Philadelphia Phillies’ Biggest Letdowns in Past 30 Years

With the trades yesterday of Shane Victorino and Hunter Pence, the Phillies effectively waved the white flag on the 2012 season, and for all intents and purposes they closed the book on arguably the greatest era of baseball in the franchise’s storied 129-year history.

Whereas Victorino was a Rule 5 guy who blossomed into an All-Star in Philadelphia, along the way being a major factor in the Phillies’ 2008 World Series, Hunter Pence’s short tenure as a Phillie can only be described as a disappointment.

The only other era in the franchise’s history that was comparable to this one was the time between 1976 and 1983. Next season will mark 30 seasons between the two greatest periods in Phillies’ baseball.

In that time, the Phillies won one of their three trips to the World Series and also won six divisional titles. For all the great moments and players, there were some big letdowns.

Here is a look at the 10 biggest disappointments over the past 30 years in Phillies baseball.

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Philadelphia Phillies: End of a Golden Age of Baseball

As the 2012 Philadelphia Phillies season continues to unravel, the Phillies faithful who fell in love with a core group of players six years ago and watched them rise from perennial also-rans to perennial serious contenders—and even World Champions of Baseball in 2008—must now accept a July, August and September with meaningless baseball.

The fanbase must now understand the window has been slammed shut. That may actually have happened when Ryan Howard had the single worst at bat in the history of the franchise on October 7, 2011.

Not only did Howard, for the second season in a row, make the final out at home with the season on the line but this time he blew his Achilles tendon running out of the box. An injury which pretty much doomed the 2012 season and ended the 2011 season.

2012, without Howard, and without Utley—a nice surprise the star second baseman sprung on the team in spring training—has been an unmitigated mess.

The goodwill and great feelings that started in 2003 with the free agent signing of Jim Thome and continued through Howard’s disastrous last at bat in 2011, have all evaporated.

You can once again hear the obnoxious “E-A-G-L-E-S EAGLES” chant at Phillies home games again.

Those feelings evaporated with two final at bats by Ryan Howard one a strike out looking, another a feeble grounder to second.

They evaporated with Ruben Amaro, Jr. trading Cliff Lee away the day after signing Roy Halladay in 2009. Having Halladay and Lee as a one-two punch against the Giants in the NLCS would’ve been nice, huh?

They evaporated with Lee blowing a four run lead in game two of the NLDS against St. Louis in 2011 a game that was the turning point of the series.

They evaporated with Amaro doing nothing to improve the team in 2011 offseason, instead trying to put band aids on open wounds.

They evaporated with a bullpen that may be the worst in the history of baseball.

The team continues to spiral and the manager Charlie Manuel seems to have no answers. Manuel, who should be allowed to finish the season and then be put to pasture, wasted so many opportunities.

The saying goes Manuel won a World Series in 2008 and then lost the World Series in 2009 and 2010. He was out managed in both instances once by Joe Giradi and once by Bruce Bochy.

Manuel had some of the greatest talent ever assembled by the Phillies: Rollins, Utley, Howard, Hamels, Lee, Lidge, Halladay, Thome, Ruiz, Oswalt and walked away with one World Series victory.

Amaro inherited a World Champion from Pat Gillick and made moves to add to its firepower on the mound but ignored the bullpen.

Milt Thompson was fired as the hitting instructor, yet Greg Gross kept his job and had his contract extended after the hitting went into the toilet under his watch.

Manuel, who is supposed to be a hitting genius, somehow never got through to his players about how to hit anything but home runs.

We, as a city, were treated to some amazing times between 2006 and 2011, but every year except for one the team fell short.

It was like going up a ramp. Falling short of making the playoffs during the last weekend of the season in 2006, making the playoffs on the last day of the season in 2007. Winning the World Series in 2008. Winning the NLCS in 2009. Winning the NLDS in 2010. Making the playoffs in 2011.

How bad can it be in 2012?

It was an incredible run for sure. Six great seasons. Memories were made. Philadelphia became a baseball city and Phillies games were nightly events in those summers.

