Roy Halladay Looks to Avenge First Loss as Phillies Take on Paul Maholm and Cubs

After suffering his first loss of the season against the Padres in his last start, Roy Halladay and the Phillies will take on the Cubs on Friday night at 7:05 ET at Citizens Bank Park.

The Phillies’ offense has been struggling in April, lacking the big pop usually provided by the likes of Ryan Howard and Chase Utley.

Halladay has risen to the challenge given to him by his inconsistent offense, allowing just five runs over 30 innings.

He owns an ERA of 1.50 and a WHIP of 0.900.

He did struggle a bit in his outing against the Padres, though. Even though he allowed just two runs, Halladay issued four free passes—three in a row in the second inning—and was unable to put hitters away.

With a weak Cubs offense, Halladay will likely cruise and avenge the loss.

Over the course of his career, Halladay has held the Cubs to a line of .265/.272/.425.

Starlin Castro has the most success against Halladay, owning a .556 average through nine at-bats.

His counterpart, Paul Maholm, has faced the Phillies seven times in his career. He owns a 3-2 record and a 4.50 ERA against them.

Look for the Phillies’ offense to come out swinging against the soft-tossing left-hander, as they look to give Halladay the run support necessary for him to get back in the win column.

Each starter in the Phillies’ lineup that has faced Maholm owns an average of at least .286 against him, with Hunter Pence achieving the most success.

In 44 at-bats, Pence has compiled a .318 average with two home runs and nine RBI.

Look for Halladay and the Phillies to play a solid game today, as the offense will get back on track and Halladay will pitch a gem.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 25 Greatest Player Nicknames in Franchise History

Baseball is a funny game.

Under the top layer of competition exists a core of strategy, superstition, and of course, nicknames. The Philadelphia Phillies are no stranger to any of those things, but they’re especially familiar with the nicknames part. After all, they’ve been around the block a few times.

Established in 1883, countless players have come and gone for the Phillies, but it seems as though the ones we remember most had some kind of moniker that made them memorable. For example, do we remember Von Hayes for what he did on the field, or the “Five-for-One” nickname that made him popular?

The Phillies certainly have never had a shortage of nicknames covering all types of monikers, from the intimidating to the comical. From a description of one’s physical stature and attributes to their mental state, it seems as though the Phillies have had a nickname to cover all situations.

These are only the top 25, but they are classics.

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Philadelphia Phillies: Signing Brandon Inge Would Be a Good Investment

It is no secret the Philadelphia Phillies need all the offense they can get, and an interesting option has just presented itself.

As many of you may have heard, Brandon Inge was released by the Detroit Tigers. He should now be brought to Philadelphia to try to add a spark to a stagnant offense.

However, Inge is a 34-year-old utility man who had a very difficult 2011. He only hit .197 with three home runs and 23 RBI in 102 games. Why would the Phillies even care about someone who ended up on the wrong side of the Mendoza line last season?

Quite frankly, the contract price is not going to be very high because of that difficult 2011 and his slow start this season. Inge does not have a lot to bargain with.

He does have a lot to offer his new team, though. If you consider his entire career, he has averaged 16 home runs per 162 games and has hit 27 home runs in two different seasons, so he has shown he has the potential to rise above this average.

The Phillies will be able to acquire Inge and his potential at probably the lowest value of his career given his recent struggles. Therefore, they need to consider this signing like an investment. There is a high potential reward to signing him. Paying a low price for a stock that is quite possibly going to rise is almost always considered a very good investment because you normally have to pay a lot for that strong return.

The Philadelphia Phillies need a spark in their offense that will not cost very much but will help drive in the runs until Ryan Howard and Chase Utley make their returns. Brandon Inge would be a great choice to fill that gap.

 

Whether you think I know everything or nothing about Major League Baseball, you should follow me on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook and keep in touch. I love hearing what you all have to say!

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Philadelphia Phillies: Is Trevor May a Trade Chip or a Building Block?

Buyers or sellers? It’s an interesting subplot through the early summer months of every baseball season—finding out which teams will be close enough to contention, in their eyes or in reality, to trade off some young pieces in order to get the over the top, and which teams must trade off some aging stars to reload for the future.

In recent years, the idea of rebuilding in Philadelphia wouldn’t even be considered.  Every July, Ruben Amaro Jr. and company would aggressively pursue upgrades before the trading deadline, whether the need was an outfield bat, a bullpen arm, or depth in the rotation.

And every year, he would find a guy who fit his need and effectively dismantle the farm system to keep the window open a little longer.

