Beerleaguer - Phillies Blog, Baseball News, Trade Rumors & Spirits

A-Rod opts out ... and the Red Sox are champions

Alex Rodriguez's agent, Scott Boras, ended months of speculation by announcing during last night’s Game 4 that his client is opting out of his contract with the Yankees. The team said they will not re-sign him.

Rodriguez forfeits $72 million he was owed over the final three seasons of his $252 million, 10-year deal, which he signed with Texas before the 2001 season.

The A-Rod announcement upstaged the Red Sox in some ways, who made quick work of the Rockies by completing the sweep with a 4-3 win in Colorado. Mike Lowell, the subject of his own hot stove speculation, took home the hardware as series MVP amidst chants of “Re-sign Lowell! Re-sign Lowell!” The Boston faithful were also heard chanting "Don't sign A-Rod!"

The Phillies, who could use help at third base, have been linked to Lowell, who grew up a Phillies fan, hits well at Citizens Bank Park and said he would consider signing with the club earlier this month. Since then, Boston GM Theo Epstein has made strong statements suggesting the Red Sox will do what it takes to bring him back into the fold. Meanwhile, Curt Schilling, who turns 41 next month and still maintains a residence in the area, has included Philadelphia on the short list of places he’d play if the Red Sox don’t resign him. Boston has a number of young starters waiting in the wings and may be prepared to move forward. The Phillies, who have holes in their rotation, have indicated they will take a serious look at Schil.

Beerleaguer: From a business perspective, I have one thing to say to Scott Boras: bravo. It took less than 12 hours for Phillies fans to start up the “Let’s sign A-Rod” talk, and I'm assuming it's the same story in over half the markets in baseball.

But let’s get serious for a second. Over the summer, the New York Daily News published odds on A-Rod’s next team, making the Los Angeles Angels 4-1 favorites, followed by the Dodgers, Red Sox, Yankees, White Sox, Cubs and Mets. The Phillies didn’t make the list. Angels owner Arte Moreno has given mixed signals about a run at A-Rod, but Rodriguez hasn't been shy about his admiration for the Angels, the paper wrote. That, plus the proximity to Boras' Newport Beach offices, might make the Angels the unofficial favorite.

I would agree with the report: the two Los Angeles clubs are the best fits. The Angels need an offense that can match Boston, and A-Rod is the missing star the Dodgers need to compliment their own emerging talent. Everyone talks about the young studs in the NL West with the Diamondbacks and Rockies, but the Dodgers have their own crop, and A-Rod, with their veteran rotation and bullpen, may be enough to get them into the World Series with a team capable of competing against the AL. The other team worth watching may be San Francisco, who’s saying goodbye to Barry Bonds and may be looking for the next cornerstone. The Daily News listed 50-1 odds for San Fran.

I wouldn’t expect the Phils, with their surplus of offense, to outbid other squads, teams who actually need the kinds of bats the Phillies have. Early prediction: No chance and no interest in A-Rod, less than a 30 percent chance at Lowell, and a very good shot at Schilling.

Saturday open thread: Domo arigato, Tadahito Iguchi

Today marks Beerleaguer's annual sojourn to Happy Valley to watch No. 25 Penn State try to knock off No. 1 Ohio State. The Buckeyes are the first No. 1 team to visit Beaver Stadium since 1989. Elsewhere, it's Daisuke Matsuzaka and Josh Fogg in Game 3 of the Fall Classic. Kevin Youkilis will sit for Boston, Terry Francona has announced. As for Phillies fodder, we haven't discussed Tadahito Iguchi yet. The Phillies reportedly discussed bringing him back as a third baseman next season, but Iguchi said he will pursue opportunities at second base, where a number of clubs, including the New York Mets, need help. Iguchi did an outstanding job filling in for Chase Utley manning second and batting second during the Phillies' run to the post-season.

Beer nuts: Apprehensive readers weigh in on LaMar

The appointment of Chuck LaMar as a top pro scout didn’t make the front pages, but it raised some eyebrows with readers who view talent evaluation as a major hole in the Phillies' game.

According to the Phillies Web site, LaMar will work with director of Major League scouting Gordon Lakey and provide input on trades. Since adding better outside depth will be a major undertaking this offseason, it won’t hurt having another set of eyeballs picking through the haystack, trying to find a needle. However, if you had to pick one strength for LaMar, it might be his eye for raw amateur position talent, not veteran parts and pitching. Here’s what readers had to say, many of them fearful LaMar will eventually supplant Gillick:

“This move reeks of an ‘Old Boy’ network hire that fits directly in the Phils' style and has nothing to do with merit. It is hard to believe but there is now a worse possible scenario when Gillick leaves as a GM (LaMar being promoted to the GM in '09). Say what you will about Amaro but you can't really know how he will perform as a GM. LaMar had his shot and was pretty incompetent even if he wasn't in an ideal situtation in Tampa Bay.” – MG

“LaMar is a disaster. He fits right in line with the Phils ‘toolsy’ philosophy and seems to have missed the revolution in talent evaluation over the past decade. And that talent? Well, if you are picking in the top five every year, you are going to get a few good players. If you want an idea of LaMar’s ability, consider that of the 847 players in the Majors last year, only 22 were drafted by the D-Rays. That puts them at #26 in the league despite always drafting at the top. Conversely, teams like Oakland and Toronto, who favor a a stat-based approach to the draft are number 1 and 2 ... Also, one reason they had so few middle round draft picks (2-5) is because of the terrible free agent signings, and LaMar's role with the Phillies will be in scouting major league players." -- kdon

Random World Series thoughts: Colorado’s offense was held to one run for the second straight night. Take nothing away from Josh Beckett in Game 1; he turns out the lights on everyone. And Curt Schilling is one of October's best ever. But watching anemic hitting for a second night, from a group that was sizzling for a month, definitely raises questions whether there’s a thin coating of rust from the long layoff.

Still, the Red Sox were the favorites and have been the better team. That’s the story so far; the better team is winning. What else am I watching? Kevin Youkilis taking walks. My fascination with Youkilis continues. If the Phillies displayed an ounce of his plate discipline in the NLDS, they’d still be playing.

As we drift further away from that three-game sweep, the lasting memory of the NLDS is a group of over-anxious hitters, making Colorado pitching look better than they were.

The series also exposes the unfair advantage American League teams have with the designated hitter, and no team has a greater edge in that regard than the Boston Red Sox with a perennial MVP candidate David Ortiz. How have the Rockies countered? With fourth outfielder Ryan Spilborghs, batting ninth and hitless so far.

Phillies, Romero, far apart in contract negotiations: Lefty reliever J.C. Romero will test free agency, according to a report in the Philadelphia Inquirer. This is no surprise. The market for left-handed relief, and relief in general, is bone dry. Plus, the national ‘legacy’ of Romero and what he meant to the Phillies keeps growing. He did a nice job and I’d like to see him stay, but let’s get a hold of ourselves a little bit.

Phils name former D-Rays GM director of pro scouting

Chuck LaMar, 51, has been named Director of Professional Scouting after spending last season with the Washington Nationals. He brings with him 23 years of front office experience, including 10 years as Tampa Bay's GM. 

From Beerleaguer's news sources: LaMar has served in front office roles for several teams, including the Reds, Pirates, Braves and most notably as general manager for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays from franchise inception through the 2005 season. In eight seasons under LaMar, Tampa Bay went 518-775 and finished last in the AL East seven times. He was fired by the D-Rays' new ownership after the 2005 season.

During his time as GM, LaMar gained a reputation for finding talent via the draft, a list that includes Carl Crawford, Rocco Baldelli, Delmon Young, B.J. Upton and Aubrey Huff, among others. His tenure was also characterized by moves such as trading Bobby Abreu and Dmitri Young for Kevin Stocker and Mike Kelly. He was also responsible for signing Juan Guzman, Wilson Alvarez, Wade Boggs, Roberto Hernandez, and trading for Fred McGriff.

Prior to his time with Tampa Bay, LaMar spent five years with the Atlanta Braves as director of scouting and player development and assistant general manager under John Schuerholz. He also oversaw Pittsburgh Pirates' Minor League operations for two years and served as a scouting supervisor with the Cincinnati Reds.

"Chuck brings a lot of experience in many different capacities to our club," said Phillies GM Pat Gillick in a news statement. "We're pleased we had the opportunity to bring someone with his background into the organization."

R.J. Anderson’s opinion: (R.J. is a columnist for DRaysBay, Beyond the Boxscore and author of a soon-to-be released book about LaMar’s tenure in Tampa. He was kind enough to send along his thoughts): "Of the few things Chuck LaMar did right during his time in Tampa drafting was one of them. Although at times LaMar would go against his scouts’ pleas to draft certain players – selecting Jason Pruett over Albert Pujols for example – he usually produced at least a handful of players who would reach the majors in some capacity. The negative rep about LaMar comes from his personnel decisions after he drafted the players. Perhaps the best indication of LaMar’s skill at selecting amateur players would be the 2004 draft where he selected current top prospects like Jeff Niemann, Reid Brignac, Wade Davis, Jake McGee, Ryan Royster, Fernando Perez, and Andrew Sonnanstine. He probably should never get another general manager job, but if there’s a position he’s suited for Scouting Director would be just that."

