» Philadelphia Phillies News

Welcome Back to the First Round Mr. Utley!

Progress ahead of schedule was all fantasy managers needed to know

Not in every generation do we witness a second baseman that fits the mold of a career .900+ OPS hitter with speed in a strong lineup.  The combination makes Utley a hot commodity in fantasy sports, and worthy of an early to middle first round pick if his health wasn’t in question.  Now, the original prognosis of his hip injury was 4-6 months, which could have set Utley as far back as late May.  However, optimism for Phillies’ fans was released by ESPN last Friday as his recovery is reportedly well ahead of schedule: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3919778.  This means the pain-free Utley could likely start contributing to fantasy teams as early as April, thus sky rocketing his value. 

Fantasy Spin: As of now Chase Utley is on average the 16th player selected in drafts according to MDC data.  With the news, fantasy managers are now inclined to take Utley in the first round again and as the first second baseman off the boards.  I’ll even go as far to say he should be picked in the No. 9 spot, after the M. Cab/Braun/Sizemore bunch.  This is a move that can be justified by assessing the risk of the likely less productive first round picks in Kinsler, Hamilton, Howard, and Rollins.  Kinsler hasn’t played in more than 130 games in any of the last three seasons.  Hamilton is risky because he’s only had one monster season and his durability is still in question.  Howard’s K:BB rate has risen steadily in the last three years and it isn’t a sure-thing that he’ll soon return to hitting in the .270 range.  Rollins, the safest of the group, has posted inconsistent power numbers over the past four years in 12, 25, 30, and 11 homeruns.

According to Todd Zolecki, Nomar Garciaparra is being pursued by the Oakland A’s, as well as the Phillies.

Phillies GM Ruben Amaro, Jr: 

“We’re not going to get into a bidding war with the A’s. He knows what our parameters would be.”

While I would have liked to have seen Nomar in red pinstripes, itt doesn’t look like that’s going to happen at this point. He would have been a good addition, but I’m sure the Phils will make do with what they have or even bring in another righthanded bat.

I’m confident in Ruben.

-KK

Interesting article from Todd Zolecki, Phillies beat writer for MLB.com

The best quote comes from Charlie talking about wrestler Kevin Nash and Ryan Howard.

He’s a pretty big guy,” Manuel said. “I talked to (bench coach) Pete Mackanin. I might want to replace Pete with Kevin Nash as bench coach. That way I can really be a redneck, hard nosed manager.”

I love Charlie. He speaks the truth. He’s very understated, but when he does speak, he spits out some great lines.

In Pedro Feliz news:

Pedro Feliz fielded ground balls for the first time.

“Look, he may miss some itme, but it won’t be much,” Manuel said. “Again, he might not miss any. We’ll probably know more about that in another two or three weeks.

I find it funny that Chase Utley had major hip surgery and is already ahead of Feliz on the rehab. I love Pete Happy for his defense, but he needs to step it up on the offensive side this season.

-KK

Phillies ace and World Series MVP Cole Hamels is on the newest cover of Sports Illustrated

Phillies' Cole Hames

This kid is a beast, but he is only going to get better. I’m glad he’s locked up with the Fightins’ for a few more years.

Apparently, his offseason plans included planning to adopt an orphan from Africa (viaThe700Level ) What a nice guy. I just so happen to have no parents and was born in Africa. Give me a call Cole.

-KK

Suddenly everyone wants a piece of the world series hero. – 02.23.09 – SI Vault: “”

First up, I’d like to thank Jeff for the opportunity to write about my crazy obsession, Philadelphia Phillies baseball.

A little about myself. My name is Kieran Kelly. I’m currently a senior at Drexel University in Philadelphia. I’ve never written about anything on a regular basis, so this will be a learning experience for me.

I’ve been a fan of the Phillies for as long as I can remember. That remembrance goes back to Game 6 of the 1993 World Series. Joe Carter. Enough said.

