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Who Owns October (#WOO) Tallies Updated For October 7, 2018
Justin Edmonds – Getty Images
In 2014, Erik Kratz sat on the bench and did not get into a single game as the Royals played an Extra Inning Wild Card Game, 3 Division Series Games, 4 ALCS Games and a World Series that went the full 7.
Well, he made up for that yesterday, powering the Brewers into the NLCS.
Meanwhile Ronald Acuña, Jr. has powered life into the Braves after a slugfest with LA.
So who owned October?
Each winning team for every post season game gets a pitcher and a hitter who earn a full WOO (Who Owns October.)
And at my discretion, I award a 1/2 WOO’S to a worthy player on the losing team.
At the end of the post season, we will see who had the highest WOO total as a pitcher and a hitter.
A complete description of the rules can be found HERE.
From October 6
National League Division Series Game 3:
Receiving 1 WOO
Ronald Acuña, Jr. launched a game turning grand slam that helped the Braves stay alive against the Dodgers, 6-5.
Corbin Burnes threw a pair of shutout, hitless innings, striking out 2 Rockies and earned the 6-0 decision in relief for Milwaukee.
Erik Kratz went 3 for 4, scoring a run on a wild pitch, as he led the Brewers to a clean sweep of Colorado with a 6-0 final.
Arodys Vizcaino worked out of trouble in the 9th to strike out the side and save the Braves 6-5 win over the Dodgers.
Receiving 1/2 WOO
Trevor Story collected a pair of hits but could not be driven in as the Rockies were blanked 6-0 by the Brewers who swept the series.
Chris Taylor reached base twice, including a homer, knocking in 2, but the Dodgers came up just short in Atlanta, 6-5.
Current WOO Totals MLB 2018
Hitters ‘WOO’ MLB 2017,
Ronald Acuña, Jr – Braves 1 1/2, Aaron Judge – Yankees 1 1/2, Alex Bregman – 1 Astros, Marwin Gonzalez – Astros 1, Erik Kratz – Brewers 1, Francisco Lindor – Indians 1, Manny Machado – Dodgers, J. D. Martinez – 1 Red Sox, Mike Moustakas Brewers – 1, Gary Sanchez – Yankees 1, Tony Wolters – Rockies 1, Christian Yelich – Brewers 1, Nolan Arenado Rockies – 1 /2, Javier Baez – Cubs 1/2, Charlie Blackmon – Rockies 1/2, Xander Bogaerts – Red Sox 1/2, Khris Davis – Athletics 1/2, Freddie Freeman – Braves 1/2, Trevor Story – Rockies 1/2, Chris Taylor – Dodgers 1/2,
Pitchers ‘WOO’ MLB 2017,
Dellin Betances – Yankees 1, Corbin Burnes – Brewers 1, Gerrit Cole – Astros 1, Kyle Freeland – Rockies 1,Jeremy Jeffress Brewers – 1, Clayton Kershaw – 1 Dodgers, Hyun-Jin Ryu – Dodgers 1, Chris Sale 1 – Red Sox, Masahiro Tanaka – Yankeees 1, Justin Verlander – 1 Astros, Arodys Vizcaino – Braves 1, Brandon Woodruff – Brewers 1, Tyler Anderson – Rockies 1/2, Carlos Carrasco – Indians 1/2, Chad Green – Yankees 1/2, Joe Kelly – Red Sox 1/2, Jon Lester – Cubs 1/2, Sean Newcomb – Braves 1/2, Touki Toussaint – 1 /2 Braves, Lou Trivino – Athletics 1/2
Evan Gattis Or Jonathan Lucroy Could Be The Houston Astros Answer Behind The Plate
Jonathan Lucroy played like an MVP for the 1st half of the 2014 season, and ended up 4th overall in MVP voting that year, based on 68 Extra Base Hits an .837 OPS. Lucroy has only two years left of Team Control and the club would be in be in prime position to acquire a load of prospects if they were to deal him. The Astros have plenty of guys to land him – including several 1B prospects – in which the Brew Crew needs longterm. The two clubs have a history of doing deals too.
