* Give the Phillies credit last night. They clubbed Miami 8-0. Rhys Hoskins hit his 7th homer in only 14 games, the most home runs by a rookie in such few games in 100 years. It does no good to keep bitching about how the Phillies' front office screwed up again and didn't promote Hoskins sooner. It also does no good to point out that columnist Marcus Hayes was dead wrong by saying the Hoskins should "simmer" in Lehigh Valley all year.
Hoskins is up now, so just enjoy him and think of seasons to come. This team needs a face of the franchise and maybe they have found one.
I always get a Phillies calendar for next season, one which lists the games daily. Last year they struggled to find players for each month's photos, using the Phanatic and scenery pics instead.
The 2018 calendar should feature Hoskins, Williams, Nola, Alfaro, maybe even Kingery. I can see the Phillies promoting the hell out of their young prospects, as well as they should. When I stopped into the clubhouse store at Citizens Bank Park a few weeks ago, there was a sparkling white with red pin-stripes Rhys Hoskins jersey hanging up front.
Surprisingly, pitcher Mark Leiter Jr. pitched a one-hitter from seven innings. Leiter Jr. has not been mentioned with the young promising pitchers in the Phillies roster. But the Thompsons, Efflins and Livelys have pretty much failed this summer. Pivetta is a work in progress. Eichoff still has "potential" but is too inconsistent. Nova has pitched great but his record is still an average 9-9. So, this is the chance for Leiter Jr. to step up and claim a spot in the rotation for 2018.
The Phils line-up showed what it can do if clicking on all cylinders, as it was last night.Hernandez and Galvis getting on base at the top of the line-up; Williams getting two more hits out of the No. 3 spot; Hoskins drilling a titanic, upper deck home run to left field and knocking in 5 runs; Joseph and Alfaro chipping in with key hits.
Still, I see the team trading Joseph in the off-season. Herrera is due to return form the DL on Saturday. It will be interesting if he stays hot and if the front office trades him as well. Williams and Altherr ( who may be back in September) have shown that they can play center field effectively. And with Kingery and J.P. Crawford pushing from the minors, Will Galvis and Hernandez be around next season and beyond?
GM Kletak has some interesting decisions to make during the winter meetings. Hopefully he is active on the trade front, signs noteworthy pitchers in free agency, and has learned to listen to the fan base and trust his young kids. By not having faith in your own farm system it makes the scouts and the entire front office look bad in their talent evaluation.
Deciding what to do with the manager and coaching staff should be the first big decision, the day after the season ends.
I'm going to my final Phillies game this summer on Saturday night vs. the world champion Cubs. There is a lot more to watch now, compared to earlier in the spring, much more hope of things to come.And I;m sure, despite the tough, long summer and the questionable tactics of Klentak and Andy MacFailure, I'll be ordering my six-game pack in November, as usual, because I am a fan.
* The talk of sports this morning is the compelling game last nigh tin Pittsburgh between the Pirates and Dodgers. LA lefty Rich Hill had a perfect game thru 8 innings, saved by a spectacular, acrobatic, diving spear of a line drive by Chase Utley. Great play coming at a key time, Utley laying all out for the diving grab.
An error ruined the perfect game in the 9th, but hill took his no-hitter into the 10th of a 0-0 game, where the no-hitter, shut-out and game were lost on one pitch by a walk-off home run by Pirate Josh Harrison, the first no-hitter ended by a walk-off home run in the history of major league baseball.
It must be a magical time to be a Dodger fan with the season they are having. They are still 50-plus games over .500 and on a pace to have home field advantage thru out the playoffs and World Series. But lately the Dodgers have suffered key injuries and seem human.last night's stunning ending in Pittsburgh proved that things can change quickly in sports.
Interesting to note: Ben Davis, Phillies broadcaster, picks the Washington Nationals to represent the National league in the World Series this fall, not the Dodgers or even the champion Cubbies.
The Nats have the pitching and their offense can match-up with anyone. The bullpen is improved too. So, maybe? I still can't see the Dodgers losing. The Cubs won't get there again as they struggle to fend off the Cards and Brewers in NL Central. And I don;t see a wild card team- Colorado, Arizona or even Miami emerging. With Bryce Harper staring at free agency after next season, this year may be the best shot Washington has got to finally break the jinx and go to the Series.
No comments:
Post a Comment