Phillies Nation

66 Responses to “The Big Man, J-Roll Star In 8-6 Win”

1. Phil Says:
   September 9th, 2008 at 12:30 am

   I do believe Werth is a suitable replacement for Burrell, but then we don’t have a suitable replacement for Werth.

2. Lou Says:
   September 9th, 2008 at 12:57 am

   Yeah Phil is right, if you assume Victorino and Werth are going to start then what do you have left if Burrell leaves? Maybe you just grit your teeth and hope Stairs and Jenkins (both lefties) can hold a spot down. Golson is not ready, and Dobbs is a good pinch hitter but not somebody we want starting in the outfield.

3. Rob Cowie Says:
   September 9th, 2008 at 1:18 am

   Frontrunner brothers… lol.

   The people in the office enjoyed that one as much as I did.

4. Phil Says:
   September 9th, 2008 at 1:19 am

   Maybe we will end up with Holliday?

5. PhillyFriar Says:
   September 9th, 2008 at 1:36 am

   Is that a spot where JA Happ could get a two-inning close?

   Probably, but as you pointed out the other day, Happ will probably be needed to start on Thursday.

   Which brings up another issue: for the life of me, I can’t figure out why Kendrick’s starting against the Marlins. RHB have only hit .250 off him in his career, with LHB hitting .332 — so why not hold him back to face a RHB-heavy lineup in the Brewers? Leaving Happ to throw tomorrow against a more balanced Marlins lineup, which just seems to make more sense? It would even have the added benefit of splitting up the lefties (so the Brewers wouldn’t see Happ, then Moyer, then Hamels).

   Sometimes I just can’t figure this team out.

6. R.Mac Says:
   September 9th, 2008 at 1:41 am

   Sorry to go off topic here but did anybody listen to the Broncos-Raiders game? I could listen to Mike Ditka give color commentary on anything. God bless that man.

7. Nationals#1 Says:
   September 9th, 2008 at 3:05 am

   that’s why you don’t give up on jimmy rollins

8. Craig Says:
   September 9th, 2008 at 3:32 am

   Is Charlie going to work Romero into the ground this September as he did last September?

   Give him a day off here and there Charlie!!!!

9. mikemike Says:
   September 9th, 2008 at 6:55 am

   where are all the blanton people who said he was a good pick up he stinks two of ten he reached the seventh innings He is a little better than eaton only because they haven’t seen him in the national league. Next year another eaton clone. Gillick why did you give up three prospect for this piece of shit and two are top prospects.

10. Tim Malcolm Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 8:00 am

    I thought about that, Friar, but Monday was probably Happ’s throwing day (though I don’t know for sure).

11. Ben Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 8:44 am

    interesting comment on 610 this morning regarding the rotation. the brewers apparantly have a much better winning percentage against lefties than they do against righties. why not pitch kendrick tonight, happ tomorrow, myers on thursday, moyer on friday, hamels saturday.

    that does three things, it starts two righties and two lefties against the brew crew, instead of 3 left and one right. it also starts myers off for that series, which we all know is a big series. and it matches myers with sheets, which also makes sense.

    thoughts?

12. Phil Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 9:06 am

    Ben I mentioned that the other day and noone responded to it. Manuel is too dumb to think of that though.

13. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 9:14 am

    Dude, you cant just grit your teeth and hope stairs and jenkins produce. stairs is signed through next year, so is jenkins. but stairs is signed cheaply, jenkins is not. jenkins has to go. hes horrible. if hes on this team next year ill flip.

    you need to unload jenkins and get a decent replacement. stairs and golson are your bench outfielders. burrell moves to first. howard gets traded.

14. Steve Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 9:31 am

    When the Phillies signed Joe Blanton we were supposed to ignore his terrible record and ERA because he was a supposed “innings eater” who would pitch 6 or 7 innings to give the bullpen some rest. Well, judging by the way he fits into a Phillies uniform he’s certainly been eating something, but I think it’s been Schmitter sandwiches rather than innings. If the Phillies don’t rally and catch up to the Mets (or the Brewers?), settling on a medicore-at-best Joe Blanton instead of shooting higher (just ask the Brewers and Cubs) has to be one of the bigger (no pun intended) reasons.

15. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 9:46 am

    watch the cubs come back down to earth a bit here. sitll, blanton is a 4th or 5th starter. thats all.

16. NEPA Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 9:52 am

    Here’s praying the Cubs don’t come back down to earth. They have 10 games left against the Brewers and Mets. So, they should be everyone’s second favorite team coming down the stretch. They could be huge for us.

17. Phil Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 9:55 am

    i think blanton will be fine next year. hes not mentally tough enough to get thrown into a pennant race. he also seems to have one good year then one bad then a good then a bad. hes due for a good next year

18. JMus Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 10:17 am

    i would trade blanton for another dollar dog day.. i havent seen him dominate yet

19. NEPA Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 10:27 am

    Blanton dominated one game. Throwing 7 scoreless while only giving up like 2 hits – though it was against Pittsburgh. Plus, no offense for 12 innings combined with Vic getting doubled off first to end the game, we still lost the game anyways.

20. Justin Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 10:32 am

    He’s not a dominating pitcher, i’ve seen or read nowhere that Blanton was ever a dominating presence. Every pitcher when they’re on their A game yea they can be dominate but Blanton is more of a finesse pitcher in the way Jamie Moyer is, he doesn’t blow anyone away and he’s more of a pitcher that will try to get people to ground out to get outs rather then go for the Ks. The one thing that has been good about what he brings to the team is the fact that he doesn’t allow baserunners to steal, he’s one of the hardest pitchers to steal bags off of.

21. NEPA Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 10:33 am

    Key there though – “it was against Pittsburgh”

22. Phil Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 10:46 am

    He had a stellar performance against the Cards too.

23. Gabriel Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 10:47 am

    HAHAH ‘frontrunner brothers’ – gold.
    950 ESPN is calling mets fans and heckling them! hahah
    ‘You’re a mets fan? well i just wanted to let you know that you dont have to clear out your calender for october because you’re gonna choke again!’
    wow 950 destroys 610…
    moving myers to face off against sheets is easily the right move to make, i’ll take him over cole-bert in a game 1 for the playoffs (getting too far ahead of myself?)

24. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 10:48 am

    hes dominated a few times, but never consistenly

25. Phil Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 10:54 am

    I’d take Myers over any pitcher in the NL right now other than Sabathia.

26. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 10:58 am

    myers has been on fire. we all knew hes capable of this. he just had to work it out on his own. AWAY FROM RICH DUBEE AND THOSE TRAINERS

27. Phil Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 11:10 am

    If Myers pitches this well next year he will be in the Cy Young talks. He is just disgusting now, and I hope he is this good next year.

28. Phil Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 11:12 am

    And I’ve been saying it all along that Myers has better stuff than Hamels, it’s just that Hamels is a more confident and cocky pitcher. I didn’t think Myers stint in the minors would 100% fix him just make him serviceable. He has come back with the swagger he needs to be a dominant ace. I’m hoping he pitches this well next year and the Phillies give him a contract extension. Myers/Hamels can be one of the best 1-2 punches in baseball for years to come.

29. Gabriel Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 11:27 am

    agreed with the 1-2 punch myers/hamels (in that order).
    if we can snag a plus pitcher this offseason (plus meaning non-blanton/eaton) then for once in the past decade our pitching will be the focus…
    imagine if we kept lohse? if our jewish FO would have ponied up
    no offense jews, my mom converted, barucha ta

30. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 11:32 am

    yeah myers is the man here when he wants to be, no doubt. get me another guy in there to push BOTH of them and ill be happy. someone to push hamels and threaten to take the 2 spot or threaten to take the 1 spot from myers/hamels. kendrick is the odd man out assuming moyer keeps pitching after this year.

31. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 11:32 am

    Geoff… please, STOP about the god damn trainers.. WTF are you even talking about??

    Golson should in no way be part of a platoon next year, if they do that, they’ll waste him like they did Michael Bourn… Let Golson continue to develop in the minors for another year or two. How anyone would want Burrell over Howard for the same amount of money is beyond me at this point.. Burrell started the year GREAT and has steadily declined since then. replacing Howard with Burrell at 1st will in no way help this team.

