Week Four: Carlos Ruiz and Darren Daulton

Another up-and-down week for the Phillies.  After winning two out of three games against the Diamondbacks, they lost two out of three to the Cubs.

Through the first month of the season, it seems rather easy to determine if the Phillies will win.  If they can score more than two runs, they generally come out on the winning end.  But sadly, scoring even three runs seems to be more than the team can manage on a regular basis.

Despite the team's continued offensive struggles, there was one hitter who had a good week, and his bat contributed to a couple of Phillies victories.

Featured Phillie of the Week: Carlos Ruiz

In Wednesday's victory, Ruiz went 3-4 with an RBI.  Then on Saturday, he homered as part of a 3 RBI night in yet another Phillies win.

Ruiz's offensive contributions are nothing new for this team.

Back in 2007, he was considered more of a defensive specialist at catcher.  Any offense he provided out of the 8th spot in the lineup was a bonus. 

Over the years, he has steadily made himself into an offensive weapon as well.  By 2009, he was still the 8-hole hitter, but that was only because the Phillies had what was largely considered to be the National League's best lineup.

In 2012, while some other of the team's big names struggle, Ruiz may have been the team's best offensive player for the first month of the season.

And while manager Charlie Manuel loves having Ruiz's strong on-base aptitude near the bottom of the lineup, if the other players continue to struggle, he may have no choice but to move Ruiz higher.

Ghost of Phillies Past: Darren Daulton

You're probably thinking: Darren Daulton?  The multiple-time All-Star and team leader who helped power the 1993 Phillies?  How is he the Ghost of Phillies Past?

If you only look at Daulton's career from 1992 forward, then yes, this is indeed a strange choice.

But before his breakthrough year in 1992, Daulton was not considered one of the best catchers in baseball.  He might have been the worst starting catcher in baseball.  Most Phillies fans would have shipped him out of town for a box of baseballs, and probably thought they were getting a good deal.

Daulton was once an intriguing prospect.  In 1986, the team thought they had a rising star at catcher.  Unfortunately, midway through that season, Daulton suffered a horrific knee injury that threatened to end his career.

He was able to return to the team the following season, and served as the team's backup catcher.

In 1989, after starter Lance Parrish departed, the Phillies decided to see what Daulton could do as the regular catcher.  The answer: Not a whole lot.

Over the next three seasons, Daulton missed a large chunk of time due to injury, and wasn't impressive when he did play.  He bottomed out in 1991 with a .196 batting average.

Therefore, it came as quite a surprise to everyone when he suddenly became an All-Star and led the league in RBIs the next season.

While I don't want to make any accusations, it should be noted that quite a few players had unexpected surges in production around that time.

Random Phillies Image Found on the Web

Here are some Phillies themed pastries!  Looks delicious!

Pennant Year Song of the Week

At times this week, the Phillies offense looked like it might be snapping out of its funk.  But in other games, they continued to struggle.

And so, this week's featured song is Hot-N-Cold by Katy Perry:

Hopefully, we see more of the hot Phillies offense going forward.

Final Analysis

While Ruiz has never been as inept offensively as Daulton once was, I also don't see Ruiz undergoing a similar surge late in his career.

While it would be nice if Ruiz suddenly developed 20+ home run power or started driving in 100+ RBIs, I think the Phillies will gladly take the offensive contributions he does provide.

They just need to hope that he gets some help from the rest of the offense.

Week Three: Cliff Lee and Tommy Greene

So maybe it is time for concern. 

Throughout the early part of the season, I wasn't that concerned by the Phillies' injuries and subpar hitting.  I maintained that as long as Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, and Cole Hamels stayed healthy, this team would win a lot of games.

Unfortunately, one of those three is no longer healthy. 

Featured Phillie of the Week: Cliff Lee

Cliff Lee's start against the San Francisco Giants was perhaps the best pitching performance by a non-winning starter in the team's history.

He threw ten shutout innings, only to have the Phillies lose the game in the eleventh inning.  The team lost mostly because the opposing starter - Matt Cain - was just as good, shutting out the Phillies for nine innings.

