good at picking the slumping hitters to hit leadoff? I remember this being a plague on our offense last year, too (Cutch hit .199 when batting 1st, Segura .245, and Herrerra .256).

    It was infuriating then and continues to be now. But maybe it’s not really Joe’s fault?

    Then again, of the three only Segura’s average was significantly lower in the leadoff than over the season as a whole…

    So yeah, I’m gonna keep blaming Girardi here. I didn’t think it was something a major league manager needed to be told, but here we are: STOP BATTING PLAYER HITTING UNDER .200 FIRST IN THE ORDER. You’re literally giving the opposing team more free outs.

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52. “The first shall be last and the last shall be first” it sez so in the Big Book! Joe probably got his books mixed up again. Agree with your last para., but I don’t think he has a leadoff hitter on this roster.

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53. Dan, I am not defending JoeG, but Dombrowski is a big part of this. After the season, lead off hitter was identified, by him, as a major need. No big revelation, I think our lead off hitters were 3rd from last in the Majors. He only signed Schwarber, and although he has hit lead off before, he has also had awful starts to the seasons before. Not what I would call a fix to a major problem. This year we may be dead last from the lead off spot. Girardi needs to know Schwarber struggles to start the season, and let him get out of it further down in the lineup. But, DD didn’t add much to the mix to draw from.

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    1. It wouldn’t bother me if he was just using the best of bad options, but he’s not. He’s arguably using the WORST of bad options. If he was using Segura, Didi, or even JT, they would make some sense. They’re all typically high average hitters with some speed. Even if the thought process is to just use someone with high OBP (which Schwarber COULD be), I can get on board with that.

       But whatever the strategy, you have to be able to pivot. Whether because of injury, trade, or slumps.

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    2. Moniak!

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54. Oh boy, Harper has been diagnosed with a small UCL tear. He’s going to get a PRP injection and will be out Sunday and Tuesday (Monday is an off day). He won’t throw for 4 weeks so Castellanos better get used to playing RF.

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    1. I figured as much….again they waited 2/3 weeks longer than expected..
       They should put him on the 10-day IL once injections are performed……and no arm clutching with Rhys.
       They know what they are doing.

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55. Wheeler is back and Falter has been optioned down. With the off day on Monday, the Phillies planned it so they won’t need Eflin’s spot until Saturday, May 21. I’m hoping that Eflin will be ready by then. So the Phillies will roll with 4 starters and 10 relievers until then.

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    1. On Girardi – he is just terrible at knowing when to remove a pitcher – it’s awful and I don’t get it. Sure, I get being slow to give a guy a hook where he comes in with the team 2-3 runs down. But when you’re up by 4 or more runs – dammit, you need to win those games – essentially all of them.

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    2. Falter being sent down is actually a good thing. They are going to stretch him out and make sure he’s a starter, which he is. He has a bright future in my opinion and if and when someone goes down this year, he could step right in. He’s a great insurance policy this year and should be in a big league rotation next year, at the latest.

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       1. If Falter performs well at Lehigh, it’s a near given that he should be entering ST the heavy favorite for a rotation spot. I don’t think the Phillies will be able to re-sign both Eflin and Gibson. The Phillies need to start saving money somewhere.

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          1. Guru….Gibson an be had for a reasonable price and length…age is working against him now..he is now in that 2 year contract realm.

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          2. Agreed – it will be either Eflin or Gibson. With all due respect to Gibson, Eflin has more upside and will command a much higher price. But Gibson is sneaky good and doesn’t rely on velocity, which is actually helpful. He could be one of these guys who sticks around for years, is effective and does not command a huge salary – he’ll probably get paid $8-10 m per year, as opposed to Eflin, who will command $14-18m and will require more years. I’d be fine with 2 years of Gibson and an option – he was a very good addition last year.

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             1. I would lean towards Gibson only if the Phillies give Nola an extension. So I would give Gibson something like 2 years, $24M and a vesting option. And I give Nola like 5 years, $100M if he’s willing to sign now.

