Archive for category Phillies Rants
Good Thing The Phillies Beat Florida State Because If They Didn’t They Would Definitely Suck This Year!
Posted by WTT in Minor Leagues, Phillies Rants on March 4th, 2010
Come on, admit it. You know around 8 P.M. you actually let that thought creep into your mind. The truth is, however, that tonight’s game was about as irrelevant as it gets.The Phillies regulars paraded around the field for two innings and then handed it off to the likes of Dewayne Wise and Brian Bocock (who the fuck is Brian Bocock?), so there are certainly no conclusions whatsoever that can be drawn after this game.
And besides, this year I’m going to be a man of logical and rational thinking. There’s no need to jump to conclusions; thus, let’s apply my calm and collected analysis to this initial examination of Phillippe Aumont, the newly acquired centerpiece of the Cliff Lee deal.
A calm and collected man like myself knows there’s no way that one can make any comparison between Cliff Lee and what this kid projects to be in 2012 if/when he gets to the big club. It’s insane, unfair, and completely unrealistic. Aumont will probably be an average to slightly above average Major League pitcher, so to say it was stupid to trade Lee for Aumont is ridiculous. It was about dumping salary and if Aumont materializes then that’s a bonus.
See how sane and rational I’m being?
Okay, sorry. I tried.
Nice job there, kid.
What the fuck, Phillippe Aumont?
Let’s take a look at tonight’s line from Young Phil:
3 walks, 2 hits, and 5 earned runs in…TWO-THIRDS OF A FUCKING INNING? Really?
Look, I’m not asking for this guy to go out and be Cliff Lee. I’m not evening asking for him to be Kyle Drabek, but what the the Hell? You have to give me a little bit more than that line against a fucking college team. I wonder if the task of stopping the Florida State Seminoles seemed too daunting of a task, or if the electric March atmosphere of Bright House Networks Field and its 4,192 raucous fans was simply overwhelming for the young right-hander. After the game, Aumont had this to say:
You want to get that first impression out there. And you have that small pressure that’s behind you that you got traded for Cliff Lee. You want to do good. You don’t want to disappoint, especially the fans. Fans are a big part in this. If I look at me right now, this is over. But I want to do good, just give the fans some support.
My advice? Whatever, man. Stop being a pussy and get it done.
Certainly, one shitty performance in March doesn’t hold too much weight in trying to project what this kid will be, but hopefully there was absolutely nothing about his showing tonight that’s indicative of his future with this team.
I just can’t wait until the games really count. If we don’t beat the Yankees tomorrow we’re definitely going to suck this year!
What To Expect From Roy
Posted by Even Stevens in Miscellaneous Rants, Phillies Rants, Trades on February 28th, 2010
Hey everyone! I hope you all had as good of an offseason as I did Roy Halladay did, since the fucking guy has been guaranteed 60 million dollars over the next three years to play for a World Series contender. He should be really happy about that. I’ll tell ya what – I’m even happier.
And he better be fucking great, too, because I’ve heard enough of the “but we could have kept Cliff Lee, too” talk to last me a lifetime. I would have been on board with that decision, but it is what it is, so we’ve got to get over it. Roy Halladay is here now, and Cliff Lee is just going to “have to make the best of it in Seattle.” He said it – not me. Sound bitter?
If Roy Halladay sucks even a little bit, the talk about Cliff Lee is going to annoy the shit out of me. If the Phillies are pretty good with Roy but not the NL’s dominant team in the first half of the season, the talk about Cliff Lee is also going to annoy the shit out of me. Roy Halladay needs to be great, and the Phillies need to follow suit. Now let’s talk expectations.
Often times, when a big player moves to a new team and everybody gets excited, the expectations for said player are through the roof. I’m hearing people act like it’s a given that Roy Halladay will win 20 games and have a sub-3.00 ERA. Phillies fans need to back down a little bit and give him some time to settle in before making such demands of the talented pitcher. He’ll be good for us, but we all need to take a step back and let him fall into a groove. If he can put 15-16 wins on the board and give you somewhere around a 3.5 ERA, that can’t be looked at as anything other than a greatly successful season.
