Carlos Carrasco just turned 20 three months ago and started the season off in Clearwater before being promoted to Reading in mid June. After 4 appearances, he is 3-0 with a 3.48 ERA. The kid is a stud and everyone knows he will be a stud one he gets to the majors.


If the Phils think they can get back Myers and Gordon soon after the all star break, I say we should trade him and go for it this year. The Braves are flawed, the Mets are beat up and this could be the year for the Phillies to really go for it. However if the Phils think that Myers and Gordon won't be back for a while, I would say promote the kid and see what he can do in "the show". It seems obvious to me that Eaton has got to go in the off season. So let's see what the kid can do. If he steps it up, he could make the rest of the summer tolerable.

We have seen this every year with Charlie in August and September where he forgets about ego and starts doing whatever he can to win. Pinch hitting for Lieberthal, relying on Geary, benching Burrell, using the better hitter to pinch hit regardless of whether it is a left-right match-up. I'm excited to see him benching Burrell and going with other players. I was happy to see him hand over third base to Dobbs and Nunez when Helms was doing nothing. I was happy to see him play Barrajas less and less and Ruiz more and more. Hell, now that Lieber is hurt, Barrajas will even play less.

Starting to do everything to try and win now might be enough for the fills to pick up the 1-3 games that they end up missing the play-offs. However, now it is time for Dave Montgomery and Pat Gillick to step up and do something. since our minor league system is so weak, the only type of player we'll get is another club's salary dump. We'll need to be willing to accept some big salary to improve the team. Or we could trade Rowand or Ruiz which would hurt the team. I'm afraid the only other move is Michael Bourne for Lidge with the Astros, that is a win now attitude. I'm afraid that would be a mistake because I believe Bourne can contribute NOW. Having him, Rollins and Victorino in the lineup give use the ability to manufacture base hits.

All we can do is wait to see if Management steps it up but hats off to Charlie for stepping it up.

I'm watching the Phils - Cleveland game in the top of the 7th inning. The announcers have just announced that the young Kyle Kendrick is finished for the night. Who is in the Pen... Jose Mesa. I'm trying like ever to figure out why Kendrick is done. He has retired the last 7 in a row and thrown 94 pitches. There is no, absolutely no, reason to pull Kendrick. It isn't like Myers or Gordon are out there. The bullpen imploded when Charlie yanked Eaton early too nights ago. They put the game last Friday out of reach, the put the game out of reach last night. What is Charlie doing? Why won't he let his starters go more than 6 innings. If he had the Padres pen, I could understand but we know what he has, some minor leaguers and a couple wooden nickels.

OK so he went with Madson instead of Mesa. First batter has already gotten a hit. Let's hope Madson holds it together and we can get a "W" tonight.

It continues to amaze me at the way Charlie Manual manages his potchers. The guy doesn't have a clue and his mistakes cost the Phillies many games every year and usually burn out the relief core. My biggest frustration is his inability to stick with starters that are pitching well while leaving in pitchers that don't have it. The Detroit series is a perfect example. Lieber didn't have it but Charlie left him in long enough to give up a 3-run homer to Pudge Rodriguez pushing the game seemingly out of reach. The next two nights he yanked Moyer and Eaton on pitch counts even though they were pitching strong. Moyer was pitching a 4-hitter and Eaton was pitching a 6 hitter and looked strong. The Moyer move worked out because the relievers pitched OK but Charlie used his closer with a 4 run lead yet again. The Eaton move back-fired and Charlie burned through nearly every relief pitcher. In three games, nearly every reliever pitched twice.

Another thing that frustrates me is his new insistence on using Geary only against right handers or Zagurski only against left handers. I don't have a problem if a team has a specialist pitcher, someone who throws sidearm or has an especially tough pitch against certain players. Did you know that right-handed hitters have a lower batting average than lefties against Zagurski? Or that Geary gives up 1 homer for every 12 at bats to a righty but has only allowed one homer to lefties in 45 at bats? My point is we have a week bullpen and if a relief pitcher or starter is pitching well, we need to stick with them. Let them pitch more than a batter or two, more than 1 inning or more than 100 pitches.