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          3. If never been a huge Falter guy, but I was saying the other day that it would be nice if the Phillies could develop a guy who was never like a hot shot prospect but just got a little better every year and then boom, hes 26 and a very good pitcher. Kind of like Logan Webb in SF – never a top guy in the organization, came up a few times per year for spot starts, but then eventually put it together and now hes a rock in the rotation. Would love to see Falter become something like that

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56. I get that Alvarado is one of your big 5, but when he doesn’t have it, you really have to go get him especially against the Dodgers, who are a patient hitting team. Girardi leaving Alvarado in there to try to work himself out of it against the Dodgers is a disaster and it blew up in his face. Ridiculous. I really see Girardi being the first manager to be canned.

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    1. I’m assuming that Familia is not available because the pitcher Girardi calls up after Alvarado is Bellatti. That should tell you where Morales is in the pecking order.

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57. Ho-Humm. Just your ordinary, run of the mill 9-7 win in LA.

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    1. Mad props to Andrew Bellatti, Odubel Herrera, and Alec Bohm. All three came up big for the team in important spots.

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58. It was a crazy win and I went to sleep happy after seeing that.

    Unfortunately, Knebel, Alvarado, Dominguez have pitched in back to back games and you wonder who won’t be available tonight. I’m guessing all 3 won’t be available.

    Kyle Gibson will need to go 6 innings for sure.

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    1. Play-off teams just do not blow large leads late in games….twice in a week now.
       The BP has to be more consistent.
       If it continues…Joe should take a chapter out of Cash’s book…start with ‘openers’ for 2, maybe into the 3rd inning, then bring in the normal starter.

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       1. I’m not really sure at this point how much you can put on the bullpen at this point. They’ve cycled through so many guys and guys have found success in other pens after leaving here.

          At this point I’m almost 100% ready to blame Girardi for that historically bad bullpen. Dude just has absolutely no feel for managing a pitching staff. Both broadcast teams stated in real time they should’ve had another guy warming sooner… what does Joe do? Leave Alvarado in to serve up a 4 run lead. It’s just madness and he does this to himself with his unnecessarily strict bullpen rules. Those work fine when you have Mariano Rivera, prime Andrew Miller & Aroldis Chapman & Dylan Betances, etc and a high powered Yankees offense blowing out opponents constantly so you can rest your guys.

          Gabe didn’t work out here but he got a lot more out of a bad pen in his last season than Girardi has gotten out of what should be a somewhat solid group.

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          1. No argument there on Girardi’s BP handling.
             I just cannot stand watching a super hi-velo guy like Alvarado walk batters….of for that matter any BP arm walking batters late in games…especially the lead-off guy.

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    2. Really cant understand how many yr, do we have to go to get a good bullpen, How long do the sixers have to go to get some guys who can shoot, 19yrs and counting ,How many yr does it take the flyers to get a dam goaltender; The eagles are doing better than all of them and i cant stand howie,

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       1. rocco…..’tis troubling the state of Philadelphia sports.
          Good thing we have the Phillie Phanatic, Gritty, Franklin Ruff-Ruff and Swoop to pull us out of these doldrums! :).

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59. How can Girardi leave Alvarado in to blow a 4 run lead. Seriously, does he watch the game? or, simply read his stat book? If he doesn’t have it that day, go get him. That is Girardi’s job. When he pulled Familia after 10 pitches when he had it going that day, that was also stupid. Girardi needs to know his BP, know what to look for, and ride the wave of a guy going well for more than 10 pitches and go get a struggling guy. SPs get to work out of stuff, not the BP. And, do not ever bat Hoskins lead off. Dan, you are correct. He might not have good choices, but he makes the worst choices of the options he does have.

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    1. Matt, the most astounding and incredible thing to me about Girardi not being able to decipher when a pitcher is “cooked” is……….. he was a major league catcher! You are right on wild choices in leading off, I guess after Rhys hit 3 hrs in 3 days he was pronounced “healed” and can hit anywhere now in this leadoff du jour lineup.

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60. I turned that game off in the 8th inning, once Alvarado walked the 2nd batter he faced. I could sense it. Decided not to watch. I’m glad that I did. Id of lost my 💩 in the ninth with the bases loaded, on the verge of wasting Wheeler’s outing.

    On Bryce. I don’t expect him to play RF the rest of the year, gut feeling. Thankful for the DH, because we’d be down an MVP.

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    1. Tac3……as far as LHP out of the pen…Jo-Jo Ro. should be ready to go in 6/8 weeks. Another guy in the pen that could help.

