Phillies Nation

78 Responses to “Odds And Ends: Lee’s Option Picked Up”

1. Ed R. Says:
   November 6th, 2009 at 3:39 pm

   I believe it was a $9 Million on Lee.

2. Amanda Orr Says:
   November 6th, 2009 at 3:51 pm

   Yeah, the Phillies homepage originally said 8, but its 9. Thanks.

3. Sherry W Says:
   November 6th, 2009 at 3:51 pm

   Good luck @ the doctor’s Scotty, Raul and Brad. I hope they heal quickly while on break.

4. Adam S Says:
   November 6th, 2009 at 4:48 pm

   Glad we are keeping Cliff, He is a huge asset to this team.

5. D_Bloc Says:
   November 6th, 2009 at 4:52 pm

   It’s obvious that Chone Figgins is a huge upgrade at the plate. But how much will we compromise on Defense if we can bring him in?

   Out of curiosity, I checked out both of Feilz and Figgins’ fielding stats for 2009. Looks pretty much identical to me. You decide:

   RK PLAYER GP TC PO A E DP FPCT
   08 Chone Figgins 154 437 109 314 14 38 .968

   RK PLAYER GP TC PO A E DP FPCT
   11 Pedro Feliz 155 437 110 312 15 35 .966

   I know it’s only one year but Figgins is 3 years younger than Feliz and can only get better.

   http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/fielding/_/position/3b/order/true

6. Ed R. Says:
   November 6th, 2009 at 5:02 pm

   Anyone else see Bloomberg take a shot at J-Roll at the parade today? Saying he wanted to give the Phillies, namely J-Roll a gift, a new crystal ball.

   Now if a player had said that, someone who actually had an impact on the series I might have been ok with it, but the mayor? Dude did nothing.

   Yet again, why I hate NY.

   Though, I really do hope J-Roll learns and keeps his mouth shut because the predictions are so old.

7. psujoe Says:
   November 6th, 2009 at 5:17 pm

   Figgins is a switch hitter that kills righties, but is pretty bad against lefties. Not exactly what the Phillies need.

8. psujoe Says:
   November 6th, 2009 at 5:29 pm

   Unfortunately for the Phils their going to have to add and add big if the Yankees pay the big bucks for Aroldis Chapman. Which of course they probably will.

9. Grateful Yankee Fan Says:
   November 6th, 2009 at 5:29 pm

   Just got home from the parade. Thought I’d thank you all for a great day. If a team that coud perform decently got into the World Series, today might never have happened…

   And, dude, no one here did anything for the Phils but you’ll all talk crap about everyone else so that shot at NY’s mayor was weak. Nice that you know who our mayor is, though. I could trip over Philadelphia’s mayor and I wouldn’t know who he was.

   Seriously, its ok if you hate NY. The fact that you have to take time to think abou NY’ers means we win. Other than during the Phillies’ presence in the World Series and when we feel like watching Rocky movies, we forget Philadelphia and all of your sorry asses are even part of the country.

10. Phils fan in NYC Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 5:30 pm

    Meh, no one cares what bloomberg has to say in this city… especially when it comes to baseball. If the democrats hadn’t allowed such a shithead to run against him, he wouldn’t have even been there today at all.

11. Phils fan in NYC Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 5:32 pm

    and i know we are all hating on feliz right now… but there’s that defense, hitting howard in the chest on every throw… and he knocked in 80 rbis this season. It does pain me to watch him swing at the first pitch and kill an at bat or an inning, but where did those 80 rbis come from? he had to do something right this season.

12. Jeff Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 5:46 pm

    Bloomberg is garbage and almost got beat out by a nobody. he made sure that plex would go to jail. he is trash as a mayor. poor yankees had to go out and buy the two top pitchers and first basemen. maybe dig up babe and sign him. there fans are garbage and when mo retires they will never be heard from again.

13. Keith Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 5:54 pm

    can we please have accounts before next season starts? it’ll be nice to not have the random trolls that think they’re funny.

