Phillies 2014 <yawn> thread

[bluehenbillk]

In all seriousness why did they send down Ruf and not Revere?

[93henfan]

How are the Phils doing this year? I guess I could check the standings, but it doesn't sound like I want to.

[93henfan]

Dead last, as I suspected.

Oh well, at least we still have the most losses of all time, and adding every week. Gotta be tops at something, amirite?

[bluehenbillk]

One of the bottom 5 in baseball - it'll be tough to knock them out of that category the rest of the way. Unless the Marlins do another fire sale last place is the expectation.

[93henfan]

Well, we'll always have 2008. At least fans who are 31 years old or younger have one Philadelphia championship in their entire lifetime to hang their hats on. Suck it Cleveland!

[Seahawks08]

Well, we'll always have 2008. At least fans who are 31 years old or younger have one Philadelphia championship in their entire lifetime to hang their hats on. Suck it Cleveland!

Personally, I'll never forget the 2011 season. Best phillies team of all time! That was a fun year to watch right up until game 5 of the NLDS (Ibanez missing a game tying HR by a couple of feet)

2008 was good too, just because the team had some weird vibe to it. They won with Moyer and Blanton in the rotation...think about that for a second. And Brad Lidge had a perfect season in save chances. Plus, I'll never forget the Myers' ab against CC Sabathia! Oh the good old days.

[bluehenbillk]

That's true that 2008 memories will never go away, but this team will now suck for a long time. Forget what you see in Philly - their farm system is broken.

[89Hen]

Lots of Phillies fans at the game last night. Nats need to sweep them and start making up some ground on first place.

[GannonFan]

That's true that 2008 memories will never go away, but this team will now suck for a long time. Forget what you see in Philly - their farm system is broken.

That's been the Phillies MO now for a good century or so of baseball. That's what made the years around 2008 so memorable and enjoyable. For some of us, it was like that blip in history from the mid to late 70's and into the early 80's when the Phils were respectable. It was a golden age of Phillies baseball. For the most part, over time, the Phillies manage to suck really badly, so you have to really enjoy the few good times when they happen. The Phillies, now, just look like the Phillies again. Amazing that Philadelphia is as good of a baseball city as it is with the drek that the Phillies routinely put out decade after decade.

[89Hen]

Amazing that Philadelphia is as good of a baseball city as it is with the drek that the Phillies routinely put out decade after decade.

It's sinking fast though GF.

2014 - 30,303
2013 - 37,190
2012 - 44,021
2011 - 45,440

They've gone from first in attendance to #13. Nats are #14 and after the next two games, thanks to all the Phillies fans, they will probably trade positions.

[89Hen]

BTW...

25. Oakland - 21,591

[Ivytalk]

BTW...

25. Oakland - 21,591

But the Phils are still ahead of the Nats in attendance. So suck it.

[89Hen]

But the Phils are still ahead of the Nats in attendance. So suck it.

They've gone from first in attendance to #13. Nats are #14 and after the next two games, thanks to all the Phillies fans, they will probably trade positions.

Looks like I was pretty close in my thinking. Another 35,000 this afternoon and the Nats will be within 100 or so...

13. Philadelphia - 30,303
14. Washington - 30,039

[bluehenbillk]

Natitude in DC is lacking.

I'm shocked Phillies fans still go down considering how awful the team is. My kids don't even ask for me to put the games on TV anymore.

[89Hen]

Natitude in DC is lacking.

No doubt. Coming home from the game on Tuesday, I think I discovered my capacity for public transportation. I have zero problem with taking the Metro to Caps games. I can leave my house at 6:15pm and be in my seat with beer in hand for a 7:05 puck drop. Red line takes me directly to the game and when you come up to the top of the escalator the door is 100 yards away.

Tuesday I left home at 5:50pm and missed the entire first inning. All thanks to having to transfer trains, go four more stops and then walk a couple blocks to the stadium. Furthermore, when you leave Nats Park everyone is going ONE direction on the Metro. Leaving Verizon people are going four different directions and you can acutally walk a block and a half to a different station and beat the crowds. Metro also smells a LOT worse when it's 80+ degrees out.

