On October 2, Moyer underwent surgery to repair three muscle tears in his groin and lower abdomen. Almost two months later, Moyer underwent another surgery after an MRI exam showed a small blood collection that could have been infected.

Now, Moyer is scheduled to undergo another surgery–this time on his right knee. Moyer will undergo the surgery on Monday.

That’s a lot of surgeries for a 27-year-old to have, let alone a 47-year-old. Thanks to all these procedures, Moyer may not be ready for opening day for the Phillies.

“I would doubt that Jamie would be ready for opening day,” Ruben Amaro said through the Philadelphia Inquirer (the Phils open April 5 in Washington). “It’s possible. If anybody can do it, Jamie can.”

Moyer signed a two-year extension for $13 million before the 2009 season, so one has to figure this will be Moyer’s final season in the major leagues. Unless he wants to say he played till he was 50, I don’t see why Moyer would continue to pitch after this season.

The Phillies’ first four spots in the rotation is set with Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, JA Happ, and Joe Blanton. When Moyer comes back, he could either compete for the fifth spot in the rotation or be a long reliever out of the pen.

I think because of his ability to eat innings, Moyer will be given every chance to start for the Phillies in 2010. In the two seasons before last, Moyer threw over 190 innings.

Moyer will be entering his 24th year in the major leagues in 2010. Every time Moyer takes the mound, he is living proof that A. It pays to be born left-handed and B. You don’t have to throw 100 mph to be a successful major league pitcher.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

Before I get to my Danys Baez envy, I wanted to wish everyone a very Happy New Year. I also hope everyone had a safe New Year’s Eve, or as it is commonly referred to in New York City, amateur hour.

Today is the first day of the year, but I also feel one of the most underrated days of the year. There are no responsibilities, there is college football all day, the NHL Winter Classic, classic movies like Airplane on Comedy Central, and of course, Chinese food.

What’s better than that?

Though I have to admit I am a little disappointed in the MLB Network today. How do you show the same programming for 48 hours straight? Today is a perfect day for All Time Games .

Now, on to the matter at hand.

Yesterday, a couple of free agents ended 2009 with a bang. Marlon Byrd signed with the Chicago Cubs and Danys Baez signed a contract as well.

As Todd Zolecki of MLB.com first reported via Twitter , the Philadelphia Phillies signed Baez to a two-year contract. No terms of the deal have been disclosed yet.

Not only am I extremely envious of Baez, but I am envious of his agent as well. This guy must have the best negotiating skills on the planet.

Baez’s agent was able to negotiate a three-year, $19 million contract with the Baltimore Orioles after the 2006 season. A 2006 season, in which he had his worst statistical season of his career up to that point.

In 2006, Baez had the highest ERA of his career (4.53), highest hits/9 (9.1), and lowest K/9 (5.9). Somehow, Baez’s agent took those number and spun them into a three-year contract.

Now Baez’s agent is at it again.

Baez had three less-than-stellar years in Baltimore. It was really only two years because Baez missed the entire 2008 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Baez had a 5.02 ERA in those two seasons and his HR/9 of 1.2 was the highest of any two year stretch in Baez’s career. In 2009, Baez had the lowest K/9 of his career at 5.0.

It’s usually not a good sign when a reliever doesn’t have the ability to miss bats anymore. Baez’s agent turned two years of mediocrity into another two years of security for his client. Amazing.

The Baez signing essentially means the end of the Chan Ho Park era in Philadelphia.

I have to admit I am not too fond of the Phillies’ offseason so far. I thought they had a chance with a couple of smart moves to really put the hammer down in the National League and have failed to do so.

They gave up their best prospects in order to acquire Roy Halladay, who won’t give the Phillies that much more than what Cliff Lee would have given them, I really didn’t understand the rush to sign Placido Polanco and as it turns out now, they overpaid for him, and Baez really isn’t that much of an upgrade over Park.