Trey Rose (Featured BBBA Fantasy Baseball Writer/Owner – dynastydigest.sportsblog.com) Follow @dynasty_digest
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While it is very early in the 2016 season, it is becoming very apparent that the Houston Astros are lacking success at the catcher position. Right now the Houston Astros are carrying two catchers, Jason Castro and Erik Kratz.
Through five games, Castro is hitting .071 and Kratz is hitting .000. Unfortunately, this rough catching production has been a trend over the past two years. In 2014 and 2015, Castro hit .222 and .211 respectively. He has also seen a 63% reduction in his power production from 2013 to 2015.
I will admit that Castro’s defensive ability and leadership in the clubhouse is huge for the Astros’ success, but his offensive struggles are hurting the team.
It could be time for the Houston Astros to start looking for some alternatives behind the plate. Please click the link below to read the rest of the article:
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Multi HR Games In The MLB – 2014: Cruz Pads His AL/MLB Home Run Lead Sunday
Nelson Cruz refuses to relinquish his lead in the AL HR race. The big man clubbed 2 HRs yesterday for his 3rd Multi HR effort of the campaign. This has now given him a 3 Home Run lead over Chris Carter. Of course he is trailing the big Astro for 2 HR games this year by 4 contests. Cruz plated all 7 runs with his offense yesterday, crossing the 100 RBI plateau on the season. All of his offense should bode well in he is a Free Agent again this winter.. REINHOLD MATAY/AP
Multi HR Games in MLB 2014
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports For Games Played Through Sept 8th, 2014 (Tyler Flowers with last 2 HR games – Sept 7th, 2014, Lonnie Chisenhall last with 3 HR Game – June 9th, 2014 Last 4 HR game – Josh Hamilton – May 8, 2012)
LM Otero/AP
Lonnie Chisenhall (3 HR Game) June 9th
Chris Davis, Orioles (3 HR Game) May 20th
Ryan Braun – Brewers (3 HR Game) – April.8th Read the rest of this entry
Multi HR Games In The MLB – 2014: 5 Guys Do The Feat Over The Weekend For 1st Efforts On The Year
Since a near demotion a few weeks ago, Harper has really heated up including 7 HRs in August. He hit 3 HRs over the weekend in his 1st visit to Safeco Field in Seattle. Among those was Harper’s 1st Multi HR Game since Apr.20, 2013. The 21 Year Old Slugger now has 10 HRs on the year. His teammate Wilson Ramos also added his 1st Multi HR effort on Friday night, as the club bashed 6 HRs (park record) over fence, with 4 of them coming off Felix Hernandez. The Nats tallied 10 HRs total in the 3 game set – while taking 2 out of three contests.
Multi HR Games in MLB 2014
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For Games Played Through Sept 6th, 2014 (Miguel Cabrera with last 2 HR game – Sept 6th, 2014, Lonnie Chisenhall last with 3 HR Game – June 9th, 2014 Last 4 HR game – Josh Hamilton – May 8, 2012)
LM Otero/AP
Lonnie Chisenhall (3 HR Game) June 9th
Chris Davis, Orioles (3 HR Game) May 20th
Ryan Braun – Brewers (3 HR Game) – April.8th Read the rest of this entry
Multi HR Games In The MLB – 2014: (Ellsbury, Posey + Duda With Efforts This Week)
Lucas Duda is providing the Mets with everything they wished he would. With 26 HRs on the year, he is tied for 3rd in the NL, and he has also driven 76 RBI amidst a .249/.355/.476, The Mets 1b has also had 2 Multi HR Games (including this weeK) – and has had different HR Streaks.
Multi HR Games in MLB 2014
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For Games Played Through Aug 28th, 2014 (Jacoby Ellsbury/Buster Posey with last 2 HR games – Aug 26th, 2014, Lonnie Chisenhall last with 3 HR Game – June 9th, 2014 Last 4 HR game – Josh Hamilton – May 8, 2012)
LM Otero/AP
Lonnie Chisenhall (3 HR Game) June 9th
Chris Davis, Orioles (3 HR Game) May 20th
Ryan Braun – Brewers (3 HR Game) – April.8th
Multi HR Games in MLB 2014: Alvarez Makes List Again As a 1B
Erik Kratz came into a game for the injured Salvador Perez this week, and proceeded to smack homers in consecutive AB. The 34 Year Old Catcher has now clubbed 23 HRs in 474 Lifetime AB. Perhaps always overlooked, this back up Backstopper should help out KC down the stretch – whenever they want to rest their ALL – Star Catcher. He is surely a better option than Brett Hayes was.