If Charlie didn't use several relief pitchers in nearly every game, they would be better rested and more likely to be able to perform when they do pitch. I'm sure that Geary's issues are the direct result of over use last year and during April and May. He hasn't been effective for a number of weeks, similar to what happened to Madson after Charlie burnt him out a few years ago. Further, Charlie doesn't need to carry 12 pitchers if he isn't over-managing and using 4-5 pitchers a game.

I'll leave you with this... How many games over the past few years have we seen Jack McKeon and Florida, Bobby Cox and Atlanta and now Jim Leyland and the Tigers stuck with their key starting pitchers to work out of a jam in a close game while as soon as our starter walks someone or gives up a bloop hit they are yanked for some reliever that blows the game. Lately, Charlie has done this after letting the pitcher hit in the previous half inning. Charlie gets out managed in virtually every close game with good managers like Leyland, McKeon, Girardi or Cox but the Phillies still win a few games inspite of his bonehead plays.

You will probably heard from the Phils front office - "If we don't trade Jon Lieber, we'll get nothing for him." This is the sane front office who has been telling us that we couldn't trade Lieber before the all star break because there weren't any offers and we couldn't trade him during the winter because no one wanted him and we couldn't trade him in spring-training because no one was interested. That hasn't changed, so if we "trade" Lieber it will be a straight salary dump which will deplete the team of its fifth starter who as unreliable as he is, always gets hot in September. We should not trade Lieber because:

1. We won't get anything of real value for him

2. We don't have a better fifth starter

3. We usually pitchers great in later August and September

So if the Phillies trade Lieber it means one thing they are looking to make a few extra bucks by saving his salary.

Are we going to trade Rowand? Unfortunately the answer is probably yes. The Phils will say because they want to get some return for him rather than see him leave. I say the return should be a trip to the playoffs. Let me be clear, the Phillies can't make the playoffs if Rowand is gone from the team. What the Phils should do is offering him a 3 year deal now, before the all-star break and lock him up. This doesn't preclude them from trading him in the off-season or even by the trading deadline. This move makes it cleaar to the Phils, the fans, etc. that they are going for it.

Rowand is in the top ten hitting with men on base with 2 outs and has continued to hit in the clutch. Further, he is the only one on the team who can give Howard some protection. The outfield of Bourne, Victorino and Rowand is probably the best in the game and will winn games defensively just like Rowand and Voctorino have already been doing.

Pat Burrell's time with the Phillies is over. As I look at Pat the Bat's projected 19 homeruns and 70 RBIs with a dismal .212 average, it is apparent to me that he is killing the Phillies. The fact is that he is wasting a roster spot. Abraham Nunez and Ruiz are hitting better in the clutch, Dobbs has one less homer and 2 less RBIs but has batted around 70 times fewer. I would rather have Coste on the team. I would rather see Werth and Bourne platooning in left.

It is time to trade Burrell or release him out right. Oh, you've read no one wants him. Wrong, no one wants his salary. With the Phillies starting to sell out regularly now that they are in the race, management should realize this is the time to step up. Eat 80-90% of Burrell's salary and try to get a player that can help the Phils today or in the future. The fact is getting Burrell of the team will improve the Phils immediately with the old addition by subtraction.

Who is an interesting trading partner? I suggest the Oakland A's who took a chance with Frank Thomas. The also are the orginal "Money Ballers" who love on-base percentage and love guys who walk a lot which Burrell does. Oakland also has a great farm system.

I would bundle Ryan Madson, Burrell and 12-14 million over this year and next to get a real player and prospect who can either be traded or expected to contribute to the Phillies soon.

It is the top of the 7th and I'm so upset. I don't know if the Phillies are going to win or lose but this Buffoon that the Phillies are paying to mis-manage the Phillies has pulled another dumb move. After two innings where Lidle through only 18 total pitches and only one ball - he lifts him for a pinch hitter - Alex Gonzalez who promptly grounded out to the pitcher...

Now we go to that bullpen who haven't been able to hold a lead the rare time they have had one to protect. We now need 3 innings of good pitching from our bullpen... How much faith do I have? None.

