2011 Philadelphia Phillies: Getting Healthy, and What That Means for the Bench.

With a large influx from the disabled list, it is not terribly difficult for Phillies fans to feel an upswing in general morale. 

After all, the best second baseman in the game and our number three hitter in our once-vaunted lineup has returned to right the ship.

Our top prospect has come to claim his rightful spot in the outfield on a full time basis.

Our borderline-All Star catcher has returned to put a steadying hand on our pitching staff and to add another .300 bat to the lineup.

Our timelessly young set up man has re-established himself, righting our bullpen.

This is the general consensus, or at least hope, of all Phillies fans. Not so fast, folks.

Even if Chase Utley is back, and even if he is able to stay healthy for the remainder of the year, it will more than likely take a significant amount of time before he is comfortable both in the box and on the field. 

Dominic Brown is our top prospect, and the idea of his “five tool” talents are verily enticing.  However, he has yet to show anything but flashes of said talents in the Majors. To have any kind of expectations for him as an everyday player might be asking too much. Again, the hope is still there.

Carlos Ruiz is a tremendous catcher and handler of pitchers and has, in the past, been a very clutch performer at the dish but this year has yet to show that breakout, .300 stick from last season.

As far as Jose Contreras is concerned, the guy does seem timeless but perhaps the injury from weeks ago is simply a sign that his age is finally catching up with him. After all, Contreras could be 39 years old, as well as possibly 4-5 years older than that!

Of course, in Philadelphia, hope usually does tend to defeat skepticism, even if that hope is somewhat unrealistic.

Is it unrealistic in this case?  Not necessarily.  We are talking about a top prospect and three established players, each with years of quality baseball to support the optimism.

Whether or not Ruiz can hit. 300, Utley can come back to his .300/30/100 ways, Contreras can still be one of the best set up men around and Brown can fulfill his enormous potential this year all remains to be seen.

It does seem more likely that the four of these players will provide a nice spark to the team.  Moreover, one of the most important things that the return of these players provides is some much needed depth to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Wilson Valdez is a terrific utility player who has been forced into a starting role, resulting in the role of utility player being filled by a few players (Martinez, Orr, and the like) who probably do not even belong in the majors. Now, with Utley back, Valdez can resume his role as “everyman” and can spell any of the starting infielders (save Howard) when they need a blow.

Ben Francisco is a nice player and a strong fourth outfielder. He is not well-served as a starter in the lineup and really is not an everyday player.  We pretty much realize that after one third of the season having passed. 

John Mayberry Jr. is also a nice player, and one with quite a bit of versatility, as he has shown the ability to not only play all three outfield positions (invaluable with Victorino still out), but also first base.

With Brown here and the return of Victorino likely coming in the next week or two, platoons are now possible and we now have two capable reserve outfielders, whether they be Mayberry and Brown, Francisco and Brown and Francisco and Mayberry. 

What does this do? Well, for one, it gives the Phillies the opportunity to cast Michael Martinez anywhere besides the Major League club. Yes, it’s nice that Martinez plays multiple positions.  However, he doesn’t particularly play any of them well, and cannot hit his weight no matter where he plays in the field.

When Ruiz came back, it was supposed to have meant that the Phillies could let go of Dane Sardinha, who probably shouldn’t even be playing for the Iron Pigs.  Unfortunately, Brian Schneider immediately went on the DL, thwarting that plan. Thank goodness, with Schneider on the mend and back with the club in a few weeks, we can say an unceremonious goodbye to Mr. Sardinha.

As for Contreras, his return gives the Phillies a very solid and strong eighth and ninth inning combination and can push other relievers to more comfortable roles. It also ensures that the weakest link in the ‘pen will go back down, where he can do no more damage in the late innings.  David Herndon, anyone?

While the addition of Brown, Utley, Contreras and Ruiz is a wonderful prospect and the returns of Victorino and Schneider are also enticing to Phillies fans to right the proverbial ship, possibly the best byproduct is the removal of the Martinez’s, Sardinha’s and Herndon’s of the world. 

It would be nice if all of our starters returned to form, or, at least, if all of them did not have down years, but it is even nicer to think that all of the players on the team’s 25 man roster actually belong in the majors!

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