Beerleaguer take: At the very least, it’s nice to see a new face near the front of the media guide. I’m uncertain whether LaMar’s Director of Professional Scouting title leapfrogs Marti Wolever’s status in the pecking order. Wolever serves as Director of Scouting, while Gordon Lakey, who worked with Pat Gillick in Toronto, serves as Director of Major League Scouting.

Nevertheless, LaMar has an eye for the draft, and the Phils can use some more eyeballs there. Tampa doesn't win, but they've had some talent rise through the chain, amidst disaster in every other area. However, wouldn't it be nice if the Phillies could tap a better source for their talent evaluation, like the Boston Red Sox, for example? Note LaMar's front office experience, including 10 years as Tampa’s GM, puts him right at the top. When Gillick's term expires, he could be considered a candidate for GM.

Moyer says there's plenty of gas left in his tank

Jamie Moyer, who turns 45 next month, isn’t talking like a man who's ready for retirement. In a recent Seattle Times column, the 14-game winner says he can still compete. [Link]

Moyer was the only pitcher to take every turn in the rotation for the Phillies last season, and he saved his best for last. He pitched like the cagey vet he is in the NLDS and was equally awe-inspiring in the Sunday division-clinching game against the Nationals. Moyer’s 199 1-3 innings can be listed as one of the most underrated stats of the season; that’s 16 more than Cole Hamels, and nearly 40 more than Adam Eaton. Steve Kelley of the Seattle Times asked Moyer how much further he can push the envelope.

"I am curious," Moyer told the paper. "As of today, I have my health. I got through a healthy season. I still feel I can compete. I know I can still play the game. ... At some point, maybe it's next year, maybe it's two years down the road, I'll go out on the field and I just can't do it. But if I can and right now I know that I can, why not? Just because somebody says you're too old? Or your birth certificate says you're a certain age?"

Beerleaguer: This piece is a nice reminder of what Moyer accomplished in '07, but also soothes anxiety on whether Moyer may be ready to walk away, something the Phillies cannot afford. Moyer signed a two-year, $10.5 million contract with a $1 million signing bonus last season, which paid $6 million in '07 and will pay him $5.5 million in '08 since he surpassed 180 innings pitched. It would have dropped to $3.5 million if he fell short. 

It’s pretty amazing if you think about it -- 180 is a pretty high total for a guy his age. Cole Hamels barely passed it. Every time Charlie Manuel made a coin-flip call to the bullpen, a lesser professional might have had a meltdown right there on the mound -- especially early in the season with the future very much in doubt. None of this seemed to faze Moyer, as Cholly would take the ball and hand it to Antonio Alfonseca or Geoff Geary, with possibly $2 million riding on it. Even without $2 million looming, when to lift Moyer, who knows his limits better than anyone, must have been one of Cholly’s greatest challenges. Many times, only inches separate Moyer’s best and worst stuff.

Trivialities aside, Moyer is all class, and one of my favorites. Gotta respect a man who rocks it with a traditional bow tie, too.

World Series: Game 1 pits Francis against Beckett

Game chat: The white-hot Rockies travel to Boston to take on the favored Red Sox tonight in Game 1 of the World Series. The Sox hand the ball to 2003 World Series MVP Josh Beckett, who enters the night with a sub-2 ERA in nine post-season appearances. For Colorado, left-hander Jeff Francis toes the rubber having won both his post-season starts. The Red Sox are the favorites in Vegas and in every nerdy statistical simulation I've seen, however the Rockies have been nearly perfect for over a month. Action gets underway around 8:35 p.m. ET on Fox, with Beckett and the Sox as heavy favorites.

Opinion: Zagurski deserving of Paul Owens Award

Before the season, most people wouldn’t have included left-hander Mike Zagurski on a list of the 30 best prospects in the Phillies farm system. After beginning the year in Clearwater, he was pitching for the Phils by June.

This is an old news item that slipped through the cracks during playoff fever, but I wanted to make sure to give Zagurski his due, especially since there’s been a great deal of misguided commentary about the Paul Owens selections.

If I had to pick just one player in the entire chain who made the greatest strides last season, it would be Zagurski in a one-horse race. That's what the award is all about. It's not a best in show.

Most are wondering why the pitching hardware didn’t go to Carlos Carrasco, Andrew Carpenter or Josh Outman. Outman scuffled a little in Double-A, but otherwise had a great season. Carpenter looks like a fine prospect, but he’s pitching about as well as I’d expect a second-round pick from Long Beach State to pitch. Lastly, I’m not sure Carrasco took any steps forward once he reached Double-A. Carrasco won the award last season for making the kinds of strides Zagurski made this season.

Let Baseball America keep tooting the horn for talents like Carrasco, or blue-chip prospects like Carpenter. Once that magazine wraps its head around someone, it’s hard for them to stop. The Phillies got it right for recognizing an unheralded, rising player. All Zagurski did was smoke three levels of the farm system before injury cut his season short. As for his failings in the Bigs, so what? It was a total stretch asking him to become the Phillies' late-inning lefty, a reach brought on by a bullpen emergency they created.

Toolsy Low-A outfielder Quintin Berry won the award for position players, which is tough to debate since this was his first full professional season. All I can say is I wish there were less position players attached to the "toolsy" label, since it generally signals at least one gaping hole in their game. My official position on Berry is "If they say so."

Farewell, Yo-el
On the subject of old news, the Phillies outrighted right-hand reliever Yoel Hernandez and he has elected free agency. There was a time Hernandez was viewed as a rising bullpen prospect until his career was ruined with arm problems. He debuted with the club this season, part of the revolving door of relievers from Ottawa. He wasn't horrendous, but wasn't fit for the Majors, either. Fastball-slider. Nothing great. At 27, his baseball dream will live on elsewhere.

World Series chat tonight!
After a brief hiatus, the bar reopens tonight for Game 1 between the Rockies and Red Sox. Game time is 8:15-ish. Time to belly up to the bar of baseball discourse.

Tough schedule includes visits from Red Sox, Angels

The Phillies' 2008 schedule includes very few easy patches, peppered between a number of long slogs, including a tough stretch of games in June and early July. [Link]

Two of the elite teams in the American League, the Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, will visit Citizens Bank Park, highlighting what is shaping up to be a much tougher schedule for the defending National League East champions. Interleague play also includes a two-game visit from the “rival” Toronto Blue Jays, along with trips to Oakland and Texas. The Phillies did not play well their last trip to Oakland, and Texas is another unfamiliar destination.

The toughest portion of the schedule falls between June 6 and July 3, which includes the Boston and Anaheim visits sandwiched between two nine-game road trips, including the Oakland and Texas visits along with two trips to Atlanta. Following that, they have a nice 10-game homestand leading into the All-Star break, but it includes potentially tough games against New York, St. Louis and Arizona.

The easiest portions are few and far between. April is a mostly favorable month and includes visits from Washington and Houston and trips to Cincinnati and Pittsburgh. There's a 10-game homestand between May 26 and June 5. The only four-game series at home are against the Reds, Mets, Dodgers and Brewers.

It’s almost becoming a cliche to write this, but I’ll write it anyway. The Phillies need another strong start in April and May to head into the meat of the schedule on solid ground. They are set up in September to control their own destiny in the division against everyone but New York. Other notes:

--- The Phillies play just five games against the Rockies, including two at Colorado on April 21 and 22. Burrrrrr. And for those who like making the trip to Pittsburgh, that's in April, too.

--- For all you Philadelphia transplants living in greater D.C., the first trip to Washington’s new park is Monday, May 19. Unfortunately, they do not get a weekend series in Washington all season.

--- All but four September games occur against division opponents. July is also heavy with divisional games.

--- A potentially tough 10-game road trip starts Aug. 29 with a four-game series against the Cubs, followed by three in Washington and three in New York, which will be the last time the Phils play the Mets (Sept. 7).

--- I see lots of Atlanta creeping into the schedule at critical spots.

--- The Phillies knock off a decent chunk of their West Coast schedule early, but bear in mind the added trip to Oakland. The last swing occurs Aug. 11 – 17 at Los Angeles and San Diego and six of those seven games have 10 p.m. start times.

--- Opening Day is Monday, March 31, against the Nationals. A three-game series with the Nationals closes the regular season, September 26-27-28.

Stage is set for a rock 'em, sock 'em World Series

The Red Sox have punched their ticket to the Fall Classic with an 11-2 thrashing of the Indians in Game 7 of the ALCS. Can the cinderella Rox maintain their momentum against the playoff-seasoned Sox?

