Phillies Breakfast Links, November 9, 2009: Goodbye Pedro Feliz, Gas Face at 3rd Bas(e)
by WholeCamels on Nov 9, 2009 8:22 AM EST
48 comments
Phillies decline option on Feliz
Smell ya later, Pedro Feliz.
Scott Lauber breaks down the potential Feliz replacements.
Phillies consider changes at third base
Would Chone Figgins bat leadoff? How would Jimmy Rollins feel about that?
SURGERY FOR LIDGE, IBANEZ, EYRE - Philled In
Well, at least we know now what was wrong with Brad Lidge. I hope?
The 10 most memorable moments of the 2009 postseason - Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports
I can't believe he forgot Jimmy Rollins' walkoff double in NLCS Game Four the first time through. I mean, really.
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Florida Marlins deal Jeremy Hermida to the Boston Red Sox.
World Series Most Watched Since 2004
Thank goodness for this, lining the pockets of MLB and the Steinbrenner family. I was worried there for awhile!
Phillies fans refocusing sights on Eagles’ season
So how did that work out last night?
Jon Gosselin to attend wedding of Shane Victorino | TMZ.com
Shane, I don't like the aroma of these people around you and the team.
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The topic of playing with injuries is kinda bothering me, especially when it effects the performance of a player. Take Ibanez for example, he played a bit subpar after the allstar break but still contributed. Eyre still threw pretty well and didn’t show the injury as much. Lidge on the other hand blew games, even a WS game.
The problem I have with playing while hurt is this. If your costing the team games and damaging your own career should you still be playing hurt? This entire season I thought Lidge’s issues were of a mental nature, not due to injury. I’m a bit angry that I stuck by him all season while all my friends were ragging on him. I want to know why he felt he should still be on the field when he was playing so poorly.
Scar tissue is stronger than muscle tissue. Realize the strength, move on.
by JCB79 on Nov 9, 2009 9:23 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Hot stove speculation...
Utley wants to be reunited with Garrett Atkins
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/10336974/Padres-only-open-to-dealing-stars-for-right-price
Phillies second baseman Chase Utley, a former teammate of Atkins’ at UCLA, has always wanted his old college buddy to join him in Philadelphia. If Atkins became a free agent, the Phillies almost certainly could get him for less than the $5 million they would pay Pedro Feliz
Atkins had a very bad year in 2009, but his career numbers aren’t bad at all. Change of scenery on the cheap?
by Boundforbeach on Nov 9, 2009 9:30 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Slow team – Colorado was aggressive on the base paths, but they were 27th in successful steal percentage (only Milwaukee, Washington, and Chi Cubs were worse)
"When you make your final stand
I'll be right there
I'll never leave
And all I ask of you is
Believe"
by The Dark on Nov 9, 2009 10:03 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I really hope Atkins isn’t under consideration by Amaro & Co., but I fear that he is.
Atkins has, for whatever reason, been steadily regressing as a hitter since 2006. More strikeouts each year combined with dwindling power — I mean, it’s not pretty. His .247 BABIP may have contributed to his ugly .226/.308/.342 line, but a 16.4% LD ratio and a .116 ISO show that he wasn’t exactly crushing the ball and getting robbed of hits. Throw in the fact that his career UZR/150 is -5.0, and you essentially have a guy who’s as bad a hitter as Pedro Feliz, but with a substantially worse glove. I’ll pass, thanks.
by PhillyFriar on Nov 9, 2009 10:34 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
yeah…after you flamed Kouzmanoff, I checked Atkins stats too. They’re awful across the board.
This is why I think hanging onto Happy Pete may not have been such a bad idea UNLESS when they dropped him, they had a clear plan to pursue a good replacement.
Dumping Feliz is fine, provided that you have a viable contingency plan. Dumping him thinking, “we’ve gotta be able to do better somehow” is a recipe for Wes Helms at 3rd again.
by Bilzo on Nov 9, 2009 11:18 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Jounralistic Gem from Lauber...
