Archive for category Playoffs and World Series
Lest We Forget
Posted by Dickie Assburn in Enemies, Free Agency, General Thoughts, Playoffs and World Series on January 27th, 2010
Off-season baseball writing sucks dick. No one gives enough of a fuck to read any of it, the writers resort to talking about hypothetical signings and trades, and everyone essentially shits themselves trying to keep their job in a mostly dead market.
Well, I don’t get paid, I don’t give a fuck about ‘good journalism’, and I think hypothetical trades are stupid.
I realized today that I forgot about Ben Francisco. I also forgot about Greg Dobbs. Whenever I think about the Phillies throughout the day, I usually just think of our pitching. What I think about is pretty typical, like “why did the Phillies sign Jose Contreras?” The Phillies pitching staff is starting to look like a retirement home.
From left to right: Contreras, Moyer... and uh... I guess I exagerrated a bit
Ben Francisco went 0-for-11 during the postseason. Who does that? Honestly? I must admit that I was very surprised the Phils got as far as they did. NO ONE could hit off the bench. Francisco flat-lined, and I frequently forgot that Dobbs still played for us. Stairs was a drunken waste of a bench spot. Hopefully Gload can help us out in that department, because we really need it. When it stopped being fun to say “Ben Frann-cisss-cooo,” I decided it was time to suggest that we throw batteries at him a la J.D. Drew.
My Super Sweet 2010 Season
BTW… how is Durbin making over 2 million dollars this year? I know I wrote about this already, but come ON. He sucked!
Chase announced that he’s going to be more willing to take breaks during the season than he has been in the past. If he can do this effectively (and by that, I mean doing it to the team’s and his advantage) then I will be happy with that. Chase has a distinct history of trying to play through/hide injuries and he’s clearly a huge part of our team.
————————–
The Yankees signed Randy Winn today, who will likely spell the end of Johnny Damon’s time with the team. I think moves like these make baseball interesting from year to year. The lost Cabrera and Damon but gained Granderson and Winn. As far as offensive production, it’s a wait-and-see game this season for the Yanks. Granderson hasn’t played on teams that are as offensively gifted as the Yankees in the past, but he’s seen production similar to Damon’s over the course of his career. The difference is that he doesn’t bat in as many runs and he hasn’t been doing that for as long. The batting average is pretty inconsistent (last year it sucked), but he does have some power in his bat. I say he could top out around 82 RBIs, but I’d probably bet on less.
Offensively, I doubt they skip a beat by losing Damon. Sure – he had a good playoffs, but I don’t think he ever made/broke a team he was on. He’s always been a ‘pretty good’ player. However, I still hate that monkey-looking motherfucker about as much as I hate Pedro Feliz. I hope he signs with some shitty ass team in the AL so I don’t have to see him too much. If he and Pedro Feliz fucked, they’d make the most monkey-looking children ever created… and we all know Pedro would deliver it.
I found this on the net... it really captures how much of a bitch Pedro is
Lee: Phillies raped me blind in the woods
Posted by Dickie Assburn in Breaking News, Playoffs and World Series, Trades on December 18th, 2009
Cliff Lee had a phone convo with some ESPN guy recently and said that he and Amaro exchanged a few pleasantries over a contract extension. He says that Amaro made an offer, that he (Lee) made a counteroffer, and then Cliff went off to the mountains or something to go hunt with his buddies. His wife called him and said she heard that he might be getting traded, so Lee called Ruben and he said that it basically ‘wasn’t real’ or something like that. And then, apparently, the deal was done a day later. Cliff says he is shocked and bit hurt over all of this.
So yeah, as I said, the Phils raped Cliff Lee blind in the woods… what else could you get out of that information?
This might be the main difference to me when comparing Cliff and Doc: Halladay will DEMAND the ball on 3 days rest if we need it in the Playoffs. I know Cliff said he’d take the ball if Charlie asked him too, but I didn’t really like that. You need your ace in those moments. The Yankees used a three man rotation for a long ass time throughout the playoffs… Their three best pitchers – guys who are pretty damn good. I just would’ve liked if Lee was a vocal leader in that situation, and a guy who would’ve demanded that he pitch – something that, I believe, Halladay will be if given the chance.