    150 days until the 2010 season starts!

14. Grateful Yankee Fan Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 6:02 pm

    Oh… there’s that “buy the championship” whine again.

    Here’s the formula:

    A. Make money
    B. Invest it in the team
    C. Repeat as necessary.

    If you can’t do A, won’t do B or fall short on C, TOUGH! Stop whining. If buying a championship was possible, the Yankees would win every year… against the Mets (lately, anyway). Look what their high price tag got them for the last 3 years.

    No one was felt llike you bought your 2008 title… or did you conveniently forget to compare the Phillies salary to the Rays?

15. Grateful Yankee Fan Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 6:05 pm

    BTW, so I’m not a complete troll, keeping Lee was a great move for the Phils.

    Of course, it was as insightful as drinking when you’re thirsty but, considering the boneheaded moves made by Charlie Manuel, you shouldn’t take even that level of intelligence for granted.

16. george Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 6:07 pm

    get adrian beltre to play 3b…he’s just as good as feliz on defense and he’s a huge upgrade with the bat and if you put him in the phillies lineup and in cbp,he’ll be great…we need another right handed hitter we can rely on because them yankees leftys hurt the leftys utley (expect sabathia),howard and ibanez…

17. Keith Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 6:10 pm

    is Beltre faster than Feliz?

18. George Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 6:13 pm

    I agree with Keith, although there’s no reason a troll can’t get an account. Really, some moderating should be done. Trolls are easy to spot, and could easily have their posts removed.

    Feliz’s option will only be picked up if the front office decides they can’t afford better. The available free agent talent isn’t going to be cheap. Even if Pedro is let go, he might command more than 5.5 million as a free agent. Most teams would love to have a third baseman who can field so well and still drive in runs. It’s a small window here–one week, I think. That’s awfully quick to decide what the options and the costs might be, and I don’t envy Amaro.

19. george Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 6:19 pm

    just get someone else besides feliz…as for the pitching they gotta find another starter with myers going and i don’t see pedro being brought back and get some more arms in the bullpen.

20. psujoe Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 6:53 pm

    Feliz isn’t the problem, IMO. If you can upgrade without breaking the bank in $$$$ or players then fine. Phils need another top end starter and some depth so players can get a rest. It was clear they were exhausted down the stretch.

21. george Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 7:22 pm

    where do you guys think myers will go?i wouldn’t be surpised to see him and astro with ed wade being there and they neeed pitching there…as for the phils pitching staff,yes they need another reliable starter…i think they should be in the ben sheets rich harden talks,yes both are injury prone,but are high risk high reward if you sign them you know.

22. george Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 7:23 pm

    *an

23. george Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 7:24 pm

    *an.

24. george Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 7:26 pm

    my fault about the double post.

25. Jeff Dowder Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 7:29 pm

    Feliz isn’t a problem, but that’s a position that can be upgraded with a high OBP guy (Figgins) to make the lineup work better. I love Jimmy Rollins, but he’s never been and will never be a leadoff hitter. His poor pitch selection, inability to work a count, and insistence of swinging for the fences in every AB hurts the lineup more than helps it. His ONLY concern batting leadoff should be getting on base and setting the table for the big guys. His OBP was probably the lowest of any big league leadoff hitter. The Yankees first two hitters consistently got on base in the WS and Rollins & Victorino were invisible. The majority of the Phillies WS HRs were solo shots. The Yankees or already talking about making a run at Matt Holliday…why can’t the Phillies at least consider Figgins? They have a ton of dead weight coming off the books, they’ll probably have 81 sellouts next year, and you can bet there will be a ticket price increase announced in the upcoming weeks.

26. Jeff of Nova Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 7:35 pm

    Everyone forgets that the Phillies had one of the highest payrolls as well this year. Will be higher if they want to tie up Vic, Werth and Lee Long term

27. Zachary Hibbard Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 8:19 pm

    Eaton, Feliz, Myers and Jenkins are all coming off the payroll this year.. Thats 34 million off of it, and with the last run to the world series we should have some spending room.

