Philadelphia Phillies: It’s Time for Raul Ibanez to Take a Seat on the Bench

In a 2-2 game in the top of the eighth inning with the St. Louis Cardinals, the bases were loaded with one out. To no one’s surprise, Raul Ibanez struck out swinging and made his way back to the bench, where he should stay for the remainder of the season. Ibanez also grounded into an inning-killing double play in the top of the second inning.

At this point in his career, Raul is not helping this team at all anymore. It seems he is almost an automatic out every time he comes to the plate. He is truly terrible to watch.

His batting average has dropped to .240 and shows no signs of climbing. He also has trouble getting on base; his on-base percentage is at a pathetic .290. Ibanez is on pace to strike out 125 times this season, hit 18 home runs and only drive in 70 runs. Another quick fact: Ibanez is batting even worse with runners in scoring position at .232.

Ibanez may be the worst defensive left fielder in all of Major League Baseball. He has absolutely no range and has the arm of a high school player. He has three outfield assists this season. When a ball is hit in the left-center gap, I just pray that Shane Victorino can make it to the ball in time.

Raul’s age is clearly catching up to him, and he can no longer compete as an everyday major league player. Ibanez just turned 39.

I hope this becomes a lesson for Ruben Amaro Jr.: Never, ever sign a player over the age of 35 to a multi-year deal. It ends in disaster, especially when you are playing him over $12 million at age 39. What was he thinking?

It is imperative that Philadelphia makes a move for another outfielder before the July trade deadline. Ibanez, Ben Francisco and Domonic Brown are all struggling, and if the Phillies want to compete in October, they need to balance their lineup with someone who can hit at least .265 or better with some power. It seems none of these three players can do that at this point in their careers.

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Philadelphia Phillies: Why It’s Time for Ben Francisco to Leave

At the beginning of the 2011 season, the Philadelphia Phillies and their fans had high hopes that RF Ben Francisco could fill the void after Jayson Werth signed a mega-contract with the division rival Washington Nationals.

Unfortunately, Francisco has done everything but impress so far this season. He currently is batting .218 with six home runs and 25 RBI. He has only 12 extra-base-hits in 170 AB and has 30 strikeouts. The only good part about his game is that he sees a lot of pitches and has a decent OBP at .343.

I almost can’t say enough bad things about Francisco. He plays terrible defense, has a poor arm, and has been caught stealing more times that he has been safe. Sometimes he just looks lost out there—he is like the Forrest Gump of baseball, just without all that natural talent.

So why is even on the Phillies roster?

Honestly I have no idea, especially when John Mayberry Jr. does everything better than Francisco—Mayberry hits better, plays better defense, has an arm that’s 10-times better, and has more speed.

It just doesn’t make sense.

Since he has lost his starting job to rookie Domonic Brown, what use do the Phillies even have for Francisco?

Let’s see… We could use him as a pinch hitter, but he can’t hit… We could use him as a pinch runner, but he can’t run… Maybe we can have him come in to play defense…

Wait—he stinks at that too.

The answer is: release him.

He is making only $1.175 million, so he is not a huge financial obligation. Besides, there has to be someone out there who can fill his void. If not John Mayberry Jr., then the Phillies could bring up another Triple-A outfielder, like Delwynn Young. 

At this point, almost anyone could produce more than Francisco. He is a waste of a roster spot and simply isn’t playing at a major league level. 

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Philadelphia Phillies: Worry No More, Cliff Lee Is Back on Track

Cliff Lee just finished a two hit, complete game, shut out, to help the Philadelphia Phillies solidify a four-game sweep over the Florida Marlins. Lee also had two hits, including a go ahead RBI double in the bottom of the fourth Inning. Lee is currently batting .242 on the season.

After today’s win the Phillies find themselves 5.5 games ahead of the Atlanta Braves for first place in the NL East. They also have pushed the Florida Marlins into last place in the NL East—pretty amazing considering when June started the Marlins were only two games back of the Phillies, they are now 11.5 games back.

In his last three starts, Lee is 3-0 with 24.0 innings pitched and 21 K’s. Here is his season line; 7-5, 104.0 IP, 111 K, 3.12 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP.  He also has two complete games and two shut out.