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       1. Romus … I believe (and I’ve posted this before) the team should bring back JoJo as a starter (at least for this year). He’s got the four pitch arsenal, the club has a need for SP depth, and IMO (I’m not a doctor so I can be completely wrong about this) it’s easier/safer for the rehabbing arm to throw every fifth day (maybe 5 innings) than every other day (in shorter stints).

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          1. Hinkie…that does make sense, though bullpen sessions begin usually 2 days after a pitcher’s last start. Not sure if starting or relieving is the best either way.
             He probably prefers to start…most young pitchers do.

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       2. Romero should be ready but whether he will be effective is another thing. When Seranthony came back, he had a rough go in the minors.

          I don’t think the Phillies are banking on Romero to be a contributor for this season, but we’ll see what happens. He’ll be at ST and perhaps he’ll be a high leverage bullpen piece so that the Phillies won’t have to pay $6M for a veteran LH reliever.

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          1. He should be more than ready to pitch by the second half after the all-star break……unless there is a recurrence or a problem in his elbow again.
             He already is throwing now

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61. Last night/early this morning, I should have mentioned/given props to a couple of plays by Rhys Hoskins and Jean Segura that helped win that series opener in LA. What a complicated affair the contest was.

    https://twitter.com/BrodesMedia/status/1524977077715406862?s=20&t=mIlYAdwgqx2vLKqc7V8eBw

    https://twitter.com/BrodesMedia/status/1524949563123056648?s=20&t=mIlYAdwgqx2vLKqc7V8eBw

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    1. Hinkie, if you tried to explain the hoskins play to me … I’d be like no way. Kudos to him. Smart, good defensive play. Not something you say very often about him.

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62. Now I see why Bellinger won’t be our CFer. Swung at so many balls in a pressure situation, no clutch.

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    1. Bellinger is a huge swing and miss guy. His batting average has been steadily going down and based on his previous performance, he’s going to command decent money in FA. And his agent is Scott Boras. I hope the Phillies stay away from Bellinger.

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63. On one hand, awesome to get a W in LA. Need a few wins during this tough stretch. On the other hand, another blown lead by the bullpen.

    Idk about you guys, im getting sick of alvarado. I dont care how nasty his stuff can be, the guy cant throw strikes. Not a winning player IMO. Could see Morales in some of these situations going forward imo

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    1. Irony with Alvarado is that his bigger problem this year is getting hit around, allowing more than 11 hits per 9. If he can’t at least throw the ball past guys when he does throw strikes, he should not be getting high leverage innings.

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64. We blew a massive lead several years ago in LA and then got swept, I think Neris got rocked. Imagine losing last night after blowing a 7 run lead earlier this season? That 9th inning May be the turning point to the season.

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    1. That Mets 9th inning … still painful. I couldn’t watch last night. Luckily I didn’t have to see that Mets collapse.

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    2. I remember that. I think Neris gave up 3 HRs in the 9th? It’s not a pleasant memory.

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       1. Do you remember the wild comeback the Phils had at Dodger stadium back in the 90s? August 21,1990. Once of the few good memories from watching the 90s Phillies, minus the 93 team

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          1. Yes I do

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             1. I remember my parents telling me to go to bed, and I was a believer from the beginning. My parents were pissed when it was 11-8 because they wanted me to go to be for school, but i kept my best sales pitches going.

                There was another similar game I’m trying to remember. I thought it might be 5/19/90, but I always remember the game having bad rain, waving palm trees and the Phillies make a huge comeback

                As much as teams stunk l, it was fun seeing Kruk, Daulton, and dykstra again. Von hayes, dickie thon.
                Gotta love the players flat barrels swings through the zone, vs everyone’s uppercut hacks

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          2. Unfortunately, any regular season games before MLB.TV came into existence I didn’t watch.

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             1. Just watched it on YouTube the other day. Excitement. Also great watching Lasorda antics in the dugout.

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                1. Thanks for the info, I just watched it on YouTube. That was amazing. Jose Offerman booting 2 balls? Crazy.

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                2. We called him Jose Off-the-hands.

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65. Maybe Phillies’ fortunes are taking an upward turn. Just saw Kershaw heDing to the IL. He was supposed to pitch tonight.