28. psujoe Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 8:29 pm

    Contract increases and decreases. For purposes of discussion assume FA likes Park, Durbin et al are resigned for even money. Existing bumps in salary including Lee’s 9 million add up to $29 million. Decreases add up to 28.00 plus whatever we owed Thome. So this years payroll will exceed last years without adding new pieces. I still think we need another top end pitcher. Halladay would prefer the Phils, IMO.

    Myers -12
    Eaton – 9
    Jenkins – 7

    Howard +4
    Utley +4
    Rollins +0
    Feliz +0
    Ibanez +5
    Victorino unknown increase
    Werth +5
    Ruiz unknown increase
    Hamels +2
    Lee +9
    Blantan unknown increase
    Happ unknown increase

29. George Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 8:53 pm

    Sheets and Harden are high risk high reward, but also probablyhigh dollars in a thin market. Hamels has more upside, despite a mediocre season. Everyone seems to think 2008 was his only good year, but 2007 he was 15-5, and his rookie year he was above .500. He’s won 48 games in three plus years, and although he’s sometimes had injuries, his DL stints are not even close to Harden’s, or the fast aging Sheets.

    The Phils can’t sign Halliday, because he’s not a free agent this year, and even without Ricciardi’s ridiculous demands he’d cost too much in a trade.

    Even with home game sellouts, payrolls have limits. You can’t sign or trade for everybody. Even the moneyed Yanks don’t have all-stars at every position.

30. Ed R. Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 9:27 pm

    I heard the Rockies did not exercise Yorvit Torrealba’s option. I’d take him as a back up

31. Jeff Dowder Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 9:43 pm

    Myers -12M
    Eaton – 9M
    Jenkins – 7M
    Thome – 3M
    Feliz -3.5M (They’ll owe him $2M for not picking up his option ($5.5M))
    Stairs -1M

    Which is $35.5M off the books in 2010 and Moyer’s $8M goes away in 2011.

    There’s also no reason why the payroll needs to remain the same as 2009. There’s a window of opportunity with this nucleus for the next two seasons, it would be a shame to waste it by not being agressive.

32. shag beta sigma delta Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 10:22 pm

    IMO you pick up Feliz option, he had a bad post season, but taking his defense into account he was servicable at the plate. He pats 7 for chirst sake. Spend the money on bench and bull pen help, If Eyre does not come back you need a lefty out there. There is no reason to break this lineup up, offensivly they will be fine. I think Hamels will come back stronger than 08 because now he will have something to prove.
    Lee Hamels, Blanton Happ. #5 starter Drabek? or someone else Kendrick? Or pick up a 5th starter somewhere. Francisco will be a decent RH bat off bench and 5 outfielder to give Raul, Jayson, and Vic some rest. would be nice to upgrade from Bruntlett so Chase and JRoll and Feliz can also get some rest. They need a back end pitcher, Happ is just going to get better, and Big Joe is a great #4 guy.
    I know they are not the sixers but do not fix what is not broken, when the Sixers lost to the Lakers back AI’s day, they tore the team apart and have never recovered.
    The Phillies have a stacked line up, offense is not the problem. Plus isn’t their two outfielders almost ready for prime time already in the system.

33. shag beta sigma delta Says:
    November 6th, 2009 at 10:29 pm

    Also JRoll will lead off next year, he is our lead off hitter and had a down year, I think the world baseball classic had something to do with it. He like Cole will have something to prove next year. Be aggressive in pitching, pitching and Pitching, both starter and pen help. Lidge too, though he might not be perfect like 08 he will be far better than 09. He was definatly hurt, IMO you tweek things a little but do not mess with the core of this team, and that is the entire infield, and out field. I say you pick up Feliz option, and look for a 3rd basemen that is a year or two away, and put him in AA or AAA and bring him up through the system.
    That is how you make a long term winning team