I’m kidding of course. This fucking guy better sit people down more often than diarrhea. Roy Halladay has been setting the tone since pitchers and catchers reported, and his work ethic is a huge part of the reason he’s been so successful through his career. I expect that to continue, and I expect it to show. Anything less than 20 wins and I will be part of the charade of assclowns writing hate-mail to Ruben Amaro about the fuck-up of 2009. If we’re not seeing Halladay give us the 3.0 ERA that every other one of our starting pitchers is incapable of producing, I’m unhappy.
There’s a reason why people get paid at the top of their profession – in this case, $20 million a year. Ryan Howard gets paid the big bucks to hit the long ball and drive in big runs. Roy Halladay is being compensated similarly so that he can throw his heavy sinker and test our ground crew’s ability to eliminate the bad hops for Jimmy and Chase.
I’d like to say that in about 4 weeks, we’ll all watch and evaluate him together – but you and I both know that we’re going to hang on his every pitch against the Yankees in the first MLB Spring Training competition of the year. It might be insignificant to some, but 4DaysRest exists for the rest of us idiots.
The Curious Case of Chan Ho Park.
Posted by WTT in Ballplayer Lifestyle, Breaking News, Enemies, Free Agency, Phillies Rants on February 28th, 2010
The long and puzzling odyssey of Chan Ho Park’s stay in free agency ended last week when he signed with the New York Yankees. Here’s my take on this surprising development:
See, usually this would piss me off. I wanted to react with the old, “Oh, you’re too fucking good for our team? Had to take more money from the fucking YANKEES? Asshole.” But then, as I watched “1.2 million dollars” scroll across the screen I simply said, “What the fuck?”
I'm not sure if greed is a deadly sin, but if you have really stupid financial advisors and agents, then it definitely is.
For the last few months, I’ve been wondering why the Hell Chan Ho Park wasn’t a part of the Phillies’ 2010 plans. Charlie Manuel spoke about durability issues, which was uncharacteristic for the usually protective manager. Still, Park was excellent after being moved from the rotation and seemed like a logical fit for a team needing help in solidifying its bullpen. So, let’s take a look at exactly how this played out.
1. Phillies offer $3 million dollars.
2. Chan Ho Park’s people say ” no thanks.”
3. Ruben Amaro says “fuck you.”
4. Chan Ho Park’s people wait for a better offer.
5. That offer never comes.
6. Park signs with Yankees for just over $1 million.
The only thing we don’t know at this point is whether or not Park’s people called Ruben Amaro back sometime in January with contrition, offering massages, manicures, and free “happy-ending” coupons in return for that initial offer.
A special 4DR Welcome to Jose Contreras and Friends!
We do know, however, that the Phillies had moved on by the time Park had lowered his demands and now the Phillies can only hope that the additions of Dennys Baez and Jose Contreras will fill the hole left by the departure of Chan Ho Park.
And we also know that Chan Ho Park’s people fucked this one up.
A New Year, A New Cole Hamels? Only Time Will Tell.
Posted by WTT in General Thoughts, Mic'd Up, Phillies Rants on February 26th, 2010
Rich Dubee offers some Cole Hamels some feedback after today's side session.
I have to be honest with you. My writing thrives off of the anger of an unacceptable loss or the cockiness of a five-game winning streak. I usually can’t get all fired up about bullpen sessions or how Domonic Brown swung at a pitch against Roy Halladay, so I’m treating some of these first posts of the season as a bit of a spring training for myself. There are, however, some interesting stories emerging that are worth exploring. Our plan is to take a look at some of these storylines over the next few days. First up:
1. According to Rich Dubee, Cole Hamels isn’t acting like a complete pussy this year.
The initial reports out of Clearwater are that Cole Hamels seems to be leaps and bounds ahead of where he was at this time last spring (or any other spring for that matter) and that’s great. I’m sure he’s in better shape, and I’m sure Rich Dubee does in fact like what he sees so far. Additionally, Dubee had high praise of Hamels’ attitude. From Matt Gelb of The Phillies Zone:
And even when something went wrong, Hamels recovered, Dubee said. Hamels bounced a fastball to the plate and became angered — exactly what Dubee criticized Hamels for doing too much last season. But he straighted out his emotions and threw a fastball on the next pitch.
“Tremendous adjustment in his behavior,” Dubee said. “He threw a gem the next pitch.”
Well, it would certainly be nice to see that pattern continue throughout this season, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t state the obvious here. It’s all well and good that Cole Hamels isn’t having a meltdown in front of 15 people in Clearwater on February 26th, but let’s see where he’s at after he has allowed a few base runners in the 6th inning of a 3-2 game once it actually counts.