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    1. *heading to the IL.
       Fat finger syndrome. Sorry.

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       1. Kershaw is headed to the IL with pelvic joint inflammation. Interesting.

          Buehler will be pitching tonight instead and 28 year old ex-Phillie Garrett Cleavinger (traded as part of the Alvarado deal) will be called up for the Dodgers.

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          1. Interesting….Phillies could possibly jump on Buehler early …..first game this season were he is coming in with ‘only’ four days rest. Most games its been 6 or 7 days rest.

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             1. Whenever I see Walker Buehler, I think of what could have been. The Phillies had mucho interest in him coming out of Vanderbilt. Unfortunately, they got scared off by Buehler’s noisy elbow, passed on him, and drafted Corneilius Randolph instead. The Dodgers jumped at the chance to take him later in the first round, they immediately sent him in for TJ, and the rest is history.
                Peyton Pallete is available this summer. He gets a lot of Walker Buehler comps for the big FB, wicked breaker, size, and TJ history (Pallette hasn’t pitched all season recovering from TJ). I’ll post some video of Pallette in the draft thread in case anyone is interested.

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                1. Shame team does not have a 2nd round pick.
                   Not sure Dave D will go with Pallette on the 17th pick.

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                2. I’ve had that thought too but I’m almost 100% sure our player development staff at the time wouldn’t have developed Walker Buehler the pitcher he is today.

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66. Just saw that Jarred Kelenic, the center piece of the deal traded by the Mets in the Cano/Diaz deal, was sent down to AAA. I remember when this trade went down, a lot of Mets fans were angry. A lot of analysts thought the Mariners made out huge. Kelenic was just drafted 6th overall in 2018.

    For the Mariners, Kelenic eventually became a top 10 prospect who slashed .320/.392/1.016 as a 21 year old at AAA. He was supposed to be can’t miss. His ML career consists of .173/.256/.594. His career WAR is -1.8.

    He’s turning 23 in July, he’s still young enough to turn it around. But clearly the Mariners were tired of waiting for him to adjust at the ML level. He’s probably 1-2 years away from needing a change of scenery, and obviously the Mariners will not give him away. But I’m sure that if he gets on the trade block, lots of teams should be interested.

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    1. Kelenic has a lot of swing and miss so far…38%…which is a killer for any player,
       ..also his low BABIP indicates a little unluck….and his close to 50% balls hit were fly balls, and probably the ‘humidor deaden’ balls may also have played a factor.
       Sort of like the Rhys syndrome…..fly balls to the warning track and not to the fence.
       Without looking at his spray chart….of his 96 PAs, he hit the ball 39 times without a hit..so just assume he may have run into a little bad luck, though not sure it would have made a measurably significant difference in his overall slash line..

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67. Seattle just got Adrian Sampson on waivers from Cubs, I think this would have been a good pickup. Corey Oswalt pitched 2 hitless innings yesterday at LHV.

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    1. Why 29 and has shown nothing

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       1. I just checked and he is 30 and I think he is a late bloomer. Remember Chris Coste, he was a 33 year rookie who batted .328 in his rookie year.

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          1. Chris Coste is an outlier, and not only that, they don’t usually last long because of their age. And even though he hit .328, his WAR was 0.8 because he was sharing time with Lieberthal. Yes, it’s a geat story, but you would rather take a chance on somebody younger who was highly touted when they were drafted.

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68. Darick Hall with number 12 tonight.

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    1. Romus, ……….. in regard to your nephew, Darrick, I hope he keeps mashing, but, I am no longer in awe of Phillies that are homerun kings in the minors. Some don’t pan when they get to the show. We had @ (Reading) Howard 37 whose record was beaten by Ruf 38 and “the Bash Brothers”, Cozens and Hoskins who combined one year for 72. Minor league stats are hard to get a handle on, but you keep that staff in the back room and if they want bread and water they have to deliver. Are there other guys in the minors who did as well as these and then disappeared? Was Ryan our best and than Rhys in carrying over from our minors to the majors?