It’s been a perplexing offseason for the Phillies in my opinion. They have addressed their needs, but I am not a fan of the decisions they have made to address those needs.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

He makes a good move in trading for Matt Lindstrom, then he makes a horrific move in signing Brandon Lyon to a three-year deal, and now he makes a good value move.

It’s like for every two steps forward, he takes one step back.

Today, Wade inked former Philadelphia Philly third baseman Pedro Feliz to a one-year, $4.5 million contract—a good value signing by the Astros.

Feliz, who was made available after the Phillies declined his 2010 option, hit .266/.308/.386 12 home runs in 158 games last year. Outside of the pitcher, he was widely regarded as the easiest out in the Phillies’ lineup.

While Feliz is an average batter at best, he is not an average fielder.

Feliz is a very good defensive player. He had a 5.0 UZR (Ultimate Zone Rating), which ranked towards the top of all third basemen in 2009.

At $4.5 million, this is a good deal for the Astros. Feliz was worth about $5.7 million to the Phillies last season. Plus, Feliz is an upgrade over Geoff Blum, who played the majority of the games (102) at third base for the Astros in 2009.

This deal was first reported by ESPN.com’s Jorge Arangure, via Enrique Rojas, via Twitter.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

After declining the option on Pedro Feliz, the Philadelphia Phillies were in need of a third baseman. Today, the Phillies found their man.

According to various sources, the Phillies have officially signed Placido Polanco to a three-year, $18 million deal with a mutual option for 2013. Polanco, who will be 35 at the end of next season hit .285/.331./.396 with 10 home runs for the Detroit Tigers in 2009.

I’ve got to be honest, I am very torn on whether or not I like this move for the Phillies.

I don’t question whether or not Polanco can play third on a full-time basis in 2010. I think he will make the adjustment very well.

Also, signing Polanco to an $18 million deal is probably more cost-effective than signing Chone Figgins or Adrian Beltre. I am assuming both Figgins and Beltre will sign contracts in the $40-$50 million range.

Spending only $6 million on Polanco might allow the Phillies to pursue perhaps a pitcher (Brandon Lyon, Fernando Rodney, JJ Putz) or an upgrade to their bench for 2010.

Now on the other hand, giving a soon-to-be 35-year-old, who’s OPS has declined three straight years a three-year contract is a little questionable. I highly doubt Polanco is going to be worth $6 million a year at the age of 37.

Plus the Phillies have a “Polanco type” player in Shane Victorino. Do the Phillies bat Polanco second and move Victorino down in the order? If so, wouldn’t Mark DeRosa be a better fit for the Phillies in the seven hole than Victorino?

I am more of a DeRosa fan myself and thought he would have been a better fit for the Phillies overall. It will be interesting to see what type of deal DeRosa gets now that Polanco has signed.

This will be Polanco’s second stint with the Phillies. Polanco played with the Phillies from 2002-2005 hitting .297 and had a .791 OPS–the highest of his career with any team.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

According to Todd Zolecki , the Philadelphia Phillies have signed Brian Schneider to a two-year, $2.75 million contract to be their back-up catcher to Carlos Ruiz. Schneider spent the last two years with the New York Mets.

When the Mets traded Lastings Milledge to the Washington Nationals for Schneider and Ryan Church before the 2007 season, I thought it was a good trade for the Mets.

Milledge was the Mets top young player at the time, but he is a clown and I have seen hundreds of Milledge types in my day. The Mets were getting back two professional ball players and with Schneider, they were getting a serviceable major league catcher.

The Mets got what they expected out of Schneider in 2008. Schneider hit .257 with nine home runs and threw out 33 percent of the runners trying to steal against him.

However, in 2009 like most of the Mets players, Schneider suffered through an injury plagued season. Schneider missed 41 games with a lower back injury and his average plummeted to .218 and his OPS dipped to .627.

I like this signing by the Phillies. Would I have given him a two-year deal? It’s debatable.

Schneider is four years younger than Paul Bako and three years younger than Chris Coste (Coste recently signed with the Mets), who were the Phillies’ back-up catchers last season. Schneider’s .345 caught stealing percentage in 2009 is also better than both of them.

