The State of the Phillies- July 31, 2012

It is a sad day in the life of a sports fan when they realize that their team has entered a certain stage. That stage is the rebuilding period. And sadly, today the Phillies have entered rebuild mode.



By trading away two of their best players, Shane Victorino went to the Dodgers for reliever Josh Lindblom and a minor league pitcher, and Hunter Pence went to the Giants for outfielder Nate Schierholtz and two minor league prospects, the Phillies threw in the white flag on this season. The offense was already staggered and struggling enough as it was with Victorino and Pence in the lineup, now I expect the Phils to score maybe seven runs over the remainder of 2012. While the moves send popular players with the fans out to the west coast, they had to be done. The Phillies need to wake up and realize they are too far back from legit contenders with not enough talent on an overpaid payroll to be buyers again. And Ruben Amaro, Jr. knew what needed to be done. For the first time in six or seven seasons, the Phillies were sellers.

Victorino will become a free agent at the end of the 2012 season, and is posting a disappointing season by his standards, especially in a contract year. As for Pence, he will be a free agent next year, and will probably cash in on some big money. While he is on pace for a 25 homerun and 80-plus RBI season, he is not worth the seventeen million dollar a year contract some bonehead general manager will undoubtedly hand him (see, Jayson Werth). The Phillies simply were not going to shell out big bucks to these players, not only because they do not deserve them, but they also can afford to without going over the luxury tax. The Phillies are tied with money everywhere, and signing Cole Hamels on to be the second highest paid pitcher in major league history did not leave any candy money. By trading Victorino and Pence, the Phillies add some youth and talent to a depleted farm system, clear some payroll and will also allow Dominic Brown to get his shot to prove that he is worth all the hype.

The Phillies now can look to 2013 for the rest of this season, and they need to take advantage of the money freed up. They need to do so by addressing the glaring hole at third base. Placido Polanco is not the Placido Polanco of years past, where he could be relied on to post a .300 batting average and strike out fewer than 75 times. His glove is still solid at third, but he is so washed up and banged up that a new third basemen needs to be in the works or brought in, and since there really is none in the works, well, you get the point. The only problem is that the two biggest free agents at third are Kevin Youkilis and Scott Rolen, neither of which I give any shot of the Phillies signing. San Diego Padres third basemen Chase Headley was on the block, but obviously was not dealt. It does not rule out that a deal could be worked out in the offseason, but the Phils would need to have something impressive to acquire a young stud like Headley, and they really have nothing to offer.

The state of the Phillies as of right now comes to this, the team has enough talent to remain relevant for the next few seasons. Cole Hamels is signed long term, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard are still around and technically in their primes, Carlos Ruiz is breaking out into one of the league's best catchers, Roy Halladay is getting older, but still can carry a staff, and Jonathon Papelbon is a premier closer. However, it is not enough to look good on paper, this year's team did and is currently in the basement and one of the worst teams in baseball. The Phillies need to get younger, and they started doing so today, and that is a move in the right direction.

 Also, just for the hell of it, I will play Name That All 4 One Song by including a lyric and having fans email the name of the song to me. Winners will receive tickets to an All 4 One reunion if one ever happens or my copy of The Day After Tomorrow, because honestly I do not even watch it that often. And Dennis Quade looks to much like Harrison Ford, although if Quade played Han Solo, I think Star Wars would have been the worst movie ever made. Any thoughts on that can be emailed to me too. Email answers to Name That All 4 One Song to patg2360@yahoo.com or pixiedustglitterbutt@yahoo.com. Either one works.

NAME THAT ALL 4 ONE SONG! - 
 so baby i wanna tell you that i love you so
and that i'm different than the average joe
'cause girl you touch me in that special way
that's why i wanna tell ya that i'm here to stay