I would be willing to bet that the bullpen will give up at least 2 runs. Now, Rowand just hit a 2-run homer while I'm writing this so maybe the Phils will when in spite of Manuel prematurely pulling Lidle.

POSTSCRIPT
Hmmmm - told you so. Franklin did fine so Charlie had to yank him after one inning. Geary and Cormier have teamed up to allow 2 runs and there is a man on 2nd so we'll see both Arthur Rhodes and my guess is if Rhodes gets the one out he needs to end the 8th - Charlie will yank him for Flash Gordon...

In his second start for the Clearwater Threshers, Cole Hamels was on Fire - 9 strikeouts in 5 innings, 0 runs, 2 hits. So in his two starts, he has pitched 11 innings, struck out 16, given up 4 hits and allowed zero runs. Keep your fingers crossed that his back stays OK.

Three games in April and not a single strikeout... Yes, your hitting streak is over but we need you to stay focused. The team needs you to be getting on base to win games.

As for the streak, it was very exciting and from a Philly fan who is used to not much excitement -- Thanks!

Cole Hamels pitched tonight for the Phillies Florida League affiliate the Clearwater Threshers against A.J Burnett who was pitching in a Rehab assignment the the Blue Jay's affiliate Dunedin. The line: 6 innings pitched, 0 runs, 3 hits and 7 strikeouts.

As everyone knows, this kid has great stuff and it would be exciting if he could stay healthy enough to pitch in the majors.

Why is this past his prime, losing machine still starting. Why is he a #1 catcher. During the drive to make the playoffs, Manuel repeatedly pinch hit for Lieberthal, he didn't play him with Jon Lieber and the team was better for it. Mike Lieberthal singlehandedly lost the game tonight:
1. He repeatedly misframed pitches causing every close pitch to go for a ball.
2. He and Flash weren't on the same page and Flash called a pow wow to tell Lieberthal to follow his lead.
3. He couldn't even throw out Albert Pujols who stole second rather he air-mailed it to center allowing Pujols to go to Third
4. Then with the bases loaded after the previous two batters had walked. He swings at the first two pitches both of which were outside and grounds out.

Lieberthal is done. I say we cut Lieberthall and bring up Chris Coste or Carlos Ruiz - this guy has blown more Philly games over the past few years than any other player...

It is a joke that Lieberthal is even in the major leagues, more that Charlie wants to start this guy...

Whether to focus on the good, the bad or the bonehead moves by Charlie...

The Good

1. #37, I leaped out of my seat screaming with joy when J-Roll smashed a 3-0 pitch for a double.

2. Three hits by Utley

3. Two hits by Burrell, Abreu, Lieberthal and Rowand

4. Deep homerun by Ryan Howard

5. Geoff Geary two scoreless innings of relief - look for Geary to be the surprise of the bullpen in 2006!

6. Abraham Nunez starting over David Bell

The Bad

1. Lieber and Julio Santana serving meatball after meatball

2. Aaron Fultz showing none of the confidence he displayed at the end of 2005

3. Darth Rolen hitting a grand slam and finishing the day with 3 hits despite the fact that I went hoarse booing him every at bat

4. Miss America making an appearance and my only thought - "this bitch needs to eat a sandwich"

5. No Chris Coste

Bonehead Moves

1. Starting Lieberthal instead of Fasano when Lieber doesn't feel comfortable pitching to Lieberthal.

2. Using Alex Gonzalez as a pinch hitter in the fourth inning against a righthanded pitcher when Shane Victorino and David Delucci

3. Intentional walk to Edmonds to load the bases for Scott Rolen -- Rolen promptly hit a grand slam

Look for the Phillies to bounce back on Wednesday behind a strong outing by Brett Myers...

Chris Coste, the 33 year old career minor leaguer who captured the heart of many Philadelphians, was optioned to the AAA club on the last day of spring training. We here at Broadstreetblooger.com were saddened by this news but we are confident, he'll make it to the major leagues this year. Why? Because, we believe Pat Gillick has a number of moves he plans to make before the all star break including trading Abreu, Bell and possibly Burrell and Lieberthal. Further, injuries happen and it is likely that Coste will be the first guy called up.