Lee was the first Phillies starter to pitch ten innings in a game since Terry Mulholland in 1993.  As it turns out, there are risks in a pitcher throwing ten innings in a game.  At some point during the tenth inning, Lee suffered an abdominal injury which will send him to the disabled list.

The Phillies claim that the injury is minor and they don't forsee him missing a lot of time, but I am skeptical.  I've seen "minor" injuries to pitchers keep them out much longer than expected. 

Even if Lee does come back as soon as the Phillies expect, there's always the dangerous possibility that his mechanics might be altered, which could result in diminished performance or further injury. 

Maybe this will indeed just be a minor inconvenience, and Lee will be back as soon as he is eligible.  But it is possible that this turns into a season-long issue for him.

This year's Phillies team is clearly built around the excellence of the starters.  If Lee is not going to be a dominant pitcher for most of the season, the team might be in some trouble.

Ghost of Phillies Past: Tommy Greene

Tommy Greene was a very effective pitcher for the Phillies - when healthy. 

Greene was essentially an unknown when he entered the Phillies rotation in 1991.  He had come over from the Atlanta Braves in a trade in 1990, but was far from overwhelming for either team that year.

But once he was given a regular spot in the Phillies rotation in 1991, Greene looked like a rising star.  His 13-8 record and 3.38 ERA helped the Phillies earn a surprising 3rd place finish. 

There were high hopes for both Greene and the Phillies in 1992.  Unfortunately, both suffered disappointing seasons.  Greene missed most of the season due to shoulder tendinitis.  His absence was a large reason why the Phillies finished in last place.

In 1993, Greene was healthy and once again looked like an emerging star.  He won 16 games and was part of a strong starting rotation that helped the Phillies win the National League pennant.

Heading into 1994, there was hope that Greene would be a top starter for years to come.  But he suffered another shoulder injury that placed him on the DL for most of the year.  And once again, his absence caused a once-promising Phillies season to end in a disappointing fashion.

Side note: To be honest, if there was a good year for the team to fall out of contention, 1994 was probably it.

Greene never fully recovered from his injury issues.  He made brief comebacks in 1995 and 1997, but failed to recapture the success he had when healthy.

Awesomely Obscure Song of the Week

This week's awesome song that has escaped the notice of most people's attention is Friends and Family by Trik Turner.

Released in 2002, the song got some minor play on MTV, but the band's subsequent break up kept them from following up on it.

Final Analysis

Tommy Greene was a good pitcher, but his inability to stay healthy killed a couple of once-promising Phillies seasons. 

If Cliff Lee's injury turns out to be more major than expected, then the 2012 Phillies might suffer a similar fate.

Week Two: Freddy Galvis and Joe Millette

This past week was a mixed bag for the Phillies.  After taking two out of three from the Marlins, they could only win one game in their three game series with the Mets.

The offense continues to be inconsistent.  They've scored over seven runs on two different occasions, but those outbursts have been separated by stretches of games where they struggle to score.

Despite the team's offensive struggles, there has been one player whose production has actually been greater than most people expected.


Featured Phillie of the Week: Freddy Galvis

Coming into the season, it was thought that Freddy Galvis had the defensive ability to play shortstop at the major leagues.  But there was doubt about whether or not he would be able to adequately hit major league pitching.

Despite his offensive limitations, the Phillies decided that he was their best option to replace Chase Utley as their regular second baseman.

The first week of the season, the reports on Galvis appeared to be accurate.  Despite playing a new position - second base - Galvis excelled defensively.  He not only made the routine plays, but also mixed in some highlight-reel worthy plays as well.

Unfortunately, the reports about Galvis' bat not being major league ready were also looking prescient.  He began his major league career by going hitless in his first twelve at bats.

But this past week he showed signs that he might be able to contribute offensively as well.

In Wednesday's game, an intentional walk of Carlos Ruiz brought Galvis to the plate with the bases loaded and two-outs.  With the Citizens Bank Park crowd fully behind him, Galvis came through with a double that helped propel the Phillies to victory.