But it’s all gone now. The promise of multiple championships that started with the parade in 2008 is now just a faded memory.

After the most recent golden age of baseball, 1975-1983, that came to a close with a World Series loss to the Baltimore Orioles, the Phillies made the playoffs just once more, that magical season of 1993, before making them again in 2007. That’s 23 of 24 seasons missing the playoffs.

Hopefully the next golden age of baseball in Philadelphia is not that far away. Who knows? There seems to be no plan in place. There were hopes for 2012 that once Utley and Howard were back in the lineup things would change, yet they only got worse.

The only thing on the horizon that seems imminent is the team will lose their best pitcher Cole Hamels to free agency which is a huge hole to fill considering how godawful their bullpen is and how old their other two “aces” Halladay (on the DL with a muscle injury) and Lee (who didn’t record his first victory in 2012 until July 4th) are.

There’s no doubt about how amazing and magical 2006-2011 was. You cannot overvalue those times and those memories. But the party’s over, the windows closed.

Thanks, that was fun.

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2011 Philadelphia Phillies: Done in by Honor and Hubris

The 2011 Philadelphia Phillies posted 102 wins, more than any other team in the franchise’s 128-year history. They had four starting pitchers who each would’ve been the ace on the pitching staffs of probably 75 percent of Major League Baseball. They clinched the National League East with a whopping 12 games remaining and clinched home field throughout the postseason shortly thereafter. They were the greatest team in Philadelphia Phillies’ history…and perhaps the dumbest.

The Phillies, by virtue of their dominating play, had the luxury of resting players and setting up their rotation going into the postseason. This is not exactly rare, teams that clinch playoff berths often change how they play the remainder of the season. The Phillies also had the luxury to determine not just pitching matchups, but team matchups as well. That was something they earned.

There was an argument going into that final series of the season against the Atlanta Braves (who were desperately clinging to the wild card slot with the Cardinals breathing down their necks) about whether the Phillies should tank the series to prevent smoking hot St. Louis from making the playoffs. On one side of the argument is the adage that you never throw a game or series for any reason. This in and of itself should end that argument.

However, the Phillies could have set themselves up where “tanking” was not necessary mainly by playing the remaining two games of that Cardinals series in September to win instead of going through the motions while suffering from a “division clinching hangover.”

The other side of the argument is the Phillies controlled their destiny and the destiny of the St. Louis Cardinals because over the entire regular season the Phillies were the better team. Matter of fact, they were the best team in baseball. As a result, they had a half month worth of baseball to manipulate the postseason to their advantage. They did not.

 

After the Phillies won their fifth straight NL East title on the night of September 17th they promptly went into a free fall losing a mind boggling eight straight games. Unfortunately, none of those were against the Braves. During these eight painful, though utterly meaningless games, the cracks began to show particularly in relief pitchers Antonio Bastardo and Michael Stutes. Maybe their young arms were overused by Charlie Manuel during the season. It’s possible. But there was also plenty of time to rest those arms in September.

There was talk of righting the ship and gaining momentum going into that last series against Atlanta. The team wanted to get their full lineup in order. However there was plenty of time to do that as well, namely during those meaningless games between September 20th and September 25th when the Phillies played mostly bench players and call-ups and lost a combined six of seven games to the Washington Nationals and the New York Mets.

During that stretch, when the outcome of those games had no impact whatsoever on the postseason, was the time to get the lineup in order, get the bullpen confidence up and then when the Atlanta series arrived, it was time to rest arms and see what the bench and call-ups could do. If they beat Atlanta, fine. But to put your best lineup out there to defeat an opponent whose elimination would only hurt your chances at postseason success was totally asinine.

At the time Charlie Manuel spoke of playing each game to win. He spoke of honor and how the team owed it to Major League Baseball to play until the end. Rubbish. The Phillies earned the right to play those remaining games, however it would benefit them not Major League Baseball and certainly not the St. Louis Cardinals—who in the NLDS proved to be a better team than the Phillies.

