Don’t let the statistics fool you though, because the Phillies have a lot of pride and confidence on this team. They have just about everyone returning from the 2008 Championship team. The main difference is that they have replaced LF Pat Burrell with LF Raul Ibanez, whom many believe will be an upgrade at that position. I say the jury will be out all season on that one. Ibanez certainly has been a more consistent bat in terms of average (.286 Career vs. .257 Career for Burrell), and his power numbers should go up moving from Safeco Field in Seattle to Citizens Bank Park, but he is 36 years old, and switching leagues is always tough to do. He has to learn all new pitchers, so we will see how he adjusts.
In terms of the other players, I could certainly make an argument that this year’s team is even better than last year’s team. Utley was not healthy all last year, Howard got off to a slow start, and Rollins also got off to a slow start, and he was hurt for about a month last year. Those are three key players who could all have better years this season. If the Phillies starting pitching and bullpen is anywhere close to how they pitched in the second half of the season and the postseason, watch out! The two-time NL East Champs and reigning World Series champs will be tough to beat in their division, and if all goes right, in the postseason as well.
However, there are still questions for this team out there: How will they handle the success and the pressure of being the World Series Champions? Will they let it go to their head and lose focus? Can Brett Myers put together a whole season of solid #2 starting pitching? How will LHP J.C. Romero’s 50 game suspension affect their bullpen? Can Charlie Manuel do as good a job as he did last season? Will the supporting cast of players be up to the challenge once again? These are some of the questions that we will continue to address throughout the season. Remember, pitching and defense wins championships, but this team should be a fun team to watch on the offensive side of the ball as well.
Look for a story on the fifth spot in the starting rotation coming up next, as well as a more individual look at the players, position by position, and how they compare to the rest of the NL East.
Topics: Brett Myers, Charlie Manuel, Howard, J.C. Romero, Pat Burrell, Raul Ibanez, Rollins, Utley
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Are you nuts? If past is prologue, the Phillies finish in third place this year or they’re in first and a STRIKE breaks out.
That’s a valid point gophillies…you must have been referencing the ’93 season, but I was talking about past is prologue as in the ’08 season, when the Phillies won the world series, and if they can do what they did last year, they should repeat as World Series Champions. Thank you for reading, and keep on reading and making comments throughout the year.