I spent all of my savings to go to Game 4 of the 2008 World Series. There was no way in hell that I was missing a chance to see the Phillies in the World Series. I bought a season ticket package for this season, so there will be many first hand accounts from the Bank.

I’ll try and get together a post about the 2009 Phillies up shortly. I thank you in advance for your patience with me as I get the hang of this.

You can follow me on Twitter @kierankelly  I’ll usually have small snippets there, some about the Phillies, mostly about other things. I’m very active on Twitter, so that will be more “fresh” than here, but I’ll have at least one post a day here.

I look forward to sharing my insights about the Philadelphia Phillies…2008 World F*cking Champions.

-KK

Let’s face it, the Phillies weren;t exactly the baseball “Experts” pick to win it all last year, but it happened. It happened because the Phillies simply found ways to get the job done. They won because they deserved to, plain and simple.

As a die hard Mets fan myself, I must take my hat off to the Phils, it is the “Never Give Up, Never Surrender” attitude, and that bullpen, that truly carried them though to the end. As I look back now, I realize that uncertainty is simply the only true certainty before a Major League Baseball season starts.

These in-season wins certainly led to some off season ones for the fightin’  Phils as well.

“The interest this offseason has been very, very strong, and there’s no question that has enabled us to perhaps be more aggressive than we might have been otherwise,” Phillies president David Montgomery said Monday from his corner office at Bright House Field.

Try to imagine the following possibilities: What if the Phillies failed to sweep the Brewers in their four game series? What if they didn’t win the National League East? What if the Brewers overtook them for the National League Wild Card?

Could the Phillies sign Ryan Howard? Or Cole Hamel’s multi-million contract extension? What about the three year $31.5 million offer to Raul Ibanez to replace Pat Burrell?

“We probably wouldn’t be sitting here saying we know we have sold nearly 24,000 season tickets,” Montgomery said. “It would probably be a number similar to last year, maybe not even as strong. So we would have definitely been doing the offseason differently. I don’t know if it would have manifested itself in multiyear deals or whether it would have manifested itself in not being able to add a player like Ibanez.

“It’s tough for me to able to say specifically what would have been different, but the answer is, yes, it absolutely would have been different. We are where we are because of the team’s success and the resulting fan support.”

So now, I must ask…what are the odds of another Phillies championship this year? Any Phillies, Mets. or any other fans out there care to comment?

Issues concerning Alex Rodriguez would always be on a constant shadow for the league, whether it may be good, bad, or otherwise.

“The Yankee Years”, a 447 page book by Joe Torre and Tom Verducci should’ve sparked the not so entertaining days of Spring Training even if the CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixeira controversies weren’t interesting enough.

All of a sudden, no one is that interested in what was noted in the book: people in the clubhouse calling him “A-Fraud,” rumors of him opposing with Derek Jeter and the ever so popular peanut butter and jelly sandwich agenda

With Sports Illustrated’s shocking story last Saturday that ARod had tested positive for two anabolic steroids during his AL MVP season last 2003, current terms such as testosterone and Primobolan, is twisting the tale to another direction.

Although there were no penalties for testing positive during the 2003 survey, it is safe to say that Rodriguez is in no danger of a suspension that would deteriorate his 2009 season.

Rodriguez’s wealth is on the safe side as well: Sources told Sports Illustrated that the 10 year, $275 million contract is still on the go, since there is no word about the steroids news that would put Rodriguez on the line.

Is it safe to say that A-Rod is the complete package: All his potential as well as the shadows of controversies all molded into one person?

“No,” A-Rod said then. Sunbathing topless in Central Park, and scoring Madonna’s cell number can be one way to put it.

Torre praised Rodriguez for his work ethic, but at the same time commented on the latter for gaining too much attention in the clubhouse.

He also made it a point to note Rodriguez’s measures, although it is not always true. One thing is on the honest point though; A-Rod was indeed a steroid user.

A number of writers have already promised in print that they will not vote for Rodriguez as a Hall of Famer, according to a Sports Illustrated article. But with his contract not expiring until the end of 2017, decisions could very well be changed overnight, considering Rodriguez’s name should appear on the 2002 ballots.