    I’m a big fan of Myers pitching when he is normally scheduled to pitch instead of moving him back a day to face Sheets… You gotta beat everyteam that you play, starting with these next two games against the Marlins.. Volstad was NASTY last time we faced them, and Nolasco threw what Bill James called the “2nd best pitching performance of the year” with his CP- shutout, 2 hits, 1 BB, 11 strikeouts vs. the Giants last month.

    You have NO IDEA what you get from Kendrick tonight, so if we lose tonight, we’ll need that strong performance from Myers to win the series… one game at a time, and you don’t start going crazy with pitchers yet because you still have a bunch of series to go

32. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 11:36 am

    Im just SO GLAD that the GM didn’t listen to all the fans and put Myers into the bullpen setup role, and try to trade him at the deadline like people wanted him to

33. DD Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 11:42 am

    Myers has great stuff. Always has. Up til now, his mental makeup was the question. Hopefully, he is maturing into a major league stud pitcher. Let’s remember that a guy like Curt Schilling didn’t really start to pitch well until he approached 30 years old.

34. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 11:53 am

    and how is golson going to develop STRIKING OUT in the minors? they alreayd blew their chance to trade him to a team taht wanted him when they nixed the AJ Burnett trade. imagine aj burnett WITH a healthy and fixed brett myers and cole hamels. they might actually have a chance to get to the world series with that rotation.

    kendrick has got to get it together. his ass is on the line tonight. we have enough young pitchers coming up behind kendrick that if he loses his spot in the rotation YOU WILL SEE HIM TRADED in the offseason.

    meanwhile, instead of letting greg golson LEARN HOW TO BE A PROFESSIONAL you want to send him down to reading to STRIKE OUT A FEW HUNDRED MORE TIMES!

35. Matt Kwasiborski Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 12:01 pm

    Where is your source that the Phils turned down AJ Burnett for Golson, Geoff. I missed that one.

    Phils need to sweep this series going into the Brewers series!

36. mikemike Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 12:03 pm

    Blanton can’t be in the rotation next season. It’s now two of eleven that he has got to the seventh inning. So many people tried to say he was a good starter and inning eator.The guy stinks a ton of hits he is nothing we must be able to get him to a team like pittsburg because he is sign cheap

37. Gabriel Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 12:05 pm

    putting together a great team (either at deadline or offseason) is a daunting task. however, look at two other philly teams who have turned it around quickly – flyers/sixers. the phils are on the cusp here, we dont need an overhaul, just a few pieces really. FO didn’t get it done, i dont know if its laziness, greed, or whatever. we still have a shot with what we have but if we did get a consistent 3 then we’d be up on the mets by at least 4 games right now.

38. DD Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 12:12 pm

    Kendrick is what he is. He has done a good job for the pitcher he is but he really has no stuff and no pedigree. He cannot be in the rotation in 09. The phils need better there. I just hope he has something tonight and we can score him some runs. He really needs to keep his rhythm, especially when there are men on base.

39. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 12:17 pm

    Where can we all read about the nixed deal for Burnett? He has a pretty good contract right.. if he pitches shitty, he would stay on for next year too at like $12 M… or if he pitched well, he would have opted-out to go sign somewhere else for a ton of money. Ours fans wouldn’t have flipped out at all if that happend..

    Golson is like 23 years old, and got called up because he’s fast… and thats it… and if you’re right, and he’s going to STRIKE OUT A COUPLE HUNDRED MORE TIMES… wouldn’t we rather that be at Reading or Allentown, not here in big leagues??

40. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 12:20 pm

    Kendrick did a nice job last year, and a couple times this year… but he should be a #5 or a spot-starter at best. I think everyone is ready to see what HAPP can do on a regular basis, since he seems to have much more upside than Kendrick.

41. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 12:35 pm

    it was openly reported by ken rosenthal, go find it yourself.

    for golson, up here, as a 5th outfielder, you WORK him into the lineup and use his tools. you get him at bats and let him grow into being a professional. you GET HIS CONFIDENCE UP. then when he goes and STRIKES OUT A FEW HUNDRED MORE TIMES, nobody will want him up here anymore and teams wont want to have him in a trade. nice strategy there.

    kendrick flamed out. he has to go retool himself i think. JA Happ has much more upside.

42. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 12:58 pm

    I honestly can’t even follow what I think you’re trying to say..

    are you saying that Golson will develop more as our 5th outfielder than he will by staying in the minors and playing everyday?

    and that staying in the minors and playing everyday isn’t smart because he’ll strikeout too much down there?…….but that he would build confidence by getting random at-bats against major league on an inconsistent basis?

43. Bruce Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 1:03 pm

    Kendrick has a 9.14 ERA in his last 5 starts. Tonight’s game (weather permitting) is his moment of truth with Happ on standby if needed. Will Kendrick be more aggressive as pitching coach, Rich Dubee demanded? Will he pitch to contact or be too fine? Will he mix in more his change-up to go with his sinker/fastball? Stay tune for tonight.

44. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 1:09 pm

    On July 12th… Headline Reads “Toronto Blue Jays: A.J. Burnett Probably Staying Put”
    …
    A.J. Burnett is drawing a lot of interest as we approach the trade deadline.

    He can opt out of his contract at the end of the season and will likely do that to get out of Toronto and closer to his family.
    At the moment, the Phillies make the most sense because they need a pitcher and he would be close to home.

    However, he is 9-8 with a 5.23 ERA and has $24 million left on his contract. It would be hard for any team to take that on for two months.

    The Cardinals seem like a team that could take a chance if they were willing to sign him long-term, but GM John Mozeliak seems more interested in going after a power hitter.

    http://bleacherreport.com/articles/37069-toronto-blue-jays-aj-burnett-probably-staying-put#

45. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 1:12 pm

    Associated Press

    July 28, 2008 at 6:42 PM EDT

    TORONTO — Pitcher A.J. Burnett will be sticking with the Toronto Blue Jays.

    Asked whether the Blue Jays would deal Burnett before Thursday’s trade deadline, general manager J.P. Ricciardi was emphatic.

    “He’s not going anywhere,” Ricciardi said before Burnett pitched Monday against Tampa Bay.

    Burnett is in the third year of a five-year, $55 million contract. He can opt out of the deal after this season.

    Burnett took an 11-9 record and 4.73 ERA into his start against the Rays. The righty won a career-high 12 games with Florida in 2002 and matched that total in 2005.

    http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080728.wsptburnett28/BNStory/GlobeSports

46. Gabriel Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 1:26 pm

    Burnett is still better than adam blanton or joe eaton

47. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 1:38 pm

    right… but the Phillies didn’t NIX a trade for Burnett because they wouldn’t give up Golson..

    They wouldn’t give up Carrasco or Marson, and everyone else was fair game. the early reports that the Blue Jays would do a deal involving Jason Donald and Greg Golson weren’t true, which is why a deal wouldn’t get done

    and Burnett’s deal is so bad that no team wanted to get him mid-season because if he did well, he’s leave.. and if he did crappy, you were stuck with his contract for next year..

48. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 1:48 pm

    right but they still need to trade jimmy rollins and ryan howard. and fire rich dubee. and trade for ryan howard just so they can trade him away again, and fire the trainers, and the team physician, and cole hamels’ chiropractor, and wheeler.

49. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 1:49 pm

    and the guy that makes those fake grilled hot dogs in the upper deck. they suck. they need to promote whosever idea it was to start dollar dog night.

50. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 1:53 pm

    what about Greg Golson??

51. Richie Allen Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 1:55 pm

    Sometime up in the blog,,Geoff said trade Howard and put Burrell on first..
    Now that Howard is hitting,JRoll is hitting..and Burrell CANT HIT ANYTHING..
    The logic of that move escapes me..

52. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:10 pm

    look at long term value. burrell can provide consistent numbers for 2-3 more years at first base. howard is under team control so in order to beef up other areas of your team you have to move him . but move him for a puropose not just to do it. not a salary dump i mean.

53. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:14 pm

    greg golson should be the 4th or 5th outfielder. he has some value playing a role until someone can teach him how to hit. keep him away from those trainers and he MIGHT, repeat, MIGHT turn out ok.

