Philadelphia PhilliesThe Phillies had the worst record overall of any major league team last century. They finished the millennium by having one winning season in the last 13 years. GM Ed Wade wanted to open the new millennium a bit better than the last one ended, so he made some bold moves this winter and promises to make more to ensure the Phillies don't become the worst team of two centuries.
The offense of the Phillies was actually pretty good last year, finishing 6th in the NL in runs scored. Doug Glanville has become an outright steal for the Phillies in more ways than one. The centerfielder, who was traded for Mickey Morandini, has been a solid leadoff man the past two years in Philly, getting on base at around a .350 clip (.376 last year) and stealing 57 bases in two years. Bobby Abreu led the team in many categories with another outstanding year in right and hitting 3rd. At age 26, he is already one of the top offensive right fielders in the majors. Rico Brogna is average run producer at first. Third baseman Scott Rolen suffered through back problems most of last year which affected his production. Many, including Rolen, think his back troubles could be related to playing most of his games on astroturf. When healthy, he is the best all around third baseman in the National League. Former All Star Ron Gant will play in left, but hasn't been a good run producer since 1996. His time with the Phillies is drawing to a close as they are looking to deal him to open up the position to uber-prospect Pat Burrell. Burrell gained his reputation as a big time hitter when he led the nation in hitting and his school to the national title game as a freshman at the University of Miami. He was temporarily derailed by some back problems, but has regained his stroke and has been decimating pitching at every level since. Marlon Anderson is a good enough hitter to be a decent run producer at second, but his poor defense might cost him playing a full-time spot in the line-up. Desi Relaford is simply marking time at short until prospect Jimmy Rollins is ready to give it a shot. Mike Lieberthal has become a terrific hitting catcher. Drafted in the first round in the 1990 draft and was tutored behind the plate by Phillie hero Darren Daulton. Once Burrell becomes a regular in the line-up, the Phillies will have 4 excellent hitters with good patience and very good power - Lieberthal, Abreu, Rolen and Burrell - and a good leadoff man. If they can get major league average production out of the other three spots, the Phillies will have an intimidating offensive machine like they did in 1993 when they went to the World Series. GRADE: 60
Once Burrell is up for good, the Phillies will have good to excellent defensive players at 6 positions. Unfortunately, the two where they'll be weak are probably the most important: short and second. Abreu, Rolen, Brogna and Lieberthal are all in the upper echelon of defenders in the National League. When healthy, Rolen is the best defensive third baseman since Mike Schmidt. Relaford has good range and a strong arm at short but misplays so many balls and make so many poor throws as to negate any natural ability he might have. The Phillies obtained Mickey Morandini this spring to help at second, but his range has diminished significantly since his early days with the Phillies and it's doubtful his offense can keep him in the regular line-up. If the Phillies could just find a way to combine Anderson and Morandini, they might have an average player at second. Rollins could get an opportunity this year, but is known much more for his offense than his defense, which is about average. Utilityman Alex Arias may get to play regularly at one of the two middle infield spots. He's a decent defender and won't hurt the team offensively. Glanville is a good defensive centerfielder, with good range and a strong, accurate arm. GRADE: 60
Wade made his big splash this offseason with two additions two the pitching staff. One was starter Andy Ashby, who'll be the Phillies opening day starter and "ace" pitcher until Curt Schilling returns from offseason surgery. Ashby has had good success the past few years in San Diego, but it remains to be seen how much of his success was due to the park he pitched in (a good pitcher's park) and the infield defense that played behind him. Ashby is an extreme groundball pitcher and having two poor fielders directly behind him will not mix well. One of the biggest knocks against Ashby has been that he has the stuff to be a #1 or #2 guy in the rotation, but the mentality of a #3 or a #4 guy. He may very well match his average of 15 wins over the past two years because he's going to a team that will score many more runs than last year's Pads. But it wouldn't be at all surprising to see his ERA jump by as much as a run as well. Schilling's timetable has him coming back in May. A healthy Schilling will go a long way toward keeping the Phillies competitive. Without him last year, they went from vying for the wild card to falling below .500 and 20 games behind the Mets and Braves. Ashby will help, but the Phillies need Schilling. Paul Byrd had a solid first half last year, but got hit pretty hard in the second half. He also got hit hard this spring, giving up 6 home runs in 22 innings. He's a decent pitcher with average velocity, but good movement. It helped last year that he got 7+ runs of support per game. Robert Person joined the rotation in the middle of last year and was a revelation. The Phillies traded for him to help in the bullpen but had so many injuries they had to try him in the rotation. The experiment was successful: his ERA as a starter was 4.14. person combines very good velocity with a sharp biting slider. He still doesn't have an offspeed pitch and has only spotty control. If he can develop a changeup, the Phillies might have some lightning in a bottle with Person. Lefty Randy Wolf rounds out the rotation. He has average stuff, but has a very good idea of how to pitch. Reggie Jackson compared him to a young Whitey Ford. His numbers, however, say he's got a way to go. GRADE: 60 once Schilling is healthy/50 until then
The second big acquisition this winter was closer Mike Jackson. Jackson spent most of his 14-year major league career as a set-up man to the likes of Rod Beck, Jeff Brantley, Jose Mesa and Norm Charlton before getting his shot at full-time closer in 1998. He has been exceptional ever since, saving 79 games in 88 tries. The only question is how much longer can he do it. He's 35 and coming off his first 4+ ERA since 1990. His ERA in September and October last year was nearly 5.00 for a team in contention for the playoffs. Some cracks may be showing as his spring performance was not that compelling either. The Phillies do have some depth in the bullpen but it's not the kind of quality a team needs if they have to replace a closer. Both Wayne Gomes and Jeff Brantley have closed games before but neither of them is really convincing in the role. Both seem more suited to set-up. Journeyman Kirk Bullinger has closed in the minors and has had a very good spring, but only has 9 innings of work in the majors. Amaury Telemaco is a quality long man/spot starter but not much more. Carlos Reyes came over this winter from San Diego and is a good middle reliever, but is hardly closer material. The rest of the bullpen is made up of journeyman who might give the Phillies some quality innings occasionally, but nothing to be depended on with any consistency. GRADE: 45
Ed Wade is about average as GMs go. He's about 50/50 on making trades that help his club and understands what his team needs. He's done a very good job rebuilding the Phillies minor league system which for much of the 80's and 90's was utterly barren. He's got some good young players like Burrell, Rollins and 6'8" righthander Brad Baisley on the way, but the organization still has a ways to go. He doesn't have much of a record concerning mid-season deals because the Phillies haven't until recently been competitive past May. He does have a decent record of acquiring talent in trade (Glanville, Byrd) for relatively nothing. Manager Terry Francona is young and enthusiastic, but most importantly, realistic. He keeps his team on an even keel and is a good disciplinarian. He hasn't blown out any young arms, which is always encouraging, and he appears to handle his pitchers well, with the exception of riding Schilling into the ground every year. GRADE: 50