34. j reed Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 1:15 am

    The only coach who don’t deserve accolades in Dubee. After watching Pedro struggle with his fastball and laboring on the mound, I want to know how this couldn’t have been seen beforehand by the Great Dubee. That was a serious drop in performance esp with 5 days rest. Pedro looked like an engine that blew a gasket. While I thought he desevered the start, it obvious that he shouldn’t have been out there. A good pitching coach should be able to see thru a pitcher’s BS esp one at 38 and with his injury history. It was great to have a legend like him pitch on this team. He gave quite a few good shows . It ’s to bad he couldn’t avenge himself against the Yankees. I’ve never liked Dubee but everyone got a free pass for the most part after the ‘08 season. The list of why I think he should go is too long to bother right now. But this last stint was the final straw. We could have easily gone Hamels, but I guess that violates his 5 days rest policy and then Blanton/ all hands on deck for a game seven. I don’t think this would have affected the outcome of the series but at least I wouldn’t have had to witness the breakdown of a HOF pitcher.

35. Georgie Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 10:38 am

    Well, maybe some of you (most) would like to forget Jamie Moyer’s still on the roster, but on DNL yesterday, when Ruben was asked about the 5th starter, first name out of his mouth was, in fact, Jamie Moyer!

    Please feel free to freak out now….

36. psujoe Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 11:00 am

    Jeff, you have to look at the salary increases as well as decreases.

    mlbtraderumors on Feliz:

    Phillies Considering Third Base Options
    By Mike Axisa [November 7 at 9:30am CST]
    Phillies’ GM Ruben Amaro Jr. said the team is “actively exploring alternatives” to third baseman Pedro Feliz before deciding whether or not to pick up his option, according to Andy Martino of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

    “More than anything else, we want to see what options may be out there for us and decide whether picking his option up is best suited for this club to try to move forward,” Amaro said.

    “He had a solid year for us,” Amaro said. “I like the man personally. He’s a great person and a great teammate, but I also believe in trying to improve, and sometimes change can be for the better. It doesn’t necessarily mean we’re going to, but it’s just something that we’re thinking about.”

    The Phightin’s must decide whether to pick up Feliz’s $5MM option or buy him out for $500K by Monday.

    There are several third base options on the free agent market that could pique Amaro’s interest. Both Adrian Beltre and Chone Figgins would represent a significant offensive upgrade at the position, and according to UZR/150, they’d even provide a defensive boost over Feliz’s already sterling glovework. I’m just throwing two names out there, we haven’t seen the Phillies connected to either Beltre or Figgins yet.

37. psujoe Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 11:01 am

    How about Tejada at 3rd? Hits lefties really well and would see an increase in his power production at CBP?

38. NLEastFan Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 11:32 am

    Tejada is real old. He is not Ibanez old either. He is a former juicer and we don’t want him. Figgins would be great but he will command a very large contract and how would it make JRoll feel? a little worried? Say what you want about Jimmy but he has been the lead off hitter on back to back NL Champ teams. Figgins has not. Why fix whats not broken. I would rather see any money spent on Figgins go to pitching. I think out of all the FA’s available it’s either stay with Felez or sign Beltre. After that it’s all a crapshoot.

39. Manny Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 11:51 am

    I’m actually cool with Jamie Moyer being our 5th starter. He could fight it out with an improved KK, Drabek later in the season… and if we need additional pitching, we can get it mid-season.

40. Manny Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 12:33 pm

    YO: DOMONIC BROWN will be playing in tonight’s Rising Stars game at 8pm on MLB Network.

    I’ll try not to miss it.

41. psujoe Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 1:15 pm

    I’m fine with pitcher #5, but the Phils need a #2 or #3 they have confidenc in to pitch in the playoffs. Clearly they don’t think Blanton can.

42. Manny Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 1:33 pm

    Lee and Hamels is as good as it gets, though. That’s a great 1-2 punch… especially since Hamels will be better… and well, Lee is Lee.