[bluehenbillk]

In a nutshell the Phils problem is this:

-Aging core that was once VERY good that is now anywhere from above average to below average when healthy.
-2/3 of position players don't belong in the majors & don't seem to even put out 100% effort
-Farm system is so devoid of position players the ones in the majors don't feel pushed to perform because there is virtually no one to replace them
-Once Mike Arbuckle & Pat Gillick left so did most of the good personnel decisions this franchise used to make

[Seahawks08]

In a nutshell the Phils problem is this:

-Aging core that was once VERY good that is now anywhere from above average to below average when healthy.
-2/3 of position players don't belong in the majors & don't seem to even put out 100% effort
-Farm system is so devoid of position players the ones in the majors don't feel pushed to perform because there is virtually no one to replace them
-Once Mike Arbuckle & Pat Gillick left so did most of the good personnel decisions this franchise used to make

1. funny you should mention the aging core, as those players are the only reason why the phils actually was .500 at one point. It has been the younger players sucking that has dragged the team down. But now the aging core is starting to regress to the mean, and that's the reason the phils have lost so many in the last week.

2. correct, since the phils better prospects are still at least a year or two away from contributing. Thus, having a firesale is the best way to restock the system. I would pay half the contracts as well to get better prospects in return.

3, Free agency, yes. But trade deadline, no. The only trade that looks like it may backfire is the Pence one who had singleton in it.

[GannonFan]

I agree - with all the trades the Phils have made, they seem to have only gotten rid of one really decent prospect and that being Singleton. The laundry list of players the Phils have traded who haven't panned out is extensive. But of course, that just goes back to the point that this farm system just flat out blows, and while you have to blame Ruben for the recent part of that, it's not like the ones that came before him really had the farm stacked either. I guess the one thing you can say, though, is that the guys who came before Ruben at least knew how to hype up the farm system to convince people to trade for it.

[bluehenbillk]

Jared Cosart looks like he'll be a good one. How about Brandon Moss?

[93henfan]

So when should I start paying attention to the Phils again?

2019? 2025? 2035? How long does it take a team to completely rebuild? Pirates took about 20 years, right? Please keep me informed. Thank you.

[GannonFan]

Jared Cosart looks like he'll be a good one. How about Brandon Moss?

The jury is out on Cosart - isn't he over 4.00 in ERA this year? He's still young too (24 I think?) and he's basically in triple A right now playing for the Astros. But yeah, he could at least be a serviceable starter in the majors for years to come.

Brandon Moss is different - he wasn't even a Phillies product, he was a castoff from the Red Sox and the Pirates. He's just a good example of a Billy Beane success story. Besides, Moss is a lefthanded firstbaseman - the Phils made the decision of which lefthanded firstbaseman to go with long before Moss even signed a minor league free agent contract with them.

[AZGrizFan]

Rumor is that Chase Utley is on the block.

[tribe_pride]

Rumor is that Chase Utley is on the block.

This one? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Block,_Baltimore" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[GannonFan]

Rumor is that Chase Utley is on the block.

I only think that would be true if he asked to be traded - he's the one guy I think they hold onto forever, well, and Howard, because no one will take that contract off the Phils hands. Rollins would be the one who will likely be out of here in a month or so. He'll have the Phils' franchise record for hits soon and he's still a very good commodity in a short-stop weak market. Lee is shoppable as well depending on how he returns from the DL and if people think he's healthy enough. If he doesn't return, well, there goes that.

[bluehenbillk]

Rollins & Utley are in the same exact position. Both are 10 & 5 guys so they each have a 100% no-trade clause. Either one of them would have to waive that for certain clubs for a deal to happen. Jimmy is just a few hits away from the franchise record & is starting to become vocal on the teams' play, or lack thereof as the case may be. He's also about 150 AB's or so from having his option year automatically trigger so whoever would have to pay him through next year. Utley was a health question mark but has played lights out this year & at 37 is easily the best 2B in the NL & is top 3 in all MLB at his spot.