My butterknife-dull baseball instincts say the Rockies’ buzzsaw is about to hit a solid steel wall. The Red Sox represent a better top-to-bottom attack than they’ve seen during the storied "21-of-22." Momentum, or what’s left of last week’s momentum, is only as good as the next day’s starting pitcher, and the Sox will open the World Series by handing the ball to ALCS MVP Josh Beckett, who’s simply unrivaled in the post-season. Then there’s the matter of a stable of playoff studs like Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz, Curt Schilling, Mike Lowell and Jason Varitek, along with a superb cast of extras, like Kevin Youkilis and Dustin Pedroia.

Nevertheless, there’s something wicked fishy about a predictable Red Sox win. Conventional wisdom has been betrayed so many times lately that I’ve come to expect the unexpected. This series reminds me a lot of 2003 when experts underestimated Beckett and the upstart Marlins all the way to a World Series title. It could happen again. The Rockies' offense, led by NLCS MVP Matt Holliday, is obviously outstanding, but has anyone noticed that they're pitching their butts off? For example, everyone talks about Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, but has anyone mentioned that Manny Corpas has five saves in seven post-season games? There isn’t a single standout; Clint Hurdle is handing the ball to five or six guys a night and they're getting it done in short bursts. A World Series dominated by Colorado’s no-name pitching is so absurd, it’s plausible.

These teams truly have nothing in common, other than making equally intriguing and justifiable cases for winning it all.

R.J. Swindle added to Team Canada World Cup roster

The 24-year-old junkball left-hander, who posted a 57/8 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 44 relief innings between Lakewood and Clearwater, will join Team Canada as they prepare for the 37th annual World Cup in Taiwan. 

The Phillies were contacted by Team Canada asking about Swindle’s availability, but there were concerns about getting the proper paperwork, according to Swindle’s agent. Swindle, who signed a minor league deal with the Phillies early last season, was born in Canada, but his parents are American citizens and he grew up in Florida, so he has dual citizenship. Avoiding any hang-ups, Swindle completed the paperwork and is set to leave Friday with Team Canada.

With a name resembling that of a country-and-western casino tycoon, Swindle pitched collegiate ball at Charleston Southern, shattering the school record for strikeouts. The Red Sox drafted him in the 14th round of the 2004 draft and he pitched his first season in Low-A Lowell, striking out 56 in 51 innings, walking only four. In 2005, he appeared in 18 games with Schaumburg of the independent Northern League and eventually found his way to the Yankees in 2006, pitching most of the season in Low-A Charleston, strikeouting out 46 and walking just 8. The Yankees released the 6-3 left-hander during spring training and he caught on with the Phils, baffling left-handed batters with his slow, loopy curve.

According to his agent, the Phils have re-signed Swindle to a AA/AAA contract for next season.

Beerleaguer: Swindle’s invite to the World Cup tournament makes it three (known) farmhands representing the Phillies and their native lands, including catcher Jason Jaramillo and Josh Outman for Team USA. Outman is considered one of the top, if not the top, pitchers in the chain, but it’s Jaramillo’s inclusion that should have everyone excited. The 25-year-old prospect gets the call alongside some of baseball’s best young talent. There’s something to be said about Jaramillo’s growing list of accolades, praise that goes beyond the numbers on Baseball Cube. The Phillies like the switch-hitter's defense and handling of pitchers and compare him to Johnny Estrada, and the rest of baseball obviously respects him, so it might be worth taking the last two seasons with a grain of salt. The catcher got off to a poor start last season in Reading and had some nagging injury problems, then in 2007, didn’t do much at Ottawa. Then again, neither did anyone. Look for Jaramillo to get a longer than usual look in spring training.

Update: Kevin from the Threshers ticket office sends word that infielder Brad Harman has been named to Australia's World Cup Team and will represent his home country in the 2007 International Baseball Federation World Cup, which is scheduled for November 6-18 in Chinese Taipei. Thanks for the update, Kevin. [Link]

Very minor notes: Phils sign Frontier League pair

Two pitchers from the independent Slippery Rock Sliders, right-handed reliever Jared Simon and left-handed starter Dan Schwartz, have been signed by the Phillies, according to a Sliders news release.

Simon is a product of Wichita State University and appeared in 20 games for the school this season, posting a 0-2 record with a 4.29 ERA, striking out 23 while walking two in 27.1 innings. Signed by the Sliders, he picked up six saves for Slippery Rock in 22 appearances, holding hitters to a .193 average and posting a 28/5 K/BB ratio. Simon was considered one of the top relievers in the Frontier League, according to his pitching coach.

Schwartz, a Northwestern University product, went 4-4 with a 5.24 ERA in 12 starts, including 53 strikeouts in 68.2 innings. Later with Slippery Rock, he went 2-5 with a 4.17 ERA with 41 strikeouts in 69 innings. His Big Ten experience and velocity make him an attractive prospect, according to the release. Schwartz becomes the second left-handed Wildcat in the Phillies farm system, joining Triple-A starter J.A. Happ.

At least one scout is still excited about Golson
Greg Golson, the 21st pick in the 2004 draft, may be generating futile numbers with the stick, but a scout who spoke with Baseball America still holds out hope that the 22-year-old Texan can become a five-tool stud, and believes there are others who share the same view.

It's an awfully positive spin for a guy whose minor league OPS is .703, crippled by nearly 500 strikeouts in four short seasons. Golson, who was bumped up to Double-A, has three of the five tools down cold. He can run, catch and throw, which means he would do very well at the NFL combine. But when it comes to hitting for average and power, he’s still falling well short due to a poor grasp of the strike zone. Golson still has time to solve professional pitching, and by all accounts, including the opinion of Reading Phillies beat writer Mike Drago, the outfielder is eager to learn, but at this stage, we’re already looking at a late-bloomer, at best.

Phuture Phillies, the outstanding minor league blog, diplomatically illustrates the Golson situation this way:

“His isolated power has slowly increased since his rookie season, but notice, I say “slowly”, because his power really hasn’t spiked, it’s been a very gradual climb. Over the same span, his walk rate has dipped since 2005 in pretty drastic fashion, while his K rate has gone up. More of his hits are going for extra base hits, indicating he might be making better contact and might be using his speed a bit more. But, on the whole, he’s still not a guy I can get excited about, and that’s not me being negative, it’s just me saying that he’s now had 4 years as a pro, he can’t take a walk, and he hasn’t figured out how to tap into his raw power that supposedly exists."

Right-handers representing Phillies in Hawaiian League
Andrew Cruse (Clearwater) and Ronald Hill (Clearwater) are pitching for North Shore this fall. You can track their progress here.

(Editor's note: Welcome to Phillies news Death Valley.)

Trolling for utility in the Venezuelan winter league

As baseball gets underway in the Caribbean, Venezuela is once again the utility infielder capital of the world. With a vacancy for multi-purpose bench help, can the Phillies find what they’re looking for in the LVBP?

Venezuela has been a hotbed for versatile, slick-fielding infielders over the years, epitomized by Giants shortstop and Caracas native Omar Vizquel, who’s dazzled the baseball world with his glovework for 19 seasons. And for every Venezuelan infield standout like Vizquel, the country has produced about five quality role players, guys like Miguel Cairo, Marco Scutaro and others.

As the curtain opens on another LVBP campaign, we find the usual, loyal infield suspects slated for action, many of whom hold ties to the Phillies. Tomas Perez, who held Philadelphia’s utility torch for six seasons, returns to his old winter stomping ground. One can also find a number of current Phillies farmhands there, including Joe Thurston, Danny Sandoval, Carlos Leon, Peeter Ramos, along with a couple of ex-farmhands like Jesus Merchan and Anderson Machado. The list goes on and on, as the rosters are stacked with youngsters, grizzled vets and established stars who will only make an appearance or two, among them, Bobby Abreu, Miguel Cabrera and Carlos Guillen.

For Phillies purposes, there are a number of players entering their final arbitration years slated for LVBP play who may fit the bill as a potential replacement for Abraham Nunez, who did not have his option picked up by the club and will become a free agent.

One of baseball's best utility players, Oakland’s Marco Scutaro, a native of San Felipe, may be a little too valuable for a banged-up A’s club to let slip away. Scutaro, who just completed his sixth major league season, worked himself into 104 games in 2007, including 43 at short and 36 at third. The soon-to-be 32-year-old hit .260/.332/.361 with seven home runs.

Scutaro may not shake lose, but two of his top comps on Baseball Reference just may: Omar Infante and Jose Castillo, who’re also slated to play in the LVBP.

Infante, still 25 and a veteran of six seasons with Detroit, can play every position, including outfield, but his playing time has rapidly diminished since 2004 with the acquisition of Carlos Guillen, and later, the trade for Placido Polanco. A right-handed hitter, Infante would give the Phillies a hair more offense than Nunez. Last season he hit .271/.307/.355 with two homers. He will become an unrestricted free agent in 2009.

Castillo, coming off a terrible season with Pittsburgh, finds himself in a very dubious predicament. Castillo, 26, lost his job at third base to Jose Bautista, with Freddy Sanchez taking over at second. He ended the season with Nunez-type numbers, a .244/.270/.335 line with no homers. This is his final arbitration year and his future does not look good in Pittsburgh.