Of course knowing the Mets luck with players once they leave Flushing, Schneider will hit .280 with the Phillies and throw out 50 percent of the baserunners trying to run against him.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

As we found out last week, tis the season for surgeries.

This week there are three more surgeries set for some notable players. Let’s take a look at who is going under the knife.

Raul Ibanez – Ibanez had surgery today to fix a sports hernia. This is not surprising as Ibanez was playing in pain the entire second half of the season.

This was evident by Ibanez’s rather poor second half.

In the first half of the season, Ibanez was a legit MVP candidate. He was hitting .309 with 22 homeruns and had an OPS of 1.015. However, in the second half, Ibanez was a shell of himself. In the second half, Ibanez hit just .232 with 12 homeruns and had an OPS of .773.

As long as he is healthy and surrounded by an excellent Phillies’ lineup, fantasy owners should expect another solid season from Ibanez in 2010.

Expect a .285 BA with 25-28 homeruns and 80-90 RBI for Ibanez in 2010. He is expected to be healthy by spring training.

Brad Lidge – Lidge will have surgery on his pitching elbow on Wednesday to remove a “loose body.” Can someone please explain to me what a loose body is in a person’s elbow? It sounds like something out of Total Recall.

Perhaps whatever this loose body is was the reason for Lidge’s dreadful season. As we all know, Lidge suffered through a season where he had a 7.71 ERA, had a WHIP of 1.81, and the majors in blown saves.

I don’t think Lidge will ever come close again to his perfect 2008 season. I fully expect the Phillies to add free agent closer in the offseason like Billy Wagner to be an eighth inning/insurance guy just in case Lidge’s problems persist.

Draft Lidge as a No. 2 closer next year. His days of being a No. 1 closer are over.

Lidge is expected to be ready by spring training.

Cameron Maybin – Maybin had surgery today to repair a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder. Maybin had high expectations going into 2009. I even picked him to win the NL Rookie of the Year award.

But after an April where he hit .209 and a May where he hit .176, Maybin was sent to the minors. He came back in September and hit .293 with three homeruns in 103 ABs.

Maybin is expected to be the Marlins’ starting center fielder in 2010 and I think this is the year that Maybin breaks out.

.275 with 10-15 homeruns and 20-plus stolen bases is my prediction for Maybin in 2010.

Like Ibanez and Lidge, Maybin is expected to be ready by spring training.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

Yesterday, the Philadelphia Phillies declined the $5.5 million option for 2010 on Pedro Feliz, thus making him a free agent. Feliz hit .266/.308/.386 last year, while playing gold glove caliber defense at third base for the Phillies.

This is why the Phillies are going to be good for years to come. Instead of being satisfied with what they have and picking up Feliz’s option, they decline the option and look to improve themselves.

Because the Phillies are in the “have’s” class, they should have their pick of third baseman this winter. Adrian Beltre, Chone Figgins, Mark DeRosa and even Miguel Tejada are all free agents and all would be an improvement over Feliz in 2010.

There is a lot of speculation that the Phillies will go after Beltre this offseason.

As for Feliz, this has to be disappointing for him. For one, he is leaving an extremely successful franchise in the Phillies. And more importantly for Feliz, he probably won’t get $5.5 million on the open market in this down economy.

The Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles, Seattle Mariners, and St. Louis Cardinals are teams who need a third baseman and could be possible destinations for Feliz.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @theghostofmlg

Like George Costanza, the Philadelphia Phillies did the opposite last night.

Instead of having tuna on toast, with coleslaw, and a cup of coffee and trying to wait out AJ Burnett, the Phillies had chicken salad, on rye, untoasted, and a cup of tea and jumped all over Burnett.

The Phillies were aggressive and ambushed Burnett in the first inning thanks to a Chase Utley three-run homerun and eventually held on for an 8-6 victory to force a Game Six back in the Bronx.

The Yankees now lead the best-of-seven World Series 3-2.