Multi HR Games in MLB 2014
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For Games Played Through Aug 23, 2014 (Pedro Alvarez with last 2 HR game – Aug 20th, 2014, Lonnie Chisenhall last with 3 HR Game – June 9th, 2014 Last 4 HR game – Josh Hamilton – May 8, 2012)
LM Otero/AP
Lonnie Chisenhall (3 HR Game) June 9th
Chris Davis, Orioles (3 HR Game) May 20th
Ryan Braun – Brewers (3 HR Game) – April.8th
The Bullet Version Of Monday’s MLB Games + Craig Kimbrel Is Filthy!
Season high 7 game winning streak – including 3 straight walk off hits at Nats Park. They hold a 6 game lead over 2nd place Atlanta, and the Nationals haven’t even hit full stride with several key players not maximizing on their talent level. With a weaker NL East schedule down the stretch, they just may hold home field advantage by season’s end in the National League.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
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Erik Kratz smacked 2 HRs and now has 23 HRs in just 472 AB. Thats a HR for every 20.52 AB or would equal about 29 Bolts in a 600 AB campaign. The guy is 34 so that is not likely to happen… but smart move on KC’s part to bring him in. Beats the alternative for what they had.
Washington is starting to heat up, and if you play them into late and extra innings, any of their hitters can beat you right now. This does not bode well for Atlanta.
Everybody just back off of Trevor Rosenthal, as all young relievers go through this. Besides what is a season if the Cardinals didn’t changeup their Closer at least once…
Everyone also needs to take a chill pill on the A’s missing Yoenis Cespedes so much it has destroyed the unity of the offense. Teams go through stretches where they don’t play well. It is just 17 games of a sample size so far. Read the rest of this entry
The Toronto Blue Jays Prospects + Org. Depth Charts For All Affiliates – 2014 (MLB + MiLB)
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024 & Jeff Kleiner (Org Depth Chart + Payroll Expert – find his website here) Follow @prosportsroster
The Blue Jays have used their system well to acquire several key pieces from other organizations via trade over recent years.
Despite all of the prospects that have left, several are still on their way to the Majors for the big club and several are highly touted.
In 2014, the Blue Jays will try to erase a 21 year playoff drought. Will the franchise part with some more of its youth, or may they hold steady with the personnel in the MiLB?
If you are a fan, get to know these players we list in the post, and follow their progress in the Minors. if you click their name, it will take you to baseballreference.com’s player page of them. Read the rest of this entry
How All Of The Blue Jays Hitters Were Acquired (2014 Roster Tree)
How All Of The Blue Jays Hitters Were Acquired:
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
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For those that have never seen one of our Roster Trees, we go over how all of the players were acquired.
It works like 6 degrees of separation. By searching back to the origin of all the way back until a player is signed, drafted or purchased.
It totally gives you an idea on how the franchise has fared.
Toronto absolutely stole Jose Bautista from Pittsburgh, and then saw Edwin Encarnacion selected off of waivers by the A’s, only to see him return as a Free Agent 6 weeks later.
The Blue Jays have seen EE bash out several seasons worth of awesome since then.
You can track back some of the player to as far as Orlando Hudson and Roy Halladay. Read the rest of this entry
HRs For 2014 So Far + HR Streaks, Multi – HR Games
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Follow MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
Here at the MLB Reports we look to do things different. It is one of our many motto’s.
We simply can’t look over every stat, or even chart every HR for that matter, but I have decided that we will carry the top 5 HR hitters for each the AL and NL on a page we have dubbed Stats.
For the HR feature. we will also list multiple HR games for players… Or if they have HRs in multiple games. Once a week we will post these on the home page for the site as a regular page post.
