Phillies Nation

Galvis will make the Phillies make tough decisions.

Pop quiz: Which National League team had the highest production, measured in fWAR (click for definition), from second base in the entire Major Leagues in the last 7 days? How about the last 14 days? It’s the Freddy Galvis-led Philadelphia Phillies.

Galvis’s expectations for the year were generally low; the young infielder was expected to be a warm body to man second base with a great glove and Michael Martinez-level offense. The early returns matched those expectations: Galvis started the season 0-12, reaching base only once with a walk. Galvis has been a different player in the month of May, however.

Galvis has hit .321/.321/.571 with 2 HRs in his last 7 games, .315/.351/.519 in his last 14, and .300/.325/.500 in the month of May. Galvis’s second-best-in-the-NL defense was expected – his offensive contributions on a team lacking punch were not. Galvis leads all NL second basemen in doubles, is only 3 RBIs off the pace for the NL second basemen lead in that category, and is fourth among NL second basemen in SLG%. Galvis is quietly building a case for Rookie of the Year consideration, pacing all rookies in doubles and RBIs, and effectively thrusting himself into a conversation that includes a guy nicknamed “Captain Kirk”, a hot-hitting shortstop from Cincinnati, and the legendary Bryce Harper.

Galvis’s increased production has put the Phillies in an interesting spot – what do they do with Galvis if he continues to produce when Chase Utley returns? Some have suggested first base or left field for Utley, something that even a year ago may have been unthinkable for a second basemen who may have had the greatest 4 year run for any second baseman of all-time. Utley-to-left may be an interesting fit: the Phillies currently rank 12 out of 16 in WAR in the NL from their left fielders and Utley’s production, even if at 80% of his previous production, would be an improvement over Juan Pierre.

Whatever the case may be, Galvis will force the Phillies to make a series of difficult decisions regarding playing time and that is OK with me.

Polanco has remained healthy and has gotten hot at the plate. Will it last? Photo (AP)

Placido Polanco was one of the Phillies biggest question marks headed into 2012. After a hot start in 2011 that lead to a starting All-Star nod, Polanco cooled off down the stretch. After returning from the disabled list on July 30, Polanco hit a very nice .284 but slugged a paltry .324, a far cry from his .524 SLG% in April 2011 or even his current career .405 SLG%.

Polly’s 2 for 19 performance with 3 uncharacteristic Ks against the Cardinals in the 2011 NLDS started the questions of “Is Polly done?” His slow start after 18 games, .196/.237/.214 in 60 PA, panicked fans even more. Even with an 0-4 last night, however, Polanco has managed to turn it around. What has changed? Continue reading The Rapid Turnaround of Placido Polanco

Roy Oswalt auditioned for the Phillies last week in Mississippi. Photo (AP)

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Spots is reporting that the Phils watched Roy Oswalt throw a bullpen session last week near his Mississippi home while the Boston Red Sox took a look at him this week. Rosenthal Tweeted: “One source said Oswalt appeared in good shape, but not surprisingly, more in spring-training mode than mid-season form.” We will have more on this as it develops.

In other Phillies-related news, Rosenthal also Tweeted: “Baseball suspends #Phillies manager Charlie Manuel for one game stemming from incident that led to his ejection by Bob Davidson on Tuesday.” Lesson learned? Never argue balls and strikes.

Doesn't matter where the Phils are in the standings. There are plenty of reasons to love this team.

The Phillies are now over .500 for the first time since April 5, 2012. We should not be excited.

The Phillies have strung together 5 wins in a row. We should not be excited.

After all: The Phillies are in last place. Who wants to be excited about a last place team?

I do.

Let me be clear: I don’t want to be excited because the Fightin’ Phils are over .500 again for the first time since Opening Day. I don’t want to be excited because they have won five in a row. There are far greater reasons to be excited. Continue reading Don’t Get Excited Over Five Straight Wins

Savery will report to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. A corresponding move will be announced Friday. Photo (AP)

As first reported on Twitter by Ryan Petzar, and quickly confirmed by the Phillies, Joe Savery has been optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley and a corresponding roster move will be announced Friday. Savery last pitched Tuesday, giving up 1 hit against 2 batters against the Mets. Savery has thrown strikes but is getting hit hard. Savery has a 4.50 ERA and an identical 2.25 K/9 IP and BB/9 IP rate. It is anticipated Jake Diekman will replace Savery on the 25-man roster. Diekman has been on fire with the IronPigs, racking up 22 Ks over 15.1 IP, walking 3 with a 0.59 ERA and 5 saves.

For our own Jay Floyd’s 2012 preview of Diekman, click here.

To see Jay, Corey, and Pat discuss Diekman on Tuesday’s episode of Phillies Nation TV, click here.

Chad Qualls has allowed 80% of his inherited runners to score in 2012. Photo (AP)

The Phillies bullpen has been incredibly frustrating and their stats back up how bad they have been. I’ll keep this short and sweet as sometimes the most simple numbers say the most:

ERA – 4.95, 30 out of 30 in MLB

FIP – 4.39, 29 out of 30 in MLB

xFIP – 4.54, 29 out of 30 in MLB

K/9 IP – 6.81, 28 out of 30 in MLB

BB/9 IP – 4.33, 24 out of 30 in MLB

LOB% – 66.%, 29 out of 30 in MLB

IP – 72.2, 29 out of 30 in MLB

What does this mean? The Phillies bullpen is at or near the bottom of every major and minor standard and advanced stat.The Phils’ pen is allowing inherited runners to score, they’re walking people, and they’re doing this all in the second to last amount of innings pitched in the Majors, making the Phillies bullpen an effective powder keg of explosive awfulness, ready to blow games at will.