In the process, the Phillies have lost prospects like Jonathan Singleton, Carlos Carrasco, Lou Marson, Jarred Cosart and Jason Donald, to name a few, in the acquisitions of immediate-impact players like Hunter Pence and Cliff Lee.

Trevor May might be better than all of them.  Heck, he might be the best pitching prospect in Double-A baseball today.  The choice on whether or not to include him in trade discussions this year will have a great impact on the future of this club.

If the Phillies find themselves in contention, with a chance at a deep playoff run, and the front office feels they are just a piece away, they will make calls.  When those calls are made, whether it’s to talk to the Mets about David Wright, the Red Sox about Kevin Youkilis, or anyone else who could help this club, opposing general managers will inquire about the blue-chippers.

You can bet that Domonic Brown, Brody Colvin and Jesse Biddle will all among the names discussed.  Amaro’s response when they ask about May might be the difference between extending the window one more year and ensuring that the future of the club is in good hands.

No other pitching prospect in the Phils’ system has shown the consistent improvement and genuine promise that May has.  The 6’5″ Washington native was promoted to Double-A ball to start the season, after dominating Lakewood in High-A in 2011.

Baseball Prospectus’ No. 51 prospect before the year, May’s stock has skyrocketed in four starts (all wins) with the Reading Phils.  His WHIP (0.870) and ERA (2.35) are both the best he has shown at any level.  

In April, his arrival with the big club couldn’t have seemed closer than 2014.  Now, Opening Day next year doesn’t seem impossible, especially if the loss of Cole Hamels creates a hole in the rotation.

Amaro has to know what he has in this kid, and not ship him off on a whim.  As important as it is to get the most out of this core group of players, it’s not worth sending a star-in-the-making like May out for a three-month rental like Youkilis.

Now, if the Phillies were to fall out of contention between now and then, all of this would be moot, and rebuilding the system around May, Brown, Sebastian Valle, Tyson Gillies and company, most likely by trading Hamels, would become the top priority.

But it’s too early now to talk about the white flag.  And frankly, it’s depressing to think about.

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Philadelphia Phillies Who Really Phrustrate Phans

The 2012 version of the Philadelphia Phillies were predicted by many (including Las Vegas) to represent the National League in the World Series. The most dominant pitching staff in the majors returned relatively intact, with the addition of a top-three closer in the game in Jonathan Papelbon. 

The Philadelphia Phillies were also predicted to struggle in 2012 offensively, but who’d believe that they would be this bad?  

As a team, they are hitting just .248 with 38 extra-base hits. There is an absolute power shortage in the City of Brotherly Love. 

Remember the days when there were at least four guys in the lineup who had 30-HR potential? Those days are over, and the Phillies need to stay afloat until Ryan Howard and Chase Utley return to the lineup. 

And than there’s still a good chance that the Phillies won’t have enough offense (see 2010, 2011). 

This has been one of the most frustrating seasons in recent history for the Phightins, but here are four players in particular that really frustrate Phillies Nation. 

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Why Joe Blanton Will Be an Impact Player for the Philadelphia Phillies in 2012

Joe Blanton doesn’t seem to get a lot of respect among us Phillies fans.

We give him nicknames like Heavy B (a nickname I love), want him traded to free up salary space (an idea I was totally behind a couple months ago) and write him letters urging the removal of his facial hair (okay maybe that was just me).

Reporters forget he won a World Series with the Phillies, and I’m going to assume the other four “cool” pitchers last season gave loser Joe lots of wedgies, noogies and wet willies.

That said, Joe Blanton has been an effective pitcher throughout his major league career, has helped the Phillies win a World Series and will have a significant impact on this 2012 season one way or another.  

Here’s why Joe Blanton will be an impact player for the Phillies this season.

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This Date in Baseball History: The Phillies Will Never Score Again

Last night, the Phillies scored eight runs off of Diamondbacks pitching, aided by the free-falling Josh Collmenter, whose ERA rose to 9.82—deception will get you only so far. Hunter Pence, who had been suffering from a bruised left rotator cuff, homered, as did Shane Victorino and Laynce Nix.

Note that despite pounding three pitchers, the Phillies drew no walks. Even with last night’s scoring, the Phils are second-to-last in runs scored per game (3.1) in the National League, in part due to being second-to-last in walks drawn as well.

Sure, any team that had Ryan Howard and Chase Utley on the disabled list would struggle to hit, but the Phillies have compounded that problem by becoming an extremely impatient ballclub. You can pitch as well as the Phillies do and not fall apart completely, but if you don’t score, you’re not going to win.

