Baby Steps: Shoot for the Wild Card
Posted by Pat Gallen, Mon, July 19, 2010 01:11 PM | Comments: 59
Opinion, Posts
Eight. That’s how many times a Wild Card team has made it to the World Series in the past decade, including both participants in 2002 with Anaheim and San Francisco getting in. As long as you make it to the postseason, anything can happen.
Teams don’t necessarily want to make it in as a runner-up in their own division, but proceeding to the second season in any way possible works just fine. The Phillies may find this out relatively soon.
With the division slipping away with each passing loss, perhaps it’s time to focus on becoming the best runner up in the National League. The Wild Card may be where it’s at.
The Phillies currently sit 5.5 games behind the Braves in the NL East, with a 1/2 game separating the Phils and the Mets. In the very early WC standings, a slew of teams are within striking distance. Two games separate six teams, with Colorado leading the way at 50-41. The Phils sit at 48-43.
For as seemingly awful as this season has progressed, there is room for optimism. They really can’t play much worse, can they? This Phils club is far too explosive and talented to waste this season from start to finish. The ingredients are still there and with the trade deadline close, a change could be made to kick start the engine once again.
If you’ll recall, the 2007 Phillies went on a late tear which put them into the postseason, coming back from seven games down over the final 17 games. That same year, Colorado stole the wild card on the final day of the year after ripping off 13 wins in the final 14 games. There is an opportunity to again become the comeback kids of the NL. Is it looking likely with the way this team is playing? No, not really. But at any point, a baseball team can create a positive swing of momentum.
And if it means settling for the Wild Card, then so be it.
Posts: 0 Rick
It’s an optimistic post; however, I always think it’s a poor idea to aim for second place.
Posted: 01:16 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 The Dipsy
Pat, respected poster and contributor, please NO. IMHO, that philosophy is for losers in that it is pessimistic and unnecessary IMHO. You’re not out of the division so play to win it. I think the way to look at it should be to win as many games as possible, one game at a time, and see where you end up.
The Dipsy
Posted: 01:21 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 George
Any team that only aims for second is destined to finish third. Or maybe even worse.
Posted: 01:32 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 1376 Pat Gallen
I’m just looking at it from a realistic standpoint. I believe in the team, but as the season gets older, it’s getting uglier and uglier. Believe me, I’m not one to shoot for second. I like to win at everything I do. But realistically, maybe the Wild Card is the prize in sight here.
The players and coaches will never look at it that way, and you’re all right, aiming for second place is seemingly a losers mentality. But with the way things are going, it might be their only option. They’ll keep shooting for the NL East, but this post is meant to say that if you do get the Wild Card, the season is not a waste.
Posted: 01:48 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Bart Shart
It is good to look at the season from a realistic standpoint. A successful season starts with one win at a time. Winning is often contageous. Shoot for the wildcard and do not be surprised to win the division. We need to get in sync and we our key performers to start producing more.
Posted: 01:56 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Bart Shart
Phillies Nation has no shortage of philosophers and soothsayers. That’s what makes it interesting. Some pessimistic, some optimistic, some schizophrenic. Let get a win tonight.
Posted: 01:59 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Chuck
I think the Phillies should do everything they can to win the division. But knowing that the Wild Card is an option is a comforting thought.
I actually think that they CAN win the division. The Braves are for real, but the Phillies have a history in August and September.
Memo to Chase Utley: Heal a little faster please!!
Posted: 02:01 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Bruce
Personally, I think it’s premature to have a “Wild Card” discussion on July 19th. History is filled with teams having far greater ground to make up and completing a successful comeback. And quoting Pat..”.. club is far too explosive and talented to waste this season from start to finish. The ingredients are still there and with the trade deadline close, a change could be made to kick start the engine once again.” Exactly the the reason(s) to be optimistic.
Posted: 02:05 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 CoffeehouseSchmuck
the phillies problem this season is the injuries , as the team gets healthier the wins will come
One thing we have in our favor is the END of the season is the easy part of our schedule and the tough part of the Braves schedule
if the mindset is Win Win win you just let the chips lie where they may,thats the best you can do
Posted: 02:11 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Don M
Shouldn’t the goal be to reach the playoffs (Wild Card) .. and then once that’s secured, you would worry about reaching the higer seed (NL EAST)
people think too deeply into this stuff…
setting your sights on the Wild Card, given the position we’re in .. is the common sense goal … … People are fogetting that you can’t win the World Series in July, and that you can still make the World Series without having the best regular season record ..
