Posts Tagged ‘Philadelphia’
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Birthrights and Bullpens: A look at the Phillies’ PitchingJune 22nd, 2008
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Philadelphians are bred with certain inalienable rights. You can think of them as parting gifts for hosting that whole Constitutional Convention thing. We can despise tourists or any visitor for that matter, we reserve the right to know that the best cheese steak spots are never what you see featured in any Food Network, Travel Channel, sports broadcast, or other terribly cliché media story, we can add mystery syllables to words that don’t need them or pronounce vowels in their opposite form without skipping a beat, and perhaps most importantly, we reserve the eternal right to know exactly what the Phillies need to do, when, how, and why.
Since I am a native Philadelphia, it would be remiss of me if I ignored my birthrights and the lineage of all those fans that have come before me. We share a communal heartbreak, a brotherhood of failure that is concentrated in a century-old dilemma that this franchise has yet to solve. The Phils need arms, good arms, and while pitching is a commodity for any team, the Phillies could be poised to make a serious run with a couple adjustments and acquisitions.
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Does playing for the A’s lead to the Hall of Fame?May 27th, 2008
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What is it about the Athletics franchise and the Hall of Fame? I was thinking about this the other day when Mike Piazza announced his retirement. What I wanted to know was how many players in baseball history played for the A’s franchise and were also enshrined in baseball’s Hall of Fame. What I came across was outstanding.
In the A’s 41 year history in Oakland, 11 players, coaches, or managers have passed through the green and gold before going on to the Hall of Fame. In addition to them, at least five (Mark McGwire, Tony La Russa, Rickey Henderson, Frank Thomas, and Piazza) more have made stops that are not eligible yet or are on the ballot but have yet to be selected.
Some of those players spent long portions of their career in Oakland (Reggie Jackson, Dennis Eckersley, Rollie Fingers, Catfish Hunter and Dick Willliams) while others were here for anywhere from a season to few months to a couple of games (Joe Morgan, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Don Sutton, Goose Gossage and even Joe Dimaggio). These players are not all there is though. This is just the Oakland side of it. DiMaggio was a coach with the A’s after he retired and Williams was a manager for the A’s.
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Square Pegs in Round HolesMay 22nd, 2008
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Over 400 years ago, William Shakespeare warned his audience in As You Like It of the excesses of “too much of a good thing.” Amazingly, nearly half a millennium later and a continent away, the same holds true in professional baseball. While GMs, managers, and players almost always try and spin excess as a “good problem,” conventional wisdom would hold that a solid, stated, and reliable starting lineup is a key ingredient in stimulating the intangible chemistry possessed by every championship team. Currently, the Phillies are plagued with four outfielders and too many cooks can ruin the broth.
Pat Burrell, Shane Victorian, Geoff Jenkins, and Jayson Werth all bring different skill sets, attitudes, and liabilities to the team. But who deserves to play everyday? Who would make the best role player? Who is willing to accept a lesser role for the greater good of the team? By mid-May, these answers sometimes become obvious, but in 2008, their performances have made these issues all the more confusing.