As I look at the trade for Delluci from the Rangers, I am somewhat stumped. What is going on? Overall, Tejeda was expendable because you have Franklin in the bullpen if one of the starters should falter. Also Randy Wolf is scheduled to return in late July and in the minors one or more of Eude Brito, Daniel Haigwood and Cole Hamels sould be ready for the big leagues. But shouldn't Tejeda be kept to be used later to obtain a reliever, a catcher, or in case someone like Rollins, Utley or Howard get hurt?

Secondly, why was it so important to obtain an outfielder when it is expected that Rowand and Abreu will play more than 150 plus games while it is hoped that Burrell will play in the same range? If Burrell has some injuries, you have Shane Victorino to fill in. Victorino is both a tremendous fielder and an explosive hitter and is poised to be starting for the Phils or another major league team soon. In an emergency, Alex Gonzales can play a few games in left and remember Chris Roberson nearly made the team, being cut on the final weekend before the season starts.

Thirdly, why was it so important to get a lefthanded bat? Utley, Abreu and Howard hit left handed while Victorino, Rollins and Nunez are switch hitters. It is unlikely if the Phils were worried about Burrell's nagging foot that the focus would be on a lefthanded batting outfielder, the focus would be on obtaining an outfielder right or lefthanded hitting.

Fourthly, new Phillies GM Gillick has a reputation of planning his moves carefully. Buster Olney at ESPN.com states "here's more mad scientist in Gillick than any general manager I've covered; he always thinking two or three moves ahead, and he won't always tell you what he's doing." He has been trying to trade Abreu almost since he arrived. Further, he never denied any of the rumors about Abreu and the entire winter there were additional rumors even when it was apparent that Gillick wasn't going to get the value he needed during the off season. Some have speculated that Gillick kept the rumors going even though he planned on making the trade after the season started so Bobby Abreu could hear them and "get used" to the idea of being traded so when it happened, he'd be more likely to waive his no trade clause.

So why trade Abreu? The assumption has been that Abreu has a higher value and could bring in a top of the rotation type starting pitcher but I think it is much more. I think Manuel saw something missing last year that he and Gillick count as paramount to creating a winning team - performing in the clutch. The contrast between Abreu and other Phillies such as Utley, Howard, Leiber. Rollins and even David Bell during the final 30 games was stark. Abreu choked big time. During the World Baseball classic he choked again hitting only .160 and going hitless in the biggest, most important games. Also, Gillick doesn't like his big contract, he is handcuffed at what he can do because he is stuck paying a huge contract to Abreu and Abreu has a no trade clause.

Delluci isn't the type of guy you see as a pinch hitter type. He is the type of guy who can play every day, he had 435 at bats last year. No this trade is to obtain a veteran outfielder who can play everyday. Gillick is now able to do two very important things - trade Abreu without trusting right field to a rookie and eating some of Abreu's contract since Delucci makes less than $1 million. Eating part of Abreu's contract would allow Gillick to trade with smaller payroll teams such as Oakland (think Barry Zito), Baltimore (think Erik Bedard) or a pitching heavy team like Milwaukee or Minnesota.

I don't expect Abreu to be gone during the next week or two but I do expect a major, blockbuster trade by the end of May, well before the trade deadline. Gillick already knows the market for Abreu and he'll look for an opportunity such as injuries to a key player similar to what he did with Delluci the same day the No. 2 starter, Adam Eaton went on the disabled list, Gillick pounced.

Also, Abreu isn't the only one who Gillick will be trading. Both Bell and Lieberthall will be gone before the all star break. Bell's writing has been on the wall, while I think the phillies will be sending Coste to Scranton and he'll be catching lots of games in the first month to see if he and Frasno can share duties after Lieberthal is traded or if the Phillies will need to trade for a cartcher with more experience.

Expect the trade for Lieberthal to come after the Abreu trade because it is likely that Gillick will need to pay a portion of his salary and will need the "net savings" after an Abreu trade to make it work.