{Figgins} batted .298 with a .365 on-base percentage, nearly 100 points higher than Feliz’s (.308),
65-8 = 57. I guess that’s closer to 100 than it is to 0.
Figgins looks most attractive based on that group, but I highly doubt they’ll be getting him for 5-7 million.
Otherwise, none of those other folks inspire me. I would’ve stuck with Happy Pete.
by Bilzo on Nov 9, 2009 9:53 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Well, since Figgins’ actual OBP last year was .395, I’m guessing that’s a typo.
The thought of that at the top of the lineup makes me dizzy. But yeah, he’ll cost.
by SethC on Nov 9, 2009 9:59 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
ok, that makes me feel a bit better. But worse, that’s a journalism error (which he likely went to school for) vs a math error (which I guess we shouldn’t expect these guys to know how to add and subtract!)
by Bilzo on Nov 9, 2009 10:42 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Halladay redux...
Here we go again…
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091107&content_id=7636664&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
It is more likely Anthopoulos will field trade offers for the pitcher this winter, and the young general manager indicated he is open to listening to proposals for any of his players.
I wonder what his definition of “wow” is?
by Boundforbeach on Nov 9, 2009 10:03 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Ugh. Briefly tuned into talk radio in the car this weekend and they were all in for Halladay. Of course nobody indicated that they knew or cared how much he’d cost.
If we have to give up any of our big three prospects for what would probably be a one-year rental, I think we should forget the whole idea.
by taco pal on Nov 9, 2009 10:14 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I think you’d have to give up at least one, maybe 2 along with a Hamels or Happ. Not worth it.
by Cormican on Nov 9, 2009 10:21 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
The radio talking heads were assuming Hamels would not be included in the deal. They were all like “The Yankees beat us because of our starting pitching. But with a rotation of Halladay, Lee, and Hamels? Now we can talk!”
Naturally, they framed the whole issue as being one of money, as in: Will the Phillies owners be too cheap to get Halladay? They didn’t seem to give a crap about the prospects.
by taco pal on Nov 9, 2009 10:25 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Agreed, but the talk won’t die until he’s traded somewhere else. Makes no sense unless we are prepared to give him an extension. And I believe there’s some other dude on our staff that we might have to pay big bucks for…
by Boundforbeach on Nov 9, 2009 10:23 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
big league stew
Had the same reaction. That wasn’t just some minor oversight, it was so egregious that it made his entire project worthless. It would be like ranking the top ten presidents and forgetting Lincoln or FDR. And his weaselly little update only made matters worse.
by taco pal on Nov 9, 2009 10:19 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
some of the stuff I’ve read about Shane candidly in SI, I’d surmise that his wife is gonna ba a grade A floozy.
by Bilzo on Nov 9, 2009 10:44 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
You can see her here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2Rtm_GnWF0
Doesn’t seem terribly floozy-ish.
by taco pal on Nov 9, 2009 10:50 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
My buddy was at Delilah’s Fri night in VIP and next to him was Victorino (I would’ve gone but second anniv for me)
by Sept.28.Oct.27.Dec.28.2008 on Nov 9, 2009 11:06 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I’ll check that @ home. Youtube @ work is highly frowned upon.
by Bilzo on Nov 9, 2009 11:18 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Yes, I’m sure the heart-stitched baseball is Shane’s favorite.
Nice to see my disposable income tied up in one of his rapidly depreciating five cars. Vroom vroom.
by Wet Luzinski on Nov 10, 2009 9:31 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I really like the Polanco option. No more than 2 years though. I always like his glove at third (the times he played there) and his bat would be a big improvement.
by Cormican on Nov 9, 2009 10:23 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
If Polanco would be interested in shifting to third, then I’d definitely consider it. In a vacuum, I’d put him behind signing Beltre and trading for Alex Gordon or Brandon Wood, but he’d likely come cheaper than Beltre, and wouldn’t cost any prospects (as Gordon and Wood would).
by PhillyFriar on Nov 9, 2009 10:40 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I think his ‘08 salary was only ~4.5M, so he would likely be a steal from that perspective. I would actually prefer Polanco to Beltre of Figgins (provided Placido is okay with moving to third), as it would leave more cash to upgrade the bench, bullpen and rotation. I don’t see the dropoff from Beltre to Polanco as being that huge.
by Cormican on Nov 9, 2009 10:54 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
There’s one issue I completely forgot to mention: if the Tigers offer Polanco arbitration, he’ll be a Type A free agent.