In this page, we are also going to feature in Subpages: A Shutout Survivor for all 30 MLB Teams, meaning we will state the date a teams gets Shutout for the 1st time of the year. Read the rest of this entry
Philadelphia Phillies State Of The Union For 2014
The club was one of the premiere franchises from 2007 – 2011, with 5 straight NL East Titles, 2 World Series Appearances, and taking home the big prize in 2008. The Phightins have been battling old age, the injury bug, plus the management not knowing whether to pull the plug on the core talent of this squad – or to give it one more go at it. Charlie Manuel was finally the fall guy last year when he was let go from his managerial duties. Ryne Sandberg had the team playing better to end the year, but has had issues already with Veteran players. Will it be enough for the organization to back him beyond this season. Will the franchise play good enough for another kick at the can in 2014? .
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Follow MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
Last year was the 1st losing campaign for the Fightins in over a decade. It was a mediocre season to be sure, and followed the 3rd straight year of regression.
Since Ryan Howard went down in a heap of pain during the 2011 playoffs, it has ravaged through the fans perception of the club.
2013 wasn’t going to end nicely, however the aging veteran Chase Utley gave the brass and fanbase a nice exiting thought by inking a 2 YR deal.
Ryan Howard has not recovered to his former status, and now makes $25 MIL year. Read the rest of this entry
Toronto Blue Jays Payroll In 2014 + Contracts Going Forward
The Blue Jays were the odds on favorite to win the World Series in 2013 among oddsmakers. After a failure of a season, the gambling websites are still placing way too much faith in the team. To have them listed as tied with the Rays for the 12th best odd (+1800) to win the World Series is a stretch. This team has committed $129 MIL already for 2014 payroll, and have not much room to gamble any more cash on the Roster. This is incredible considering the bargain the team has with Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista being just paid $23 MIL between the two of them.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024 & Jeff Kleiner (Org. Depth Chart Expert) Follow @prosportsroster
Follow MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
It was a 2013 season that saw the team have the biggest spike in attendance in the majors, but it also came at a hefty price in total team salary.
For as much as the team forked out in payroll, they must not have been able to recoup all of their money.
Their payroll places them right in the middle of AL East pack. The Yankees are right near the Luxury Tax Threshold right now of $189 MIL at $182 MIL – and the Boston Red Sox are hovering at around $160 MIL.
The Orioles will be near the $100 MIL range, and the Rays figure to be in the low $70 MIL area. Read the rest of this entry
The Philadelphia Phillies Players In All Organizational Affiliates, Prospects + Depth Charts (MLB + MiLB) Fall 2013
The club was one of the premiere franchises from 2007 – 2011, with 5 straight NL East Titles, 2 World Series Appearances, and taking home the big prize in 2008. The ‘Phightins’ have been battling old age, the injury bug, plus the management not knowing whether to pull the plug on the core talent of this squad – or to give it one more go at it. Charlie Manuel was finally the fall guy last month when he was let go from his managerial duties. Ryne Sandberg has the team playing better. Will it be enough for the organization to back him beyond this season? Or maybe the franchise restocks for another kick at the can in 2014? Here is the players they currently possess in the system.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @mlbreports and welcome Jeff Kleiner (Salary, Roster and Depth Chart Expert for the MLB) – visit his website here Follow @prosportsroster
The Phillies have posted winning records since 2001. While the year may be getting away from them in 2013, there are some extremely encouraging signs for the future.’
Ben Revere was excelling at his position at CF and at the plate before he went down with a season ending injury.
The emergence of Domonic Brown in the 1st half, and 1B/OF Darin Ruf, have given the team a cost conscious alternative to combat huge salaries like Cliff Lee and Ryan Howard, that combine to be over $50 in the next 3 years, the latter, has been injured the most of the last 2 seasons.
You add high priced Veterans like Jimmy Rollins, and $22.5 MIL a year Cole Hamels, and you are talking about a lofty payroll for the next several years.
However, the team also extended franchise face Chase Utley, for 2 YRs/$25 – 30 MIL – that should see him possibly retire a Phillie.
The club has played much better since Ryne Sandberg assumed the helm as manager.
