Balk Talk Phillies

At age 33 , Jimmy Rollins has the resume of a shortstop that most would dream for. A three time All Star, three time Gold Glove winner, MVP, and leader on a World Series winning, perennial powerhouse team in Major League Baseball. So why does he still cause so much discontention and polarization among Phillies fans? You would think the man who coined the term” The team to beat”, the man who lead the team that backed it up with 5 straight divisions, 2 World Series appearances and a World Series title would be held to the same standard as some of the cities greatest athletes of all time, but he’s not. At least not for right now. For all of the good Jimmy Rollins does, all of the clutch hits, diving stops, and bar setting predictions he’s made, there is an at bat he swung at the first pitch out of the zone on. There is a ground ball he didn’t run out, and there is a west coast style smile in a time of despair that reminds us all too well of Donovan Mcnabb. Jimmy Rollins is liked by many, loved by some, but not revered like his resume would suggest. The reason is simple, because for as good as he is, he could be better. He COULD run out ground balls and maybe occasionally beat them out. He could show us that blue collar work ethic we in Philadelphia strive for with that Rocky like hustle, but he doesn’t.  He COULD throw a bat or slam a helmet like Pat Burrell, showing us how much he lives and dies with every pitch, but he doesn’t.He could change his overly aggressive approach and become a consistent .300 hitter we know he is capable of being, but he doesn’t. Jimmy is always going to be the Jimmy HE wants to be. Years from now, we will have a a Wall of Fame ceremony for Jimmy, and his million dollar smile will bring back the greatest of memories. We will see how the positive far outweighs the negative, and how he was the straw the stirred the drink for that 2008 Phillies team that brought us a ring. We will remember that 2007 MVP season when he had a chip on his shoulder so big you could see it popping through your TV or from your seat every single night that season . For now though, we will watch the Jimmy Rollins who at 33 looks like he’s shown them all what he can do and has nothing left to prove. The funny thing about Philadelphia is there is a misconception: We don’t only love winners. We first and foremost love that under appreciated, blue collar, hard worker who put it all out there every day to prove the critics wrong. Somewhere, years from now when we are in a Phillies season that spells nothing but losing and disaster, we will learn to appreciate Jimmy just like we did with Mike Schmidt over time, but for now we will continue to mutter and complain under our breath about the “little things.” One day we will probably realize Jimmys’ greatness is both his strength and weakness. That stubborn I’ll do it my way attitude, but for now we will continue to drive ourselves crazy.

Less than an hour ago, many people around the baseball globe got word of what was happening at Safeco Park in Seattle, Washington. “King” Felix Hernandez was three outs away from perfection against the Tampa Bay Rays. There’s that moment I’m sure between the 6th and 8th inning people at work were scrambling their way to MLB.com, people at home were flipping their remote to MLB Network, and those driving were on their MLB At Bat App to follow the chase of perfection.Suddenly, we all could care less about everything else, baseball history is at stake. There is something truly special about baseball when you compare it to all other sports. What other sport would you stop on a dime to catch something totally irrelevant to your own rooting interest, your own team because it was so special? No other sport but baseball. Baseball has this history about it, this nostalgia that whether your a Phillies fan, or an Kansas City Royals fan that perfect game means something to you. All at once, all of the baseball world, even some unadmitting Tampa Bay Rays fans were rooting for history, and its totally alright. Just when baseball looks so flawed, and Melky Cabrera gets busted for PED’s earlier in the afternoon, you have that thought of how baseball is just like everything else, and it loses its’ luster for that split second. Then King Felix recaptures that magic, that moment of rediscovering how great baseball really is. Just goes to show you, whether your in a playoff race or the worst team in the league, the unpredictability of baseball makes it truly great. 20 years from now, we won’t remember that on August 15, 2012 the Mariners were terrible, or that Melky Cabera got suspended, or that the Phillies young and inexperienced bullpen pissed away a chance at a sweep. We will remember that magical moment, that split second where baseball was PERFECT. 