Another name to consider may be Castillo’s Pittsburgh teammate Cesar Izturis, also slated for play in the LVBP. Izturis, who was traded to the Pirates, with cash, for a player to be named later, becomes a free agent in a few days and is at a stage where his only future is in a utility role. Like Castillo, he can play third base, but he's a banjo hitter with possibly less power than Nunez.

Then, of course, there’s the possibility of resigning Nunez for less money, which seems 100 times more likely than signing veteran free agent Mark Loretta and his high price tag. The concern here would be the temptation of starting Nunez more than they should, but if they can acquire a full-time third baseman who can also field, Nunez would be a nice, comfortable spare part to back up the entire infield.

None of the options listed above can hit, otherwise they wouldn't be utility players. Nevertheless, the fact that guys like Cairo and Perez can hang on forever indicates the true value of quality glovework, which apparently grows on trees in Venezuela.

News: Cardinals expected to make a run at Rowand

A roundup of off-season Phillies news, including offerings from today.

-- Last week, Phillies management reportedly learned that Aaron Rowand would be seeking a six-year, $84 million contract, a report that was later denied. According to several reports, Rowand has expressed a desire to remain with the club, however, the general belief is the Phils are not optimistic they’ll be able to resign him following his career year in 2007. It’s widely believed the Cardinals will take a run at Rowand, according to a report in today’s St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

-- A solid bid from has been made to buy the Phillies, according to Stan Hochman reporting on ComcastSports Daily News Live last week, but the offer was rejected. Hochman’s source indicated there is a holdout owner among the limited partnership and that the prospective buyers, reportedly based in Philadelphia, plan to approach that owner to convince them to sell. The Phillies, including President Dave Montgomery, denied any movement to sell the team, with Phillies Vice President for public relations Larry Shenk stepping forward and calling the report “totally ridiculous and absurd."

-- Curt Schilling would consider returning to the Phillies, and reports are the Phils will seriously consider having him.

-- If George Steinbrenner fires Joe Torre, Mariano Rivera could leave the Yanks. Should Rivera leave, the Phillies will pursue him, according to one report.

-- Free agent to be Mike Lowell has given some thought to signing with the Phillies next season, according to Daily News writer Paul Hagen.

-- The Phillies have restated their preference in having Brett Myers remain as the closer. Should the Phillies pursue Rivera or another closer option, that plan could change, according to Phillies.com.

-- Pat Gillick expressed satisfaction with the current catching setup of Carlos Ruiz and Chris Coste. Keeping with Gillick, the Phillies GM has downplayed the role of minor league pitching for next season, looking instead at 2009.

-- According to Phillies.com, the Phillies are interested in having J.C. Romero back, possibly for multiple seasons.

Play continues for farmhands as AFL opens season

As you can see, the Beerleaguer is standing again at the top right, signifying the start of the Arizona Fall League (AFL).

The AFL, which runs until mid-November, gives players, mostly Double or Triple-A talent, a chance to accelerate their status and stay in a good groove. As usual, several top Phillies prospects are taking part as members of the Peoria Saguaros, logo pictured. Scott Mathieson, who was voted best pitcher of the 2005 AFL, is a great example of a Phillie who elevated his game in the fall and hit the ground running in Double-A the following season. For the most part, the AFL is a scouting league with few fans, and usually, a lot of hitting, so the results need to be taken with a grain of salt. Sometimes, I wonder whether this league actually exists, or whether it’s fabricated by Baseball America and MiLB.com to sell copies and drive traffic during the off-season.

Mathieson was scheduled for an AFL return this fall, but suffered another injury setback and will not take part. The Phillies selected RHP Joe Bisenius, LHP J.A. Happ, LHP Josh Outman, LHP Joe Savery, C Tuffy Gosewisch, 3B Mike Costanzo, OF Greg Golson and RHP Pat Overholt, replacing Mathieson, to participate this season.

They’re all worth watching, ranging from medium-to-high-ceiling players, mostly at an age where they’re near or knocking on the door to the Majors. Happ and Bisenius, 25-year-olds who suffered injury setbacks this season, will probably be given a shot to make the club out of spring training. Both were non-roster invitees a year ago; Bisenius actually broke camp on the 25-man roster, and Happ earned a spot start on June 30.

Along with Outman and '07 first-rounder Savery, there’s plenty to watch if you subscribe to the belief that minor league pitching will play a major role next season. GM Pat Gillick said it won’t, but he’s not to be trusted, and hasn't hesitated in calling up young arms the past two seasons.

Bisenius is already off to a good start. In four innings, he’s struck out four, walked one has given up just one hit. Outman, Overholt and Savery have seen limited action thus far with nothing major to report. On a related note, Savery is maintaining a fall league blog. Read it here.

Besides the higher-ceiling pitchers, I’m watching the strikeout column of Costanzo and Golson with trepidation. So far Costanzo is 1-for-15 with eight strikeouts and a homer. Golson is tied for the league lead with three doubles and is batting .313.

The Saguaros battle Phoenix today. Follow it here. Or not.

Break up the Rockies: Colorado takes 3-0 NLCS lead

Josh Fogg, yup, Josh Fogg shut down Arizona's bats and Yorvit Torrealba, yup, Yorvit Torrealba hit a tiebreaking three-run homer to lead the Rockies to a 4-1 victory Sunday night.

The team that was one strike from missing the postseason is one win from the World Series. They go for the sweep tonight in Game 4, after rattling off 13 regular season victories out of 14, winning a one-game playoff and dusting aside the Phillies in the NLDS. I hesitate in calling them a buzzsaw. Immortal may be the better word.

Breaking news: Phillies renew coaching staff for '08

Rich Dubee, Ramon Henderson, Davey Lopes, Steve Smith, Milt Thompson, Jimy Williams and Mick Billmeyer have all had their contracts extended, according to a Phillies news release.

"I couldn't be happier with the job my coaches did this year," said manager Charlie Manuel. "Their hard work paid off in a big way when we won the division."

Dubee, 50, handled a club-record 28 different pitchers this past season with seven of them making their Major League debuts. The team also set a franchise record with nine different pitchers getting saves. Overall, Dubee guided the pitching staff through injuries to starting pitchers Adam Eaton, Cole Hamels, Jon Lieber and Freddy Garcia and relievers Tom Gordon, Ryan Madson, Brett Myers and Mike Zagurski, among others.

In his first season with the Phillies, the 62-year-old Lopes coached the club to the best stolen base percentage in Major League history. The team stole 138 bases -- second-best in the NL -- and was thrown out only 19 times, good for an 87.9 percent success rate. Both Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino finished in the NL's top 10 in both stolen bases and stolen base percentage. Lopes also oversaw the outfield defense. In 2007, the Phillies had 39 outfield assists, tops in the NL and second only to Tampa Bay among all Major League clubs. Aaron Rowand (11), Victorino (10) and Jayson Werth (9) all finished in the top 10 in the league in outfield assists.

For the second time in as many seasons, Thompson, 48, oversaw an offense that led the NL in runs. The team total of 892 was the most by any Phillies club since 1930, when they scored 944 runs. Also in 2007, the Phillies led the NL in triples (41), walks (641), slugging percentage (.458), extra-base hits (580), total bases (2,605) and times on base (2,289), while finishing second in home runs (213).

In addition to his bench coach duties as Manuel's second-in-command, the 64-year-old Williams also was in charge of the pitchers' hitting and bunting. Under his watch, the Phillies' pitching staff finished fourth in the NL with 51 hits, 22 more than the 2006 team (29), and led all NL staffs in runs scored (28). Their 39 sacrifice bunts was 10 more than the previous year (29).

For Henderson, 2008 will be his 11th season as a coach with the Phillies, the longest active streak in the NL East. For the third straight season, Henderson, 44, served as a pitcher for the Century 21 Home Run Derby during the All-Star break. Under Billmeyer's supervision, Phillies catchers threw out the third-most runners in the NL (31). Only the Dodgers (37) and Nationals (33) threw out more. Smith returns for his second season as third base coach and infield instructor.

Beerleaguer: Usually, one can count on plenty of fluff from these news releases, but this one, copied in its entirety, makes a solid case for the coaches.

As a spectator, it's difficult to get inside the team's inner workings, but stuff like base stealing, outfield play and bunting clearly improved over 2006. Davy Lopes was a tremendous hire. Absolutely spectacular. The Major League record for stolen base percentage is a true feather in his cap. For me, the most memorable thefts didn't come from usual suspects Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino. They were the two by Jayson Werth against the Mets in the final game of the four-game sweep. The senior correspondent and I were discussing them last night. Absolutely fearless - and that's what Lopes brought to the Phils, along with his guidance in the outfield.

I've never been as down on Dubee as some because I honestly don't know what to look for most in a pitching coach. I'd say he does an average job during the season, and a below average job recognizing talent during spring training.

