It’s been a while since I’ve visited this blog, made worse by the fact that it’s mine, but I see that when I last signed off I was complaining about the stagnant cesspool that is the Philadelphia Phillies in a May 24 rant on what could now be considered a turning point game the night before against the New York Mets.
I asked to be awakened when Charlie Manuel was gone and intimated that the Phils were in for the usual “wait until Eagles training camp” season. Since then I’ve spent a lot more time on my other blog, and the Phightins have gone 21-31, slipping to eight games under .500, fourth place in the NL East (14.5 games behind the Mets) and tenth place in the Wild Card standings.
Oh, and their ace pitcher allegedly punched his wife on a street in Boston in front of many witnesses.
I thought they were done, but I didn’t think they’re goose had been cooked.
Charlie Manuel is still around (and will be for the rest of the season), but I’ve been awakened nonetheless by Pat Gillick’s impending fire sale. Only I don’t think he should be selling one of the pieces everyone else thinks he should unless he gets a whole bunch of guaranteed good in return.
It may be that Bobby Abreu just isn’t the right fit for Philadelphia. I’ll grant that. But the idea that his contract is overburdening the franchise seems a bit ludicrous to me. He’s the second-best outfielder in franchise history after Hall of Famer Chuck Klein. He’s a five-tool player (run, field, throw, hit for average, hit for power) and a human on-base machine who delivers what his contract demands of him year-in, year-out.
There are a lot of great three- and four-tool players out there (Albert Pujols, Manny Ramirez, Alfonso Soriano), but here’s a list of the other five-tool players in the big leagues: Alex Rodriguez, Vladimir Guerrero, Carlos Beltran. That’s it. You won’t get any of those guys for what the Phillies are paying Abreu. In the absurd economic scheme of professional baseball, Abreu is fairly paid, and if Gillick insists on trading him because he just doesn’t fit in here, he’d better be getting equal value in return, not just dumping salary from a good contract.
No, the real problem, my friends, plays on the other side of the outfield. First of all, there should be a moratorium on talk of Burrell’s no-trade clause. I suspect he’s as eager to get out of town as the town is to get rid of him, so that’s not a factor. Unlike Abreu’s deal, Burrell’s contract is an albatross the Phillies should throw off at the first opportunity.
As long as Gillick is dealing exclusively with Texas Rangers GM John Daniels, how about a change of scenery deal for Kevin Mench? The Phillies get a local boy (Wilmington, DE) with an Eagles tattoo on his arm, and the Rangers get the DH they badly need. Plus Rangers owner Tom Hicks, who enjoys throwing good money after bad, might take much of Burrell’s contract.
This season is done for all intents and purposes, and, therefore, so are David Bell’s and Mike Lieberthal’s expensive contracts. Randy Wolf, if he pitches well, could be resigned on the cheap because of his injury. If not, so be it; but either way he won’t cost $9 million next year. Surely some desperate contender out there will help offload the $8 million owed to Jon Lieber in 2007.
I’m no accountant, but by my math the exit of Bell, Lieberthal and Wolf, plus the potential trading of Burrell, Lieber and possibly even Tom “Flash! Ah-Ah!” Gordon (who finally seems to be showing his age this week), frees up a lot of cash for Utley (eligible for arbitration, but the Phillies would be smart to lock him up for a while) and a new catcher and third baseman, without dealing Abreu.
Of course, none of this addresses the team’s biggest problem: starting pitching. There aren’t enough bad words in the English language to describe its current state. It’s time to take a cold, hard look at the situation—there is no quick fix. The Phillies are sitting on three talented arms (Floyd, Hamels, Madson) who have been or are currently getting their skulls cracked at the major league level. You know what? That’s OK. They should be. In fact, Floyd should be brought back immediately to continue his school of hard knocks education.
This is going to require patience from management and fans. No more kid gloves. Getting beat senseless at the major league level for the rest of this season and even 2007 is the best thing that can happen to these guys and the Phillies. Why? Two words: Detroit Tigers.
Anchored by veteran Kenny Rogers, the Tigers staff of young guns came to the majors early and took their lumps. Now, with a good manager in place, the Tigers sport the best record in the league.
Wife beating scandals aside, the Phillies already have a de facto ace in Brett Myers, and when these young guns straighten out their learning curve, the Phillies could have a similar scenario to the Tigers and a better lineup to boot. Under this scenario, with a little patience, 2008 could be a good year.
Returning from my daydream, the truth probably is that Burrell and Abreu aren’t going anywhere. Gillick will have to find another way to fill the holes at third base and catcher, and we all know the club’s track record with home-grown pitchers.
Either way, we’ll know which direction Gillick is taking the Phillies by July 31.