That is my lone beef with Cliff Lee. He’s an amazing pitcher and he was lights out for us. I have no complaints.
John Sickels from minorleagueball.com released an updated report on who he believes the top 20 prospects are in our organization and why about an hour ago.
sup fool
1) Domonic Brown, OF, Grade B+: Borderline A-. I love this guy, but the tools aren’t quite refined yet and they need to give him a solid consolidation season in 2010, start him off in Reading and leave him there until July no matter what he does.
2) Trevor May, RHP, Grade B-: Borderline B. I love the upside with this arm as demonstrated in his K/IP and H/IP ratios, but he needs to cut back on the walks.
3) Phillipe Aumont, RHP, Grade B-: High upside arm acquired from the Mariners but I worry about his durability and mechanics.
4) J.C. Ramirez, RHP, Grade B-: Another high upside arm acquired from the Mariners. High Desert hurt his numbers. I’ve always liked him better than the numbers indicate I should, and I think a breakout is possible in 2010.
5) Anthony Gose, OF, Grade C+: Love the speed, youth, and the athleticism. Don’t like the high strikeout rate for a guy without much power. Most advanced of the uber-tools players collected in this system in recent drafts.
6) Sebastian Valle, C, Grade C+: Excellent power potential and very young, but plate discipline and defense need work.
7) Domingo Santana, OF, Grade C+: Another tools guy, excellent power production in the Gulf Coast League but plate discipline/contact could be issues. Could rank much higher next year.
8 ) Tyson Gillies, OF, Grade C+: Draws walks, steals bases with outstanding speed, good glove, fun to watch. Most of his power came at High Desert; Double-A production could raise him to a B- or even a B. Could rank as high as fifth if you want to value his polish over pure upside of Gose, Valle, and Santana.
9) Jarred Cosart, RHP, Grade C+: Live arm, good stats in limited GCL sample, negative reports about makeup are a concern but he’s young enough to outgrow that. Like Santana, could rank much higher next year.
10) Antonio Bastardo, LHP, Grade C+: I’ve liked the guy for awhile and expect him to be a good pitcher, but durability problems make it more likely as a reliever. – http://www.minorleagueball.com/2009/12/18/1207506/philadelphia-phillies-top-20
Oh, and the Phils exercised their club option on Rollins for 2011… keepin’ the rims spinnin’ on that Cadillac, I guess?
Rest assured, the Wild Card winner won’t be from the NL East
Posted by Dickie Assburn in Ballplayer Lifestyle, Breaking News, Enemies, Free Agency, Mic'd Up, NL East Reviews, Playoffs and World Series, Trades on December 4th, 2009
I hate the beginning of a new season. It reminds me a lot of this sort of scenario:
You get a new job, and you’re low down in the company. Your co-workers are douchebags, and you can’t fucking wait to get a promotion. You get a promotion, and you leave those loser co-workers behind to work at the company’s corporate offices. Eventually, you become a CEO. Life is great, and you are on top.
And then? You get caught sending dirty text messages to some slutty bitch that works with you. She sells you out, and the fiscal year is over. You are forced to start back at the bottom with a new batch of douchebag co-workers. The grueling road back to the top pains you to think about, but unless you plan on committing suicide, you’re going to have to do it.
... like she didn't want it ...
For the last two years, we have reached the promised land. We’ve brought home the goods 50% of the time. We have a pretty good track record over this time span if I don’t say so myself! However, we’re forced to text the dirty co-worker every year. Before we know it, we’re sorting through the douchebag co-workers aka the NL East, just trying to find our way back to the top.
Here is a look at the shit we’ll probably have to deal with:
Washington Nationals: Rumor has it that they might be moving Adam Dunn. Did you really think he was going to stay there? I feel like they have to have the most awkward clubhouse in the world. What do those guys talk about? I feel like Zimmerman and Dunn just sit around and talk about what they’re going to buy with their money as a sort of brotherly code of suicide watch. You CAN’T have fun playing for this fucking team. They suck dick. I don’t care what Stephen Strasburg does with his life; they will be the joke of the division for years to come.