From my vantage point, one of the biggest problems of the season was the pitcher and catcher getting together on bad pitches. Poor situational pitching. Those mistakes ultimately fall to Dubee, but I also understand he can't baby his players. It's a balancing act. The fact that the Phils keep retaining him says they're happy enough to keep him. The Phillies handed him the widest range of pitchers in baseball last season with fine results from the two young starters Cole Hamels and Kyle Kendrick. They milked a little something out of castoffs like Antonio Alfonseca and J.C. Romero.  Should we be disappointed that Dubee couldn't make Major League pitchers out of guys like Brian Sanches and so on? Probably not.

Manuel gets most of the credit when it comes to the offense, but Milt Thompson must be doing something right, too. No one is complaining about the bats, and therefore, no one should complain about Milt.

Lastly, and on a positive note, the good thing you can say about the retention of third base coach Steve Smith is that he's a year wiser. He knows the team and knows the league. Now we need to see an improvement 90 feet from home.

Phillies decline '08 options on Nunez and Barajas

Utility infielder Abraham Nunez, who started 51 games at third this season, and opening-day catcher Rod Barajas will have their option years bought out for $300,000 and $500,000 respectively.

Barajas, 32, hit .230 with four home runs and 10 RBI in 48 games. Nunez, 31, hit .234 with 16 RBI in 136 games and started parts of two seasons at the hot corner. In addition, right-hander Kane Davis, who was arbitration-eligible, was designated for assignment. Davis, 32, spent the season with triple-A Ottawa and was a September call-up.

Beerleaguer: Our comments section will never be the same as two champions of chat traffic, Abe and Rod, bite the dust. Besides the obvious "Thank God for this," the most relevant observation is that the Phillies must add a utility infielder to the shopping list. It's always a joy to watch what the Phils come up with: Tomas Perez; Alex Gonzalez; Ramon Martinez; and, of course, No-hit" Nunez, good for about 30 comments a night. Nothing drove traffic like a well-timed Nunez GIDP. Good times.

There doesn't appear to be much cooking internally, so you can bet the next No-hit will come from the outside. Utility players are hard to track. The way it usually goes is on a random day in December, someone posts a comment like "Phillies acquire Oscar Robles, per Rotoworld" or "Phillies trade for Pittsburgh infielder Castillo, per FoxSports," or the one I'm waiting for, "Phillies reacquire infielder Matt Kata, per Phillies.com."

"Our scouts have been tracking him for a long time," said Phillies assistant GM Ruben Amaro Jr.

A second observation would be that Nunez's declined option suggests the Phillies will pursue a versatile third baseman who can both field and hit, assuming they have no desire to head into '08 with Wes Helms and Greg Dobbs as their only options. Mike Lowell is the name mentioned most, but there are others, like Pedro Feliz, Miguel Tejada and Hank Blalock.

The last observation of the night relates to reliever Julio Mateo and the fact that no announcement was made at this time pertaining to his contract status. Mateo, who was acquired from the Mariners at the trade deadline but was never used, has a $1.5 million '08 club option with a $100,000 buyout. The right-hander was charged with assaulting his wife in May while a member of the Mariners.

As for Barajas, we're losing another 30 comments with his departure. The RodFather didn't need to be in the game, or on the active roster, to stir up the conversation.

Thursday: Do the Phillies still crave a power bat?

The Phillies need pitching. What else is new. They needed pitching last season, but it didn’t stop Pat Gillick from making Alfonso Soriano a top priority. With options available at a lower cost, will Pat get his bat?

We’ve discussed the availability and interest of soon-to-be free agent Mike Lowell manning next season’s hot corner, whether the Phillies will get into a bidding war to retain Aaron Rowand and what the future holds for Pat Burrell, who’s arrived at the final year of his contract. A multi-dimensional third baseman like Lowell would solve a lot of problems, but frankly, they’re all tied into the general idea of right-handed power and lineup protection, a central concern from the previous off-season. We’ll get back to that shortly.

The Phillies had a great year at the gates and may be willing to spread the love. According to the Allentown Morning Call, team president David Montgomery and general manager Pat Gillick said the Phils are willing to increase the money spent on player salaries. Montgomery says the Phillies spent $103 in player contracts in 2007, a figure echoed by the Philadelphia Inquirer. Although the number may include perimeter players on the 40-man roster, as suggested by Todd Zolecki of the Inquirer, $103 million is still a significant marker, moving them a little closer to earning a varsity jacket and dating a hot cheerleader.

They’re committed to $65 million in salaries for 2008. Pencil in $8 million for Ryan Howard’s first arbitration year, leaving roughly $30 million to match the $103 million total of last season, minuns a million or two for the flotsam/jetsam of Rule 5 picks, minor league veterans and players around the edges. Besides Howard, who could be seeing Albert Pujols-type money, Jayson Werth, Geoff Geary and Ryan Madson are among the noteworthy arbitration-eligible players. Set aside a million to resolve those issues, though I’m betting on a fat non-tender for Geary, who was demoted twice and didn’t make the post-season roster. Conservatively speaking, call it $25 million to fiddle with, before Monty's bump in payroll.

Back to the power bats. Lowell makes a lot of sense. He’s a good warrior with good totals. His bat would fit in nicely. But at 34, which is what he’ll be next season, is he with best investment? Lowell might command two years, $22 million, minimum.

Other players have been discussed. Miguel Tejada, reportedly ready to move to third if it means playing for a contender, would constitute a “big bat” – barely. The Phils may be able to squeeze one more all-star season out of him before his career goes into sharp decline, which may have already started.

You can’t mention Tejada and Baltimore without bringing up Burrell, who has the steadiest numbers over the last three seasons of all the possibilities mentioned here, including Andruw Jones, who I’ll get to in a moment. The Phils were ready to spend millions to replace Burrell with better right-handed lineup protection just one year ago. Today, Burrell has never looked so desirable.

The difference? Statistically speaking, absolutely none: -.002 BA 2006/2007; +.012 OBP; .000 SLG. Yet, Howard took a statistical hit in 2007 and lineup protection, strangely, no longer generates any headlines. Go figure. It just goes to show that the lineup protection debate had more to do with lingering Burrell discontent than statistical merit. (I was on the wrong end of that debate, BTW.)

Back to the bat. Where to put it, and who should it be? Fact: The Phillies have no legitimate right-handed power hitters developing in the minor leagues. Fact: The Phillies have no high-ceiling outfielders developing in the minor leagues. This is a major problem, which strengthens the case for resigning Rowand, extending Burrell, or both.

However, neither of these players has ever hit 51 home runs, the amount Jones hit when he was NL MVP runner-up in 2005. Rowand’s career year doesn’t come close to Andruw’s average one. Coming off a brutal contract year, his worst since 2001, the 30-year-old free agent has been matched with the Dodgers, Rangers, Giants, White Sox, Nationals, Mets, and yes, the Phillies. From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

"And there’s Philadelphia, where Andruw’s hit an awful lot of homers and stolen an awful lot of extra-base hits over the years. If the Phillies don’t re-sign Aaron Rowand, they might take a run at Andruw. Seriously."

Seriously is right, and it would make a serious statement, too. After a dismal '07 campaign, Andruw Jones probably played himself into baseball’s second tier, which is where the Phillies thrive. Figure Jones will command a lesser commitment than Soriano, who ended up with eight-years, $136 million from Chicago. Scott Boras has suggested he's seeking a contract for Jones at the “fair-market value” of $17-20 million per year, with no length specified. You have to wonder whether the Phils would take the plunge. The pitching market is bone dry. The trades may not be there. Is this best course of action? Taking the money and building an unstoppable offense?

Third basemen Hank Blalock, Joe Crede and Garrett Atkins have also been mentioned as possibilities in a trade, but those are harder to predict, and thus, harder to discuss. Besides Jones, other right-handed free-agent outfielders include Torii Hunter and Mike Cameron, players largely left out of the discussion so far.

Latest news: Abraham Nunez and Rod Barajas will have their options bought out, according to WIP's Howard Eskin. Share your favorite Nunez and Barajas moments below.

Breaking news: Manuel signs two-year extension

From a Phillies news release -- Charlie Manuel signed a two-year extension with the Phillies, with a club option for 2010, to remain as manager, Senior Vice President & General Manager Pat Gillick announced tonight.

Manuel, 63, managed the Phillies to the National League East Division championship this season, their first playoff appearance since 1993. The Phillies finished the season at 89-73, one win fewer than the league lead of 90, shared by Arizona and Colorado, and overcame a seven-game deficit in late September to overtake the Mets in the NL East.

This past September, Manuel collected his 250th win as Phillies manager in his 470th decision, becoming the fastest Phillies manager to 250 wins since Pat Moran managed the club from 1915-18. He is also the first Phillies manager to have winning records in each of his first three seasons since Moran in those same years.

"We love what Charlie brings to the ballpark every day, which is an up-beat, positive attitude that rubs off on the players," said Gillick. "He helped lead our club back to the playoffs and he and his coaching staff did a great job, especially with the injury issues they faced throughout the season with a number of key players."