Think back to the 2003 Dodgers—league-leading staff ERA of 3.16, terrific bullpen, league-worst offense in every category. They won 85 games and went home in October.

Thus, for today’s This Date, we memorialize what happened to the Phillies 58 years ago, on April 25, 1954. The Phillies played a doubleheader against the Giants that day. In Game 1, the Giants whitewashed the Phillies 3-0 in a duel between two excellent pitchers, Curt Simmons and Sal Maglie. In Game 2, Giants southpaw Johnny Antonelli, who was really, really good that year (21-7, league-leading 2.30 ERA), shut them out on a three-hitter, winning 5-0. He was backed by a two-run homer by future Hall of Famer Monte Irvin. Other Hall of Famers on the field that day: Willie Mays and Richie Ashburn.

So here’s to the Phillies, their eight runs in Arizona last night and their zero runs in two games at the Polo Grounds back in the last century. If they don’t get healthy and find some patience, there are going to be more days like than the latter than the former.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 25 Prospects off to Hot Starts in 2012

The Philadelphia Phillies have traded off a lot of their top prospects in recent seasons, lowering the value of their farm system, but with the way the MLB club has played at the beginning of the 2012 season, there are more than a few people who wouldn’t mind looking ahead.

Though the Phillies have traded top talents to different organizations in order to land All-Star caliber players, the organization is still rich with plenty of prospects with extremely high ceilings.

We all know how the MLB club has fared early in the season, but what about some of the organization’s best prospects? This slide show will take a look at 25 of the organization’s prospects that are off to great starts in 2012.

*Note: All statistics used in this slide show cover the entire 2012 season and were noted on Monday, April 23rd, 2012.

For news, rumors, analysis and game recaps during spring training, check out Greg’s blog: The Phillies Phactor!

Follow @Greg_Pinto

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MLB Battle of Pennsylvania: 5 Reasons It Will Matter in 2012

Philadelphia Phillies vs. Pittsburgh Pirates has not been an important matchup in a long time. Some young fans of the Buccos have never seen a winning season. 

The Pirates have five World Series titles to the Phillies’ two. To say that there is a rivalry between these two teams would be false. For now. 

Right now, the numbers say that it will matter.

Both teams are putting up eerily similar numbers. The Phillies are supposed to be the favorites to win the NL East, while the Pirates are supposed to be one of the worst teams in the entire National League. 

The Phillies, in all of ESPN’s regular-season rankings, are mostly in the 20s (runs 28th, 15th batting average, 27th on-base percentage and 24th in slugging percentage).

In comparison, the Pirates are in last in all of those rankings. The number 30 nearly streaks across the screen (with their 29th-ranked batting average being the only stat that keeps them out of the cellar).

With all of these numbers being close, it could mean something big down the road for the Phillies. Strangely enough, the Pirates do not have the worst record in baseball. That shameful spot belongs to the 3-14 Kansas City Royals. 

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NL Worst of the Night: Philadelphia Phillies’ Kyle Kendrick Is Crushed

Highlighting a bad performance from the previous night in baseball might seem like a harsh way to start the morning. But look at it this way: If you had a rough night or bad day, here’s someone who may have had it worse.

After losing four of the first seven games on their West Coast road trip, the Philadelphia Phillies have spiraled down to last place in the NL East, five games behind the Washington Nationals. The Fightin’s have been anything but, and need a good week to right the ship.

That week didn’t get off to a good start Monday night, thanks to Kyle Kendrick. Starting his first game of the season in relief of the injured Cliff Lee, the Arizona Diamondbacks pounded Kendrick right out of the box.

The D-Backs led off their first inning with two consecutive doubles to take a 1-0 lead. To be fair, Juan Pierre just missed catching Gerardo Parra’s liner to left field, but Aaron Hill just missed hitting a home run. His drive down the left-field line was initially ruled a homer, but was overturned when replay showed the ball hit approximately a foot under the top of the wall.

Kendrick allowed three additional hits after that, along with hitting a batter and walking another. When the smoke cleared, the Phillies were down, 4-0. Had Lyle Overbay not been thrown out (by a mile) at home plate, the D-Backs would’ve put up a five-spot.

You can view the carnage here.

Kendrick lasted two more innings, giving up another three runs, one of which was Justin Upton’s first homer of the season. But a three-inning outing in which he was rocked for seven runs and 11 hits is most certainly not what the Phillies needed from a replacement starting pitcher. Especially when their offense is having trouble producing runs. 

Get well soon, Lee. The Phillies might not be able to afford starting Kendrick many more times.

 

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