Adam Dunn in 30 years
Florida Marlins: Cheap ass fucking team. They’re trying to move their young ace and Dan Uggla (I always thought he was a little bitch, but in all honesty, you could do way worse at second base.) You have to question how much they want to win. They’re also rumored to be hanging Ricky Nolasco out there. Nick Johnson likely won’t be re-signed, and Jeremy Hermida was traded for some random prospects. I don’t know whether they plan on keeping Hanley Ramirez or not, but if they keep pulling shit like this, he’d have to be a DUMBASS to want to stay. I give him one more year until he demands a trade.
Atlanta Braves: They just signed two of the Red Sox’s (I’m an English major and I don’t even know how you’d express that) best relievers, so they are getting better. I just question what good that’s going to do when they still haven’t addressed their need for more offense. Chipper looked like he was breaking down last year, and I’m pretty sure he might not be around for much longer. Brian McCann is good, but they have nothing else. Their pitching is great, but it was last year, too. You can’t get by without offense, no matter how good your pitching is. You win the game by outscoring opponents – if you can’t score, you can’t win. Period.
"Big fish, right?! I know! I'ma fuck it later!"
New York Mets: Are we finally at the point where, going into the season, people don’t think it’s realistic to assume that the Mets will be a contender? I think we are. The Mets are a mess – even Mets fans will admit this. They have glaring needs for starting and relief pitchers. They have no first baseman, and lack 2/3 of a credible starting outfield (and the guy in right field sucks, too.) You ideally do not want Jeff Francoeur as your right fielder, just as you ideally do not want him to be the only confirmed member of your outfield, either. The Mets and their fans are fuming over the successes of the Yankees and Phillies, and will likely address this by doing what they always do: spending a lot of money, and falling flat on their asses. Expect them to make a strong push for John Lackey and/or Holliday/Bay.
Jayson Stark of ESPN reported that there may be a three-way deal that goes down including the Mets during the Winter Meetings. This deal would send Pat Burrell to the Mets (why do they think he wouldn’t throw the season?), Luis Castillo to the Cubs, and Milton Bradley to the Rays. I really don’t want to see Pat in the enemy uniform, but he may not have a choice. Let’s hope he strikes out everytime he plays us if this goes down.
If shit goes down, does Pat wear this logo? Or did this yuppie ruin it?
If this deal did happen, the Mets would reportedly attempt to quickly sign Orlando Hudson. They wouldn’t have to give up draft picks because the moron Dodgers didn’t offer him arbitration… ugh
——————————
My point? The Phils have nothing to worry about. If we don’t surpass 100 wins, we clearly weren’t trying.
Whores and the Comments Section
Posted by WTT in Enemies, General Thoughts, Miscellaneous Rants, Playoffs and World Series on November 5th, 2009
I think it’s pretty awesome that our randomly generated ads are selling Yankees World Series Champion gear at the bottom of the page. We are a bunch of whores.
And one other passing thought this morning as I browse the sports pages on the Internet this morning…
What the Hell is wrong with people?
Okay. We are about to win the World Series. Just three more outs. Two. One. We did it! Yes! Now what do I do? Party all night? Nah. I think I’ll visit Phillies websites and ESPN.com and curse off every writer that doubted my team along the way. Yeah. That’s fucking right. That’s exactly what I’m going to do. I’ll show them.
Nobody disrespects my team. Nobody.
I submit for your viewing pleasure a Yankees fan named Chris, who has spent an unhealthy amount of time at this site lately. Chris had this to say almost immediately following the completion of last night’s game:
DO YOU LIKE PEDRO IN THIS MATCH-UP? GET THE FUCK OUT, PHILLY SHITS. YOU DIRTY, NO-CLASS, SHIT-TALKERS CAN’T BACK UP ANYTHING.
EAT OUR SHIT, PEASANTS!!!! NUMBER 27 TO NEW YORK!!
Look,each fan is entitled to enjoy their teams victory anyway they see fit. Personally, I wouldn’t have been in front of a computer if my team was in a Game 6 clincher. I would have been at the game, or at a bar. I guess some like to curse off sportswriters (even though they do not read them) at national websites in the comments section. I prefer titties and beer, but that’s just me.
Still, I want to send out a special thank you to fans like Chris. Thank you for visiting 4daysrest.com during some of the best moments of your life. That’s gotta feel good. Soak in 27 there, champ.
And trust me, Yanks fans aren’t the only ones guilty of this. Fans of all teams do this, but it’s pathetic nonetheless.