Two days later, with the rest of the Phillies offense mostly quiet, Galvis hit his first career home run.


Ghost of Phillies Past: Joe Millette

I could probably do a whole series of posts about the men who played shortstop for the Phillies in 1992.

Kim Batiste was expected to be the Phillies shortstop of the future.  He was handed the starting job in 1992, but failed to meet expectations.  His offense was sub par, but his defense was an utter disaster.    He bottomed out with a four error game, after which, the team felt that Mariano Duncan - not known for being especially good on defense - was a better option defensively.

Willing to sacrifice offense for defense, the Phillies called up a "good-field, no-hit" shortstop from the minor leagues.  And so, for a brief period of time, Joe Millette became the Phillies starting shortstop.

Millette did seem to do an adequate job of fielding.  But the man was an absolute disaster at the plate.  In 87 plate appearances, Millette only managed a paltry .271 on-base percentage.  Even worse, he somehow didn't have even one extra base hit. 

Eventually the Phillies realized that no matter how good Millette was at defense, they simply couldn't tolerate such a poor hitter in their lineup.  They replaced him with Juan Bell, who didn't turn out to be much better, and is probably best remembered for being booed on Opening Day.


Random Phillies Picture Found on the Web



This week's picture is a generic South Park character wearing a Phillies uniform.


Pennant Year Song of the Week

Most people predicted that the Phillies offense would suck without injured stars Ryan Howard and Chase Utley.  So far, the offense has been more inconsistent than poor, but it is clear that they are definitely lacking something.

Therefore, this week's song is 2009's My Life Would Suck Without You by Kelly Clarkson.

We can hope that both Howard and Utley make speedy recoveries and help un-suck the Phillies offense.


Final Word

Galvis has already contributed more offensively than Millette ever did. Then again, Millette was clearly not a major-league capable player, and was only playing because the Phillies lacked any other options.

Galvis is young, and his minor league numbers improved last season, so there is hope that he will eventually develop into a capable major league hitter.

In the meantime, as long as he can keep playing sterling defense and avoid being a complete liability at the plate, I'm sure the Phillies will be happy with him.

Week One: Hunter Pence and Rico Brogna

The Phillies did not have a good first week in 2012.  After Roy Halladay and Jonathan Papelbon shut out the Pirates on Opening Day, the team proceeded to lose two consecutive one-run games to the Bucs, and then they dropped the home opener to the Marlins.

What has been the case for the poor start?  While the bullpen hasn't been especially sharp, and Cole Hamels turned in a less than perfect start on Monday, the main culprit has been the offense.

The team hasn't gotten many men on base, and they haven't done a good job of driving in the limited base runners they have had.  Past Phillies teams might have compensated for the lack of base runners with power, but so far, the team has only hit one home run this season.

This week's featured Phillie will be the man who hit that lone home run.

Featured Phillie of the Week: Hunter Pence

Coming over from the Houston Astros at the trade deadline, Hunter Pence fit in perfectly with the 2011 Phillies.  His quirky personality and oddball quotes helped him become popular with the fanbase, and his right handed power was a perfect compliment to the Phillies traditionally lefty heavy lineup.

Pence hit 11 homers as a member of the Phillies in 2011, and after his arrival, the team led the National League in runs scored.

Unfortunately, the two most powerful left handed hitters in the Phillies lineup - Ryan Howard and Chase Utley - are currently injured.  Which means that Pence is no longer a complimentary piece for the Phillies lineup.  He's now the cleanup hitter and considered to be the most dangerous hitter on the team.

While he has one more home run than the rest of the team, it is clear that if the 2012 Phillies are going to generate any offense, proven hitters like Pence are going to have to step it up. 

Pence has never hit 30 home runs nor accumulated 100 RBIs in a single season.  If he can't approach those levels in 2012, then the Phillies are likely going to continue to struggle to score.