It seems ever since Scott Rolen left Philadelphia, the Phillies have been on a never ending quest to find his replacement. Whether it be Pedro Feliz, Abraham Nunez, Wes Helms, or Placido Polonco, the Phillies have yet to find that cornerstone Third Baseman that can offer them some stability. The Phillies could of course pick up the option on Polanco, but with his recent injury history he might break a bone in his hand signing the contract. Kevin Frandsen has impressed in his short stint at 3rd base, but to ask a career 4A player to become an everyday 3rd basemen is a bit much. That will leave Ruben Amaro Jr with his option of upgrading 3rd base either through free agency or via trade: Here are some options.

Free Agent Options at 3rd Base: 

The class of free agent Third baseman for 2013 is extremely weak, and unless the Mets have a sudden loss of brain function, they will pick up David Wright’s $16 million dollar team option. That leaves the cream of the crop free agents as Kevin Youklis, Scott Rolen, Mark Reynolds, and Brandon Inge. Yes, that list is not a joke. Outside of Youkilis, none of those names interest me into anything beyond a cheap 1 year deal, and even then I wouldn’t see 3rd base as upgraded. Marco Scutaro & Ryan Theriot would be two other names to consider, but they would be making a Polonco-like position change and clearly wouldn’t provide the pop the Phillies would be looking for from the position, and like in recent years it would be a temporary solution. Overall, an underwhelming class of possibilities here.

Trade Options

After viewing the free agent class, it definitely would leave you to believe the Phillies will likely upgrade 3rd base via trade. In receiving two new solid prospects in the Victorino/ Pence trades, the Phillies have given themselves a flexibility to move some younger farm pieces. A name to watch in any trade would be Sebastian Valle, a catcher recently promoted to AAA who with the recent acquisition of Tommy Joseph is suddenly expendable. Any trade would cause the Phillies to get quite creative, and would be expensive especially because the free agent market is so thin, but it is doable. Here are a few names to consider.

J.J. Hardy-  Yes, Hardy is having a bad year with Baltimore and is batting .233, but he is athletic enough to make the positional change from SS to 3rd, and his power is still there. Hardy just a season ago batted .269 with 30 HR’s and 89 RBI’s, and that was just in 129 games. The combination of the rise of phenom Manny Machado(a natural SS) and a deal which runs through 2014 cold make him a trade candidate.

Chase Headley- At the trade deadline this July, Headley was available. The problem was it was at the asking price of the Padres, which at the time was extremely high. Headley is a nice player, .275 avg with 18 HR’s and under relatively cheap contract control for the next few years. The big thing with Headley will be the Padres real desire to move off of their high asking price for him. If so, you can bet the Phillies will be  highly interested.

Mike Olt/ Adrian Beltre- Yes, both of these options are highly, highly unlikely but if the Rangers see Olt as a guy they need to absolutely start, it wouldn’t hurt to at the least kick the tires on what it would take to bring Beltre, a strong fielder and power bat into a home run friendly park. On the other side of that, at one time there were reports Mike Olt was available in any Cole Hamels talks before the deadline, and if Beltre is in good form Texas could at the least listen on a package for Olt. Many scouts compare Olt to a rich man’s Dan Uggla. Similar power, but with a stronger glove and a more consistent bat. It would likely take quite a haul to get Olt, but it would certainly seem to solve the Phillies plan at 3rd base for a long time. Either route the Phillies go, it will be interesting to see how RAJ approaches 3rd base. His creativity will be put to the test.

The 2012 Philadelphia Phillies have been defined by injuries, inconsistency, and unmet expectations. At times, they have looked more like the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs and less like the team that won 5 straight NL East crowns. Though as of today the Phillies sit 12 games out of a Wild Card and look closer to making tee times then to making a St. Louis Cardinals-like run into the postseason, there have been some positives to take from the past few weeks of post trade deadline baseball. 

