Comments on: Phils holding out hope WAR really is good for absolutely nothing

By: DaMannse

DaMannse — Sun, 14 Oct 2012 16:54:55 +0000

RAUL. RAUL. RAUL. AGAIN.

By: DaMannse

DaMannse — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 21:41:16 +0000

Yeah. Awful trade even then.

I just get misty looking back on a lineup that just used to rip games out of the clutches of the opposing team with their bats

By: egrissom

egrissom — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 19:05:27 +0000

Don’t forget Gio Gonzalez starting tonight. Cutting Ibanez and Werth loose when they got old and expensive made sense. Gavin Floyd and Gonzalez for Freddy Garcia was a disaster.

By: DaMannse

DaMannse — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 23:14:00 +0000

Ibanez one night. Werth the next. And do we wonder why we are watching on TV?

Thanks, Ruben.

By: DaMannse

DaMannse — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 22:13:39 +0000

BTW, I know Raul is on the downside but you know, watching him against the Os brought back memories of Phillies who actually came through at the plate. In the clutch. When the game was on the line.

Kinda miss that. He made me wistful. And reminded me why we screamed his name when he did his magic.

By: DaMannse

DaMannse — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 22:08:41 +0000

Yup, Greg, I meant Asche. Just couldn’t remember his name. Kinda sorry for your report on him, ’cause I was hoping that maybe he was good and close enough to ready that he would be better than Galvis and Martinez (neither one of whom I expect to hit as well as we seriously need).

BTW, don’t disappear again if you can help it, ok? Your stuff on prospects is really helpful.

By: Greg

Greg — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 20:24:42 +0000

The 3B in the high minors that DeMannse may have been thinking of is Cody Asche. He tore it up average-wise last year between Clearwater and Reading and seems to have “it,” whatever that means. His numbers compare favorable to Utley’s at the same age/level which is getting some people excited. The thing I like to point out is that Utley’s jump in value from the minors to the majors is fairly unique. I’m hoping for the best with Asche, but the best we can hope for is a slightly above average 3B in 2014. Maybe in the middle of 2013. But if he starts the year in CBP, this team is in trouble.

He’s playing in the Arizona Fall League, which started on Tuesday, if anybody wants to follow him.

Maikel Franco is the one to be excited about. He really could be a star. He wasn’t allowed to “pull” the ball at the beginning of the season and was instructed to swing opposite field all the time. His stats reflected it (just another reason why minor league stats aren’t always reliable). At the All-Star break, they allowed him to use the whole field and from that point forward he hit .346/.395/.540 in one of the most pitcher friendly parks in a pitcher friendly league. Best case has him in Philly in 2015 though.

I can also see Gillies making his way to the team at some point next year, but hopefully not at the start. He has the talent to be special if he can stay healthy and get his head on straight. I think he is more likely to be included as part of a trade this off-season just because the front office seems to be have soured on him and he is currently on the 40-man.

By: egrissom

egrissom — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 19:32:04 +0000

He did have a remarkable game, what with homering in the bottom of the ninth to send it to extra-innings and then doing it again in the 12th to win it.

The homer to win it off of the lefty Matusz was kinda surprising given that he didn’t hit a homer off of a left-handed pitcher during the regular season.

Kinda reminded me of when he almost hit one out against Carpenter in game five against the Cards in 2011. Just missed in the fourth as Berkman took it at the wall and the Phillies went on to lost 1-0.

http://www.philliesflow.com/2011/10/11/post-season-exposes-the-achilles-heel-of-the-phillies-turns-out-its-the-post-season/

He was a lot better with the bat for the Yanks this year than he was for the Phils in 2011, too.

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 19:17:26 +0000

I must say I starting getting physically ill listening to NY sports talk sing Raul’s praises this morning…

By: egrissom

egrissom — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 18:09:28 +0000

Kind of a tough day to complain about Ibanez given what he did last night. But I think the Phillies did the right thing getting rid of Ibanez when they did.