Ghost of Phillies Past: Rico Brogna

The 1997 Phillies were similarly not blessed with much in the way of power hitters.  Unlike the current team, the problem wasn't due to injuries.  It was due to a lack of talent.

In the offseason, the Phillies had acquired Rico Brogna from the New York Mets to play first base.  Brogna had been a promising young player for the Mets a few years earlier, but injuries had limited his production.

Brogna turned out to be a decent enough player.  He was outstanding defensively at first base, and provided a little bit of power, hitting 20 home runs in 1997. 

Unfortunately, a little bit of power wasn't what the Phillies needed.  While 20 home runs might sound pretty good today, thanks to steroids, expansion, and smaller ballparks, 20 home runs wasn't all that impressive in the late 90s.  It was an especially disappointing total for a first baseman batting in the middle of the order.

Brogna ultimately had a decent career for the Phillies before being traded away in 2000.  He would have probably been fine as a complimentary piece in a lineup featuring several other more powerful hitters. But for the offensively challenged 1997 Phillies, he simply wasn't enough.

Random Phillies Image Found on the Web

From time to time, I'll go on Yahoo! (Yeah, that's right.  Yahoo! is my default search provider.  Deal with it, you Google fanatics) do an image search on Phillies and see what comes up.  Most of the images are about what you'd expect.  But in some of the higher numbered pages, you can sometimes find a real gem of an image.

Here's what I came up with this week:



It appears to be a car with a custom Phillies paint job.  Pretty sweet.

Pennant Year Song of the Week

The Phillies have been National League champions in the years 1915, 1950, 1980, 1983, 1993, 2008, and 2009.  Each week, I will find a song that was released in one of those years and use it to describe the past week for the Phillies.

For those of you who were big fans of the 1915 music scene (and who isn't?), I have bad news: I probably won't be using too many songs from that year.

The first week of the season is all about dreaming.  Every team is still in the running, and even the lowliest of squads can still have hopes of somehow being a contender.

In that spirit, this week's song is from 1950.  It's I Can Dream, Can't I? by the Andrews Sisters:

Much like the 2012 Phillies still have dreams of winning another World Series, the Andrews sisters had dreams of eventually finding true love.

Final Analysis

Rico Brogna was one of the primary power sources for a Phillies team that finished in last place.  This year's team has slightly higher expectations.

Until Howard and Utley return, Pence is going to have to help carry the offense.  Is he up to the task of being a lineup centerpiece, or is he going to prove to be more like Brogna: A solid player who is really more of a complimentary piece?

The Phillies fate in 2012 may hinge on the answer.

Preseason: Roy Halladay and Floyd Youmans

Time to panic!

Everybody is injured!  Ryan Howard is hurt!  Chase Utley is hurt!  Even Michael Martinez is hurt!

By the time the season starts, the Phillies will have nobody left to play second base.  They might have to coax third base coach Juan Samuel out of retirement.

The absence of their big name stars is going to cause them to struggle on offense.  In fact, they might not score a run all season!

Surely, this team has no chance of winning its sixth straight division title, and a World Series championship is an impossible dream.

Right?

Wrong.

One of the reasons I started this blog was to illustrate just how good this current era of Phillies baseball is.  There have been many Phillies seasons for which dreams of the playoffs were merely that - dreams.  Those teams didn't provide the fan base with any real hope.  Sure, maybe the more delusional among us might have thought that they were contenders.  But in reality, merely finishing with a winning record would have been a major accomplishment for those teams.

That is not the case in 2012.  Even with the injuries and the improvements by the rest of the National League East, the Phillies are still the favorites to win the division, and they're still a strong contender to win the World Series.

It's no secret that the reason for this optimism is the starting rotation.  Having three ace pitchers (as well as two other dependable starters) means that in most of their games, the Phillies will have the superior starting pitcher. 

This is a tremendous advantage for a team to have, and it results in a lot of victories over the course of a season.  In 2011, it resulted in 102 victories and a division title.