 

When you win 102 games you owe it to yourself and to your fans to set up your postseason in a way that gives you the best chance to win a championship. Avoiding having to ever face the St. Louis Cardinals was the Phillies’ best chance for success. A road to the World Series through Arizona and then Atlanta or Milwaukee would have been extremely easier than one through St. Louis—as we’ve seen.

As a team you owe it to yourself and your fans to make sure you play the final stretch of the season in a manner that allows you to have your rotation set properly. When you’ve dominated the sport for six straight months and have gone wire to wire in first place, then you have earned the right to set up who your postseason opponents are going to be.

The Phillies weren’t concerned with matchups. They believed they were the best team and could take on all comers. They ignored the fact that the Cardinals were hotter than the surface of the sun and that St. Louis’ killer lineup went 6-3 against them and their four aces during the regular season.

The Phillies have their honor. They played honest. They put their best lineup on the field and they played to beat the Braves when they didn’t have to.

The Cardinals have their appearance in the 2011 World Series starting tomorrow.

I’d take the World Series over that hollow honor any day.

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Why the St. Louis Cardinals Will Eliminate the Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies have just gone through two series against teams chasing them: the Atlanta Braves and the Milwaukee Brewers.

They made huge statements against both, sweeping the Braves in three and then winning three of four on the road against the Brewers. However, there is a snake lurking in the grass.

The Saint Louis Cardinals come to town as a team on fire. As the Braves falter, the Cards are making their move to the wild card position. As tonight proved, the Cardinals can go toe to toe with the Phillies and come out victorious.

The Phillies have an anemic offense as of late. They are extremely streaky and when one batter goes into a funk it seems to bring the entire lineup down.

Ryan Howard’s only hits recently have come in the pinch hitting role. His foot is shot and does not look to be getting better.

Any time he is on the base path he can only be moved one base at a time unless the batter hits a home run.

Hunter Pence is fitting right into this lineup as he has yet to see a first pitch at which he does not impulsively swing.

John Mayberry, who will be used during the playoffs, is channeling his inner Ryan Howard by striking out at key moments late in games or with runners in scoring position.

The bullpen is an absolute mess. Bastardo has become completely undependable. It has come down to Brad Lidge being the best pitcher for the middle innings.

Any game a starting pitcher for the Phillies doesn’t at least reach the eighth inning, the Phillies are outmatched against the competition’s bullpen.

The Cardinals’ bullpen that has struggled, yet tonight they—with the exception of the laughable Jason Motte and his histrionics—totally outclassed the Phillies’ bullpen which had no pitcher other than Joe Blanton available come the 11th inning.

The Cardinals’ main slugger tonight, Albert Pujols went 4-for-4 and reached base six times.

The Phillies’ four best offensive players in the game, Shane Victorino, Jimmy Rollins, Hunter Pence and Chase Utley, went a combined 0-for-18. This was in a game that could have clinched them the NL East, mind you.

It is becoming abundantly clear as the team heads into the postseason: The starters need to pitch the games of their lives every night. There is no run support. There are no reliable arms left in the bullpen.

The Cardinals are hot and the Braves are spiraling out of control.

When the Cardinals catch the Braves it will set up a Phillies/Cardinals series and there is not one objective person out there that thinks the Phillies can win a short series with their offensive and bullpen issues.

Especially against a lineup that features Albert Pujols, Lance Berkman and Matt Holliday.

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Philadelphia Phillies’ Statement Series Against the Atlanta Braves

It’s over. The NL East Race is over. Finished. Done.

If the Phillies go 11-12 in their remaining games the Braves would have to go 20 -1 to tie the Phillies for the division lead. Pop the champagne, the Phillies are the 2011 National League East Champs.

The Braves came into Philadelphia Monday as one of the hottest teams in baseball. They were full of themselves thinking that when they played the Phillies this time in September they would be the team to sweep and change dynamic of the NL East race.