Step one is hang on until healthy.. and we’ll go from there
Posted: 02:29 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Andrew from Waldorf
Make the playoffs.
The end
Posted: 02:44 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 1376 Pat Gallen
I guess I could have written that instead, but what fun would that be?
Posted: 02:56 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 riccaboni
A lot of folks forget that we were aiming for the Wild Card in ’07 and ’08 down the stretch and played well enough that we sort of stumbled into first in the NL East. Both years, we overcame late deficits in the NL by the front-running Mets while we were all scoreboard watching to see what the Padres and Rockies were doing in ’07 and holding our breaths as we slowly moved past Milwaukee, Houston, and St. Louis in the Wild Card race in ’08. There’s nothing wrong with winning the Wild Card. It gets you to the dance. As many teams, including the Phillies, have proved, it’s not how you get to the dance, it’s what you do when you get there.
Posted: 02:57 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Rick
Aiming for the Wild Card is undesirable because we will be competing with several other teams and we are vulnerable to one of those teams getting hot at the end and snatching away the Wild Card. It’s difficult to control our situation when competing with many other teams.
Aim for the Division title. In this race there is only one other team to compete with (Atlanta) and we always know exactly how far back or how far ahead of them we are. It’s a controllable target; it’s the target to aim for.
Posted: 03:01 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Phan in the outfield
In the position in which they currently find themselves, I tend to think it might be a case of one foot in front of the other, one step at a time. As DonM said: they shouldn’t go too deep on this. It will only make this worse. (I think this is the Werth scenario.) They may get farther by not looking far ahead.
Win one game at a time, or perhaps one series at a time. At some point they’ll look back and be in 2nd & then 1st. At that time making the playoffs will be a moot point, or they’ll be in a wildcard position. In any case: one day at time, do your best, and stay healthy, mentally and physically. And keep the press away.
Posted: 03:02 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 The Dipsy
Why don’t we just try beat the everlovin shit out of every team we play for the rest of the season and let the rest take care of itself?
The Dipsy
Posted: 03:05 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 riccaboni
I agree with Dipsy.
Posted: 03:08 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Chuck
At the All-Star break I said that the goal should be to win 2 of 3 with 3 game series and split with the 4 gamers. Ok….they just LOST 3 of 4. But right before the break they swept 4.
If the Phillies take that attitude and go out and try to play their best every day….that’s all I can ask for as a fan.
If they make the playoffs….which I think they will….then great. If they don’t….then they don’t. It’s not as if my whole life depends on the success or failure of the Philadelphia Phillies.
Posted: 03:10 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Phan in the outfield
Isn’t that the point of what several of us said, Dipsy? Win each game, one game at a time. By the time you look back you’ll be in the bloody playoffs. But take some of the OMGOMGWEHAVETOWIN panic element out of it b/c it isn’t working. No matter how many times they tell the press they aren’t panicking – I think they clearly ARE. Shoo the press out of the clubhouse for a couple of wks, sincerely get down to basics, and just win each small game, one at a time.
Posted: 03:16 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Psujoe
IMO, there needs to be some tweaking to make a serious run. The phils have 2 5s on the staff, a shaky closer, a utility infielder starting for another 6+ weeks. IMO that’s not enough even if werth pulls his head out of his bumm. Ditto for Vic. Standing pat siince Chase went down has been a huge mistake, IMO.
Posted: 03:42 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 TT
Way to early for a wild card discussion. Look what happened in 2007…
If the team starts to play like it should, we will be in the race in September. The Fightins have played about as poorly as they possibly could, and we are ONLY 5.5 back.
Let’s start rooting for a series win against the Cardinals and go from there, take this one game at a time.
Hopefully, Victorino will remember how to play some fundamental baseball at some point…oh wait…he never did…
Posted: 03:46 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Andrew from Waldorf
Re: the division
This isnt the same old sorry ass Mets who you can spot a 12 game lead with 15 to play and walk over them. I suspect the Braves will have a pulse for the entire season. Unless they trade for Beltran and sign Delgado they wont lay down for us like the Mutts.
On a positive note you can completely disregard the Mets now that Beltran is back so just aim for the Braves.
Posted: 03:51 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Dan
I normally try not to be critical of the articles that come on this site, but this one I have to disagree with. I
First…you present the facts which are that we are 5.5 back with about 70+ games to play.