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       1. Skeet……remember the Reading numbers from those specific players are a bit skewed with that ballpark’s factors.
          LHV and now Jersey Shore (as Hi-A) ISO metrics are probably more indicative of a player’s power projection

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69. Talking about Chris Coste, he is managing the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks of the American Association and they just started their season about 30 minutes ago. He started playing Independent ball in 1995 and switched to the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks for 1996-1999 and hit .314, .312, .328 and .335 . Cleveland signed him in 2000 and sent him to AAA where he hit
    .302 . Chris took over as manager in the middle of 2020 and has been managing since.

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70. Battle of the prep pitchers tomorrow: Chase Petty vs Andrew Painter.

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71. Another pitchers battle. Hope we can out hit them.

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72. https://twitter.com/BrodesMedia/status/1525345027941183488?s=20&t=P9Xi6n4ZBxizWEUwufIFdQ

    .

    Harper is going sooo good right now, I wonder if the club is having second thoughts about sitting him for a few days beginning Sunday to get that PRP shot in his elbow. Might as well wait for him to cool off before having him take the needle.

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73. Girardi is a massive blocker. He has helped this team lose countless games so far this season. Familia in a high leverage situation in the 9th over Morales who has been lights out in the minors and so far in the majors?? How many times is Girardi going to opt for the proven to be mediocre veteran over the hot hand high potential prospect? Middleton has to recognize what’s going on here.

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    1. I love what the lineup has been doing lately but they are not going to be able to bail out girardi every night.

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    2. This one I don’t have a problem with. Familia has closing experience and has been effective for the Phillies. That’s why he’s getting $6M.

       If Morales comes on in the 9th and gives up Turner’s 2 run HR, people would be up in arms about why Familia is in the bullpen when he was a former closer.

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74. Never in doubt, we had them all the way, both times!

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75. Phillies bats ⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆. It took a trip to the west coast, but they are “full systems go” right now. And they are getting contributions from everyone.

    Joe Girardi ⬇⬇⬇ has got to be second guessed for pulling Nick Nelson (after 18 pitches over 1.2 IP) in favor of Jeurys Familia, who has been terrible all season. Nelson was dominant, and he’s your long man. Don’t you have to bring him back out to at least start the 9th inning?

    James Norwood and Nick Nelson (and even Andrew Bellatti tonight and last night) ⬆⬆⬆⬆. Priceless.

    Hecor Neris ⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆ is absolutely dominating in Houston. He owns a 1.79 FIP, 0.533 WHIP(!), and a 616 ERA+(!!!). How good would he look coming out of the Phillies BP right about now?

    Bryce Harper ⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆ looks like the MVP again. Like I mentioned above, hard to believe they will sit him for that PRP shot while he’s this hot 🔥🔥🔥.

    Phillies defense ⬆⬆⬆ has been much better lately. Rhys Hoskins has been excellent with the glove in LA.

    The Mets ⬇⬇ have lost two of their last three, and scored just 8 runs during that span (BTW … those Mets have had one of the worst avg team EV’s in MLB. It was just a matter of time before it caught up with their run production). The Phillies have now closed to within 5.5 GB.

    Francisco Morales ⬆ welcome to the show. It wasn’t pretty, but he earned his first career save against probably the most talented lineup in MLB.

    Excitement level ⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆

    WHAT A BLOODY BALL GAME!!!!!!

    PHILLIES WIN, PHILLIES AT BEST SPLIT THE SERIES!!

    LFG!!!#RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/KMOyZWnZ6f

    — UK Phillies (@UKPhillies) May 14, 2022

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    1. How in the world would a guy who knows baseball, mention Neris, after 15 innings, i went thru 4 yrs of his heart attack pitching, i never want him back

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       1. rocco..LOL…remember catch’s name for Hector,
          ….Hector “Scare-Us’ Neris

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    2. First, Familia has been effective for the Phillies. Should he be the setup guy over Dominguez, probably not. I expect that to change. Pretty sure Familia was informed that he was going to be the closer for last night. I agree that Nick Nelson was lights out it would have been interesting if he came out for the 9th. But Familia didn’t pitch on Thursday and he has closing experience. That’s why he’s getting paid $6M. Justin Turner just hit a bad pitch. It happens.

       James Norwood is almost like another version of Neris with a batter fastball. He definitely has the stuff to be a high leverage reliever in the future. It was unfortunate that he was part of the collapse vs the Mets.

       In the end, the Phillies still won. Not sure if Knebel, Alvarado, Dominguez will be available tonight but I’m certain some of them will be. Hand/Norwood/Bellatti may not be available.