Chipper Jones talked about how they conceded that the Phillies would probably win the division but that the Braves wanted to make a statement. He mentioned how the Braves at one time or another have beaten the Phillies “big three” pitchers. He mentioned they weren’t “scared” of the Phillies and that he knew the Braves could beat them.

The Braves avoided having to face Roy Halladay or Cole Hamels and still got swept.

Jimmy Rollins didn’t play in this series and the Braves still lost three straight. They were shutout by Cliff Lee, they were shut down by Vance Worley and just when they thought they got the best of Roy Oswalt, the Phils turned it on with a comeback 3-2 victory to complete the sweep. They out-scored the Braves 18 to 5.

The Phillies out classed the Braves.

They punched them in the mouth and any time the Braves looked like they might get up the Phils punched them in the mouth again. They put Atlanta and the rest of the league on notice that they were still the team to beat no matter who else has been hot since the All Star break. The road to the World Series comes through Philadelphia and it currently does not look like anyone has the ability to change that.

After the Phillies opened the series with a 9-0 shellacking of the Braves Chipper Jones wasn’t done talking. Despite, or maybe because of, not partaking in his team’s utter annihilation that night against the Phillies, Jones re-iterated that the Phillies were the team he wanted to meet in the playoffs.

Chipper Jones should keep saying that. If he says it enough he may even fool himself into believing it’s true.

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Philadelphia Phillies: After an Odd Weekend, Is There Cause for Concern?

While much of the focus after the Phillies‘ loss to the Marlins on Sunday was directed at Joe West and his controversial and puzzling “ground rule out” call, the Phillies themselves did little to help their cause.

Some alarming patterns have been rearing their collective ugly head as of late, and they had a lot to do with the outcome of the Marlins series this weekend.

The most alarming has to be the less consistent performance of Roy Halladay. The 2010 Cy Young winner has not quite been the same since Bruce Bochy used him on three days’ rest in the All-Star Game. His first game out of the break saw him surrender three runs on seven hits in just four innings vs. the Cubs, with this game against the Marlins featuring a mediocre nine hits and three runs in six innings—all in all, it just seems as though there has been something off about him lately.

It seems he struggles with leadoff men, has had trouble getting “clean” 1-2-3 innings and at times looks exhausted on the mound by the third.

Halladay apparently doesn’t handle the heat too well, as evidenced in the game against Chicago this July where he had to leave due to heat exhaustion and this past weekend’s game in Florida. Luckily for the Phils, the chances of playing a playoff game with temperatures above 80 degrees does not appear too likely.

But the fanbase is anxiously waiting to see that dominant force from last season re-appear to take over his role as staff ace.

The bullpen is also becoming cause for concern. Notwithstanding David Herndon’s less than stellar performance on Saturday and Sunday (that 14th inning Sunday truly was one for the ages for all of the wrong reasons), it is worrying that Antonio Bastardo and Ryan Madson seem to struggle if they have to pitch in three straight games.

This is a possibility come playoff time. The Phillies can’t be concerned that their two late-inning men/dual closers are gassed come Game 5 of a series because they had to pitch Games 3 and 4.

Finally, the inability to play small ball hurt them big time Sunday. In the 12th inning Michael Martinez led off with a double. Nobody out with a man on second should lead to a run, especially against a team that is 28 and a half games out of first place.

Chase Utley showed bunt on the first pitch and then promptly pulled back. It was the only moment during the inning when anything resembling a strategy to move the runner seemed to be considered. Utley went back to hacking away and hit a shallow fly ball for an out. Ryan Howard was intentionally walked. With first and second and one out the Phillies still looked to be in good shape. But Hunter Pence lined out and Raul Ibanez grounded out to the pitcher.

With the game in extra innings and the Phillies’ bullpen almost completely depleted to the point where David Herndon, a pitcher who gave up back-to-back-to-back home runs less than 24 hours prior, was being depended upon to go multiple innings, it is inexcusable that they did not do everything they could (bunt, hit and run, steal, shorten swings, etc.) to move the man over and get him home.

Instead of playing small ball—and smart ball—the Phillies reverted to their bread and butter: swinging away.