So who do I think the most likely trading partner will be for Abreu? The focus is on obtaining a starting pitcher but it could be a reliever or even a position player that is younger, has good upside and a better contract. With that said, Gillick has made it clear that he wants a clutch starting pitcher. I think there is a better than 50% chance that, we trade with the White Sox and I expect the Phillies may include Lidle or Floyd to obtain Jose Contreras and Jermain Dye. Conterras was exceptional in the 2nd half of the season and in the post season, while Dye was the World Series MVP who is a right-handed hitting outfielder. Both guys are "money" when it counts and have had success in the post season - similar to Rowand, Leiber and Tom Gordon.

If the phillies obtain an everyday outfielder when they trade Abreu, I would think that Burrell could also be moved by the All Star break because Delucci could play left field, Burrell choked in September and also has a contract Gillick hates.

The Phillies missed the playoffs by one game. I would argue that Charlie Manuels's bonehead moves cost the Phillies around 10 games but Charlie will be returning in 2006. As a result, we'll need to look at other factors to make sure the Phillies make the playoffs.


Sign Billy Wagner - Wagner is a winner and is arguably one of the best in the business. He isn't afraid of Citizens Bank Park and he is willing to return. Management needs to step up to the plate and sign him. Look how valuable he was down the stretch...



Resolve Howard/Thome - The first order of business should be to trade Thome. Most likely, we'll need to take a big salary in his place but maybe we can get a righthanded bat at a different position (3rd base, catcher?). But, it is unlikely that the Phillies will be able to trade Thome prior to the start of 2006 because of questions related to his health. I think the Phillies need to plan for Howard and Thome in the lineup and should immediately begin working Howard in Left Field during winter ball, spring training and through the first few months of next season. One week in spring training doesn't prove a thing. Let a more confident, hungry Howard work out in the outfield and see what he can do. Sure he'll make mistakes but having his bat and Thome's bat in the lineup each day will make up for that. If Thome is healthy and returns to his old form - it will be extremely exciting to watch these two guys. If Thome is healthy but not quite what he used to be, the Phillies might be able to trade him by the all star break. If Thome gets injured then we'll be happy (like this year) to have Howard.

Trade Abreu or Burrell - We need to reduce payroll and/or pick up pitching. Both choked down the stretch but both have value in the trade market. I would prefer to keep Abreu just because of his historic consistency, speed and higher on base percentage but Burrell is a right-handed hitter in a heavily lefthanded line-up. This makes room for Howard to play in the outfield AND to give Shane Victorino a shot. By the way Victorino's great fielding skills could offset some of Howard's mistakes.

Revamp Pitching Staff - Leiber, Myers, Lidle aren't a bad trio. They all stepped up when it mattered. Tejeda must be considered real. He was a more consistent starter than any of the other pitchers, he showed tremendous poise and has a great attitude. Let Padilla go as we can't afford to resign him, he is just too wierd, dump Cormier, re-sign Urbina, be willing to package any other pitcher (including Madson, Floyd, Hamels, etc.) except Tejeda with other players to land a top pitcher. For instance offering Bobby Abreu, Ryan Madson and Cole Hamels could very well get us a top pitcher and perhaps a catching or third base prospect.



Dump Lieberthal - Even if we have to pay 2/3rds of his salary and need to bundle in a good prospect or someone like Jason Michaels, we have got to get rid of him. The goal should be catching and third base prospects or at least a left hand hitting infielder so that we can platoon David Bell. It worked like a charm in center field, it should hork great at 3rd where bell hit over 400 against lefthanders and well under 200 against righthanders.

Neither David Bell, Bobby Abreau, Mike Lieberthal (who is hitting .319 in the last 30 days), nor Pat Burrell is singularly responsible for the Phils missing the playoffs this year. The blame is to be shared, though not equally, amoung the players, the manager, and the GM.

The manager is a terrible game day manager. Pulling pitchers too early, adhearing too much to the righty vs. lefty strategy, misusing his bullpen. His faults are many and have been well documented. He does, though, have the ability to keep his team happy and playing well. I couldn't imagine a Bowa managed team comming back from the disaster against Houston to make a run at the wild card and almost the division.