It would be foolish to believe that the 2009 version of Cole Hamels is all he will ever be for the remainder of his career. You can’t dominate the way Hamels once did purely on luck. Pitchers aren’t just “figured out” that quickly, especially ascending stars who are just entering their prime. While it’s important he gains more confidence and control of his curveball or that he implements this much talked about cutter as a fourth pitch, Hamels’ head will be what truly dictates his success, or lack thereof in 2010. This will be something worth keeping an eye on throughout the spring and into April because it should be evident rather quickly where Hamels is at mentally and, hopefully, the results meet the early-season expectations.
Jimmy Rollins Is Dialed In
Posted by WTT in General Thoughts, Phillies Rants on February 23rd, 2010
We all know that Jimmy Rollins is the man to see if you are looking for a few good quotes and a pre-season prediction or four. While Jimmy wasn’t so blunt this year, it’s obvious that he’s brimming with the same confidence that has propelled the Phillies to baseball’s elite over the past three years.
Some highlights of Rollins’ comments:
-He wants to steal 50 bases, commit no more than three errors, and collect 200 hits. Ho-hum.
-Roy Halladay is the best pitcher in the NL East. Eat shit, Johan.
-The players in the clubhouse know what it takes to succeed.
x50
Comments such as these usually appear to be hollow, but considering the success of this team over the past few years, there is no reason to believe that what Rollins says is not true. Perhaps more importantly, he sounds like a man who isn’t thinking about his early to mid-season struggles of a year ago; instead, he sounds much more like the player who owned Jonathan Broxton’s soul in October. And that’s something to feel good about.
And then there is this little gem: In response to the Phillies already picking up his 2011 option, Rollins had this to say, “That’s cool, that’s real cool.”
I don’t know what the future holds, but I’m pretty sure at no point in my life will I ever respond to the prospect of a guaranteed 8.5 million dollars as “cool”. Just sayin’.
The Importance of Setting Your Alarm For 4:45 a.m.
Posted by WTT in Ballplayer Lifestyle, General Thoughts, Phillies Rants on February 22nd, 2010
So the big story coming out of Spring Training as we make the brutally slow trek toward March is that Roy Halladay gets to the Bright House Field complex early every morning. He’s the first one there and he has a great work ethic and all of that stuff. Awesome. I’m excited to hear that. Additionally, I expect Halladay to fucking dominate this year, so how the Hell could I possibly take exception to such a story?
Well, call me skeptical (you would never!) , but I could do without the whole “Kyle Kendrick is learning so much Roy” angle. From Matt Gelb on 2/20:
“What time do you get here?” Kendrick asked Halladay.
“Oh, 5:30 or so,” Halladay said.
“OK,” Kendrick replied. “How long have you been doing that?”
“About seven or eight years,” Halladay said.
Kendrick was sold – so much so that he began beating Halladay to the complex as the first person to arrive, a distinction Halladay takes pride in holding. Halladay might have to set his 4:45 a.m. alarm earlier. He has found a new disciple.
Wow. Working harder=more success? There’s a fucking revelation.
This is what it's like to get up 4:45 a.m. in Dunedin.
I’m sorry, did it really take Roy Halladay’s presence to make Kyle Kendrick understand that, you know, it might be a good idea to arrive early in order to get in some extra work, particularly when you are a border line Major League starter and that extra work could be the difference between getting your dick sucked at the Waldorf Astoria on a trip to New York in May or taking a fucking Greyhound to play the Columbus Clippers in front of 5,000 fans who brought their fucking dogs to the ballpark? Sounds like a 15-game winner to me.
Look, I’m pulling for Kendrick this year. He’s compiled a 24-14 record in parts of three seasons and he seems, on paper, to be a better option as the fifth starter than the archaic Jamie Moyer. And maybe year four nets better results for Kendrick. Some excellent pitchers have muddled their way through a few mediocre seasons prior to turning the corner, but to imply that simply meeting is Roy Halladay is going to make all the difference for a guy who has shown average stuff while benefiting from outrageous run support during his time here seems a bit outrageous.
Something tells me that Kyle Kendrick’s morning looks very similar to something like what we see at the :11 second mark of this video.
This is one story line that we can’t wait to follow throughout the spring.