       Nick Nelson should still be available for tonight. He’s supposed to be the long man but he threw 96-97 yesterday. It was a real good call by Girardi as I thought Brogdon or Morales might have been next. Could he also be a high leverage reliever in the future. It’s possible. Great job by Nelson stepping up when the team needed him.

       It goes without saying that Suarez needs to go 6 innings+ tonight. The Phillies have had to use the bullpen a lot the last 3 wins.

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76. Rhys, back to earth……golden sombrero with one oak leaf 🍁 cluster!

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77. Listening to sports talk and reading message boards, it is 20/20 clear why athletes/coaches/GMs/owners should never listen to the fans. I tell all of my students when it comes to modern day politics, whatever is implemented 50% of the population will hate it. Girardi has been disappointing but if he was taking advice from this board he’d be trying to break into a mental hospital to get himself committed. It seems as soon as someone posts how great/bad a player is, the gods immediately make sure to have that comment look asinine.

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78. The past 2 nights I have gone to bed with us having leads and am so thankful that: 1) I went to sleep when I did 2) we found a way to battle back from blowing late leads against the best team in the NL over the past decade, at a location we have struggled mightily at.

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79. I can’t remember the last time the Phillies were this hot on a west coast trip. They are just ripping everything.

    1B was open, I was sure that Harper was going to get the intentional walk. They don’t walk him and he homers on the first pitch. It’s been crazy to watch.

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80. The worst fielding thirdbasemen in baseball history

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    1. rocco…two that recently come to mind …..Mark Reynolds and Ty Wiggington

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       1. Romus the guy cant catch a foul ball, How many has he dropped, I never remember a guy who cant catch foul ball, when he get to a ball it pops out of his glove, no range and makes bad throws to first, Hinkie can defend him all he wants, i said it before when hinkie said small sample, the guy is terrible in the field, worst i ever seen at least Reynolds could catch a pop up defending this guy is so funny, And if hinkie thinks i am exaggerating the facts, he isnt the guy i thought, he was a open minded guy ,who can see what Bohm is and not try to defend him, cause the proof is right in front of us,

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       2. Ryan Braun was also terrible at 3B iirc.

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          1. Could Ryan Braun catch a pop up, think last yr and this how many this guy misjudges, Braun could catch a pop up the guy played left field, plus he had power, did it all with the bat, this guy is not a power hitter, i laugh when they say he can play left field, He is a Dh only

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             1. Maybe first base will be Bohm’s final destination……of course going backwards into the RF foul area, could cause some issues for him.

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                1. Romus he must show power, 2 hr isnt going to do it,

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                2. yeah rocco…..power comes in all forms…ISO/SLG…..he can become a doubles machine and that will also push up his ISO and SLG%….I do not anticipate many triples from him. His 162 game projection is 26 doubles but only 11 HRs…..with an ISO of just .112 …which is not very good.
                   He would need to hit in the vicinity of 35 to 40 doubles, to have any semblance of a power bat, if HRs for him are that low.

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    2. 😲 hyperbolic post of the week.⤴

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81. Three in a row makes them go! Rhys and Bryce with 3 hits each and I love it when Harper bunts to the left side and the fat guy has to run!😂 Ranger doing the job and contributing when we needed a good start from the SP. I thought Roberts left Urias in long, but I think he was taking 1 for the team since they lost Kershaw. Get’ em again this evening, huh?

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    1. If I was the Dodgers, I would be seriously concerned about Urias. He was throwing 95+ previously and now he’s at 93-94. His SO rate has plummeted to 6.5 from 9.5. And it’s not like he’s 30, he’s still only 25. His changeup is now less effective and I think his curveball is too slow. He’s going to be a FA in 2024. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Dodgers let him walk or trade him in the offseason if this continues.

       I’m less concerned about Walker Buehler because he was still hitting 95, but his SO rate has also declined to 7.6. It’s by far the worst SO rate of his 6 year career.

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       1. Guru if you listen to Ben last night, He said they sure can find them cause today there pitcher is 25 yr old second round pick, so if Urias walks its not a problem to that organization,

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          1. Grove is not a highly touted prospect. Sure, he was a second round pick but he was having a lot of issues before he started tinkering with his throwing motion. He’s already on the 40 but he hasn’t pitched above AA.