Despite losing Roy Oswalt, the 2012 Phillies should still have a superb starting rotation.  Consider that on some teams, pitchers like Joe Blanton and Kyle Kendrick would be slotted near the top of the rotation.  On this team, they're the fifth and sixth best options.

The rotation is headlined by three pitchers who are among the best in baseball.  For most teams, Cole Hamels or Cliff Lee would be the top pitcher and an easy choice to start on Opening Day. 

But neither Hamels nor Lee will likely be pitching on Opening Day for the 2012 Phillies.  The man who will get that honor is my first featured Phillie of the 2012 season.


Featured Phillie of the Week: Roy Halladay

Among the Phillies pitchers, Roy Halladay is largely considered the ace of aces.  If he isn't the best pitcher in baseball, he is certainly on a short list of candidates.
 
Already a well established star before joining the Phillies, in his two seasons in Philadelphia he has only enhanced his reputation.  He won the 2010 National League Cy Young Award, and then finished second in the voting last year. 

Not only is he often dominant, but he is also amazingly consistent.  Poor starts are a rarity, and he gives the Phillies an excellent chance of victory every time he takes the mound.

While he was the losing pitcher in the Phillies NLDS series finale against the Cardinals, the loss was hardly his fault.  If the Phillies' offense had shown any life whatsoever, Halladay's eight inning, one run outing would have gone down in legend.

Thanks to some uneven Spring Training results, there were some rumors that he was injured.  But Halladay has adamantly shot down those rumors, saying he is just getting himself ready for the season.

Considering the man's body of work, there is no reason to doubt him.  There is every reason to expect another dominating season in which he is once again one of the best pitchers in the game.

Ghost of Phillies Past: Floyd Youmans

While the 2012 Phillies have their choice of three ace pitchers to make the Opening Day start, the team wasn't always that fortunate.

The 1989 Phillies didn't have multiple Cy Young Award winners on hand.  So they were forced to go with a much less accomplished pitcher. 

Only a few years earlier, Floyd Youmans had been a rising star for the Montreal Expos.  He won 13 games in 1986, and looked to have a bright future.  Unfortunately, his career was derailed by drug use that nearly drove him out of baseball.

Youmans was forced to go into rehab, and appeared to get his life and career back on track.  He was only 25 years of age when the Phillies acquired him before the 1989 season, and the team was optimistic that he could still fulfill the promise he showed in his early career.

After an impressive Spring Training, and lacking any better candidates, manager Nick Leyva opted to give Youmans the start on Opening Day.  But his five inning, four run performance in a loss was rather representative of how his season - and Phillies career - would go.

He went 1-5 in the early part of the season before suffering a shoulder injury that would end his season.  He underwent arthroscopic surgery, but was never able to regain his prior pitching form, and never returned to the major leagues.

Awesomely Obscure Song of the Week

As a special bonus, each week, I'll feature a song that, despite its awesomeness, has largely escaped the notice of mainstream America.

The first selection is from the rap group Delinquent Habits.  Based out of Los Angeles, the group's songs feature Spanglish lyrics and Latino themes.

Their first single off their self-titled debut album is Tres Delinquentes:

Final Analysis

It is a great comfort to know that the Phillies have Roy Halladay as their ace.  His presence means that the Phillies have a great chance at winning every five days.

It wasn't always that way.  In some years, the best the Phillies could come up with was a reclamation project like Youmans.  Not surprisingly, the 1989 Phillies were a dreadful last place team.

We can hope that the 2012 Phillies do a little better than that.

Welcome!

I first came up with the concept of Ghosts of Phillies Past on my now discontinued blog Stranger in a Strange Land. 

My goal was to illustrate the greatness of the current era of Phillies baseball by comparing a current player with a not so great player from the team's long, inglorious past.

I felt like it was a solid concept, so for 2012, I decided to spin it off into its own blog.

Every week, I will highlight a current Phillies player who had a standout week, and compare him to a player from the past who was not quite as successful in his career.

In addition, I'll provide some bonus content that may - or may not - relate to the subject at hand.

Hope you enjoy it, and here's to yet another successful Phillies season!