- The Braves beat the Pirates in Pittsburgh last night, 1-0, snapping their losing streak and moving a full game ahead of the idle Phillies in National League East. The Phils start a three-game series in Washington tonight vs the struggling Nats. For the Nationals, it's the beginning of a do-or-die stretch. Everyone thinks they have a run in them and will magically win the division. But we are nearing the end of August and Washington has two teams to jump over. They at least have to take 4 of the next 6 games against the Phillies coming up. Splitting does them no good.
- The bottom line is, the Phillies will live or die by analytics. From the line-up to defensive shifts to the bullpen and key match-ups, everything will continue to be based on analytics, like it or not.
- I'm glad manager Kapler seemed frustrated over his teams' inability to make up ground this weekend, losing 3 of 5 to the lowly Mets while the Braves lost 4 straight at home to Colorado. I know he wants to remain positive with his young club, but they are in a pennant race. It should be a good learning experience for all, whether they make the playoffs or not. It's time to play the players who are producing, and if that means sitting Herrera or Santana for Quinn or Bour then so be it.
Building for the future is great, but what if the future is now? Will the team be only a game out of 1st place next August 21st? Certainly adding a Machado or Harper ( or both) will help for 2019 and beyond, but you never know if injuries, bad luck or other up-and-coming teams if you will be in the same position.
To me, the teams should make the post-season, although , even for a wild card spot, teams like Milwaukee, LA, Colorado and St. Louis will contend. I think the Cubs end up winning the NL Central, and Arizona survives in NL West. Don't forget, the Phillies must play four games in Colorado against the Rockies in late September, sandwiched between the Atlanta showdowns.
Philadelphia still has too many holes to go far. Their starting pitching will keep them competitive. Imagine their rotation with Cole Hamels, who is 4-0 since joining Chicago with an ERA under .200. Their hitting remains inconsistent. Their defense is often poor. And I would feel better about their bullpen if they had gotten proven closer, such as Britton or Inglesas. Look what the A's are doing in Oakland since they revamped their 'pen with Familia and Rodney.
- Thursday afternoon at 1:05 will be a classic pitchers' duel between Cy Young candidates Aaron Nola and Max Scherzer. Jacob deGrome may win the award. He's pitched great plus don't forget all of the New York attention he will be getting. Hopefully Kapler plays small ball on Thursday to scratch out any runs he can, as getting to Scherzer early will be key. Regardless, look for high strike out totals, as always, against a strike-out pitcher like Scherzer.
- The Eagles are getting ready to play the Browns Thursday night in Cleveland in a key pre-season game. Yes, it's an exhibition, but most of the starters will be playing 3 quarters since everyone will have a week off next week vs the Jets. Hoping Foles plays better vs the Browns, as Wentz does 11-on-11 practices again.
Injuries should be the main concern. Will Jerrigans even play this season and when? What about Jefferies? Sidney Jones and Darren Sproles seem fine. Of course, Wentz is a key question a swell. I still like the Eagles on paper but everything seemed to break well for the squad last season.
Hopefully the Vitai lackluster play was an individual concern last week and not a team issue. I hope the team isn't fat and sassy after winning the Super Bowl. Chris Long was right when he said he doesn't want to talk about last season. This year will be tough enough, with the Birds being the hunted and no longer the underdogs.
Getting off to a fast start over the Falcons on September 6 will be big, as they have winnable games after that against Tampa Bay, Indianapolis and Tennessee.
- I'm going to Atlantic City over the labor Day weekend. I intend to check-out sports betting down the shore, and, depending on the odds, am seriously looking at placing wagers on both the Eagles and Sixers overall win totals. I'm going under in both cases. No way the Sixers win over 54 1/2 games. And I think the Birds will 11 games, which puts them under as well. Of course, I'll be cheering for the Eagles to win every game, but realistically, I see 11-5.
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