What ever respect Burnett earned in his gutsy performance in Game Five of the ALCS and his brilliant performance in Game Two of the World Series, he lost last night.

To go out in a World Series game and give your team absolutely nothing, is pathetic. At least battle like you did against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

Here is all you need to know about where Burnett’s head was last night.

In the bottom of the third, Burnett was facing Jayson Werth with two on and nobody out. Burnett gets to 0-2 on Werth on two fastballs. The second fastball he blew by Werth.

Now one of the first things you learn when you become a pitcher is if a guy can’t catch up to your fastball, don’t throw anything offspead.

So what does Burnett do? He throws a tumbling curveball right over the middle of the plate. Werth was all over it and ripped the ball right back up the middle.

You can’t throw that pitch, if a guy just couldn’t catch up to your fastball on the pitch before. Let him prove that he can hit your fastball.

Burnett was then taken out of the game.

Just a terrible performance.

Here are some other observations from last night.

When Shane Victorino got hit on the finger squaring to bunt in the first inning, it reminded me of David Cone breaking his finger in 1987 on a bunt attempt.

In a potential clinching game in the World Series, the Yankees had Nick Swisher batting fifth.

Lee was good last night, but wasn’t great. He walked three guys last night and had only walked three guys in his previous four starts.

Lee only threw first-pitch strikes to 18 out of the 31 batters he faced. Very uncharacteristic for him.

I was very surprised to see Lee come out for the eighth inning. I thought Charlie Manuel should have gone to Chan Ho Park to start the inning and preserve Lee for a relief appearance in a potential Game Seven.

Great job by David Roberston and Alfredo Aceves to keep the Yankees in the game. Four innings, two hits, and three strike outs.

The Yankees have to be encouraged by Phil Hughes’ performance last night. 1.1 innings and looked sharp.

I guess we now know why Damaso Marte is ahead of Phil Coke on the depth chart.

With five homeruns, Chase Utley has tied Reggie Jackson for most homeruns in a World Series.

Why does Swisher look up at the scoreboard before every pitch? If this was the 1960’s, he would be accused of stealing signs.

Can someone please teach Brett Gardner how to bunt? This guy is one of the fastest players in baseball and he is hitting the ball in the air every AB.

I had no problem with Manuel going with Ryan Madson in the ninth. Lidge threw 30 pitches the night before and Madson was solid in Game Four.

Whatever praying the Phillies’ dugout did before the Derek Jeter AB–it worked. Jeter hitting into a 6-4-3 double play is more than anyone could have expected.

Say what you want about Johnny Damon–when the game and season is on the line, he shows up to play.

You can make all the great defensive plays you want, but Mark Teixeira’s postseason honeymoon is over. He has been awful in this World Series and for the most part the entire postseason.

Hideki Matsui leads the Yankees in total bases this World Series (11) and has only started two games.

Citizens Bank Park has an X-Ray machine in the stadium. How far have we come in terms of technology? It really is amazing and we all, including myself take it for granted.

Hypothetical here: Let’s say Teixeira tied the game with a two-run HR in the ninth and Brett Gardner wins the game for the Yankees in the 15th inning. Does Utley still win the MVP award?

Ryan Howard has struck out 12 times this postseason tying Willie Wilson’s World Series record. I am confident that he will break that record in Game Six.

Another hypothetical here: Game Six, the Phillies are up 4-3, and heading into the ninth inning–who close’s for the Phillies?

If there ever was a “good loss” last night was it for the Yankees. They took the Phillies best punch last night and managed to get back up and make a fight out of it.

The Yankee teams from 2001-2008 would have taken that punch and not gotten back up.

Hero for Game Five – Chase Utley

Goat for Game Five – AJ Burnett

Series MVP – Chase Utley

Game Six is Wednesday at 7:57 ET.

What a difference a year makes.

Last year, the Philadelphia Phillies rode Cole Hamels and Brad Lidge to a World Series title. In this year’s World Series, Hamels and Lidge have imploded in back to back games and now the Phillies are on the brink of elimination.