Where do the Phillies go from here? The only immediate solution could be replace one of the faltering bullpen members with Jake Diekman. Diekman, 25, has pitched 14.1 innings and is striking out batters at an outstanding 13.8 per 9 IP against only 3 walks. But after that, the solutions aren’t that simple.

Do you feel that it has reached the point where there is no where to go but up, that the Phils have had an unfortunate stretch of bad luck, or that this bullpen trend continue?

In case you haven’t noticed, Major League Baseball is already encouraging its fans to vote for their choices as All-Stars. For most teams, the All-Star game is approximately 58 games away, with 1/3 of the time between the start of the season and the games already completed. While completing All-Star ballots 29 games into the season can be no doubt silly considering sample sizes, the conversation can officially started of who should be voted to what.

What you see above is a blind comparison of the current standout catchers in the National League. Per FanGraphs, their WARs are 1.3, 1.2, 1.1, and 0.9 respectively, and their stats are about as close as they get. All four are having around the board standout years, with each having their own specialty stat. Catcher 1 leads NL catchers in runs scored, doubles, and steals; catcher 2 gets on base in nearly half of his plate appearances but strikes out nearly as much; catcher 3 is a close second among NL catchers in BA and leads NL catchers in HR, SLG%, and ISO; and catcher 4 has the most consistent triple-slash, leading NL catchers in BA and wOBA.

You may be surprised who these catchers are as you begin to fill out your initial All-Star ballots. Continue reading As Long As We’re Voting, Vote For Chooch – He Deserves It

Phillippe Aumont teaches pitching to youth from Allentown's West End Youth Center. Photo by: Dan Mokris

On Saturday May 5, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs hosted the PLAY Campaign. Based out of Ellicott City, MD, the PLAY Campaign is a campaign put forth by the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society (PBATS) to education children and adolescent athletes of the dangers of living a sedentary lifestyle, as well as the dangers of using performance enhancing drugs. The PLAY Campaign promotes healthy eating and increasing activity within their programs, as well as educating youth about steroids. Yesterday’s event was particularly special for the IronPigs as it kicked off a year’s worth of events and programs that will be featured in each of the 30 Major League ballparks and to select Minor League ballparks. Coca Cola Park was the first stadium to host the campaign for 2012 and was the first ever Minor League stadium to participate. Continue reading IronPigs Host PLAY Campaign

Blanton threw a masterful complete game shutout to lead the Phils to a 4-0 win in Atlanta. Photo (AP)

Joe Blanton was masterful today, throwing a complete game 3-hitter with 6 Ks and no walks as the Phillies rolled to a 4-0 in a game that was under 2 hours. Blanton’s performance was much needed as the Phils had run through their entire ‘pen in last night’s extra inning affair. It took Blanton just 88 pitches to retire 2 batters over the minimum. Blanton was able to lower his ERA to 2.83.  If this is what we can expect from Blanton for the rest of the year, look out NL East.

Series Win on the Road

With the win, the Phils improve their road record to a solid 8-8 and won the series against Atlanta.

Bats Stay Warm to Support Kentucky Joe

The Fightins struck early, scoring on a Hunter Pence sac fly in the top of the first. Laynce Nix added a solo shot in the top of the 7th and the Flyin’ Hawaiian hit a two run shot to put it out of reach for good.

First Base Platoon Continues Their Succes

Nix went 2-3 at first base today with a solo HR and a single. Ty Wigginton went 0-4 at third. But the two combined are doing more than their first share to keep the first base platoon afloat.

The Phillies head to Washington to start the Take Back the Park series with the Nationals tomorrow. To read more about that promotion, check out our original coverage of the event.

Philadelphia Phillies (12-12) at Atlanta Braves (14-10)

Joe Blanton (2-3, 3.81) vs. Randall Delgado (2-2, 6.30)

Time: 12:10 PM, Turner Field
TV: Comcast Sportsnet
Weather: 50% Chance of Thunder Storms, 79
Media: Twitter and Facebook

After losing a heart-breaker, the Fightin’ Phils have a chance to turn around nearly 12 hours later and win the series in Atlanta. Joe Blanton takes the hill following a solid outing against the Cubs where the Kentucky native gave up 2 runs on 8 hits across 7.1. He is opposed by 22-year old Randall Delgado who gave up 4 runs on 8 hits in 4.1 innings against the Pirates on Saturday.

With a win, the Phillies could improve to 8-8 on the road, a solid mark for a team that will play its 16th game on the road out of its first 26. Today’s line-up is quite lefty-heavy against the young righty Delgado. Look for big games from Nix and Orr.

Lineup: Rollins SS,  Pierre LF, Victorino CF, Pence RF, Wigginton 3B, Nix 1B, Orr 2B, Schneider C,  Blanton RHP

Your Gameday Beer – Kentucky Bourbon Barrell Ale

This one is in honor of Big Joe. Kentucky Bourbon Barrell Ale has subtle flavors of vanilla and oak, aged 6 weeks in bourbon barrells. Support the Cornfed Colossus by sipping on Lexington’s best export since 1794 during the game today.  -By Ian

GO PHILLIES