Philadelphia Phillies: Predicting Their Postseason Lineup

The Philadelphia Phillies have arguably their greatest team in their entire 127 year history of a franchise and they have never entered a postseason with higher expectations. The Phillies have the best starting rotation in baseball and a lineup that has a ton of experience when the games matter most.

The Phillies should certainly feel prepared for the postseason as each game at Citizens Bank Park is sold-out and has a playoff feel to it. Home-field advantage throughout the playoffs (including the World Series) and the best team in baseball equate to a World Series or bust 2011 October/November.

Charlie Manuel knows this team so well and the Phillies have proven that they have what it takes to win it all. Here is a prediction of the Phillies’ starting postseason lineup.

Begin Slideshow

Philadelphia Phillies Playoff Preview: Predicting the 25-Man Postseason Roster

Phillies Nation has done its best all season long to take things one game at a time and not look ahead. The Philadelphia Phillies have had the best team in baseball (on paper and in the standings) since April, and they seem like locks to win the NL East.

Projections on potential matchups are already being published, and it’s time the rest of Philadelphia jumps on the playoff bandwagon. The Phillies are going to the playoffs as the five-time defending NL East champions.

They will look to advance to their fourth-straight NLCS, with the ultimate goal of reaching their third World Series in four years. GM Ruben Amaro and manager Charlie Manuel certainly have some tough decisions ahead of them.

This is a complete projection of the Philadelphia Phillies’ 25-man postseason roster

Begin Slideshow

MLB Free-Agent News: 5 Ways Landscape Could Change in September

September baseball has arrived and there is certainly some meaningful baseball to be played. Superstars have been traded and we are beginning to see which teams are contenders and pretenders. 

The free-agent class of 2012 is looking very promising at this point but that could all change when the games matter most. Players who will hit free agency this offseason have the opportunity to either make or lose a lot of money this month with their on-field performance. 

A disaster September could mean disastrous offers from GMs. On the other hand, a hot bat or arm that is in top form during a pennant race can garner a huge payday for that player. 

Here are five ways the free-agent landscape could change in September. 

Begin Slideshow

MLB Free Agent News: The Next 10 Pitchers Up for a Massive Extension

Pitching wins championships. MLB teams and their owners are willing to invest an absurd amount of money into their starting and relief pitching to build a team that is capable of winning a championship.

Players like C.C. Sabathia, Cliff Lee and even Barry Zito have received monstrous deals worth more than $100 million in recent seasons and there are pitchers awaiting similar deals at the end of this season or next season.

We do not know exactly when they will receive their deals or even how much they will make, but there is one thing we do know. Pitchers in MLB will get paid.

Here are 10  pitchers who will receive a massive extension.

Begin Slideshow

11 Pitchers You Would Trust Most Starting Big September Games

September baseball is right around the corner and there are some great divisional races shaping up which should make for a terrific last month of the season. Teams that get hot at the right time (i.e. San Francisco Giants 2010) late in a season can use that momentum to carry them to a long postseason run.

Great pitching and timely hitting is what wins in the playoffs and most of the top teams in each division have an ace they can rely on when they need a victory. In some team’s cases they have more than one.

September baseball is when a team relies on their ace more than ever in the regular season. Here are the 11 starting pitchers you should trust most starting in September.

Begin Slideshow

Philadelphia Phillies Trade News: Prospects the Phils Will Regret Trading Away

GM Ruben Amaro has built what is arguably the best Philadelphia Phillies roster in the entire 127 year history of the franchise. The team’s nucleus of Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels and Ryan Madson (to name a few) were developed through the team’s minor-league system.

Those core group of players combined with one of the best ballparks in MLB, enabled this franchise the financial flexibility to go out and acquire top-flight free agents like Cliff Lee and trade for Roy Oswalt, Hunter Pence and Cliff Lee again.

The Phillies have the best starting rotation in baseball and now what could be a very potent lineup with the arrival of Pence. Building this team has cost the Phillies their fair share of minor league talent.

Here are the prospects the Phillies will regret trading away.

Begin Slideshow

Fantasy Baseball: 5 Late-Season Additions Who Could Make the Difference

There are some great divisional battles shaping up across Major League Baseball for the stretch run, and I’m sure that is the same for your fantasy baseball league. MLB teams have the opportunity to pluck players off the waiver wire, and fantasy player’s should be doing the same.

There are teams that are guaranteed to make the playoffs and those that are not. With only a few weeks left, these are some available players who could make all of the difference for your team.

Here are five late-season additions that you should add to your fantasy team

Begin Slideshow

Philadelphia Phillies: Would Charlie Manuel Not Start Roy Halladay in Game 1?

The Philadelphia Phillies are an incredible 77-40 on the season and they are running away with the NL East once again. The talk of the Atlanta Braves and their great rotation, dominant bullpen and star-studded young lineup has finally subsided a bit, and it’s never to early to start thinking about the postseason.