Losing series within two weeks to the lowly Washington Nationals and Florida Marlins (losing both series’ rubber matches on walk-off walks, no less) does not bode well.

Granted, there may be a letdown of sorts involved, considering the gigantic lead the Phillies have on the rest of the division and a postseason appearance virtually assured.

But if they can’t get away with this sloppy play against last place teams, they certainly won’t against the Brewers or the Braves.

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Philadelphia Phillies: Joe West and His Illogical and Arrogant Call

In the sixth inning of the Phillies–Marlins game played on Sunday, September 4th, Florida manager Jack McKeon and Umpire Crew Chief Joe West combined to make both an illogical instant replay request and the most asinine call in recent memory.

With Ryan Howard at first, Hunter Pence drove a ball to deep right field. Marlins’ right fielder, Bryan Petersen (who, as it turns out, is a better complainer than fielder), jumped for the ball. Two fans, one in a Phillies jersey, one in a shirt that did not betray his rooting interest, reached over the outfield wall.

Petersen closed his glove in mid-air. As he did, his hand and the hands of the two fans collided. The ball bounced off of Petersen’s closed glove and rolled to the right field corner. Pence reached second. Howard reached third.

Before the throw from Petersen reached the infield, he began complaining about fan interference. McKeon, who has never met an on-field decision that went against his team that he wouldn’t protest, came out of the dugout and asked for the crew to review the play. One problem: Instant replay is used to review home runs. This was a double, not a home-run.

The crew reviewed the instant replay, and West seemed to totally make up a rule by calling Pence out and sending Howard back to first.

Try to follow this logic: The Phillies were the team on the road. Now, one of the fans who interfered was wearing a Phillies jersey, but had both fans been wearing regular, non-descript polo shirts and interfered, the umpires would have no clue as to their rooting interests.

They would also then have to presume, being in Florida, that the two were Marlins fans, which sends this message to Major League Baseball fans: should the outfielder on the team you’re rooting for have a difficult play at the wall, simply interfere with the play.

The batter will be called out and should any baserunner have theoretically advanced (as Howard could have, had he tug up at first and Petersen made the difficult catch at the wall), he will be sent back to his previous base with no chance at advancement. To be safe, wear the opposing team’s jersey when you interfere with the play.

The other bit of illogical nonsense is this: calling Pence out means West assumed Petersen was going to make the catch, which was not a given at all. It was an extremely difficult play with Petersen having to perfectly time his leap and the closing of his glove. He closed his glove too soon, the ball bounced off, and Pence made it to second.

In calling Pence out, West assumed he knew what was in Petersen’s head. He assumed Petersen closed his glove only because he saw two hands reach over the wall. West also has anointed himself as overseer of the universe by predicting in his mind and making it a fact on the field that effected the outcome of a MLB game that Petersen would’ve closed his glove in time and held onto it as he crashed into the wall.

In football, hockey and baseball  “clear and convincing evidence” is needed to overturn a call on the field/ice. Unless it is clear cut, then the ruling on the field stands. The ruling on the field was a double for Pence.

By calling Pence out, West had determined clear and convincing evidence existed, proving had those two fans not been there, Petersen would’ve timed his leap perfectly, caught the ball squarely, held onto the ball as he crashed into the wall, landed on the warning track and make a throw to the infield to prevent Howard from tagging and advancing to second.

All of this is a pretty big stretch, considering the footage available. Despite what he believes to the contrary, West cannot see inside men’s souls.

Finally, had one of the fans actually caught the ball and pulled it over the rail, the initial call on the field would’ve been a home run. Now, this call could’ve and almost assuredly would’ve been protested by McKeon, and he’d have been right to do so. Had the fans caught the ball, West would’ve reviewed it, ruled fan interference…and awarded Pence a ground rule double. A double is exactly what Pence hit and was originally awarded.

This is just another in a long list of boneheaded and arrogant decisions made by West, a man who in a poll of MLB players in 2010, was voted the second-worst umpire in baseball. We can see why.

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