43. Mike D. Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 2:15 pm

    Jamie will be fine as a number 5 starter. As a 5, your job is to basically not suck. Pedro greatly exceeded expectations as a number 5. He pitched better than any of us, myself included, could have possibly expected. He just ran out of gas at the end. Our rotation is set 1 through 4. Granted, there are question marks about Hamels, but there are always question marks in any rotation. I’d go into a playoff series with a rotation of Lee, Hamels, Happ and Blanton.

    Look for the Phillies to put extra effort in strengthening their bench and their bullpen. There are so many questions about the bullpen that there’s no way they won’t sign some extra relievers that could actually push some of the fringe guys like Condrey and Durbin out if everyone stays healthy. Look for them to add another lefty besides Eyre or Romero, because the Phillies shouldn’t bank on them coming back healthy.

44. psujoe Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 2:28 pm

    I think Cole bounces back. His arm was tired. I’d like to take a look at Piniero or Duchscherer. I think Mathiason will be a lefty coming out of the Penn. he was throwing 98 last year and really mowed down AA competition.

45. j reed Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 2:36 pm

    so 4 lefties and a righty. I am over Moyer and the grace period from the the league switch is over. he now has undergone surgery for a Sportsman Hernia at 47. The strike zone is getting to small and he is always getting squeezed. You can talk about location all you want but without the corners your talking about little room to locate anything. Patient line-ups will continue to tear him up. He has a place as a long man as the change in speeds will require hitters to readjust or as the crafty lefty against inexperienced line-ups. He has no business in the starting rotation

46. j reed Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 2:37 pm

    Piniero sinkerballer…me likey

47. Geoff Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 2:50 pm

    Agreed totally on Moyer, Im not even sure he will make the roster all together, they will not wait around for him be sure of that. THey will trade for or sign SOME KIND of starter (right handed), not necessarily a number 2, but a solid guy.

    MOyer is done I think. He may not retire yet, but people should stop relying on him for ANYTHING.

48. Geoff Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 3:49 pm

    Also, if any outfielder will be traded it will be Shane Victorino. Theyd sign someone like DeRosa, then move up Taylor a little ways into the season, sliding Werth to CF

49. bigbobster Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 3:55 pm

    I agree 100% with J Reed. Dubee’s value as a pitching coach must at least be evaluated…issues with Madson’s location and mechanics, Hamels’ inability to develop a biting curve, Lidge’s issues. I just have to wonder if another pitching coach could help them adjust more…but can’t argue with Happ’s year, and of course, two NL championships.

    By the way, if the Phils had won the WS, the last place I would go to gloat would be a Yankees blog…did any of us visit a Rays blog last year to place some salt in the wound? It’s kind of sad to put your WHOLE identity into a baseball organization, especially when all you can do is cheer for them, and support them by buying tickets, merchandise, etc. That’s it. Why troll an opposing team’s blog and add nothing to the conversation? I respect the Yankees organization, loving the game of baseball as I do, but let’s face it, chest thumping is really not paying respect to the game. All that shows is a fan would rather gloat after a win than respect the game. That’s sad. And I bet the Yankees players would agree.

50. Miles Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 4:01 pm

    My biggest question to Grateful Yankee Fan and other new yorkers is this:

    If you “forget that our sorry asses are even part of the country”, then why in the world are you on a Philadelphia blog site a couple days AFTER the WS is over? Obviously we are extremely second-rate so why not just spend time on your own blogs…just a thought.

    And you won’t hear any “buying a championship” arguments from me. The MLB allows that sort of spending and the Yankees take advantage of it because of their large market. If you are pissed about their spending, bring it up with Selig.

51. j reed Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 4:24 pm

    Geoff – Taylor may be delayed due to a Sportsman Hernia.

    Miles- Here’s what’s funny…New York has little manufacturing base left, so i guess they’ll need our sorry asses to make things rather than shuffle paper and push pencils. It’s Wall Street’s team…it will never get the hard knock props that other teams get. The issue for of buying a championship is not an issue for me but they want recognition as baseball visionaries as an organization…that, is something they’ll never have if they continue to do what they have for the most the team’s history. It’s takes little skill to buy the best esp. when the best was developed by other teams.

