Comments on: World Series Preview: Pitching

By: Steve from NY

Steve from NY — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:36:23 +0000

Hey everyone, Yankees fan here. Have been reading your blog for a few days to get the opposing perspective. Have enjoyed the site. To weigh on on your breakdown:

The other starters – disagree with you on this one. To say that A.J. gave up 8 runs in 12.1 innings in the ALCS is distorting the facts without acknowledging individual game performance. He had a quality start in game 2, which we won, giving up 2 runs over 6 innings. He imploded in the first inning of game 5 to the tune of 4 runs, but proceeded to shut down the angels until the 7th inning, when Hughes allowed his baserunners to score. I don’t think that’s necessarily “struggling.” Meanwhile, CC and Pettitte have been excellent. Similarly, the Phillies have two starters in shut down mode in Lee and Pedro, with Blanton pitching about as well as Burnett and Hamels in some sort of funk. Bottom line: I don’t see the slight Phillies edge here. I think it’s at most a push.

Looking forward to the series. Good luck to the Phils. Cheers.

By: Chuck

Chuck — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:11:29 +0000

j reed…it IS a different animal…I just hope it hasn’t been sleeping too long since last Wednesday..

By: Chuck

Chuck — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:10:01 +0000

Philly Joe…the fans that post on this blog on a regular basis are pretty smart…..we’re not just a bunch of front-running homers…so think next time before you type a pile of horsecrap like you did. If you want to have an intellingent debate we’ll welcome you in…otherwise go visit another site and spew you stuff there..

By: j reed

j reed — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:07:15 +0000

joedad – word. Is it me or has this Phillies line-up taken itself to the next level with this RISP number. And the bullpen against all odds, has risen to the occasion. I was a doubter before the post season, but this team changed in just two post season series. Incredible….I’m all – in. Just hope Hamels wakes up and gets some life on that 4-seamer. This team is a different animal out to prove something.

By: j reed

j reed — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:55:42 +0000

The Original Chuck P. – I agree. People always forget the DH stacked stats. Offensively we actually have the advantage because of our speed. We also have better long relief. With Blanton as fall back to Pedro, I’m not worried.

Philly Joe you come onto fanbased blog and complain about bias…. really? No sh*t sherlock. Where did you read that this was an official blog? Nowhere on this blog is there anything that says their an official blog of the Phillies or MLB….do your homework before you pull that holier than thou crap around here. There’s plenty of that veiled snobbery in the commentary and forum sections on Fangraphs.

By: Georgie

Georgie — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:51:14 +0000

Philly Joe, I am not even remotely close to being a cyber whiz, but what exactly is an “official” or “unofficial” blog? Isn’t a blog just someone’s opinion? Can’t anyone start a blog? And, seriously, what do you expect to read on a blog titled Phillies Nation? Of course we’re biased, we’re Phillies fans. I try to remain logical, but if there’s a situation where it’s a close call, I’ll always give the edge to the Phils, it’s just what a good fan does.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:48:59 +0000

Thanks for those nice comments. Im just honest. You cant give us the edge on starters. Happ and Blanton have looked bad. They have not pitched well in the post season. Pedro is going up against a team that owns him. Hamels is lost. The Yankees have the best pressure pitcher in Andy. He is amazing in big games. We have our work cut out in this one.

By: joedad

joedad — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:46:26 +0000

Smoltz and Padilla were eventually smoked when it mattered. Who cares about Penny?

“Premium velocity” is not as important as EXPERIENCE in the bullpen. The best Yankees reliever doesn’t have “premium velocity”. “Premium velocity” hasn’t done much for Phil Hughes this postseason or for Ryan Madson so why does premium velocity matter?

The Phils play real baseball where the pitchers are big boys and hit. The DH adds to the stats of the Yankees so 20 more home runs and 80 more runs scored don’t mean a thing when comparing the Phils and Yankees. The Phillies are also knocking the ball with RISP this postseason while the Yankees have not.

By: The Original Chuck P

The Original Chuck P — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:07:07 +0000

Philly Joe, please help me out… what division do the Rays play in? Who won the AL Cy Young award in 2008? Since when did Phil Hughes become Cy Young? Last time he stepped on the field, he blew game 5.

Our offense is just as potent as theirs… they have a distinct advantage at the top of their lineup but we have more power (4 guys with 30+HR). Their numbers look better because they play in the AL where you have a (drum roll please) DH! So yes, the AL is different than the NL… but that doesn’t mean that we don’t match up.

It’s going to be a good series… of course there’s a little bias because it’s a Phillies blog (not an MLB blog).

By: The Original Chuck P

The Original Chuck P — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:52:58 +0000

It must be that name… Geoff, Jeff. Too many “F”s in there, I guess. They feel like the world has f’d them.