In his three seasons as manager of the Phillies, Manuel has a record of 262-224 (.539), the sixth-best winning percentage in franchise history among managers with at least 100 games managed. He managed Cleveland from 2000-02 (220-190) and led the Indians to the American League Central Division championship in 2001. Among all 30 active major league managers, Manuel's .538 winning percentage is eighth-best.

Beerleaguer: This announcement comes as no surprise. Charlie guided the Phillies back to the postseason and did so with a threadbare pitching staff. They never quit and played hard. They like him and like playing for him, a notion supported by the long-term extension signed by Chase Utley, Pat Burrell's refusal to be traded and Aaron Rowand's willingness to return. He knows hitting. He handles all types of players with finesse -- from high-motor guys like Shane Victorino and Jimmy Rollins to stubborn veterans. He keeps the spotlight shining on the field instead of in the clubhouse - possibly his most underrated trait. Philadelphia has not broken him, despite facing machine gun fire since the moment he was hired. He's overseen the growth of several superstars and possibly his second MVP in as many years. Under Manuel, the Phils have fielded arguably the best NL offense of the past two years.

After three seasons, his shortcomings are obvious to even a casual fan. He's not the guy you want pulling the strings in a best-of-five playoff series. He doesn't have a great feel for pitching. His teams have started cold and put themselves in early April holes in each of his last three seasons.

Better players would make his job easier, certainly. For example, having a well-rounded third baseman instead of one-dimensional players would make the late innings more manageable and help keep his bench better stocked. He needs help in the bullpen and is like a lost puppy if he doesn't have dependable pitchers to assign the 7th, 8th and 9th innings.

Charlie was the right man to get them there, but can he take them to the next level: a championship? I have a sinking fear that a team with this many budding and established stars will outgrow him and start losing their edge. Financial terms were not disclosed by the Phils, but one can assume Manuel will remain near the bottom rung or perhaps see a modest increase. That, and the feasibility of bringing in a big-name candidate, cannot be forgotten as major reasons why he's back.

Invisible Phillies swept by Rockies; bats go silent

Congratulations to the Colorado Rockies, who advance to the NLCS to face the Arizona Diamondbacks. Meanwhile, the Phillies post-season is over before it ever got started.

The remarkable run of the Rockies continues. To review, they won 14 of their final 15 regular-season games to force a one-game playoff, beat San Diego, then triumphed effortlessly over the Phillies. Their unheralded pitching staff, including, but not limited to, fireball right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez, Game 1 starter Jeff Francis and the back of the Rockies' bullpen, including closer Manuel Corpas, pitched better than expected, made pitches when they needed to and never allowed the Phillies to get anything started offensively. The shootout between high-powered offenses never happened, as it was the Rockies’ supporting cast – Kaz Matsui, Yorvit Torrealba – who caused much of the critical damage. Series MVP will likely go to Matsui, who drove in the Rockies first run tonight and belted a grand slam on Thursday.

The Rockies are the team I'm pulling for the rest of the way. They’re easy to like and riding a fantastic wave. The gesture to give the family of fallen minor league coach Mike Coolbaugh a full playoff share shows class and character. Best of the luck to the deserving Rockies.

Congratulations to the Phillies, again, for a fine regular season, Sunday’s division-clinching performance and for brining post-season baseball back to the city for the first time in 14 years.

At the same time, shame on them for the tease and for failing to provide a single, long-lasting memory from this series. The few dim highlights - like Jimmy Rollins setting the table in Game 2 and Jamie Moyer's effort tonight - are washed out by darkness. The taste of October has already vanished, and that’s the worst disappointment of all.

The Rockies are the buzzsaw no team wants to play, but the story of the series must be the cardboard cutouts who took the field instead of the team odds-makers picked to win the National League, cheap imitations of the regular season champions we had been waiting a long time to see on the post-season stage. Nonexistent players wielding nonexistent bats. Like air. Twenty-six strikeouts. Eight runs. A shallow 18-for-93, as a large bulk of the hitting occurred during garbage time of Game 2. Utley, poster boy for clutch play and the envy of teams around baseball, came up shockingly small. Likewise Rowand. Likewise Burrell. Howard did more barking than biting. The best of the best seemed to disappoint, while the worst of the worst bordered on an embarrassment. Carlos Ruiz was the only regular to bat over .250. Rollins, Utley and Burrell hit .182. Utley was hitless against left-handed pitching. Rowand hit .082, getting himself out on bad pitches most at bats. Howard struck out seven times in 12 at-bats and ended his NLDS with the bat on his shoulders. The Phillies held one lead all series, briefly in Game 2, until the wheels in Charlie Manuel’s head started spinning. You have to go back to Game 1 to find the only vivid memory of the entire 2007 NLDS: A red sweatshirt.

Many thanks: The only one who showed up this series was you, the fan. Thank you for supporting Beerleaguer, your dedication, insight and friendship. There's more ahead as the post-season gives way to the winter hot stove, then soon it will be spring.

But before then, a well-deserved break is in order. The strain of daily writing has been severe. I'm ready to settle in, rest the bat on my shoulders and take a called third strike down Broadway, just like the Phillies.

Game chat: National League Division Series Game 3

Phillies face mile-high hurdle tonight in Colorado

Threatened with a crushing first-round sweep, the resilient Phillies, down 0-2 in the series, face the ultimate challenge when they meet the Rockies in Game 3 of the NLDS tonight at Coors Field.

Preview: No reason to delve into deep analysis. The Phillies need to play better and make better choices. They need to score more runs and keep from getting burned by the weaker hitters in the Rockies’ lineup. Jamie Moyer, who's been an excellent post-season pitcher, needs to devour innings and bridge the gap to the big three. The runs are key since the Rockies probably hold a 5-3 advantage in dependable relievers. The Phillies face a right-handed starter for the first time this series in Ubaldo Jimenez. They need to put 5-6-7 runs on board and knock him out early.

Brett Myers has said the team is playing as if they are content with just getting there, a claim refuted by teammates in the Daily News. The character of the club should not be in question. However, lose today, and the Phillies' first post-season berth since 1993 may go down in history as an anomaly, the result of the Mets' collapse instead of their own resilient campaign.

Game chat launches at 8 p.m.

Don't blame Manuel ... but mistakes were clearly made

The red-hot Rockies are playing the better ball, but the fact is, the Phillies held a 3-2 lead until the wheels in Charlie Manuel's head started turning.

The great thing about Beerleaguer is we field opinions from all different angles, shaping discussion until a communal belief is reached. It's a perfect dynamic because many times the lead entries, written by yours truly, suck. My first response to yesterday’s 10-5 loss was to downplay the tactical decisions of Manuel and determine the better team simply won the game. Colorado out-hit and out-pitched the Phils, and it was as simple as that.

The response? Nearly all posters strongly disagreed. Almost 200 comments removed from the initial post, the finger is being pointed at Manuel, specifically for lifting Kyle Kendrick in the fourth and for the way that inning was handled in general.

Here’s how the inning unfolded on the surface: With a man on second, Kendrick fails to retire eight-hole hitter Yorvit Torrealba with two outs. With the base open, he issues the free pass and moves on to the next hitter, Seth Smith, batting for pitcher Franklin Morales. Kendrick gives up the squib to Smith to load the bases. Manuel makes the switch to Kyle Lohse. Lohse’s fastball misses down and in to Kaz Matsui, who puts it in the seats for the grand slam.

Digging deeper, here’s where the mistakes were made, as seen by several posters, including Mike Cunningham: Manuel forced his own hand by not having Kendrick go on the attack against Torrealba when the Rockies were clearly ready to pinch hit for the pitcher. It appeared Manuel may not have been prepared for this. A cheap single loads the bases, Manuel panics and brings in Lohse, who may not have been the best choice. Kendrick said afterward he was surprised he wasn’t allowed to finish the job.

The second questionable decision came when Manuel called on Jose Mesa with the game still close in the 6th. Mesa walked the first two hitters before serving up a two-run double to Torrealba. In the words of HOF poster RSB, “Mesa transformed the game from something reachable to a blowout.”

Rockies' win pushes Phillies to brink of elimination

The Phillies have been out-pitched, out-hit and are now one loss from being out for good.

All of the fears about this series were realized today. The red-hot Rockies offense exploded for 10 runs on 12 hits, the main damage coming at the hands of an unusual source. Four runs plated on one wicked Kaz Matsui swing, sending Kyle Lohse’s hard inside fastball into the seats for a grand slam. It takes a special kind of pitch for Matsui to tag one like that. It's no easy feat, and I can't stress that enough. The pitch needs to be hard, down and in for Matsui, owner of 17 career homers. Lohse replaced Kyle Kendrick with the bases loaded and he and catcher Carlos Ruiz got together on an inside pitch that arrived right where Matsui wanted it; all he had to do was drop the bat head on it. 6-3 Rockies, all the runs they needed in a 10-5 rout.