Next…you are asking us to give up on the division because we are too far out….by reminding us of how we won the division in 07 by coming back 7 games in 17 to play.
So..If we can win the division in being back 1.5 more games with 50+ less games to play, why should we start thinking about the wild card now??
As some of the other posters stated we need to start racking up consecutive series wins or we’re not going to be anything….but if we keep ourselves close, there is no reason to think we can’t be NL East champs. We play the Mets 6 times in Sept and braves 3 times. then 3 more times to end the season in October. If we are where we are today…we can win the division in the last month alone!
Posted: 03:58 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 The Dipsy
Yes, Phan. I guess it is. Maybe I was just amplifying points made by others. Pardon the repetition.
The Dipsy
Posted: 03:59 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Ped
I’m not throwing in the towel yet on the division. Let’s go 4-peat!
Posted: 04:00 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 TT
Keep the phaith…this team has only had its projected lineup together for a handful of games…
Posted: 04:05 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 1376 Pat Gallen
Dan, please be critical if it suits you to be. It’s what makes the website better.
However, I didn’t say the division was out of reach, I said it was “slipping away.” Which it is the way they are playing. And I’m not saying they cant win the NL East, however, with the way they are playing now, it’s looking less likely each day.
The wild card is in play much more than the division at this point. I also pointed to those comebacks because it’s in reach. I’m simply saying the Wild Card isn’t a bad consolation prize, because you can do just as much damage as the #4 seed as you can as the #1.
Posted: 04:11 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Bs
After rooting for the Phillies for the last 45 years I can honestly say that the team that we have as now assembled is not good enough to make the playoffs period. unless Amaro Jr. changes the team at the trading deadline there is no way we can sneak in as a wildcard. this team can’t hit like the teams of the last two years.even with a healthy Utley we were terribly inconsistant at the plate. to make a run at the playoffs our hitting, pitching, especially the closer has to vastly improve.there is nothing that they have shown so far that makes me think that they will
Posted: 04:16 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Kevin
With Cincinnati and St. Louis playing most(70%) of the rest of their games against bad Pittsburgh, Houston, Milwaukee and Chicago teams – you’d have to think one of those teams is gonna get the Wild Card from the NL.
We will have to win the East.
Posted: 04:16 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 George
I think people have some misconceptions about trades. The Phils would probably like to trade for a better bat than Valdez’s, but I haven’t seen the Brewers make a move to replace Tulowitzki, nor the Red Sox try to obtain better replacements in the infield and the outfield. Maybe with the demand, the sellers are just asking too much. Everyone also thinks the team needs more relief help, but at least one GM says the market is terrible.
The only teams that have done anything of note so far are the Rangers and the Braves, and I doubt the Braves’ move will mean much.
It’s certainly not time to settle for less than 1st. The Braves have a good pitching staff, but Lowe can be pretty lousy, and Hudson misses time almost every year with injuries. They have a no more than adequate lineup. They’re a good team, but not a great team, and age and injuries could hit a number of them before the season ends.
Even if the Phils stand pat at the trade deadline, they still have a decent chance.
Posted: 04:24 PM on July 19, 2010
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Posted: 04:54 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Kate
I’m not ready to be talking about taking the Wild Card yet.
If our boys can get their heads on straight and start having fun again, we can still catch the Braves.
However, this is a thought-provoking piece for those who are ready to be talking about the Wild Card.
Posted: 05:52 PM on July 19, 2010
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Posted: 06:00 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 Andrew from Waldorf
Werth has to hit soon enough its law of averages. Like Ibanez lately.
Howard is getting hot he can carry alot.
I am not worried.
Its just the way they lose. Bad fielding bad base running bad fundamentals. I hate that.
Posted: 06:29 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 bacardipr05
With 2 of your 3 outfielders hitting .250 and the other striking out every 2 out of every 5 bats theres a problem. Sure we have the talent to overcome the aging Ibanez we did it when he had Pat the Bat. This was when Lidge could hold a one or two run lead and JC or Madson would set up Lidge. Utley rushing back and possible re-injuring or totally sucking probably wont help. At this point give him the 8 weeks and hope we can make a run late August.
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Posted: 08:31 PM on July 19, 2010
Posts: 0 karen
thank you….i agree that we could strive for the wildcard. its okay to finish second if you can win in the post season
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