 1. The return of Roy Halladay……As Roy Halladay. After a way below average injury plagued, velocity lost, first half for Roy Halladay, he has returned as the pitcher who the Phillies NEED to have moving forward. His last 3 starts he has looked dominant again, working the strike zone, and rediscovering his Cy Young level performance. 21 Innings pitched, 4 ER, with a K/BB ratio of 20/2. His velocity is back in the range it needs to be, and most importantly he seems to have movement and command of ALL of his pitches. If the Phillies can move forward with a healthy Roy Halladay going into 2013 along with Cole Hamels and Cliff Lee, they can certainly expect anything but another sub par repeat performance from their pitching staff.

2. Domonic Brown refined and Improved. When Dom Brown arrived on the big league scene with the Phillies in 2010, he was considered not only the Phillies best prospect, but as one of the most talented prospects in all of baseball. Many coined him as, “The next Darryl Strawberry or Ellis Burks,” but somewhere between a team with world series expectations, a missed fly ball, and a raw baseball player not ready to immediately produce on winning club Dom Brown fell out of favor by 2011. His poor outfield play along with signs of focus issues led many by the end of the 2011 season to wonder of Brown would ever find his way back to Philadelphia again. A half a season later, a more polished and focused Brown came up to the Phillies with the chance to play everyday and he hasn’t done anything but impress. His swing which at times last season looked longer than a line at Walmart on Black Friday is much improved. Along with that, his approach and ability to have a productive at bat is something that has been a breath of  fresh air to the Phillies, especially in light of the the usual Victorino, Rollins, Pence at bats we have grown accustomed to. Brown has also showed a huge improvement in the Outfield, and his further development of routes combined with a excellent arm project him to be at least a solid Major League Outfielder. To project Dom Brown as anything or comparable to anyone for the future is difficult based on his history, but he has at the least proved to the Phillies to this point that he can be a stable, cheap under control piece of their Outfield for years to come. 

3. The future “Bench Marks” of 2013…..Erik Kratz & Kevin Frandsen?

   Yes, Kevin Frandsen and Erik Kratz are proving themselves as quite valuable to the Phillies not just for this season, but even for next. The challenge for Ruben Amaro JR is finding cheap, solid, pieces that can fill out the bench and bullpen for 2013, and Frandsen & Kratz fit that bill. Kratz has always been a guy seen by most clubs as a Triple A to 4A catcher with a good rapport with pitchers and an occasional power supply offensively, but he has shown the ability this season for the Phillies to be a nice backup catcher who can spell Carlos Ruiz a break in 2013. He also has enough power to warrant at bats off the bench in certain pinch hit situations. Frandsen on the other hand has played in 12 straight games at 3B for the Phillies, and has displayed solid defensive play and a way above .300 average from the 2 hole, 7 spot, and 8 spot in the lineup. Personally, I don’t think Frandsen is someone the Phillies could look to as their 3B solution for 2013, but as an option as a versatile bench player? Sure. He could be a good situational pinch hitter who can bunt/ move runners over while also spelling a day off for Utley, or next years 3rd baseman. The value of having cheap guys such as Kratz and Frandsen in 2013 could be the financial difference between the Phillies having the extra cash for the bullpen piece they have missed duringthis season. 

Between the Internet, ESPN, and every other average Joe twitter account, our world is over saturated with opinions and analysis relating to sports, especially baseball. Everyone educated and uneducated has a theory, an opinion, a bone to pick, and definitely a soap box to stand on. Baseball is so great because their is not one perfect way to understand it. There is no flawless system of analysis, and not one person has been able to master it. Baseball’s greatness lies in its’ inability to become predictable, its ability to be so different yet so similar game in and game out. With that being said, I am writing this blog  to appreciate that greatness. I will do my best to give educated and opinionated observations of the baseball world from a Phillies perspective. I will try and focus on anything and everything that is related to the Phils, and hope to at the least cause the reader to think about things from a different perspective.  This blog is meant to be different, to take a look at things through a perspective that is not so cookie cutter that you can find it anywhere in the blogosphere. My goal is not to change anyone’s opinions, but to rather present another viewpoint or idea with which the reader can evaluate and compare to what they may already know or feel. Anyways, I am looking forward to interacting and sharing ideas on the Phillies and Major League Baseball, and hope you can appreciate my thoughts.

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