The team also has traded several veterans away in the last few years, to accrue Minor League Talent back in return. Among the departed have been Hunter Pence, Shane Victorino and Michael Young.
The question going forward is to what this team will do with Roy Halladay and Carlos Ruiz. Somehow, I think that Ruben Amaro JR, will find a way to re-sign these two guys for a limited years, and possibly incentive laden contracts this coming winter.
Whatever the case, it should be an interesting ride in Philly the next few years.
For a Full 3 year Salary Outlook plus last years Stats for every player in the Phillies Organization click here.
For the 3 Part Historical Series I did on the Phillies organization, click here.
Chase Utley Highlights
Top Teams In The MLB 1 – 30 + (200 Best Stats For The Last Month)
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Follow @mlbreportsThursday June.06/2013
Chris Davis was the AL hitter of the month for the MLB Reports. The guy has 20 HRs and 20 2B on the season – after hitting 11/11 for both columns in the last 30 Days. The Orioles slugger also hit for a 3 Slash Line of .385/.448/1.256. Davis also Walked 11 Times, drove in 22 RBI – and collected 40 Hits in just 24 Games Played. He is on pace for a 50 HR/50 Doubles Season. “Crush” is due for Arbitration after this year – and will garner a considerable payraise from the $3.3 MIL he will earn this season.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
The time has come for the June Power Rankings with Stats Edition. There will be one each for May, June, July, August, September – and then a special playoff edition Power Rankings will be done in October.
I will not do a weekly Power Rankings during this weeks, because in essence, these are the weekly rankings done on a much larger scale.
These Reports are done with a heavy thought to how the teams project by the end of the season – along with how the clubs have fared so far.
I will point out who has had great months for the all 30 MLB Teams. I reward the good performances in these rankings – and leave the poor ones for the Podcasts or future articles. CLICK THE READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY ICON or scroll past the video and picture
Chris Davis 2013 Highlights:
The Phillies Patience At The Plate Is Painfully Petulant: Brown Has Carried The Club In May With 10 HRs
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Thursday May.30, 2013
Jimmy Rollins (.309) and Ben Revere (.302) were the only regulars in the lineup last night to feature an OBP of over .300. Despite that, plus a 1 – 8 start from Cole Hamels – and losing Roy Halladay for the season, the club is within 1 win of .500 heading into their 54th game tonight. Otherwise know as the 1/3rd mark through the season. Domonic Brown has hit 5 HRs in his last 5 games – and 10 for the month of May. The problem is that no one is on base when he is doing this damage. The team enters play today only 5.5 Games behind NL East leading Braves. The club is also without Chase Utley right now.
By Chris Creighton (Phillies Correspondent via http://www.warrroomphilly.com – visit the website here) Follow @WARROOMPHLCHRIS
We woke up today with the Phillies still flirting with our feelings by taking two steps forward, three steps back over the long weekend, unable to overtake the struggling Washington Nationals for second place while falling flat in Boston on Monday.
However, with the team driving in a division where neither of the top three teams seem to want to take the wheel and steer it to Titletown, the Phillies still remain within a decent hot streak of making some noise and maybe gaining some confidence in the process.
With the Memorial Day weekend in the rear view mirror, there’s no more room for excuses and it’s certainly getting a little too late to say “It’s early” anymore as almost a third of the season is in the history books.
Luckily for the Phillies, they are playing in a division which many might call weak with the Braves and Nationals battling their own demons. Tuesday’s 3-1 victory over the Red Sox was sweet, but in reality was largely due to Cliff Lee limiting the Boston nine to only four hits over eight innings.
The Nationals and Braves were busy yesterday polishing off their own victories plating nine and seven runs respectively.
Cliff Lee May 6th Start
Domonic Brown Has Heated Up For The Phils: It Is Time The Rest Caught Up
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Follow @mlbreportsSunday May.26, 2013
With six of his nine Home Runs and 16 of his 27 RBI coming in the last 21 games, it would not surprise me to see Brown bat more often in the 5-hole behind vs. any opposing team’s right-handed pitching. If only the rest of the Phillies could be producing like Brown has been lately, there would be another chance to win an NL East Division like shown here. The ‘Phightins’ have a chance to draw even with the Nationals today – and claim a record of .500 once again at 25 – 25.