52. psujoe Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 7:13 pm

    Jays open to trading Halladay siting that his timeline to win doesn’t match the Jays. Let the bidding begin.

53. Repeat! Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 7:28 pm

    Let’s go get’em then!

54. joedad Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 8:15 pm

    Here is a nice link with the Phils 2010 payroll: http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tSSu2Qy8G9pTSsguHAbeu-A&output=html

    Estimate the Phils owe $132 million in 2010 assuming they do not pick up Feliz’ contract and assuming a rotation of Lee, Hamels, Blanton (at $7 million), Happ and Moyer. $8 million for Park, Eyre and Durbin (or assorted replacements) and a raise for Victorino. They will resign Condrey, Ruiz and Francisco. That would be 22 roster spots.

    The Phils need a backup catcher, a utility infielder, a bench bat and a 3rd baseman. If Feliz is resigned at $5 million and the other peices are added, total payroll is about $140 – $145 million.

55. pb Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 8:15 pm

    if you don’t get the mlb network the AFL’s future stars game is online at mlb.com/live Phillies prospect Dominic Brown is in RF batting 7th, the game is on now by the way

56. Manny Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 8:35 pm

    Wooohooo.. Brown just got a double. He swung at the first pitch and it was a line drive to RF!

57. Keith Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 8:37 pm

    I was just about to post that lol.

    East up 5-0

58. Keith Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 8:40 pm

    and now he scores on an error

    6-0

59. Keith Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 8:41 pm

    nvm 7-0 now, wow the West’s pitcher is getting smacked around.

60. j reed Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 8:43 pm

    Yeah, wasn’t it funny listening to the Yankee trolls and their “farm system”. If they want to get into a bidding war over Halladay we got the goodies. Plus the Jays probably don’t want him in the division. Rough inning on the Braves pitcher.

61. Keith Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 8:54 pm

    anybody see what happened to Sosa?

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/07/sammy-sosas-skin-photos-p_n_349602.html

62. Repeat! Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 9:50 pm

    WTF??

63. j reed Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 9:58 pm

    man these AFL games are slow

64. j reed Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 10:01 pm

    brown’s up let’s see how he handles 97 mph

65. Havoc Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 11:09 pm

    My Apologies for the following long post but now that I’m recovering from the pain of our defeat I’ve been saving up my thoughts on the upcoming offseason for the Phils.

    The only options I would like to see at 3B are Feliz for another year or Figgins. Beltre is too high a risk especially with those two available. I wouldn’t be upset to see Feliz & his 80+ rbi’s back next year, but I do think Figgins could upgrade our offense.

    Figgins would actually serve the Phils best as a leadoff guy. This would let J-Roll bat second, where he would murder the ball. Figgins had an OBP of .395, anytime he’s on base you can bet J-Roll will see some good pitches to hit. Since pitchers will have to throw strikes to Jimmy for fear of putting two on ahead of Utley & Howard it could really give the Phils a boost.

    The bullpen is probably something we can’t expect the Phils to address soon. Eyre will be a big part of whatever decisions they make, but there are so many free agent relievers out there that the Phils can almost pick and choose where to upgrade the one or two spots they’ll have open. I expect the Phils to take a run on one of the setup/closers on the market. Lidge is going to start the season for us, but they’ll want a backup plan in place, especially if Lidge’s surgery has him start the season on the DL.