I’m generally in favor of shying away from Type A guys unless they’re seen as an irreplaceable piece. Extreme example, but by signing Jon Lieber back in 2005, the Phils forfeited their first round pick and a chance to select, among others, Jacoby Ellsbury, Matt Garza, Colby Rasmus, and Clay Buchholz.
With Detroit strapped for cash, there’s always the chance they could decide not to offer Polanco arbitration — but that would require a “wait and see” approach.
by PhillyFriar on Nov 9, 2009 11:04 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Good point, I didn’t think about that. They have Sizemore in AAA, but going to arbitration for 1 year with Polanco and bringing Sizemore up in the fall seems likely. Of course, going Sizemore all year can’t be ruled out either. I agree, I’m not giving draft picks up for anyone short of top tier all star caliber players.
by Cormican on Nov 9, 2009 11:56 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Sizemore injured himself in the AFL — maybe a broken ankle? I can’t remember — but word is that he’ll probably be ready for spring training. If he is, then he’s a better option for the Tigers at the keystone in that he’s much more cost-efficient.
And I doubt Polanco accepts arbitration unless he thinks he can’t get a superior deal on the open market. The thing is, if you’re Dave Dombrowski, do you run that risk — with the downside that you’re on the hook to pay Polanco $6 or $7 million minimum on a 1 year deal? I hope their fiscal situation dictates that they don’t take that risk.
by PhillyFriar on Nov 9, 2009 1:27 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
what were the considerations with him leaving the Phillies in the first place? I can’t remember.
by Wet Luzinski on Nov 10, 2009 9:32 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
We had three guys (Utley, Polanco, David Bell) playing two positions. It was believed (probably correctly) that you couldn’t get anything good in return for David Bell, so Ed Wade decided to trade Polanco instead. This, of course, wouldn’t have helped the team at all even if Wade had gotten a good deal for Polanco, since we would have achieved that higher return only at the expense of having to keep the sucky Bell. As it turned out, Wade didn’t get a good deal for Polanco anyway, which made things even worse. Instead, we got Ugueth Urbina, who pitched crappily for the rest of the season and then got himself arrested for attempted murder in the offseason.
by taco pal on Nov 10, 2009 9:45 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Thanks. It all comes back to me now. I had always wondered if how we jettisoned him so quickly and poorly had anything to do with his outsized head (suggesting HGH), but have since read exchanges or accounts that suggest he’s not the type for that. Wade incompetence is far more likely the culprit. These type of tangential net-loss deals really were his signature.
It’s pie-in-the sky, but there has to be some way to leverage both the cash-strapped and the easily flummoxed GMs out there for what we really need.
by Wet Luzinski on Nov 10, 2009 10:05 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Actually, as it turned out, Bell was the one who was later accused of PED use.
I often find myself playing the role of Wade’s semi-defender around these parts, but the Polanco decision was just a flat-out boner. The only good thing that can be said about it is, at least he didn’t trade Utley.
by taco pal on Nov 10, 2009 10:30 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
AS for GMs, roster spots 21-40 seem to me to be where the good ones separate themselves from others—would that the ultimate resource, payroll, could somehow be controlled for. Wade’s Waterloo always seemed to be on the lower end spots. I never really saw him put the gun to the organization’s head, but a lot of toes seemed to get shot off.