It Was One Hell of a Ride
Posted by WTT in Game Summaries, General Thoughts, Phillies Rants, Playoffs and World Series on November 5th, 2009
The Phillies flat and thorough 7-3 defeat last night was undoubtedly difficult to watch. Watching Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez fake spontaneous celebratory poses for their “candid” Sports Illustrated cover was excruciating. Just as it is still hard to accept the realization that the 2009 Phillies were short of the pace set by a team of clutch performers that were spawn out of an outrageous 192 million dollar payroll. Still, the Phillies shouldn’t cry poor (they aren’t exactly a budget bunch), nor should they hang there heads in disappointment far beyond the immediate future.
Let this be a lesson kids: You don't always get what you deserve.
We can sit here this morning and curse Pedro Martinez and Charlie Manuel’s faith in him. We can curse Ryan Howard’s incredibly disappointing six-game World Series effort. Hell, we could maybe even curse Shane Victorino’s inability to catch a line drive hit right at him. It would be hiding from the truth not to say that the Phillies spent much of this series coming up small in the biggest of spots, which is something that prior to the last week seemed unimaginable.
Still, if you look at what this team has done over the past two seasons, it’s hard for even this website to rant and rave and curse and yell “trade, cut, kill yourself” at various players. Over the past two years the Phillies have compiled 185 regular season wins, 20 postseason wins, 2 NL Championships, 1 World Series Championship, and took this city and its fans on one Hell of a joyride- one that was unbeknown to this city just 18 short months ago.
In the coming days, this fan base is going to take a beating by those 100 miles north. The truth is, there are some excellent Yankees fans out there that deserve a night like last night over and over again, but I doubt those are the ones that you are going to be hearing from. But as you are taking your beating, just keep this in mind…
I expect more of this next year.
I don’t want to wax poetic, but it’s hard not to add a little perspective to this thing. For me, personally, I’ll never forget celebratory beers being drank, and better yet, splashed around at championship celebrations in South Philly bars. And I won’t forget the hugs with strangers or jumping up and down in a group embrace with my best friends. I think that I speak for the majority of Philadelphia by saying that it’s been so much fucking fun, that while yeah, it hurts, I can’t be anything but proud of this team and thankful for what they’ve given me and everyone else over the last two years.
And, of course, while we must not take anything for granted, it doesn’t hurt to know that the Phillies are a few minor tweaks away from being right back here again. Here’s hoping. And here’s hoping it is New York.
Who’s Your Daddy?
Posted by Bay Slugga in Game Previews, General Thoughts, Playoffs and World Series on November 3rd, 2009
The matchup is set – Pedro Martinez versus a short-rested Andy Pettitte.
I like Pedro Martienz in this game because he is capable of giving the giving the Phillies a legitimate shot at winning Game 6. We aren’t talking about Jamie Moyer or Brett Myers here – Pedro is capable of controlling his emotions in front of “vicious” Yankee fans, and the guy flat out knows how to pitch.
Pedro pitched fairly well in game two of the World Series, but met his match in a dominate Burnett. The fans were basically a non-factor for Pedro, and with the price of tickets at Yankee Stadium escalating, I expect them to be quiet again.
Andy Pettitte is formidable pitcher, and the guy is on steroids great in big games – count on him being mentally ready to go toe to toe with Pedro. Lets face the facts though, shall we?
Pettitte isn’t 25 years old anymore, and there is a reason baseball teams like to give pitchers 4-5 days rest between starts. Sabathia has shown that he is capable of pitching every third day, but can Pettitte give the Yankees a quality start on short rest this late in the season? I don’t know the exact stat, but Joe Buck said that players who pitch on short rest against a player on full rest are 12-35. This isn’t Steve Carlton or Tom Seaver here people – Advantage Phillies.
Joe Girardi has been criticized for letting Burnett pitch on short rest last night, and I just don’t see how a tired Andy Pettitte can be successful tomorrow. Really, it is all about the rest.
The keys to game six are simple. The right handed hitters need to make Pettitte work, and this time around we will have Ben Fran in the order. Ryan Howard needs to give us some professional at-bats out of the cleanup spot – try and hit the ball to left, Bro.
Use this space to give your two cents about Pedro and Game Six.