In a crucial Game Four, Alex Rodriguez broke a 4-4 tie with a double in the ninth inning off Lidge and Jorge Posada singled home two more runs to give the Yankees a 7-4 victory over the Phillies.

The Yankees now lead the best-of-seven World Series 3-1 and are on the cusp of their 27th World Series title.

While Rodriguez might have broken the tie in the ninth, it was the great AB and then some heads up baserunning by Johnny Damon that was the story of the inning.

With two outs and nobody on, Lidge was cruising. He looked like the Lidge of 2008. He was throwing wicked sliders and more importantly, he was throwing with confidence.

Lidge got Damon in a 1-2 hole, but couldn’t put him away. Damon worked the count to 3-2 and then served a single to left field.

What happened next was stuff of legend.

With Mark Teixeira at the plate, Damon stole second. But because the infield was in a shift, third baseman Pedro Feliz took the throw to second.

With Feliz taking the throw at second, nobody was covering third base. Damon realized that and immediately took off for third base. It was one of the most heads up plays you will ever see on a baseball diamond.

Now with Damon on third, Lidge was scared to throw his devastating slider because he didn’t want to bounce it in the dirt and he had to rely on his fastball.

Lidge then plunked Teixeira and the rest was history.

Here are some other observations from last night:

I don’t know why Lidge didn’t try to put Damon away with a slider in the ninth. He kept going to his fastball when his slider was unhittable at that point.

I don’t understand the theory of “If a guy is on third, you can’t throw your slider.” When did Carlos Ruiz become swiss cheese behind the plate?

If Derek Jeter makes that Damon baserunning play, Jeter’s cleats, socks, uniform, and the base are sent to the Hall of Fame.

I have no problem with bringing Lidge into the game at that point. If he can’t pitch in that situation, when can he pitch?

Now Lidge knows what Mark Wohlers feels like when you don’t get beat on your best pitch.

All seven other closers have imploded at some point this postseason. The only one that hasn’t? Mariano Rivera. There is a reason why the Yankees are one game away from winning the World Series.

There was only one pitch that Feliz could have hit a home run on and Joba Chamberlain threw it.

The Yankees got a glimpse of their future when Rivera retires on that Chamberlain gopher ball.

Chamberlain’s “win” last night is the perfect example of why wins for a relief pitcher are some of the most overrated stats in baseball.

It’s taken Rivera only 13 pitches to retire five batters the last two nights. Amazing.

Joe Buck talked more about the NFL than he did the baseball game he was announcing through the first three innings.

Somebody should tell Robinson Cano that the World Series started.

Ryan Howard still hasn’t touched home plate.

It was a very good, but not great performance from CC Sabathia last night: 6.2 innings, 3 runs, 3 walks, and 6 Ks.

I thought Blanton was good as well last night. And yes, it was the right decision to start him instead of Cliff Lee. Someone other than Lidge needs to a win a game for the Phillies. What’s the difference if it is Game Four or Game Five?

The biggest mistake Blanton made last night was walking Nick Swisher to lead off the fifth. That just can’t happen. It was no surprise that Swisher eventually scored.

Great baserunning by Melky Cabrera scoring on that Damon blooper in that inning. Great read on the ball.

Chase Utley just hit another home run off Sabathia.

The last team to come back from a 3-1 World Series deficit was the Kansas City Royals in 1985. Sadly, this was the last time any Royals fan felt any joy.

I wonder if the air has come out of the balloon for the Phillies. As Bob Boone said to Don Sutton on the plane ride from California to Boston after the California Angels lost an epic Game Five (the Dave Henderson game) to the Boston Red Sox in 1986, ”When the air comes out of the balloon, it’s hard to get it back up.”

That being said, I would be shocked if the Phillies didn’t win tonight. Lee on full rest and AJ Burnett on short rest should get them to Game Six.

Hero for Game Four: Johnny Damon.

Goat for Game Four: Brad Lidge.

Series MVP: Johnny Damon.

Game Five is tonight at 7:57.