On August 16th the Phillies played a double header against the Mets, and to say that they started it off on the wrong foot would be an understatement. The "game" (scare quotes intended) was outlandish in many ways. Here are ten of them: The Phillies lost by 20 runs. It's only the third time they've … Continue reading Week 21: Ten Things About A Trouncing
Rhys "The Beast" Hoskins has had a roller coaster of a season. After a stretch in which he was arguably the best hitter in baseball, it seemed like the only thing he could hit was the skids. The days turned to weeks and still there was no end in sight for the slump. Adding injury … Continue reading Week 11 and 12: The Return of the Beast
You cannot deny him. Once the subject of derision, Carlos Santana is now the team's hottest hitter (picking up the slack for a suddenly slumping slugger in Left). After bottoming out at a .532 OPS on April 18th, he's put up a .908 OPS to bring his season total into respectable territory. Such a drastic … Continue reading Week 7: Was Carlos Santana Walking Too Much?
Every time J.P. Crawford strikes out or makes an error, a chorus cries out. "This wouldn't have happened if Freddy was still here!" "Freddy was a defensive wizard. They should have held onto him." "J.P. isn't ready, Klentak and his analytics got this one wrong!" If you count yourself among these people, please - stop … Continue reading Week 6: Stop Missing Freddy Galvis
It's opening day! The time for untethered optimism. The roster is set - and with the majority of the roster un-previewed, let's do a quick run-down of everyone who made it. Phans, this is your team! Infield J.P. Crawford - Shortstop of the future, and the future is now. His plate discipline is as good … Continue reading Phillies 2018 Preview: Opening Day Roster
Entering the season, there were several reasons to believe that the Phillies could play competent baseball. Not competitive, not contemptuous, but competent. Tommy Joseph's 2016 debut had been encouraging. Maikel Franco was coming off a down year, but the underlying numbers and his 2015 performance pointed to a potential rebound. Between that and the promising … Continue reading Week 25 Recap: The Phillies Are Already Better.
The baseball season is long, made interminable by an onslaught of demoralizing defeats. In that way, the Phillies season has been longer than that of any other team. While its hard to ever shake the feeling that wins and losses are what matter (and they are), it's important to celebrate the victories that won't show … Continue reading Weeks 20, 21, 22, 23 Recaps: Rhys “The Beast” Hoskins
With all the Judge-mania (there has to be a better name for it than that), Giancarlo Stanton's own offensive exploits have been a bit overshadowed, but as of this post he's tied with Judge for the league lead with a 32 home runs. His strong year has - predictably - resulted in some interesting (albeit … Continue reading Week 16 Recap: Giancarlo Stanton in Philly?
The 2017 season began promisingly enough - 11 wins in their first 20 games was the team's best start since 2011. Amid the growing optimism, I still believed the Phillies would end up with a win total in the 70's, but it looked like they could finish closer to 80 wins than 70. The team … Continue reading Week 11 Recap: First Overall Pick, Here We Come
This offseason, as I looked at the lineup, there were several players more deserving of optimism than others. Among the recipients of my heightened expectations was Tommy Joseph, catching prospect turned major league first baseman. I wrote that he could "easily crest 30 home runs", based on his 21 homers in only 347 PA (which … Continue reading Week 7 Recap: Tommy Joseph Strikes Back