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82. Why are people bitching about our 3b defense on this day? Our team is making a statement in venue that has given us nightmares going back to the end of our golden era. Give it a rest right now and just enjoy this west coast trip.

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    1. It’s getting to the Gabe Kapler stage. A narrative has been set, and some people are too closed minded to see beyond a narrow spectrum. The guy is having a good year w/the bat (he finds ways to contribute on an almost nightly basis), and he’s not nearly as bad defensively (minus that one three error night) as some folks believe. I’ve never sold Alec Bohm as a GG defender. But he’s good enough to make most of the plays at 3B (league avg). He’s not even the worst 3Bman in the league right now, let alone “in baseball history”. Sorry to interrupt the lazy narrative.

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       1. HINKIE the only lazy narrative is you trying to sell us on this kid and his defense, anyone who knows the game, can see he cant be a third basemen, All of your short samples all of your numbers, i could care less cause until this point i really thought you knew the game, i have changed my mind, if you cant see how bad he is, then i dont know how i could ever trust anything you say, amen to the lazy narratives and other words you throw around, Nothing personal , What i would love to know is who scouted this kid,

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          1. Drafted during Johnny Ahlmarez’s watch. MLB comp: Nick Castellanos. 2018 MLB profile says Bohm doesn’t offer much out of the batters box. Though, he has worked hard at 3B, he lacks quickness and range, his hands and arm grade out as average. Goes on to say, he’ll probably end up at 1B and has the offensive upside to provide value there.

             What they saw in 2018 is pretty much who is he today IMO. I’m in the camp he belongs on 1B.

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             1. That’s ok, rocco. I love you when we agree. I love you when we disagree. I supported you even when you got yourself in a little trouble for having some fun. You’re a good guy. Sorry you feel the way you do.

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83. Amen, Eagleye5. To all of the Bohm critics out there, please give this constant, repetitive harping about his defense – – or the lack of it – – a rest. In the words of the great Don Henley, get over it!

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84. Having trouble hitting someone they have not seen before.

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85. A good road trip but should have been great! Knebel did not have his stuff in the 9th inning. Blew a save, sorry! Not good enough!

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    1. matt..one strike away.

       I can never understand why in baseball , as opposed to basketball, when the momentum changes, why not delay the game.
       In basketball, coaches call time out to slow down the opponents ‘mo’
       After Bellinger hit that 2-strike triple….why not have the PC go out to the mound and just stand there if he has to…but delay the game a bit. Make the hitter wait, and maybe give the pitcher a little breather….especially with needing one final out.

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       1. Good point Romus. Teams do that lots of times in those situations. Big thing was just poor location on the two pitches. Not at all where Stubbs was trying to get. I just had a feeling after the 8th inning that things might end the way they did.
          But a really good week for the Phillies and let’s hope they can build from this.
          Another issue which hurt was not adding any runs when they had a chance or two to do so. Seems those always come back to bite you. But it was really close.
          I am going to look at the glass half full and go for adding to it.
          Guru…walks do kill you almost always in close games.

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    2. I’ve been saying this for years, it’s just not easy being a closer. But we’ll see what happens with Knebel. The walks are the big issue.

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       1. Listen to Ben Davis, Too many pitches, they don’t trust there stuff, Shame what a really good game Nola pitched,

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86. Are you kidding me! A 6 million dollar set up man and a ten million dollar closer and they blow this game for Nola! They should be ashamed! Damned bullpen!

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87. Lost because they left 18 on base including the bases loaded twice. Nick alone left 5 guys on. Lack of timely hitting. It happens

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88. Romus… here is one for you to research and find. I was listening to the AAA Indy game today going to pick up something for my wife. They were doing a segment on this day in history. One of the happenings was my time. May 15, 1971, Fergie Jenkins recorded his 7th complete game of the season in 8 starts. First a quiz. Fergie started 39 games that year. How many complete games? Just for me. What are the most complete games ever by a pitcher in a season? Fergie cannot be too far off with the number they game for 1971. Thanks.

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89. Francisco Morales was optioned to Lehigh. No corresponding move yet but I’m assuming that Eflin will be activated off the Covid-Il on Tuesday and start vs the Padres.

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