Grading Gillick
Pat Gillick is no longer general manager of the Phillies. He came aboard in 2005, ridding the club of pieces that didn’t fit, while supporting a young foundation with role players who made them better. In three years, he put the team on the verge of the postseason, then took them there via a division championship, then won the World Series.
Pretty good. Pretty damn good.
Let’s look at his separate moves. I’ve graded each one using a -10 to 10 point scale, with all moves being grade-ready after Wednesday. I canceled out most of the smaller moves, concentrating merely on the bigger ones:
Traded Jim Thome, cash to CWS for Aaron Rowand, Daniel Hagwood, Gio Gonzalez
Gave up a a lot of money for a guy who’d create clubhouse character and two prospects who would leave soon.
Score: -1
Signed Abraham Nunez
No offense, but good defense. Probably played too much. Eh.
Grade: -2
Signed Tom Gordon
Of the three years the Phils had Gordon, they got about two out of him, and about 1.5 was pretty good.
Grade: 2
Traded Vicente Padilla to TEX for Ricardo Rodriguez
Padilla continued mediocre success in Texas, while Rodriguez … who?
Score: -3
Traded Jason Michaels to CLE for Arthur Rhodes
Rhodes stunk for a year in Philly; Michaels is a viable fourth outfielder in Pittsburgh now.
Score: -3
Signed Ryan Franklin
One year in Philly and he was poor. Then he goes to Baseball Heaven and does well. Go figure.
Score: -3
Traded Robinson Tejeda and Jake Blalock to TEX for David Dellucci
Jury is still out on Tejeda and Blalock is back in the system; Dellucci gave the Phils a strong fourth outfielder.
Score: 2
Traded Daniel Haigwood to TEX for Fabio Castro
Haigwood is now in the Red Sox system and may get a shot; Castro had a brief stint in Philly, but is now in Toronto.
Score: 1
Traded Bobby Abreu and Cory Lidle to NYY for CJ henry, Matt Smith, Jesus Sanchez and Carlos Monesteros
Not a great deal in value, but it changed the complexion of the franchise forever, and is the turning point in a road that led the team to the title.
Score: -5
Traded Rheal Cormier to CIN for Justin Germano
Could’ve been so much better if they held onto Germano for that half season in 2007.
Score: 1
Traded Ryan Franklin, cash to STL for Zac Scott
Got nothing for a guy who’d become a viable late-innings reliever in Saint Louis.
Score: -3
Traded Andy Baldwin and Andrew Barb to SEA for Jamie Moyer
To boost a contending team, Gillick pulled off this winner. Moyer has been pretty good since coming over.
Score: 9
Traded Angel Chavez to BAL for Jeff Conine
Conine helped a little in the playoff race. Chavez?
Score: 2
Signed Wes Helms
Threw away two years for about 0.3-years worth of play.
Score: -6
Signed Adam Eaton
Bad player. Bad money. Bad years. Bad, bad deal.
Score: -9
Traded Gavin Floyd and Gio Gonzalez to CWS for Freddy Garcia
Oh boy. The big one. Jury is out on Gonzalez, but Floyd pitched well for Chicago in 2008. Garcia? Ugh.
Score: -10
Signed Jayson Werth
Parlayed a one-year flier to a regular outfielder capable of delivering for a world champion.
Score: 6
Claimed Greg Dobbs from SEA
A pretty solid pickup. Dobbs has become maybe the franchise’s greatest pinch hitter.
Score: 4
Signed Antonio Alfonseca
Battled in the bad 2007 bullpen. A forgettable year.
Score: -2
Claimed JD Durbin from BOS
Threw a shutout in San Diego; other than that, he stunk.
Score: -4
Signed Jose Mesa
Didn’t really work out.
Score: -3
Signed JC Romero
Did really work out.
Score: 6
Traded Michael Dubee to CWS for Tadahito Iguchi
A “my bad” from the Garcia trade. Iguchi was huge in 2007 and came back in late ’08.
Score: 4
Traded Matt Maloney to CIN for Kyle Lohse
Another big deadline-style deal, Lohse was nice down the stretch in ’07. Maloney isn’t a bad prospect who could be in the Cincinnati rotation in 2009.
Score: 2
Traded Jesus Merchan to SEA for Julio Mateo
Mateo never saw life in Philly because of some abuse problems. Meanwhile, Merchan hit .339 and drove in 72 in 114 PCL games last season. Just a weird deal.
Score: -3
Traded cash to CLE for Russell Branyan
The hulking slugger hit two big homers for the Phils down the stretch in 2007.
Score: 1
Traded Michael Bourn, Geoff Geary and Mike Costanzo to HOU for Brad Lidge and Eric Bruntlett
Hell yes. A coup so far, Lidge put together one of the best closer season’s ever en route to a world title. Bruntlett wasn’t bad either. Geary wasn’t terrible in Houston; Bourn can’t hit.
Score: 9
Signed Geoff Jenkins
Hasn’t played up to his abilities.
Score: -3
Traded cash to TB for Chris Snelling
Snelling did hit a nice homer early in the season for a win.
Score: 1
Signed Chad Durbin
Very good signing, as Durbin became a strong bullpen piece.
Score: 3
Signed So Taguchi
Taguchi probably should’ve been more, but never amounted to it.
Score: -2
Signed Pedro Feliz
Shored up third base hole and wasn’t so bad offensively. It’s a two-year deal with a third-year option.
Score: 3
Signed Rudy Seanez
Provided ample right-handed middle relief all season on a one-year deal.
Score: 2
Traded Adrian Cardenas, Josh Outman and Matt Spencer to OAK for Joe Blanton
Cardenas and Outman might turn into stars, but Blanton did exactly what he was asked to do.
Score: 3
Traded Brian Schlitter to CHC for Scott Eyre
Eyre proved to be a solid reliever for the champs.
Score: 3
Traded Fabio Castro to TOR for Matt Stairs
Stairs hit the biggest home run of his life as a Phillie; Castro still has a ways to go.
Score: 1
Okay, our total is 4. Interestingly, Gillick was in the negatives way up until the 2008 season. He was at his worst point after the Garcia trade, but came back strong this year. The jury is still out on Feliz, Jenkins, Blanton, Eyre, Stairs, Lidge and Bruntlett, but a world championship usually helps things out for you.
It seems Gillick wasn’t a great general manager, but he wasn’t terrible. He surely wasn’t in good standing after a bunch of miscues before 2007. Moreover, you can see he didn’t fare well with big deals (except Lidge); instead, he performed well with bargain additions that panned out. He did end up on top (literally and figuratively), and it shows that you’re only as good as the way you left the team.