The Phillies have an interesting dilemma on their hands as they have three pitchers in Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels who could be the a Game 1 starter for almost any team in baseball.

We have seen the brilliance of Lee on the biggest of stages time and time again, and Hamels may be the Phillies’ best pitcher since the All-Star break of last season.

Halladay is widely considered the best pitcher in baseball. He proved last year that he can be even more dominant in the postseason after throwing only the second no-hitter in playoff history in his first ever postseason start.

It seems at times that manager Charlie Manuel will secede to the great Halladay when he walks to the mound for a conversation. If Halladay wants to keep pitching, you better believe he is going to keep pitching.

Does Manuel have to at least consider throwing potential NL Cy Young Award winner Cole Hamels in Game 1 of the NLDS? What if Halladay unexpectedly loses a couple of games?

The Phillies have dominated this season because of their pitching, and it seems like whoever is out there finds a way to pitch a gem. You can’t expect to have the lowest ERA among starters in MLB without contributions from everyone.

Should Manuel even bother with what has already been one of the greatest seasons ever for a Phillies team? The better question is, would he?

Halladay is clearly an elite pitcher, and this is all hypothetical at this point, but it would be interesting to see if Manuel would be willing to start either Lee or Hamels if Halladay lost three or four consecutive games before the playoffs begin.

Would you consider pitching Halladay after Hamels, Lee or both in a playoff series if Halladay was to struggle down the stretch? Good thing Halladay is the “Doc” and Manuel doesn’t seem to ever have to worry about him struggling.

Read more Philadelphia Phillies news on BleacherReport.com

Philadelphia Phillies: Jimmy Rollins Is No “Charlie-Hustle”

Jimmy Rollins has been the confident voice of the Philadelphia Phillies during their reign as the beasts of the National League East for the past four (five after 2011) seasons. It has been well-documented that Rollins is in the last year of his contract, and there is much debate about whether or not he should be retained.

One side of the spectrum feels that Rollins should be kept for many reasons. Rollins is still as good a defensive shortstop as there is in the National League, and the upcoming free agent class leaves much to be desired at the position. Also, the Phillies have very little depth in the minor league ranks at shortstop besides Freddy Galvis, and his hitting (or lack thereof) is clearly not major league caliber at this point.

The other side of the re-sign Rollins debate feel that Rollins is clearly a declining player at this point, and his contract demands are not reasonable for a team that needs to re-sign Ryan Madson and give Cole Hamels the payday he deserves.

Whatever side of the debate you are on, something that was an issue in the past is becoming visible again this season—Rollins’ lack of hustle. Rollins was benched by Charlie Manuel on June 5, 2008 for failing to run out a grounder and has not been benched since, so you may be asking, why is this even a discussion?

Phillies fans that watch every game have clearly seen many instances this season when Rollins fails to run full-speed whether he hits a ground ball or a pop fly. Is Rollins “loafing” because he was told by Manuel or Ruben Amaro to do so?

Keep in mind that Rollins missed 74 games in 2010 due to injuries, and subsequently posted career lows in almost every offensive category. Philadelphia is not a town that tolerates a player that does not hustle.

Chase Utley is already one of the most beloved players in Phillies history because of his full-speed ahead attitude towards the game. Michael Jack Schmidt was the greatest third baseman in MLB history and best player in franchise history, and he never fully clicked with the city of Philadelphia because of the way he played the game.

Local talk radio stations like 610 WIP and 97.5 the Fanatic have been ablaze this season with callers complaining of Rollins’ lack of hustle. Could Rollins be running (or not running, in this case) out of town?

We saw Domonic Brown not run out a ground-ball this season and be reprimanded by Manuel after the game. Players not hustling can become contagious (see the New York Mets) but the Phillies are lucky to have players like Utley, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and even Hunter Pence, who are known for their legendary work-ethics.

Rollins has already stated this season that there will be no hometown discount for the Phillies. I guess that only applies for top-notch players (see Lee, Halladay) coming to Philadelphia, huh Jimmy?

Unless the Phillies win the World Series this season, there is no denying that Amaro will face criticism from Phillies fans, no matter what he decides to do with Rollins. There’s also no denying that the lack of hustle that Rollins has displayed this season has no place in Philadelphia.

Is Rollins the new “Charlie Won’t-Hustle?”

Read more Philadelphia Phillies news on BleacherReport.com

MLB Philadelphia Phillies: Evaluating the Hunter Pence Effect

The Philadelphia Phillies have been on a roll since acquiring the prize of the free agent market in Hunter Pence six days ago. The Phillies were able to drastically improve their lineup, while not losing any players from their current roster or top prospect Domonic Brown.

The Phillies desperately needed another right-handed bat to balance out their lineup, and Hunter Pence has proven thus far that he is the perfect fit. The Phillies lineup once again looks as potent and dangerous as ever and ready to make another run at a World Series.

Here are five ways in which Hunter Pence has affected this lineup in a positive way.

Begin Slideshow

« Previous Page — Next Page »