The Danger Zone Theory

For every action, an equal and opposite reaction.
For every run scored, a run allowed soon after.
The latter, as it applies to the Phillies, is disturbingly true. Philly pitching never seems happy with having a new lead, and will often relinquish it readily and quickly to opponents.
And thus, we have the Danger Zone Theory. The “Danger [...]

The curious case of Brad Lidge

Seeing Brad Lidge struggle to get a save is not news. Even in 2008, when his season was touted as “perfect,” Lidge managed just 25 “1-2-3″ innings in his 68 appearances of exactly one IP. That means that nearly two out of every three appearances resulted in at least one runner getting on base.
It’s true, [...]

Get grounded about Ibanez

This is Raul Ibanez’s current offensive line:
.349/.410/.724, 15 HR, 40 RBI
This is Raul Ibanez’s current offensive line when you remove games against the Nationals:
.292/.355/.575, 9 HR, 24 RBI
I guess the good news is that we play the Nationals 18 times each year. So there’s that!
That’s a good line as it is, but people will undoubtedly [...]

The Brad Lidge discussion

Brad Lidge has been bad so far this season.
I’ll just get that out of the way early. He’s been smacked all across the ballpark in quite a few of his outings thus far in 2009, and it’s become a legitimate cause for concern. Even after he voiced his assurances that his injured knee was healthy, [...]

Lou Marson will never see the light of day

In yet another puzzling move, the Phillies have signed catcher Paul Bako to a minor league deal.
Consider: the Phillies currently pay Carlos Ruiz and Chris Coste to catch, and have hot prospect Lou Marson twiddling his thumbs in AAA, and traded away a better backup catcher prior to opening day.
Did I mention he’s left-handed?
Don’t get [...]

There is justice: Carpenter called up, Cairo designated

Miguel Cairo, the least effective bench bat in the National League, has finally been washed away by the Phillies.
Because J.A. Happ had to pitch in Friday’s frustrating win over the Nationals, the Phillies needed a starter for the back end of Saturday’s doubleheader. That starter will be Drew Carpenter – not Kyle Kendrick – and [...]

Be happy you’re a Phillies fan: Reason #126

Because the team’s management, silly as it may be sometimes, is not the management of the New York Yankees.
Sure, they have a pretty new stadium and that giant HDTV in center field. But they also have the stingiest bunch of pennypinchers this side of Scrooge McDuck.
You know those costly, field-level seats that have made so [...]

Take more pitches! Get better pitchers!

Those seem like obvious fan demands, no? The Phillies have been anything but immune to that sort of requisitioning.
For the past season-plus, the Phillies have been one of the most anxious teams in all of baseball. They eschew the opportunity to see a minimum of three pitches and often hack at the very first one [...]

What’s up with Brett Myers?

“He gives up a lot of homers,” is probably your first thought after reading that title. It’s true, Myers has been plagued by dingers.
But more than that, this year’s Brett Myers is far removed from 2008’s Brett Myers. How?
Fastball velocity.
I was discussing this with the writer of the Philly Sports Record about this, and he [...]