Ed Wade did sign Lieber, Lofton and Fultz, and traded for Urbina and Martinez (he's better that Perez). Many thought this team had enough talent to contend for the division lead. Wade has assembled a very good bullpen. On the other hand, he failed to make a mid-season move to improve the starting rotation after Wolf went down. He also signed Abreau, Lieberthal, and Burrell to deals in excess of their worth, making them almost impossible to move

The players? A bunch of non-clutch hitting clowns. Even the organization savior, Chase Utley, is hitting a lackluster .265 over the last 30 days. Who amoung us wants to see Burrell, Abreau, Bell, or Lieberthal up in a big situation late in the game.

The way I see it the blame for not making the post season again looks like this:

Manager 30%
GM 20%
Players 50% (Too many big contracts, to few big hits)

It is time to dump these two and get some pitching. 8th or 9th inning, close game and these guys NEVER show up. Let's make some room for some of these exciting kids who want to win. This has been the problem for the last few years - Thome was the only guy who showed in the collapse to Florida a couple of years ago. Utley, Lofton, Lieber, Wagner, Rollins, Howard and David Bell showed up this year and it made it really exciting. But when we really needed a big clutch hit this year, these two let us down. The teams that win are made up of guys like Utley, Leiber, Rollins than get better the more it matters. Burrell and Abreu are not these type of players. It is time we find some guys that step up when it matters.

8th inning, one out, trailing by one run and David Bell on first. Obviously, you use Endy Chavez as a pinch runner. But not Charlie - he leaves Bell in and then he gets thrown out trying to go from first to third on a single. Good job Charlie. Well that was the nail in the coffin.

That is right, I am still harping on that jackass Charlie Manuel. Once again, he pulled a pitcher last night for no reason to hand the ball over to The Bullpen with the 4th highest amount of blown saves (23) in the entire major leagues behind the likes of Tampa Bay, Colorado and San Francisco. Overall of 61 save opportunities, the Phillies have converted 62% of the time, the 2nd worst in the National League (only Colorado is better). If the Phillies could have just converted their save opportunities as well as Atlanta (66%) a team that has struggled with the bullpen all year, we would have two more wins.

However, the fact is our bullpen has blown games all year long whether it was Worrell, Adams and Cormier at the beginning of the year or Madson, Urbina and Wagner down the stretch. In spite of that, that idiot Manuel still believes the bullpen is our big strength. Our starters have had 80 quality starts ranked 8th in the NL and 13th in all of baseball. Add to that, Manuel yanking Tejeda 5 times before 6 completed innings when Tejeda had let in 2 or fewer runs (twice with zero runs allowed) and you'll see that our starters ranked in the top 10 in the entire major league.

Let's look at games that our starters received no decision meaning they were ahead or tied when they left:
Tejeda: 7 games (all 3 or fewer runs allowed)
Myers: 9 games (all 3 or fewer runs)
Leiber: 4 games (all 3 or fewer runs allowed)
Wolf: 3 games (all 3 or fewer runs)
Padilla: 5 games (three with 3 or fewer runs allowed)
Lidle: 6 games (five with 3 or fewer runs)
Brito: 2 games (all 3 or fewer runs)

That is 36 games that the starter was pulled when he was ahead or tied. 33 times the starter had allowed 3 or fewer runs which means that they were pitching well. 18 of these games ended up as losses.

Not even factored in this are the inherited runners that the bullpen allowed to score giving a lodss to the starter or the close games that the bullpen just turned in to a laugher.

My point is thinking that 3 or 4 guys are going to pitch well every day is just plain stupid. A good manager goes with the guy that has good stuff, that is getting hitters out rather than take a chance with someone who may have a bad day. Manuel doesn't get this and that is why we are trailing in the wild card race and not battling Atlanta for the division lead.

Only 27 people in the history of baseball have had a longer hitting streak than Jimmy Rollins current 30 game streak. With 6 games left he can move to 9th of all time if he hits in the last 6 games of the year. Whatever happens - he has done a great job and it has been exciting.