The heart of the Rockies lineup trumped the Phillies once again. Troy Tulowitzki and Matt Holliday went back-to-back off Kendrick in the first inning. For Holliday, it was his second home run of the series.

Four of the five Phillies runs came off the bat of Holliday's rival Jimmy Rollins. Ryan Howard contributed a solo shot in the 6th. Overall, the Phillies hit better as a team than yesterday, but it wasn't enough, nor was it good enough. We expect more, and the opportunities were there today.

Besides the Rockies offense, the other fear that manifested itself was middle relief, as Lohse, Jose Mesa and Clay Condrey spewed a mess all over the field. Mesa issued back-to-back walks, gave up a two-run double to Yorvit Torrealba and left to a chorus of boos. Meanwhile, Colorado’s bullpen pitched the best ball of the afternoon, which really wasn't all that great, but compared to the Phillies, spectacular.

Key moment: Kendrick fails to retire Yorvit Torrealba with two outs in the fourth. He fell behind then pitched around him with the base open. Kendrick gives up the squib to Seth Smith to load 'em up, Charlie Manuel makes the switch to Lohse. Ballgame. Loshe blew it, but the three runs charged to Kendrick were certainly earned for the critical Torrealba mistake. He didn’t make pitches to a batter he needed to challenge, but it may have also been poor strategy on the part of the coaching staff not to make Torrealba, the 8-hitter, beat them. Overall, Kendrick was only a click better than Rockies starter Franklin Morales, who was unimpressive at best.

Final thought: Readers are quick to jump on Manuel for the loss for removing Kendrick and using Mesa, but right now it's pretty clear the Phillies have been outmatched in every facet of the game. Down 0-2 in the series, they face an early exit, which also threatens to tarnish the reputation for resilient, clutch play they built over the 162-game season. This wasn't how the first playoff series in 14 years was supposed to go.

Game chat: National League Division Series Game 2

Pregame: Phillies try to slay inexperienced Morales

The Phillies hope to avoid digging an 0-2 hole at home when a pair of rookies toe the rubber in Game 2 of the National League Division Series this afternoon at Citizens Bank Park.

Preview: Yesterday, the Phillies couldn’t solve Jeff Francis, who reversed his fortunes against a Philadelphia team that produced 14 runs in 8 1-3 innings when the two sides met earlier in the season. Today, the Phils hope for the same reversal of fortune when they send 23-year-old 10-game-winner Kyle Kendrick to the mound against the team that forced his shortest start of the season. Kendrick was knocked out of that Sept. 12 game when he was hit on the leg by a line drive, but not before giving up three hits on seven runs, including a three-run homer by Matt Holliday. Kendrick rebounded his next start, the first of three-consecutive quality starts to end the season. The sinkerball right-hander has earned high marks for his poise since his emergency call-up from Double-A Reading. Kendrick wasn’t even invited to Phillies spring training and was considered a borderline prospect by most insiders.

The opposite holds true for Rockies starter Franklin Morales, who was rated as the team’s No. 2 prospect before the season by Baseball America. Morales, 21, relies on a plus-curveball, rated as the best in the organization. A late-season call-up, the rookie southpaw went 3-2 with a 3.43 ERA in eight starts, posting a 26/14 K/BB ratio in 39 1-3 innings. He's holding left-handers to a paltry .129 batting average.

Patience would appear to be key for a Phillies lineup that managed just four hits yesterday, including an 0-for-15, nine-strikeout collar from the first four hitters in the lineup.

Beautiful, miserable weather: Crystal-clear skies, meaning shadows will become a factor for the second straight day.

Postgame: Table-setters blanked in 4-2 opening loss

Rockies pitching held the Phillies to four hits, including one by pitcher Cole Hamels, as the visiting Wild Card winners cruised to a 4-2 victory in Game 1 of the National League Division Series.

Beerleaguer breakdown: There isn’t much to add by way of post-game analysis because the problem was pretty clear. The top of the lineup went 0-for-15 with nine strikeouts, including three by Ryan Howard and four by Chase Utley, reportedly only the second time in his career that’s happened.

Jeff Francis earned the win by pitching six strong innings, giving up solo shots to Aaron Rowand and Pat Burrell for the only Phillies runs on the afternoon. Francis kept the lineup off-balance with a lot of soft stuff, actually making some good hitters look rather foolish. The Rockies bullpen sealed the deal with three shutout frames.

My long-sleeve undershirt theory: Here’s a ringside observation of Cole Hamels' meltdown inning. I saw a pitcher who not only missed his spots, but someone who looked completely gassed doing it. The sun was deceptively intense, too concentrated for the long-sleeve undershirt he was wearing. I actually said something at the beginning of the game about it, how it was too hot to be dressed that way. Hamels finally plodded through the second frame with slow stuff, drenched in sweat and looking like a guy who’d just pitched nine in the dead of summer. Next inning, no undershirt. He took it off. He cruised the rest of the way.

UPDATE: Theory is now fact. Hamels' undershirt indeed factored into his meltdown frame in the second inning. From Jim Salisbury's game summary:

"When Hamels came out for the third inning, the long sleeves were gone and he reeled off four straight 1-2-3 innings.

"I don't want to use that as an excuse," Hamels said of his decision to wear long sleeves.

But . . .

"It was definitely hot," he said. ". . . When it gets hot, I'm going to sweat a little more, and when I was throwing my change-up the sweat was dripping down in my hand and I wasn't able to get a good grip on it. A lot of change-ups in the second inning, they took, and they obviously were not strikes."

So the sleeves hurt?

"A little," Hamels said. "I realized it so I changed them as fast as I could because I didn't want to have another inning like that."

Can a sweaty hand affect a pitcher's control?

"Absolutely," Myers said. "When it's really humid, I've had trouble gripping my curveball. I never liked using rosin because it was like baby powder and my hand would feel slick. Now I put the rosin on my wrist and when the sweat runs down my hand gets tacky."

Other observations:
-- Wes Helms made the best defensive play of the afternoon.

-- The shadows seem to last from the first through the fourth. They evened out at about the same time Rowand and Burrell hit their shots. Considering how shockingly bad several good hitters like Utley looked, I would assume they were a factor.

Game chat: National League Division Series Game 1

Beerleaguer for breakfast: Serving up tailgate fun

Rise and shine, Phillies fans! It’s 5 a.m. Time for a hot dog and beer.

Just because you can't go to the game like I can doesn't mean you need to miss the fun. It's a crisp fall morning and the Beerleaguer B-B-Q is open for business. We’re serving Phillies Franks, of course, featuring the nameless black left-hander on the packaging. We’ve brought a cooler of Reading Premium, proud sponsor of Beerleaguer’s championship season. We've invited a few VIP guests, as you can see. J-Roll's here, and so is Ryno. They arrived together. Aaron and Pat rolled in late from the gym and are beating everyone at horseshoes. Chooch made it even with his bum arm. Chase is here and is asking people to help him take infield practice with the wiffleball set. There are a couple guys who arrived I didn't invite like Jim Ed Warden and Randall Simon, but it's cool.

So finish that Excel spreadsheet or whatever it is you're working on, get yourself to the nearest hi-def set with digital TBS HD upgrades and crack open a cold one like grandpa used to do, 'cause October baseball is back!

Notes: Tune in to 830-AM WEEU where I will be a guest on Mike Faust's Feedback Show at 9 a.m. Today’s game chat fires off at 12:00 noon ET. Let’s go, Phillies!

Rollins, Phillies make cover of SI; rosters discussed

You can go ahead and make those October tee-times. Sports Illustrated has chosen the Phillies as the team to doom by putting J-Roll on the cover of their playoff preview, setting up the infamous SI cover curse.

With nothing more to add, other than it's a terrific shot of J-Roll, let’s look at the Phillies NLDS roster according to several sources, including ComcastSportsNet.com and Howard Eskin of 610-WIP radio: Pitchers: Cole Hamels, Kyle Kendrick, Kyle Lohse, Jamie Moyer, Antonio Alfonseca, Clay Condrey, Tom Gordon, Jose Mesa, Brett Myers, J.C. Romero. Catchers: Carlos Ruiz, Rod Barajas, Chris Coste. Infielders: Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Greg Dobbs, Abraham Nunez, Tadahito Iguchi, Wes Helms. Outfielders: Pat Burrell, Aaron Rowand, Shane Victorino, Jayson Werth, Michael Bourn.

Beerleaguer: No problem with the hitters. The biggest surprise is Rod Barajas, who made the cut because Carlos Ruiz is nursing a swollen arm. According to Eskin, the Phils can readjust rosters after the NLDS. Someone posting on one of the message boards brought up the point that Barajas against the lefty-heavy Rockies might not be a bad situation.