    Francisco & Dobbs should be back next year and I see no problem with them filling two spots on the bench. Francisco is good enough to be able to spread a few offdays around to keep the OF rested. Given Dobber’s contract we’ll have to hope he has a bounce back season. Bako should be a relatively cheap option as a backup catcher and he’s proven that he can cover everyday if something were to happen to Chooch. I think it’s safe to assume that Stairs and Bruntlett are both gone, so here’s where the Phils are gonna have the most issues upgrading this season. If I had my pick I’d want the Phils to pick up Mark Derosa he’s capable of playing 2B, SS, 3B and some outfield positions. He’s not as fast as Bruntlett, but he’s a much better hitter and would be able to contribute by also giving some of our position players a day off without drastically hurting the lineup, and as a decent right handed pinch hitter. The left handed power is going to be an issue. There will be an abundance of DH’s looking for work this offseason so if the Phils play their cards right they should be able to pick up a power hitter there, the problem again will be money vs. quality. Once again if I was picking for my team, I’d love Thome but there’s no way on earth the Phils will be able to make him an offer better than he’ll get to DH in the AL.

    The Phils don’t have to spend a single dime on improving the starting rotation. I’ve been hearing alot of people talking about this, but I really think we’re jumping the gun. 1. Lee 2. Hamels 3. Blanton 4. Happ 5. Moyer. I don’t disagree that Cole can be kind of a bitch sometimes… but he’s got way too much talent not to get back on track. Lee is awesome no doubt he’s an ace pitcher, but if we look back at 2007 here’s Cliff’s stats for the year; He had a 5-8 record, through 20 games with an era of 6.290… The next year oh he just went 22-3 with an era of 2.540 and won a Cy young award. Cole’s 25 years old let’s see how our very young ace deals with his first bad year before we jump ship.

    If we want to talk the 5th starter spot, Moyer & Kendrick are good enough to be our 5th starter. Unless we get hit with some serious injuries we won’t see Drabek until September. The Phils are going to make sure he’s mastered Triple A before he sees the big roster.

    All in all the Phils are poised to have a much better 2010 than they did 2009. Hamels is even money to have a better year, and you can bet the plug will be pulled early on Lidge if he doesn’t perform well. A little tweaking to the bullpen are all we’ve really got to do this winter.

66. Keith Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 11:15 pm

    wow, East was winning 7-0 and are now losing 8-7.

67. j reed Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 11:26 pm

    Yeah and the game is still going….and going. How much do you think Fernado Rodney will fetch?

    Havoc – i’d put, Kendrick over moyer…47 with a repaiir sports hernia and as much as I like Figgins and I think Philly would love him I think we’d be overpaying for someone one the declining side of his peak. His defensive versitility, every position but first and catching, will put him at a high price. I think we need help in the pitching dept., a right handed ground ball pitcher.

68. j reed Says:
    November 7th, 2009 at 11:38 pm

    If we go with Kendrick I guess that would be a rh ground ball pitcher

69. Havoc Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 4:18 am

    I’d tend to agree J, but I think the Phils will have Moyer start the year to see if he summons up the magic for one more year.

70. Geoff Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 9:01 am

    I dunno, I think just assuming that Moyer or Kendrick should hold down the spot until Drabek is ready is being presumptuous. Nothing wrong with Drabek, but you should make him push his way into the spot, not just hand it to him – that way he wont feel entitled when he gets here. THey will not start the season with 4 left handed pitchers in the rotation, they only did that for a few weeks when everyone was hurt. I would expect Moyer to be in the pen with Kendrick taking the 5th spot.

    I do not believe you can magically assume Cole Hamels will be ace material again. Sometimes it takes these guys a while to get that back. Also, I think his real quality as a pitcher is somewhere in between 2008 playoffs and this season. I dont think he is really as good as he was in that run, but hes nowhere near as bad as he was this year. He really needs to develop another pitch because hitters have DEFINITELY figured him out. Its really not hard to see, they just sit on his changeup and fould it off. He should be treated as a 3 right now and they should really go and get someone on the trade market who can fill the 2 role – if only on the last year of a contract. Let Hamels be in a situation where he isnt in the limelight all season long so he can work out his issues in relative silence compared to this season. You dont just trade 25 year olds with ace potential, so you really cant do that.

