Top 10 Phillies Resources: 2006 Edition

Beerleaguer secrets revealed part deux! It's time for the second annual listing of my top 10 Phillies resources!

10: ESPN.com: ESPN took a hit when Peter Gammons was sidelined in early May. ESPN tried to replace his column with a bevy of blogs, but quantity certainly did not replace quality. Buster Olney’s blog, for example, is just a sampling of stories from the local papers. Still, ESPN’s stats are the second-easiest to used behind Yahoo! Sports and include some useful advanced numbers and splits. (Last year’s ranking: Tied #8)

9: Minor league beat writers: Writers like Chad Jennings of the Scranton-Times Tribune and Mike Drago of the Reading Eagle offer better, focused coverage of prospects than national magazines, such as Baseball America. While BA has the resources to gloss over the entire minor leagues, college, and high school circuits, the minor league writers follow the affiliates from opening day. Their objectivity is the best way for casual follows to sift through the hype. Jennings has appeared on this space answering questions on the Red Barons, while Drago generates daily coverage and opinion on the R-Phils in the Reading Eagle, and on his blog "Keeping Score." (2005 ranking: Unranked)

8. Hardball Times: Win Shares are the greatest thing to happen to baseball statistics since the asterisk, and I find the Hardball Times essayists superior to those at Baseball Prospectus. I’ll glance at Win Shares and the advanced numbers for pitchers and hitters almost daily. (2005 ranking: #6)

7. Daily News Live: DNL is one of the only true gateways to the players, offering a glimpse of their personality, with casual interviews throughout the season. I’m a big fan of the work Emmy-winner Michael Barkann does as host, keeping the conversation light and lively, but also thoughtful and topical. Regular guests include Paul Hagen and John Marzano, both excellent contributors, offering different perspectives as academic and ex-jock, respectively. As a blogger, I use DNL to get injury updates and information about the starting lineup. As a fan, DNL is just a great place to pre-game. (Last year’s ranking: Unranked)

6. Phillies.com/MLB.com: You’d think the team’s official site would register higher on this list. If it wasn’t for "Press Pass," which offers free, official pre-game press notes for all the major league teams, I would have little use for this site. The stat interface is clunky, and the home page bogs down on my G3 iBook. The site is more useful in the offseason when I’m searching for something to write about. However, the free press notes are an extremely valued source for my previews, citing information from the Elias Sports Bureau and offering a quick glimpse at how that night’s pitchers match up. (Last year’s ranking: Tied #8)

5. FOX Sports: For those keeping score, Ken Rosenthal has buried Jayson Stark, Tim Kurkjian and Buster Olney this season when it comes to legitimate trade speculation. The non-trade of Alfonso Soriano to the White Sox was very ugly for ESPN. Meanwhile, Rosenthal broke the Bobby Abreu deal first among the national sites. I’ve had very little use for ESPN.com this year and plan on letting my Insider subscription run out. Why shouldn’t I, when I can get a more accurate scoop for free on FOX Sports? (Last year’s ranking: Unranked)

4. 2006 Phillies Media Guide: Call me a traditionalist, but I have two media guides, one at work and one at home, and I swear to you, this site wouldn’t be nearly as good without them. Where else can you get four pages of 6-point type on Rheal Cormier? It’s like having the entire organization in the palm of your hand. (Last year’s ranking: #1)

3. Philly.com: The day always begins with a morning glance at the Inquirer and Daily News. Obviously, readers of this site are no strangers to the talented columnists and writers covering the Phils. My favorite this season has been Todd Zolecki, who first joined the club when pitchers and catchers reported in February and has been with them since. Zolecki has a knack for knowing what people will be talking about tomorrow, and offers a balanced take on the games and the players making news. (2005 ranking: #3)

2. PhilliesPhans.com: The most active phan-run message board is the best place to get breaking news. When a story breaks, chances are one of the hundreds of phanatical posters are on top of it. For an open chat room, the opinion is astoundingly informed, and posters do a commendable job policing one another and keeping the dialogue on point. Generally, the site has a sabermetric bent, making Bobby Abreu the subject of much adulation. Whatever your take, PhilliesPhans is a fun place to discuss a variety of topics, from the war in Iraq to the number of games between each Fabio Castro appearance. From a blogger standpoint, PhilliesPhans is my go-to source for comprehensive, up-to-the-minute information. (2005 ranking: Unranked)

1. Yahoo! Sports: Clean, simple and comprehensive. Box scores, AP coverage, career stats, career splits, schedules, photos and a honey of a good fantasy baseball news aggregate. It’s all there in one, easy-to-use hub. A daily flush of my browser history might include 100 Yahoo! pages or more – and none of them will make my computer crash. Here’s what I like most: Yahoo! embraces the lost art of white space. Their style hasn’t changed since my college days, and I hope it never does. (2005 ranking: #2)

Comments

[Will]

where is the media guide for sale?

[J. Weitzel]

Phillies web site has them for $10.

http://shop.mlb.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2257165&cp=1452362.2184776&view=all&parentPage=family

[Lake Fred]

Let's see for me it's a tie between Beer Leaguer and FoxSports for No. 1. No. 3 is the scrawl on the bottom of the screen of ESPN on TV. No. 4 is Philly.com. No. 5 is Basaball Almanac for old timer stats. No. 6 is minorleaguebaseball.com for farm team stats. No.7 my local newspaper with breakfast, the Times Picayune. No. 8 is Yahoo (I'm just not in the habit to go there earlier). ESPN.com is in last place. Everything else is tied for next to last place.

[kdon]

I'll be the first to say it...on my list Beerleaguer is #1.

I also would put in an honorable mention for "The Good Phight" because they tend to have a unique perspective and a lot of original research.

[J. Weitzel]

Damn. I should have included Baseball Cube and Baseball Reference somewhere. Put those two tied for 7th and bump everything up. ESPN.com gets the boot.

[Drama Queen]

I spend a lot of time on Yahoo Sports checking box scores and managing fantasy teams. The rest of my time is spent between blogs. I have my own, and of course this wonderful one.

[Lake Fred]

OK, kdon, you convinced me that I was in error. I'll demote FoxSports.com to No. 2.

[studes]

Oh no! THT has fallen? What can we do to make it up?

[J. Weitzel]

It's not that bad, Studes. You got knocked back by a couple of newcomers. Look at it this way: Counting only the resources that made the 2005 list, THT climbed one spot.

[Steve T.]

Not one mention of Randy Miller, the best Phillies beat writer out there. Shame. st

[That Dude]

How do you not include Deadspin.com?

[Tony]

Jason,

www.baseballcube.com is outstanding for minor league stats.

[chris]

Used to be a philliesphans fan. Incredibly arbitrary moderation though.

[rofovnifo]

Hi

Looks good! Very useful, good stuff. Good resources here. Thanks much!


G'night