2K24: Philadelphia Phillies

[willthethrill]

Some bad news for the Phils, according to csnphilly, which might have raised the desire to add AJB...

Cole Hamels will not be ready for opening day after experiencing discomfort in his pitching shoulder this offseason. Hamels said he was not alarmed and that he feels great now, but he is 8-10 days away from throwing a bullpen session. He ruled out making his second straight opening day start, but said, “I see myself pitching in April.”

[Erik]

The Phillies' payroll for 2014 will be $189 million (as of now), a new club record.

They better hope they make the playoffs with that kind of cheddar going out the door.

Maybe a win-win. They make the playoffs, everybody's happy. They don't make the playoffs, maybe Amaro gets fired, almost everybody's happy.

[Don Quixote]

Maybe a win-win. They make the playoffs, everybody's happy. They don't make the playoffs, maybe Amaro gets fired, almost everybody's happy.

Do you think that's the "red line" for Amaro? Playoffs or fired?

[mjl]

That's a good point actually. This might be the kind of desperate-GM offseason that Dayton Moore had last year.

[onejayhawk]

Is this the same organization that was in the World Series recently? The name is the same, but the rest doesn't seem to fit.

J

[Erik]

Do you think that's the "red line" for Amaro? Playoffs or fired?

Not necessarily, but if the team shows no signs of improvement over last year, that might be enough to boot him. We don't really know. Phillies ownership (made up of a bunch of different high-society rich folks) tends to give GMs a lot of rope -- but also never tips their hand publicly. See Thomas, Lee and Wade, Ed.

[Erik]

Is this the same organization that was in the World Series recently? The name is the same, but the rest doesn't seem to fit.

J

They got old. It happens.

[Don Quixote]

They got old. It happens.

See Yankees, New York.

[scottw]

Amaro is very well connected with ownership, but unless some improvement is shown, he might find his way out the door. The team is hamstrung for the next 2-3 years by old guys getting paid what they used to be worth and by all the trades which were made over the past 5-6 years in which star players were added at the expense of good young minor leaguers. The result for now is that the minors need a few more years to rebound so they can begin anew! I wish they would follow a model where they actually groom and keep their stars, but win-now is what the ownership seems to favor.

[Erik]

Re good young minor leaguers, none of the guys they traded away have set the world on fire. The real issue is after hitting on many impact players in the drafts of the late 90s and early 00s, the well went dry.

[willthethrill]

Re good young minor leaguers, none of the guys they traded away have set the world on fire. The real issue is after hitting on many impact players in the drafts of the late 90s and early 00s, the well went dry.

Agreed, although Singleton looks like the real deal and Cosart and Villar also look promising, so the Astros may have fared the best. Cleveland and Toronto ended up with little to show for Lee and Halladay.

[scottw]

But we are talking the minor league talent as evaluated at the time, not in hindsight of several years. Giving up all that talent was a topic of violent conversation at the time, if you remember. They were high level picks who left and it did gut the system. Now, in hindsight, Singleton, Cosart and a few more would look good coming up. This is not to say they don't have to do a better job drafting and developing, because they certainly do, especially among the hitters.

[Erik]

I like Franco ... And then it's gonna be another three years or so before we know on anyone else.

[mjl]

Asche and Ruf also look like they have a future. Maybe not as superstars but possibly above-average players. Unfortunately there's a bit of a logjam at 1B and 3B on this team...

[Erik]

The issue with Ruf is that he's a complete defensive liability anywhere but 1B, and they are not yet ready to admit they made a grave mistake at 1B and cut their losses.

And then with Franco soon to emerge, you have 4 guys for 2 spots.

This is why I wish the NL had voted for the DH back in 1979-80.