Writing prospect updates for the Phils isn't quite as exciting as it was in these days, but there will always be young guys in the system to follow. Instead of doing a write-up for each, I'm going to recap how the experts (read: folks who know more about scouting prospects than myself) rank the top guys in the Phillies system and then give a cumulative top-20 with my comments. For the purposes of this chart... BA = Baseball America BP = Baseball Prospectus KL = Keith Law FG = … [Read more...]
For the complete list and explanation of criteria and scoring, check out the Philly Fifty page Longevity - 2 Even though he's damn near an icon in the city, he only played for the Sixers for 5 seasons. 4 during his prime, and 1 return engagement on his way out. Peak - 5 The best player in the league in 1982-83, his first with the team, and darn near the best for his other 3 prime seasons. In his MVP year, he went for 24.5 points, 15.3 boards and 2.0 blocks per game. The next three … [Read more...]
For the complete list and explanation of criteria and scoring, check out the Philly Fifty page Longevity - 3 It seems like longer, but Brian Westbrook spent 8 seasons with the Eagles, only 5 of which he was a full-time, and healthy, starter. Peak - 4 At his peak, Westbrook was one of the top 2 or 3 offensive weapons the league. 2007 was his best season, when he led the NFL with 2,104 yards from scrimmage. He ran for over 1,300 yards that year and was only the 7th RB in history to … [Read more...]
The Phillies will debut 2012 with the same theoretical starting infield for the 3rd straight season. However, much like last year started without Chase Utley, it appears that this year will start without Ryan Howard. The entire group is on the downside of their careers but are all still productive players for their positions. Catcher: Carlos Ruiz 2011 refresher: Ruiz followed up his career year in 2010 with a solid 2011. His specialty remains getting on base, and had a team best .371 … [Read more...]
For the complete list and explanation of criteria and scoring, check out the Philly Fifty page Longevity - 4 Schilling was traded twice (Red Sox to Orioles, Orioles to Astros) before he landed with the Phillies in 1992 for Jason Grimsley. That trade started an 8 1/2 year career with the Phillies, more than twice his time with any other franchise. Peak - 4 Schilling's career peaked in Arizona, but for the Phillies, he peaked in 1997 and 1998, when he pitched a combined 523 innings, … [Read more...]
Spring Training is here, and with it, lots of questions. You can see how this is going to work, so let's just get to it... 1. Should we be prepared to be disappointed by Vance Worley and John Mayberry Jr? I hate to start out with a negative, but these two guys are probably my biggest concerns in 2012. Both of them will be relied upon heavily after very solid 2011 campaigns, and both of them have no track record to suggest that they can replicate that performance for a full season in … [Read more...]
For the complete list and explanation of criteria and scoring, check out the Philly Fifty page Longevity - 5 Klein spent his first 6 years with the Phillies, then came back for 2.5 after a couple years with the Cubs, then after a one year stint with the Pirates, he finished his career with 5 years as basically a bench player. All told, there were parts of 15 years as a Phillie, and over 1,400 games. Peak - 5 Klein finished in the top-2 in the MVP voting from 1931-1933, winning in … [Read more...]
Is everyone getting the itch? With the Mariners reporting for pitchers and catchers this past weekend, spring training is officially underway. I have already begun crunching numbers and messing around with pointless predictions because that is how I cope with the anticipation. That being said - here is how I currently have the 30 MLB teams ranked. Keep in mind I did not do this solely subjectively - rather I took the rosters for each team, looked at the 25-man roster's 2011 WAR, adjusted … [Read more...]
Apologies for the severe lack of posts - lots of non-blog related life events going on recently. This is about the time of year I forget about everything that happened to the Phillies in 2011 and start getting really excited for 2012. Since I haven't been able to examine each move individually, I figured I'd do an overview of all the moves they've made now that they are pretty set. I'll rank them by size of commitment. 1. Signed Jonathan Papelbon to 4 year, $50 million deal with vesting … [Read more...]
For the complete list and explanation of criteria and scoring, check out the Philly Fifty page Longevity - 4 Cunningham played 9 years here with two stints with the Sixers. He started off his NBA career with 7 years here, then took a 2 years hiatus to the Carolina Cougars of the ABA, only to return to the Sixers for his final two seasons. Peak - 4 Cunningham made first-team all-NBA 3 times as a Sixer. His best season was probably 1969-70 when he averaged 26.1 points, 13.6 rebounds … [Read more...]
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#12 Julio Rodriguez, RHP
#12 Julio Rodriguez, RHP