ot aggressive. - The road trip from Hell ended yesterday afternoon at Wrigley Field with a tough 4-3 loss to the Cubs. The Phillies limp home with a 3-7 record on the trip,only 4 games over .500, and are 3 full games behind Washington and Atlanta for first place. A six-game home stand with Milwaukee and Colorado awaits. The Nationals host San Francisco this weekend, while the Braves visit the dodgers in LA.
- Dylan Cozens was robbed of two special moments during the Cubs series. He smashed a go-ahead homer in the 9th inning Wenesday night to put the Phils ahead ( only to see them blow it in the bottom of the inning), and Cozens unleashed a tremendous throw from left field Thursday afternoon to gun-down a Cub trying to score on a sacrifice fly. He did score when it was ruled that catcher Andrew Knapp blocked the plate.
Cozens strikes out too much but he showed flashes of his potential. He has raw power, can run like a deer, and has a cannon arm. He needs to play more. Even when Hoskins returns, it would be fun to see the "Bash Brothers" back again. The duo lit up both Reading and Lehigh Valley with power- why not give them the chance to do so in Philly?
- Once again defense cost the y get a Cole hamels at the trade deadline if you are 8 games out Phils. So did wasted chances early in Thursday's game. Cub pitcher Tyler Chatwood, who leads the league in walks, walked seven Phillies and hit a batter, yet Philadelphia could only muster one run off Chatwood. He led the National league in losses last season and leads the nL in walks this season. The Phillies again let him off the hook.
Kapler doesn't believe in small ball, moving runner son the bases. He manages like an American League skipper, waiting for the 3-run homer/ No bunts, little stealing or hit-and-run baseball. The guys are stagnant on the base paths. They continue to miss scoring opportunities and fail to egt clutch hits with runner sin scoring position.
On defense, it seems like the players are too tight. They are either over-thinking situations or not thinking a tall. Simple, routine plays are being botched on a regular basis. Guys are playing out of position.
On offense, it's the same story: too many strikeouts. That may not seem bad to the analytics geeks, but strikeouts kill rallies. Put the damn ball in play and see what happens!
The disastrous road trip magnified the flaws in the team. they are not contenders. Kapler is too stubborn to make Siranthony Dominguez his 9th inning closer. There is no 8th inning set-up guy. The defense sucks and the offense is too inconsistent. Starting pitching is the strength, which will keep the Phillies within reach of the division all summer. But realistically, they are not better than the Braves or Nats.
Unless a move is made and the team acquires a Manny Machado, their slippage may turn them into seller sin July. Think of it- why get a Cole Hamels if the team is 8 games off a wild card spot? The next month will prove to be critical to the team's fortune this summer, and also for next year.
- My impressions as the sad Colangelo mess wraps-up..
* Owner Joshua Harris. Clueless about basketball. Uninterested, pompous investor who cares more about his New Jersey Devils. I don't like him, don't care about him and feel he's the worst owner in the city. He won't sell the team anytime soon because he is making money. He's no Pat Croce.
* Babs Bottini ( Colangelo's wife). Sneaky broad who reset her phone before handing it over to investigators. What else is she hiding? Why? Along with Colangelo himself, cost him a career and his reputation.
* Bryan Colangelo. Dope. Insecure idiot. I'm sure he knew what was happening. He and his wife cooked up fake Twitter burner accounts, using her phone, thinking they wouldn't be caught. But Why risk it/ To pat yourself on the back? To take cowardly pot-shots at critics? He deserved to resign. Plus he sucked as a general manager.
* Jerry Colangelo. The old man reportedly fought with Sixers management to keep sonny as GM, even though he screwed-up. Reportedly, older Colangelo even threatened Sixers . Wow! Maybe he won't be a "senior adviser" anymore?
* Scott O'Neill. Greasy CEO of Sixers. Wouldn't be surprised if he was involved somehow. He just reeks of smarmy, weasel-like intentions.
* Sam Hinkie. Would he come back if asked. I doubt it. Plus who blew the whistle on Colangelo to begin with? Who is this saga's Deep Throat?
* Brett Brown. Did a lousy coaching job in playoffs, now smelling like a rose as Sixers' interim GM. Has contract extension, can pick his own players in upcoming drat, help lure free agents. Who would've thunk it?
- -Congrats to the Washington Caps for finally winning the Stanley Cup. Amazing run by expansion Vegas. Cinderella finally turned into a pumpkin at midnight. Are the Flyers next? Not unless they get a true No. 1 goalie and a new coach.
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