54. Richie Allen Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:15 pm

    Geoff…even though your logic escapes me ..its allright…maybe its just me…,I know you are a true Philly fan …
    I even like the trade JRoll ongoing stuff…
    But are you serious about trading Howard ?and putting a rookie or rookies into the lineup next year.
    It just seems like everyone was bitching around the trade deadline that we couldnt put an all star at every position.
    We cant get rid of all star caliber players for rookies now…

55. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:20 pm

    So your rant before about Golson would strike out so much at the minor league levels that it would hurt his development, so instead lets use him randomly at the highest level, against better pitching, and hope that he turns out ok?? You BAFFLE me on a regular basis

56. christopher Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:25 pm

    i’m convinced that geoff isn’t even a logical, thinking human being, but a computer program created by mets fans to constantly spout the most random and ridiculous ideas of how to improve the phillies.

    the bitching about blanton is beyond pointless. the phillies have been six and four in his starts. is he great? no, he’s decent though. he’s going to have rough starts but the phillies will win more than they’ll lose with him, which is infinitely better than you could say for eaton. (also we never “signed” blanton, for whatever dope came up with that criticism) would sabathia or harden or even burnett be better? obviously to the first two, probably to the latter, but the price tag on all three was too high. people have to remember the phillies are still a young team and building for the future is just as important for them as going for it here and now. the guys we gave up for blanton were NOT top prospects. cardenas is a good prospect but at best will probably amount to a solid mlb level 2nd baseman. josh outman?? here’s josh outman’s line from yesterday’s As game: 2.1 IP 4H 3ER 1K 1HR. DOMINATING!

57. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:30 pm

    use him as a defensive replacement, spot player at first to get him confident in his abilities and work him into the lineup. tahts how you develop someone who has the talent to succeed but not the makeup quite yet .

    not every prospect can just come up and win the mvp award like ryan howard.

58. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:31 pm

    im not bitching about blanton. he is what he is, a 4th/5th type guy whos fine at the back of yoru rotation. sure hes a third now, but whne you trade jimmy rollins and ryan howard maybe he becomes a 4??

59. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:32 pm

    my logic is beyond that which most humans can understand….

60. J-Man Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:33 pm

    Let Pat Burrell go and work out a trade with the Rockies for Matt Holliday…I like Pat and all but he’s looking for another 5 year contract and do we really wanna be stuck with him sucking for another 5 years.

61. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:34 pm

    I’m ALL for people thinking outside the box… as long as you stick around to defend your opinions. . .

    And if you actually think something, stick with it, and if someone calls you out on something.. man-up and say you were wrong and someone else was right….

    I’ve OFTEN been criticized on here, BUT.. at the same time, most people that read this on a regular basis know that I know what I’m talking about, and that I’d rather stay positive about this team instead of bash them.

    That being said, I’m glad geoff writes on here a lot because it keeps conversations going.. me and him don’t often agree. but in the end, everyone just wants this team to win.

62. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:35 pm

    PERFECT…

    “people have to remember the phillies are still a young team and building for the future is just as important for them as going for it here and now.”

    That is seriously a GREAT way to put this organization.. well said !!!

63. Don M Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 2:38 pm

    I just think that trying to DEVELOP Golson at the top-stage of baseball will kill his confidence, and his development will actually go backwards.

    Let the kid play everyday, and if he shows that he can contribute at this level, then you bring him up. but he clearly could use more conditioning… he’s an above average player at AA.. so challenge him some more at AAA and then see what you have.

64. christopher Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 3:04 pm

    geoff wasn’t talking about you re blanton, just the other stuff you’ve been saying. the blanton stuff was earlier in the responses.

65. Gabriel Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 3:15 pm

    how young is this team really? i know the window for baseball isn’t as small as it is for say, football but… isn’t this it? aren’t we prime to shoot the moon here? we’re 1 for 125 so far… i dont wanna get in the ChiCubs theory of, “there’s always next year” do you? even they have gotten sick of it and went out to spend money (the right way)… truth is our FO spends a good deal of money, enough to win a series but… and this is a j-lo sized but… we can never assemble the right pieces!

66. Geoff Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 3:26 pm

    yes, winning. this teams pretty old actually. theyre not ancient yet, but theyre a little old.

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