Cliff is averaging a major league best 10.14 strike outs per nine innings pitched and proving he still is one of the most dominant pitchers in all of baseball.

Lee has found command of his curveball and cutter. When these pitchers are working well, it keeps hitters off balance and off his fastball.

Up until his last three starts, Phillies nation was beginning to worry about the decision to bring Lee back to Philadelphia instead of signing a big name right handed bat.

Cliff has truly turned his season around after a 4-5 start. The last three starts for Lee are why Ruben Amaro Jr. brought him back to Philadelphia and if Roy Oswalt can get back on track, the Phantastic Pour will be a force to be wrecking with.

The Phillies offense continues to heat up and with Chase Utley and Shane Victorino back and hitting well.

The Phillies have the potential to put some serious space between them and the rest of the NL East.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 5 Prospects That Are Tearing Up the Minor Leagues

The Philadelphia Phillies farm system continues to produce major league talent. Chase Utley, Cole Hamels, Pat Burrel and Domonic Brown were all developed in-house and have made progress to the major league level.

The Phillies show their depth with the continued progress of their minor league affiliates. The Triple-A Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs and the Double-A Reading Phillies have a boat load of talent that will be making an effect of the big league club in the upcoming year.

The Single-A Clearwater Threshers and the Lakewood Blue Claws carry the youngest of the potential Phillies and also have some players. 

Hear is a list of five players to keep and eye on in the minor leagues that my eventually become everyday players for your Philadelphia Phillies.

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MLB Rankings: 2011’s Top 10 Pitchers so Far

2011 has turned into the second year of the pitcher. In both the American and National league, pitchers have been shutting down hitters at an incredible rate. There are over a dozen pitchers that could post 10 or more wins before the all star break.

Strike-outs are up, hits are down and some pitchers’ ERAs are on the lower side of 2.00. As the push for a playoff berth starts to manifest, look for teams with the most pitching depth to be the ones fighting for a spot in October’s festivities. 

There are some new faces and some you have seen for many years. Here are 2011’s top 10 pitchers so far.

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Philadelphia Phillies: Looks Like Jimmy Rollins Could Be Headed to the DL

According to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki, Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. has stated after an MRI on Jimmy Rollins knee, doctors have found “a pretty significant bone bruise.”

Just when the Phillies thought their everyday line up was finally going to get some reps together an a unit, BAM, another one goes down.

It is almost comical the way the Phillies core players have been dropping like flies. Ryan Howard also blasted a ball of himself and limped back to the dug out after one of he many strike outs in last nights game.

More on Jimmy’s status will be determined in the next day or two, but look for Jimmy Rollins to take a short stay on the DL. Jimmy has been mentioned he does not believe he has to go onto the DL, but he is clearly not able to play, or available to pinch hit.

It’s better for the Phillies if he takes some time and gets the knee to 100 percent.

Jimmy Rollins is having a modest season so far, .268 BA, three HR and only 18 RBI.  His power number and RBI total are significantly lower than he career average.

He does have 14 SB so far this and the Phillies would like his legs to be healthy because he is not contributing to the offense in any other way. Jimmy Rollins is running out of time to prove he still is an elite player.

Jimmy Rollins may want to fight through this injury, remember he is in a contract year. Without a big season for Rollins, he will have to take a significant pay cut when he hits the free agent market.

Jimmy will have to turn it around quick, Shane Victorino is doing an excellent job in the lead off role and is likely to replace Jimmy as the Phillies go to lead off hitter.

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Philadelphia Phillies: Why is Michael Martinez still on the Phillies Roster?

Today the Phillies optioned John Mayberry Jr. to Lehigh Valley and decided to keep the 5′ 9” 145 lb., I guess you can call him utility man. 

I understand why the Phillies optioned John Mayberry Jr. because he will see little to no time with the call up of Domonic Brown and the return of Shave Victorino. The only thing I question is why better players are in AAA while all Michael Martinez does is sit the bench and struggles when he does get a chance.

The answers is Michael Martinez is without a doubt the worst player to be on the Phillies team since Charlie Manuel took over and will never be a Major League caliber player.