With 553 home runs under his belt, Rodriguez only needs 210 more to surpass the record held by Barry Bonds, a likely feat that would soon be accomplished in the near future.

Instilled with his provocative actions is the media, wherein flocks of reporters, writers and not to mention critics going where the Yankees go, those responses is short lived since Alex Rodriguez is rumored to be in the Bahamas.

It was on a lone summer that Any Pettitte stole the limelight away from A-Rod. Before his teammates and the media, Pettitte apologized for his actions, which he described to be “stupid and desperate”.

2006 NL MVP Ryan Howard signed a three-year contract worth $54 million, on an extension deal with the Phillies, and laid out his final three years of salary negotiation.

What made the deal so intriguing is the fact that Howard and the Phillies franchise seem to be far apart during previous contract extensions, and it seems both parties will continue doing this process until Howard becomes a free agent after 2011.

“We’re pleased to have gotten this behind us,” Ruben Amaro, General Manager of the Phillies said during a conference at Citizens Bank Park. “I think it’s important for the players to worry about playing baseball; to get them ready to defend our title.”

In an estimate, Howard will be earning $15 million this season, $19 million the following year and $20 million in 2011. Only five players earned more than Howard last year: Alex Rodriguez ($28 million), Jason Giambi ($23.4 million), Derek Jeter ($21.6 million), Manny Ramirez ($18.9 million) and Carlos Beltran ($18.6 million).

Considering that Howard will be declared NL MVP over the next season, his current salary will be added $1 million over the next two years. A Gold Glove Award and All-Star appearances will also spell bonuses for Howard and as well as $1 million if he is traded before Nov. 1, 2010.

“I’m happy to have this done and to know that I’ll be in Philadelphia for at least another three years. Both sides are happy, and now I’m just focused on getting the season started and having fun.” Howard said in a statement

The cost for Howard’s signing certainty was significant since the Phillies tried to evaluate free-agent players or which of their players to extend, like they did this offseason for Howard, Hamels, Madson and Werth.

“We know where we’re at with the dollars on him. My job is to try to put a championship-caliber club on the field every single year, and knowing exactly where the dollars are going to be over the next several years on some of our higher-priced players, it helps me a lot.” Amaro said when asked about the $4 million gap on Howard’s request of $18 million as to the Phillies’ offer of $14 million.

Jimmy Rollins also singed with the Phillies until 2010 and a 2011 club option, Brad Lidge through 2011, 2012 club option, Hamels through 2011 and Chase Utley through 2013.

Amaro said that they made contact with Casey Close, Howard’s agent and also with Howard’s family. Now specific agenda was brought out, but he said they talked about several conditions that would convince Howard to signing a long-term deal.

Amaro was asked if he was disappointed that the Phillies couldn’t sign Howard to a longer deal, he said, “I don’t know if “disappointment” is the way to depict it. … It’s three years, and it’s a significantly long time. Ultimately, we came to the conclusion it was the right thing to do.”

There was also some rumors that the parties had reached an standoff on a multiyear contract with Howard believing to be asking a contract similar to New York Yankees’ Mark Teixeira’s eight-year, $180 million contract. Also, there were some speculations stating that the parties weren’t getting along, even though no real evidence of such came out of the public.

Putting those into perspectives, it is safe to say that Howard didn’t agree to a single contract the Phillies had offered him for the last three years.

“No negotiation is simple, but the goal is always the same,” Amaro said. “Get a deal done, and get a deal that is equitable. We’ve been trying to build a relationship with Casey and Ryan and the family, and I think that at the end of the day, we got done what was necessary, and frankly, it was the right thing to do for our organization. … Things that happened prior with Ryan, I don’t know why, but they were being depicted in a different way. They weren’t adversarial. It was just a matter of us agreeing to disagree, and that happens a lot in any kind of business. I don’t think it made us love Ryan any less, and I don’t think Ryan loved us any less.”