Phillies Nation

Really hoping something big is signing Swisher 5/78mil.

I don’t like Swisher esp as of late. He’s been looking so lost at the plate and not seeing the ball well. It’s to the point where he’ll make himself look dumb by taking a nice breaking pitch for a strike, then shake his head and look at the ump as if to say “get you’re eyes checked, blue.”

A Swisher signing would fall in the same category of overpaid mediocrity as Pagan/Victorino and borderline B.J. Upton.

A trade for Justin Upton, however, is a different story. He’s young and worth the money. Or go for broke and put Hamilton and his accountability partner in right field for 4 years.

Swisher is out pricing himself. If not he probably would been signed for now.

For a team coming off an 81-81 season, this site, which covers that club is popping out more threads and comments this week than Planter’s plants units per jar. At least it feels like the same week that the hardest working quiz host not on a game show, Pat Gallen, announced he was co-hosting some Phillie quiz function tonight. So let’s turn into quiz mode, via the old Phillies don’t fade away, they just stay in our mind subject of Roy Oswalt.

The former sponsor of excitement, Roy O is….

a/ through with baseball, and consitent in his style of the last 2 years by not talking much

b/ waiting to see where the free agent chips fall and trying to cherry pick still another shot at a said to be coveted World Series ring

c/ a victim of can’t do the job, and baseball has turned him out to pasture

For most of his career, things went smoothly for Roy O. One ballclub, well paid, close to home, a club that contended enough to keep a player interested.

After a successful start with the Phils, injuries took over, and a final year of his contract resulted in the same way the Rangers relationship with Mike Young did. Too much money for what was left to offer.

Roy O’s best years a somewhat distant memory, only a few players, if that, ever disagreed with the market more on their worth. 2012 found Oswalt asking for high, and being vollied around the sport for half a year because he had this terrible flaw of wanting to be paid his worth as opposed to including the market’s worth in the formula. When he did sign, his goal of getting a Series ring seemed on a fair course although the Texas Rangers didn’t get there. Roy pitched well in spurts as close as Tokyo and Nicetown, and even in a starting pitcher starved (what else is new?) market, finds himself publicity free this winter, even at MLBTR, which generates more rumors than any 3 gossip sections combined.

So we are left to guess what’s next for Roy Oswalt. You’d think if he was working dilligently to give it another shot, we’d have heard about it. But you also would think if he was selling steaks and enjoying the laid back life, we’d have heard of that, too.

My guess is Oswalt is closer to retirement than you would think his competitive juices allow. Of course that guess, by it’s very source means he’s doing Bo Jackson quantities of sit ups each day. But I suspect he might still get an urge as the pitcher contracts add up, and spring training weather looms around the corner.

Will it be enough to take a shot at another stop, or a revisit old grounds? Put it this way.
When the Phils got Ben Revere and opened a rotation spot, I could have seen Oswalt calling Ruben a few seconds after the ink was dry. At least at 1 time. Nowadays, the Phils aren’t the odds on Series favorite that made them the prime cherry to pick 2-3 years back. The ballclubs that are, only 1 of whom will win, if it’s from that group are not in the market for a starter carrying a lot of questions, including amount of desire.

Roy O had a terrific career. You play to the level of debatable Hall of Famer, that’s terrific. But he’s either worked his way out of the game, or left it on his own. If he’s in purgatory thinking he still has a choice, I think it’s the same type delusion that was the cornerstone of is 2012 approach. But what a pitcher!

Not to be a downer, but Phil’s aren’t signing Hamilton. Phil’s won’t throw away their new financial flexibility. I think they’ll see what they have in Spring training and go from there. I do see an 8th inning pitcher with experience being picked up. I’d like to see another starter, but it won’t be high in salary or years.