The weakest links are in the bullpen, which includes two struggling veterans in Jose Mesa and Antonio Alfonseca, who’re only good for an inning. The consensus seems to be that in a short series with a couple off-days thrown in, the better relievers will be fresh. Mesa, a veteran of 26 post-season games, got the nod over Geoff Geary, who’s got a strained right elbow, according to Comcast. The worst of the bunch is Alfonseca, who was horrible his last outing after a good, long rest. His K/BB ratio is sinking like a stone, as is my confidence in him. I trust their decision with a 90-percent healthy Geoff Geary. They demoted him many times and know the stuff isn't there. Clay Condrey, who's gradually worked his way into pressure spots, defaults into a mop-up role.

Should Hamels or Kendrick exit early tomorrow and Thursday, Lohse, scheduled to start later in the series, could be called on in relief. Adam Eaton is the biggest name left off the roster, which was a shock to no one and was the reason why I saved it for the second-last paragraph.

Summing up the points raised in the previous thread, the biggest debate is whether Abraham Nunez or Wes Helms should start at third tomorrow.

Tuesday afternoon thread: Bring on the Rockies!

Yesterday’s team of destiny will face today's team of destiny, as the Phillies first-round match-up is set following last night’s Colorado Rockies' win over the San Diego Padres.

The NL wild card was decided in a 13th-inning rally off Trevor Hoffman of all people, one of the top closers in history. For the Rockies, it was their 14th win in 15 games. They now move on to the NLDS, tomorrow at 3 p.m. at Citizens Bank Park.

Beerleaguer: If you go back to last night’s post, you can look over the reasons I would have rather faced the Padres, and they're pretty much the same reasons we saw unfold last night. Colorado’s offense can put up big numbers and stretch a pitching staff to the limit. However, you have to like that the Phils will avoid the Padres’ bullpen. They’ve also smacked around Rockies starter Jeff Francis a couple times this season. Francis, the left-hander, is scheduled to start Game 1 against Cole Hamels, who has never faced the Rockies. Both would appear to work in the Phillies’ favor. Kyle Kendrick will go in Game 2, according to the Phillies Web site, and Jamie Moyer is listed for Saturday. Only Francis has been announced for Colorado.

Additional discussion points: Adam Eaton is likely to be omitted from the playoff roster, according to the Inquirer. And if you'd like to get started on another topic: Charlie Manuel was the right man for the job, but is he the right man for the post-season?

Beerleaguer in Baghdad uses blog to stay connected

 
Commander Steven Labows, United States Navy and proud member of the Beerleaguer family, pictured here with a printout of Beerleaguer’s NL East Championship poster, standing in front of Al Faw Palace, Baghdad, Iraq.

Dear Jason: You may ask what a Navy Commander is doing in Baghdad. Over the past few years the Navy has augmented the joint services here to pick up our share of the manpower requirements supporting the efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. I'm 19 years active duty and got pulled from my position as a helicopter test pilot at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, MD, to serve here for a year. I arrived here in July, spending the last few months as a Budget Officer supporting the Force Headquarters and this week I transition to serving as an aide to one of the Generals on the HQ staff.

Sitting on the outskirts of Baghdad, it's pretty amazing that I'm able to keep up with the Phils and be a proud member of the Beerleaguer crowd. Started following you folks early in the season and as I said, you are a touch of home that is a welcome bit of my day here. I'm hoping this is a long playoff run because I know this distraction makes the days go by a bit faster. Been gone for 100 days and about 300 left to go. 

Killer is that my younger brother (the one who introduced me to Beerleaguer) got three tix for tomorrow's game so if I weren't here I would be at the game with him and my Dad. I hail from Horsham and played ball in the old Bux-Mont league in the days of Jamie Moyer.  He was a few years ahead of me so I never had the pleasure of facing him while he was at Souderton.  I also couldn't hit the curve so varsity had to wait until my senior year. 

Thanks again for the outlet that Beerleaguer provides and I am looking forward to joining the crew tomorrow night. I appreciated your lead-in to the Monday afternoon blog. It's amazing to listen to this group, incoherent rants and all, and realize that there are so many others who have grown up with the Phils and share the same passion. The Internet connectivity lets me feel like I'm in the sports bar with all the Beerleaguers while sitting alone in my trailer in this desert paradise.

I remember back to my pre-teen years playing gin rummy with my grandfather while listening to Richie, Harry and Andy on the transistor radio. Or the middle school nights when I would crawl into bed with the radio under the pillow and listen to the games after bedtime.  Mom always wondered why my radio went through batteries so fast.  One of the hardest things about being here is not being able to share times like this with my kids.  You can be sure they were aware and wore their Phillies shirts to school on Monday.

Hope you enjoy the pictures. The 3PM start time actually works well for me since we're 7 hours ahead of you. Won't keep me up all night.

Take care,
CDR Steven Labows, USN
MNF-I Resource Management
Budget Officer
Camp Victory, Baghdad

Game chat: Phils' NLDS opponent determined tonight

Cy Young front-runner Jake Peavy leads the Padres as they travel to Colorado to take on the hard-charging Rockies tonight in a one-game playoff to determine the NL wild card.

Preview: The debate has begun as to which outcome presents the most favorable match-up for the Phillies. If San Diego wins, the Phillies could face Peavy only once. If the Rockies win, the Phillies run into the buzzsaw. So I’d rather get the Padres.

The buzzsaw thing could be silenced in one inning if the Phils put five runs on the board and start breaking spirits. The Phils can hit anyone, but I don’t like their chances at withstanding a shootout, which is what they could get with Colorado. The bullpen had an excellent September, but I’m doubtful they have enough guys, or the right guys, to endure the 8, 10, 12-run games Colorado can produce. More to the point, I don’t like that the Phillies' most recent tune-ups came against St. Louis, Atlanta and Washington twice. Besides Atlanta, they’ve seen below-average hitting lately. Someone like Jamie Moyer will not be able to breeze through Colorado’s right-handed hitters, including NL Player of the Month Matt Holliday, quite as easily as he did yesterday. The Padres can be more easily tamed. Keep the scoring reasonably low and hope to bludgeon the opposition with slugging and speed. That's probably the key for the Phillies' entire post-season.

Game time is 7:37 p.m. Josh Fogg starts for Colorado. The winner advances to play the NL East champions, who are, at last check, your Philadelphia Phillies.

Phillies playoff schedule announced: Taking Mike Cunningham’s advice from the last thread, now is the time to take care of personal duties to cover yourself for the start of the post-season. The Phillies draw consecutive 3 p.m. start times for Games 1 and 2, disappointing news for working stiffs like us. Once you’ve finished, stop by the grocery store for some Folgers to get set for the weekend.

Game Matchup Day Date Time ET TV
Gm 1 TBD @ PHI Wed Oct. 3 3 pm TBS
Gm 2 TBD @ PHI Thu Oct. 4 3 pm TBS
Gm 3 PHI @ TBD Sat Oct. 6 9:30 pm TBS
Gm 4* PHI @ TBD Sun Oct. 7 10 pm TBS
Gm 5* TBD @ PHI Tue Oct. 9 6:30 pm TBS

Cole Hamels is scheduled to pitch Wednesday. He is better in night games, but the margin is shrinking. As for big games, his last one wasn't shabby: Thirteen strikeouts, eight innings, no runs. He faced the Padres once this season, losing to fellow All-Star Chris Young despite limiting San Diego to one run and two hits over seven frames. He has never pitched against Colorado.

Howard honored: Ryan Howard, who led the National League with five home runs and 11 RBI, was named NL Player of the Week. Howard also led the NL with a 1.095 slugging percentage and 23 total bases.

A search for meaning as a blog reaches new territory

How do you like the bunting?

CLOUD 9, Pa. -- What can I say? When the going gets tough, the tough turn to graphic design. Some people stress eat. Others smoke. My mother cleans. I create patriotic bunting, posters and other flair using Photoshop. Speaking of which, you know what the Phillies do when the chips are stacked against them? They win, in case you didn't know.

And here we are. Fourteen years later and a squeaky-clean slate. Which means I have no clue what to do next. For close to three years, I’ve been mapping a plan to return to this precise point, a moment that was abandoned in the bedroom of a 15-year-old living in Topton, Pa., back on October 23, 1993, Game 6 of the World Series, the last time the Phillies were seen in a post-season. Years went by and the taste of October slipped away. So I came up with a plan to get it back, and named the creation Beerleaguer. And now that they're back, I suppose I can fold the map, stash it in my back pocket, saving it for the next playoff drought.

It wouldn’t be fair. Instead of shutting the bedroom door to recreate the past, I turn and find several thousand who’ve taken this personal journey with me. Not to the Topton farmhouse, but somewhere meaningful. The map leads to the same place.

Now that we're here, there’s a better use for the map: the blank space on back, used to document every gritty detail. I suspect that over the next few days, the assault of the senses will surpass what can be captured on Beerleaguer if the site was run like business as usual. Tracking the OPS+ of Greg Dobbs, for example. The usual.

My suggestion: Don’t go away empty handed. Forget what you think you know because it’s all about to change. Absorb it. Feel it. Revel in it, and I will be doing the same. This wouldn’t be a labor of love without a love.