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19 May ' 11:54
Jimmy Rollins makes strong case for the Hall of Fame
by Scott Butler 5/19/13Jimmy Rollins scored his 1,200th run on Friday, making him the fourth player since 1921 to score at least 1,200 runs with 400 or more steals. Impressive numbers, indeed, and. . . Hall of Fame worthy??
Jimmy appeared well on his way to a place in Cooperstown after an MVP 2007 season in which he hit .296 with 30 home runs, 20 triples, 41 stolen bases, and 139 runs scored. But Rollins has not come close to replicating that season ever since and from 2009-2013 he is batting .254 with a .315 OBP.
Hard to think Hall of Fame for a player with clear deficiencies in his offensive game, but remember that Rollins plays a predominantly defensive position (we'll get into that later) and in comparison to all-time shortstops, the numbers are there.
Jimmy Rollins vs. all-time shortstops
Here is how Rollins' numbers stack up among shortstops all-time.
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18 May ' 09:50
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11 May ' 14:14
Chase Utley is having a weird season
by Scott Butler 5/11/13Chase Utley is giving the Phillies way more than they could have imagined this season. For a guy with chronic knee problems who has missed 185 games over the past three seasons, just having him on the field is a huge success. The fact that he is hitting .271 with 7 home runs, 24 RBI, and an .823 OPS is icing on the cake.
But he also has been really weird this season. Utley is a bit of an awkward dude to begin with, but his play on the field has never been weird. Utley has always been an ultra-focused player who works the count, makes great decisions, plays fairly sound defense, and runs the bases well. But not this season.
Last night was a great example. With no outs in the first inning, Utley hit a double and considered going to third before throwing on the breaks...then changing his mind and getting thrown out. He broke the cardinal rule: never make the first or third out at third base. Later in the game, he had a chance to easily throw out a runner at the plate but hurried his thrown and air mailed it to Ruiz.
Those are not the only two blunders of Utley's 2013 season.
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11 May ' 09:15
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07 May ' 21:25
What is the identity of the Phillies offense?
by Scott Butler 5/7/13Last night might have been the most complete offensive effort all season for the Phillies. While 10 hits and 6 runs is hopefully a sign of things to come, it has not been a common occurrence for the 12th ranked Phillies offense. With 33 games in the books, we should now be at the point where their personality begins to arise.
So, what is the identity of the 2013 Phillies offense? That was a fairly easy question to answer during most of the Phillies' playoff run. The Phillies would score in bunches, hit a lot of home runs, strike out frequently, and struggle with fundamental hitting.
The identity of the current offense is more difficult to pinpoint. With a couple completely new additions (Michael Young & Ben Revere), a young outfielder (Domonic Brown), and two aging stars with injury issues (Howard and Utley), it was going to take time for the offense to take shape. Last night was game number 33 of the Phillies season and they have now completed one-fifth of the season - that should be enough to give us a pretty clear picture of the hitting unit.
And the personality of this team is, well, they just look...old. They aren’t great, they aren’t awful, they are just kinda there. The offense is grasping onto enough of a semblance of talent to stay out of the statistical basement, but they don’t have enough to be even considered average.
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04 May ' 10:15
Ace is not the place for Cole Hamels
by Scott Butler 5/4/13The Phillies are 2 games under .500 and if it weren't for the Mets and Marlins, the Phillies would be 5-14 right now. There are plenty of reasons for this, but one number sticks in my mind: 1-5. That is the Phillies' record in games in which Cole Hamels has pitched.
Hamels gets a pass on a couple of these outings, but a 6-9 record was unacceptable for Cliff Lee last year and a 1-5 record is unacceptable now for Cole Hamels. Low run support might be a valid excuse for Kyle Kendrick or John Lannan, but not for the recently anointed Phillies staff ace.
That title of staff ace was bestowed upon Hamels more for signing a big contract than for his performance on the mound. As soon as he signed Colbert Michael Hamels on the dotted line of a $144 million contract he became the Phillies ace, vaulting right over Cliff Lee in the process.
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01 May ' 23:27
Phillies review: April 2013 by Scott Butler 5/1/13
Phillies April Storyline
The 2013 Phillies barely resembled the same team as the previous season on Opening Day. They had a different Opening Day starter (Cole Hamels) and only two players were on the Opening Day lineups from 2012 and 2013 (Rollins and Mayberry). What began with a sliver of excitement ended with major concerns.
Phillies April Win/Loss Totals
Record: 12-15
Home record: 6-8
Road record: 6-7
Top winning streak: 3
Top losing streak: 5
Series record: 3-4-1
Began month: --
Finished month: 12-16 - 3rd place
--5 games behind 1st place Braves & 1.5 games behind 2nd place Nationals -
29 Apr ' 20:44
Former Phils give us something to laugh about
by Scott Butler 4/29/13Feeling down about the Phillies on a miserable Monday? If you are a glass half-empty kind of guy, you might take pleasure in knowing that some former Phils are having really bad seasons. Just to give you a basis for the truly alarming numbers you are about to see, keep in mind that the league average for WHIP is 1.31 and Chad Qualls had a 1.53 WHIP last season for the Phils.
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28 Apr ' 10:01
Adding Ruiz without Aderall: what will Phillies get?
by Scott Butler 4/28/13Carlos Ruiz returns to the Phillies today and he will do so without his long lost friend Aderall. Although it might be a fun drug at parties or to cram for a big exam for college students, Aderall doesn't exactly scream baseball.
Aderall doesn't improve bat speed, it doesn't add distance on home runs, and it doesn't help players rebound quicker from injuries. But what it does provide might be the biggest benefit of all for a catcher: it improves concentration.
Think about the life of a catcher for a moment.
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28 Apr ' 05:17
2013 Phillies Win/Loss Chart
Wanna see how the Phillies are really doing this season. Follow along with the 2013 chart and be sure to check out previous seasons.
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