    They will sign a backup option for Lidge, you can pretty much guarantee that. As far as 3B goes, it really seems like Beltre was juicing that one year, Id stay far away from him. It go for Figgins. For that other starter, they could overpay for a Joel Piniero type, but I doubt theyd throw all that money at Lackey.

    If any of the OF’s will be traded, it will be Shane Victorino. Ibanez has two more years left. Werth just one. Taylor is ready now pending recovery from sports hernia surgery. If you trade Victorino for pitching, then that leaves Taylor, Werth, and Ibanez. Werth walks in 2010 as a FA, by then Brown is ready. So you have Ibanez, Brown (faster than Victorino), Taylor. Then when Ibanez walks you go with a FA or another up and coming prospect.

    The team is about to get a bit younger in the coming years, which would extend the run of the infield core is the right pieces are around them again.

    Kendrick is not the type of RH ground ball pitcher they really need. Thats no different than throwing Moyer out there. Kendrick would be better off chewing up innings out of the bullpen. Moyer would be better off retiring.

71. Havoc Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 11:21 am

    I tend to agree on some of that. I don’t like the idea of Beltre at all.

    The 4 lefties thing does concern me. Of course if Moyer retires I’m comfortable with giving Kendrick the opportunity. He looked pretty good in September and if he’s got the change up working now he could be a decent starter. As far as the Drabek thing, I really doubt that he gets into the rotation until 2011. He’d have to be pitching out of this world and the Phils have an injury or something. I’m comfortable with the rotation as it is since we do have some pitching depth in the minors, I’d much rather see them upgrade at the bullpen, bench, and IF they can get Figgins 3B. I’d love to see them do all that and go out and snag another starter, but other than Lackey there really isn’t anyone who impresses me. If Moyer retires or is cut I guess they could take a shot at Harden or Sheets sort of a buy low hope for the best 5th starter.

72. psujoe Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 12:37 pm

    Starting pitching depth is fine for the regular season, but Charlie was reluctant to throw Blantan or Happ. IMO, you need 3 top tier starters for the playoffs. It’s not something I’d mortgage the farm for, but if we could get a guy like Pineiro or Harden I’m in.

    Cole should be fine. As much as everyone says he was figured out, I don’t think that tells the whole story. His arm was tired. How he bounces back should be interesting. These numbers don’t lie.

    Pitch Count/Opp BA/Opp OPS
    01-25/.243/.702
    26-50/.236/.632
    51-75/.328/.906
    76-100/.300/.800

73. Geoff Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 1:26 pm

    Lets put it this way: ID rather give Randy Wolf another chance than to send Moyer or Kendrick out there as the 5th guy. And I dont want to see Wolf come here either, so that gives you an idea how little I think of this notion to rely on Moyer even to be a bad 5th starter. Kendrick to the pen. Soriano had a down year, he wont cost that much..

74. psujoe Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 2:51 pm

    Amaro said he expects the payroll to stay the same. Also sid it will be highly unlikely we’ll be going after a top tier starter. Not good news in my opinion.

75. psujoe Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 7:10 pm

    Phillies declined Feliz’ 5.5 million option. MLBTraderumors is suggesting they may be looking at Beltre or Uggla. Nothing firm.

76. joedad Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 7:42 pm

    psujoe, Amaro said the same thing last year and then went out and signed Raul and traded for Lee, both significant increases in salary. If you walk into a showroom and announce that you plan on spending x dollars, it gives you that much less leverage when you go out and buy, IMO.

    Uggla is not a 3rd baseman and is actually a below average fielding 2nd baseman. Maybe they meant Cantu??

77. psujoe Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 7:44 pm

    Good points Joedad.

    They actually think Uggla can improve his fielding by moving to third. I wouldn’t mind another 30 homer guy, but he strikes out a lot. I’m not sold on Beltre or Mora either.

78. joedad Says:
    November 8th, 2009 at 8:00 pm

    Check out Uggla’s defensive 3B stats in the monors, horrible:

    http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=uggla-001dan

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