Amaro would meet my expectations with a 2-3 year FA fill-in (Beltre, Figgins even), which I’d be okay with as we tried to perhaps convert one of our prospects to 3B or swing a trade. I’d be far more intrigued with something real creative and far more difficult that could represent a 5+ year fix at this vexing position.
by Wet Luzinski on Nov 10, 2009 10:55 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Figgins' BABIP
His offensive value comes almost entirely from getting on base. Part of that is a strong walk rate but part of that is also a high BABIP. I worry that as he gets older and slower, even by just a bit, that will fall and with it, his value.
by phila on Nov 9, 2009 10:43 AM EST via mobile reply actions 0 recs
Why did Beltre have such a bad year last year? Was he hurt? I know he was DL’d for a while after taking one in the balls, but that was late in the year and he wasn’t hitting all that before that either.
by taco pal on Nov 9, 2009 10:57 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
He had surgery in June to remove bone spurs from his left shoulder. He was on the DL from June 30 until August 4
"When you make your final stand
I'll be right there
I'll never leave
And all I ask of you is
Believe"
by The Dark on Nov 9, 2009 11:08 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Situation
Well, a few ideas that I have been thinking about.
First off, does anyone have the link to a site with all available FAs?
So, first off, we all know that we need a 3B. With Feliz gone, we can deduce a few things.
1. We are freeing up Feliz potential salary to bring in a better replacement. There is only one player better for the Phils to get on the market. I am only saying that because we don’t know if Polanco moves to third and Atkins or Beltre are still hitting in the same part of the order. Chone is the only person who can really adjust the batting order for beneficial purposes.
2. The FO thinks that Feliz offensive numbers are inflated because of the park, which they are, and they can get someone cheaper with comp. salary.
This entire 3B thing makes the offseason more interesting for us as fans. Where I am hoping to see some improvement is in the bench (b/u catcher included), as well as the RP department. In terms of the bench, Feliz obviously costs too much to pay and have as a defensive type of replacement, and frankly, he has now been to three WS, which means he is adequate enough to start for a winning team. He is solid, although one of the few areas where the Phils can improve.
In terms of the RP, those are always guys that you get unexpectedly. I really don’t expect them to knock us out and sign a guy like Putz as an example, but finding that lefty for the middle of the order is going to be a task.
by hessshaun on Nov 9, 2009 11:08 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Shane, I don’t like the aroma of these people around you and the team.
Why not? Looks as if those two are perfect together ;)
Beer is good! And stuff!
by R_Adragna on Nov 9, 2009 12:36 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Scutaro
I see the Phillies making a move for him. At best, he plays 3b. At worst, he is a major upgrade over Bruntlett.
Not sure why the Phillies didn’t get him at the trade deadline. Other than Ricciardi being an idiot. They could have used him in the post season.
by The R on Nov 9, 2009 3:54 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
I would say at best, he’s better than Bruntlett on the bench, at worst, he starts. Not a fan.
by Cormican on Nov 9, 2009 4:05 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
fair enough, but he would be affordable. And the Phillies desperately need an infield utility player. One that can hit above .250. And a right handed bat.
by The R on Nov 9, 2009 4:30 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Scutaro is coming off a .282/.379/.409 season in which he posted a positive UZR at shortstop. He was a 4.5 WAR player last year — in other words, more valuable than any Phillie not named Utley, Lee, Howard, or Werth.
Shortstop is a premium position, and Scutaro was fantastic there last year, so there is simply no way on God’s green earth that he signs anywhere to be a utility player. He’ll sign a pretty nice deal somewhere, and he’ll deserve it.
by PhillyFriar on Nov 9, 2009 4:52 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
What about....
Joel Pinero? He’s a sinker ball pitcher, and our infield is great defensively (especially if we sign Beltre) and hes a B free agent (along with Beltre) and could probably come cheap. We need another righty and why not someone who can throw hard sinkers, we don’t have anyone like that as it stands.
by packimop on Nov 10, 2009 2:51 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Interesting
Probably be ~8-10M/year. Lee-Hamels-Happ-Pinero-Blanton I could live with that. He would seem to be a good fit with the ballpark/defense.
by Cormican on Nov 10, 2009 4:28 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
So Derek Jeter won a gold glove this year…that’s just AWESOME
by jemagee on Nov 10, 2009 6:39 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
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