Even if he is a Rule 5 draft pick, why in the world would you keep a guy on a Major League roster when he will NEVER, I repeat NEVER, start for the Philadelphia Phillies. He wouldn’t even start in AAA or AA for that matter.

His number are unbelievably terrible and he plays almost worse defense. In 29 games he has one double, zero triples, zero home runs, three RBI, a .184 AVG and .212 OBP.  Is that a joke?  And who saw him try to play center field, when he broke in for the ball and it ended up 20 feet over his head. Come on Charlie, let’s be serious.

Some say he has speed and can pinch run, but currently Martinez does not have a single stolen base. Also, Charlie Manuel has only used him to pinch run in a handful of places—definitely not enough to keep him on the roster.

Martinez will also be turning 29 in September, he is not getting faster, stronger or better at this point in his career and is a total waste of a roster spot.

The fact is that Michael Martinez does not have the skill set to be a Major League player, he does not even have the skills to be a quality utility man. In this age of baseball, utility infielders are a dime a dozen, Martinez being more like a penny.

An argument is that we need another infielder to spell Chase Utley and I agree wholeheartedly.  That need can be filled with one of two infielders currently in the AAA system.  Josh Barfield .274 BA, 4 HR, 24 RBI.309 OBP and Ronnie Belliard .253 BA, 2 HR, 21 RBI, .314 OBP are all 10 times the player Martinez is and can actually help this team win games.

Charlie Manuel needs to stop wasting a very important roster spot and release Michael Martinez now and bring up Josh Barfield. Even if the Phillies were to put him on waivers, who would want a player like Martinez at this point in the season? The answer is no one.

On the upside, Shane Victorino is back and the Philadelphia Phillies will have their preseason line up together for the first time all season.

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Shane Victorino: 5 Reasons Philadelphia Phillies Outfielder Should Bat Leadoff

With Shane Victorino scheduled to come off the DL on June 3rd, manager Charlie Manuel has a tough decision on where to place him in the lineup upon his return.

The answer is simple: leadoff. Manuel has to make the decision that makes his team most likely to win games. The Phillies are a better ball club with Shane leading off.

Jimmy Rollins is past his prime, and a drop in the lineup is long overdue. Rollins is not a leadoff hitter anymore; he has a poor on-base percentage and a mediocre batting average.  

At 5’8” on a good day, Jimmy needs to learn to hit the ball on the ground. He pops up more than any “leadoff hitter” in all of baseball, and it’s time for a change.

Here are five reasons why Shane Victorino has earned the right to be the Phillies’ leadoff hitter.

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Major League Baseball: Top Ten Teams Thus Far

Through the first 50+ games, Major League Baseball is panning out to be what many thought at the beginning of Spring Training. The Philadelphia Phillies and the Boston Red Sox are front running and the other teams try to keep pace before these two teams run away with their division.

There have been a few surprises this season, The Cleveland Indians and the Arizona Diamondbacks both are in first are seemingly here for the long haul. Especially with key injuries plaguing the reigning World Champion San Fransisco Giants.  

As we enter the second year of the pitcher let’s see how the top ten teams rank so far.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 5 Reasons Why They Will Win the NL East

After 50 games, the Philadelphia Phillies own a National League-best record of 31-19. The unbelievable part is they have yet to play in a single game with their preseason opening day lineup. 

What has saved them? Their pitching. The Phillies starting rotation owns a Major League-best with 36 quality starts. The bullpen has also done well. Ryan Madson is a perfect 9-for-9 in save opportunities. While surprises like Michael Stutes and Antonio Bastardo have made the Phillies bullpens one of the most balanced in the National League.

With the Mets and Nationals still struggling to right their ship, the quest for the NL crown is a three-team race. The Marlins have came out firing, but a recent DL trip for ace Josh Johnson has the fish searching for answers. The Braves are doomed for a midseason crop off. Can elders Chipper Jones, Tim Hudson, and Derek Lowe keep up with the rest of the pack? Lowe and Jones have both missed time with minor injuries. By the end of July those three players will be a combined 112 years old. 

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