It’s time the Phillies got serious about finding younger talent.

In recent days, headlines regarding the Phillies have centered around the friction between Jimmy Rollins and manager Ryne Sandberg, the Phillies ineptitude to score runs in Grapefruit League play, and Ryan Howard attempting to rediscover his batting stroke. On top of that, an underlying theme for spring has been Sandberg’s attempts to find a balance between getting veterans the proper preparation in spring training while respecting his desire to save them for the regular season. And on top of that, the Phillies top-heavy starting rotation is becoming a bit lighter on top with each of Cole Hamels fits and starts to begin throwing regularly.

It’s easy to get caught up in all of this and argue about just how many games the Phillies are going to lose in 2014. (Some scouts are suggesting the Phillies might actually be worse than the Marlins. You know, the Marlins that had a payroll in 2013 that was around 21% the size of the Phillies payroll.) But really, arguing about how bad or really bad the Phillies are going to be in 2014 is the equivalent of fiddling –perhaps a funeral dirge– while Rome burns.
Continue reading →

The Phillies have always been an organization that doesn’t like to ruffle any feathers within Major League Baseball. They haven’t been afraid to sign big contracts and acquire star players, but when it comes to playing nicely within the system of Major League Baseball, they are always content with the status quo. Continue reading →

Many people have many times pointed out the similarities between sports and real life. Pointing that out again here would hardly be original or interesting. Rather, lets take a moment to consider how the Phillies’ upcoming season illustrates this oft-worn comparison. Continue reading →