Take a look at all the 30+ games: http://www.thebaseballpage.com/stats/lists_feats/30game_hit_streaks.htm

Remember, how disappointed we were when Charlie Manuel was hired instead of Jim Leyland? We all wondered why Ed Wade would do that. Our feeling was that Charlie was a manager that wouldn't challenge Ed Wade. In other words, not get in Ed Wade's way. Well, we were right. Charlie is a cheerful buffoon that has trouble putting together a sentence. He never made a big deal when Ed Wade didn't get us a viable starting pitcher prior to the trade deadline forcing us to prematurely burn out our bullpen (see Ryan Madson) and having to start Brito every few days for an almost automatic loss.

However, few of us realized that this goofball of a manager would actually get in the way of the Phillies winning ball games with a steady series of stupid decisions all season long. He single-handedly lost more than 10 Phillies games this year by pulling pitchers too early, refusing to play small ball in close games, pinch hitting & benching hot hitters, and now, refusing to pitch his starters on a day less of rest during the last week of the season. Lidle threw 59 pitches in his last outing and he should have started on Saturday not the rookie Brito and Myers should be pitching today. Further, the banged-up Bobby Abreu needs to sit down and get a day off, I would play Kenny Lofton against a left hander and put Michaels in right field.

Whatever happens, I think the players really gave it everything they had but Charlie put them in a whole with some of the worst magaerial decisions ever seen in Philadelphia. Ed Wade gave us Charlie and then went fishing at the trade deadline just like he does every year. Sure be nice if he and Charlie went on a permanent fishing trip and we got some people with some brains in to run things…

What was I thinking? How did I let myself get sucked in one more year like every other year. It is the same old story, they they make an effort but never quite good enough. I can sit and second guess good Old Charlie all I want but the fact is - this team is full of perpetual chokes. How many times have we seen it before... leaving the bases loaded, losing by one run, facing a "hot pitcher", blah, blah, blah. Bottom line is they lose when it matters.

Enough! Time to get ready for some guys that can play in the clutch -- the Flyers, yup, I said it ... The Flyers... They are going to be a much better team than we have seen in a long, long time. Why? Because most of the current team are proven "clutch performers"...

Soon we will evaluating the team and showing why they are clutch performers.

The Phils only hope is that the rest of the wild card contenders play as poorly as they do. I sit here as the Phils are about to lose the first game of a huge series against the Mets, not because of poor managing or because Ed Wade is less than competant, but because the players did not get it done. Say what you want about Uncle Charlie, this loss rests on the shoulders of the players. Poor baserunning, poor relief pitching, a lack of clutch hitting. The Mets showed a sense of urgency, the Phils showed that they didn't step up when it counted. They wasted a great outing by the rookie, Tejada, like they have so many times before.

This team needs someone to step up and take the lead. With 3 strikeouts tonight, I don't think Ryan Howard is that guy. Its got to be Utley or Abreu or Burrell. Since we all know that Abreu won't, its up to Burrell or Chase. Without them, we'll be out of this thing before the Eagles Monday Night Game.

Every Philly fan knows that Jimmy Rollins is not an effective leadoff hitter. He strikes out too much and loves to swing at the first pitch. Right now Rollins is hitting .261 with an on-base percentage of around .300. Over much of the season the Phillies have overcome that since they have been able to score bunches of runs when they win. However, September is the month of pitchers and low scoring games. Of the 5 teams competing for two playoff positions (Houston, Florida, NY Mets, Atlanta) and the Phillies, the Phillies team ERA is at least half a run per game higher. That means the phillies need to score more to stay competitive. Further the Phillies have struggled all year trying to score runs in close games. The fact remains they have a tough time "manufacturing" runs.

What needs to be done is for Bobby Abreu to leadoff for the last month of the season. Abreu's on-base percentage is over .400 and about 110 points higher than Rollins. In addition, this move will allow two of the teams only clutch hitters, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard, to bat higher in the line-up. Utley could hit third, Burrel stays fourth and Ryan Howard can hit fifth.

We all now Abreu doesn't like to lead off but we are only asking him to do this for one month. You have your eye on the MVP, MVPs are not awarded based on only statistics. Things like character and the overall impact on the team matter just as much. C'mon Bobby, helps us get to the playoffs.