“We need to win nine out of ten.” That Bryce Harper quote and a very short, 15-second comment behind closed doors by manager Joe Girardi may have turned the Phillies’ season around. They went onto a 5-game wining streak and propelled themselves into the thick of the division and wild card races. Continue reading Open Discussion: Week of August 31st
Terrible week. Seven games in six days. Five losses sandwiched by two wins. And their most effective relief pitcher went on the Injured List after taking a line drive to the groin and suffering a testicular contusion.
The Phillies made a couple trades aimed at bolstering their “worst-in-baseball” bullpen. They added David Hale from the Yankees for Addison Russ. In the “bigger deal”, they procured Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree from the Red Sox for Nick Pivetta and Connor Seabold. They also received $815K plus a player to be named later (PTBNL).
There is always a moderate to phanatical interest among Phuture Phillies’ readers when baseball sites release prospect rankings and organizational strength rankings.
I find comparisons against other organizations by the various ranking groups very uninteresting. Each site ranks prospects by their own criteria which can differ greatly. The same can be said when they try to rank organizations. But, one thing is certain, these rankings do generate discussion among avid baseball fans. Continue reading 2021 Phillies’ Top 30
“Phillies notch first series win in mid-August.” That would be a terrible headline any other season. Fortunately, this year it just signifies mediocrity seventeen games into the season. The Phillies started the week by closing out their 4-games series against the Braves with a win on Monday, continued by dropping a 3-game series to the Orioles, and finished the week by sweeping the Mets. Continue reading Open Discussion: Week of August 17th
The Phillies are 4-6 .400, 3.5 games out of first place with 7 games in hand. They split a four-game series with the Yankees and dropped two of the first three games in a four-game series with the Braves.
This week they close out the series with the Braves, then play three-game series against the Orioles and Mets. That will end a stretch where the Phillies could have played 16 of their first 17 games in CBP.
MLB released their Top 100 Prospects’ List and their Top 30 Phillies’ Prospects List.
Four Phillies made the top 100 – #32 Alec Bohm, #37 Spencer Howard, #98 Bryson Stott, and #100 Mick Abel.
The Phillies’ Top 30 – Continue reading MLB Top 100 and Top 30, August 4, 2020
The Phillies are 1-2 .333, 2.5 games out of first place, but with 7 games in hand. They are scheduled to resume the season with 4 games against the Yankees, 2 there, 2 in CBP, then 4 games against the first-place Braves at CBP. Season on the line. In fact, if the schedule remains intact, they are at home until August 16th with the Orioles and Mets coming in for 3 games each. Continue reading Open Discussion: Week of August 3rd
The Phillies are playing intrasquad games at their Allentown location. They last about four innings and coaches are filling a lot of positions in the field. Saturday, Romero, Llovera, Parker, and Arano pitched. Sunday, the “teams” were made up of four hitters each. Coaches again had to fill in on defense. Continue reading Open Discussion: Week of July 27th
Four more days! The baseball season restarts this Thursday. The Phillies play their home opener on Friday, July 24th against the Miami Marlins.
The Phillies played three intrasquad games (winning all three) before playing scrimmages against the Nationals and Orioles over the weekend. They beat the Nationals and Max Scherzer soundly and then lost to the Orioles and Tom Eshelman. So, the Marlins will probably be a tough challenge, again. The Phillies play another scrimmage at Yankee stadium Monday night.
The countdown to the start of the Phillies’ 2020 baseball season is inside two weeks. They open at home on Friday, July 24th against their nemesis, the Miami Marlins.
The Phillies are playing intrasquad games, but will play scrimmages against the Nationals, Orioles, and Yankees on July 18-20. All at 6:05 PM, Nationals and Yankees on the road, Orioles at home. Continue reading Open Discussion: Week of July 12th
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