By Chris Creighton (Phillies Correspondent via http://www.warrroomphilly.com – visit the website here) Follow @WARROOMPHLCHRIS
Domonic Brown is starting to put it together again. Well, almost. He’s had quite a productive month of May, but with one glaring statistical anomaly: Domonic Brown hasn’t taken a walk since April 30th.
Hard to ride him on it since he’s been semi-raking, but no doubt teams will begin to notice that he’s recognizing fat pitches to drive early in the count. Over the next series or two you will see that opposing teams will be very cautious in their introductions to Brown, that is if their scouts are any good.
It will be up to Dom Brown to make the adjustment and wait them out in order to continue on his torrid pace. He may actually have to take a walk or two, but in my opinion, that will only help his cause.
Current Top 5 MLB Home Run Leaders in the AL + NL: Home Runs Hit May 19th
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Follow @mlbreportsMonday, May.20, 2013
Miguel Cabrera has hit 332 HRs, 398 Doubles and 13 Triples in his 11th year in the Major Leagues. With 1170 RBI, and just barely being 30 Years of age, the man has a serious chance to chase the ALL – Time RBI record of 2297 By Hank Aaron. After his 3 HR night on Saturday, he has a 2013 – 3 Slash of .387/.457/1.116 (all lead the AL). He has added 11 HRs (tied for 2nd) and 47 RBI (1st in the MLB). He could challenge a 2nd straight Triple Crown in 2013. Something that hasn’t happened since Honus Wagner in the 1920’s.
DH on our home site pages – Stands for Daily HR Hitters in the Majors.
We are going to run the gauntlet on the previous days HRs for all MLB Players.
I loved it when MLB XM Radio used to do a running total every night on their Roundtrip with Mike Ferrin (Laser Show). So I am bringing it every day on this website. To view every nights big boppers for the whole year (from May 8th on) visit the DH page!
Click beyond the Youtube link or click the READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY ICON to see who hit yesterdays big flies.
Cabrera’s mammoth night May.19th/2013
Philadelphia Phillies Player Roster in 2013: State of the Union Updated Mar.1/2013
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Follow @mlbreportsUpdate: Friday March 1, 2013
If the “Big 3” in the Phillies rotation could repeat their 200+ IP and Sub 3.00 ERAs from 2011, the Phillies will be a force to be reckoned with in 2013. Also, if Halladay, Lee and Hamels duplicate their Career Win Percentages for their Careers (415-234, – .635) – they could net the team 60-70 Wins from just their 100 starts. If the other 2 starters just go .500, you could see a 90-100 Win Season.
By Ryan Dana (MLB Reports Writer): Follow @ryandana1
2012 was a disappointing year for the Philadelphia Phillies, as they saw their stranglehold on the NL East diminish to the point that they missed the playoffs for the 1st time since 2006. In fact 2012 was the 1st time since ’06 that someone other than the Phillies won the NL East. The team is also not that far removed from a World Series championship which they won in ’08. In 2012 with the emergence of the Washington Nationals, and the re-emergence of a very capable Atlanta Braves organization, the Phillies found themselves finishing with an 81-81 record, only good enough for 3rd in the division.
The Phillies saw themselves selling at the trade deadline, moving OFs Shane Victorino, and Hunter Pence, followed by a waiver induced trade of Joe Blanton. Make it clear though, Philadelphia plans to compete for the NL East again in 2013, made evident by their off-season moves. They are an aging team of veterans, with a depleted farm system, so this year might be their best chance to get back to the promise land and play some October baseball. The Phillies have a lot of money committed to players, so hopefully what they have on their current 40 Man Roster is enough.
Philadelphia Phillies Highlights 2012:
MLB Reports Monthly Power Rankings: September 2012
Monday, September.3/2012
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer): Follow @chuckbooth3024 To say that this year has been a good year for baseball is an humongous understatement. I thought after last years finish, that nothing was going to duplicate the experience. Everyone forgets (or maybe not) that there should not even have been many races last year with Atlanta and Boston having such substantial leads on playoff spots. The Red Sox and Braves collapsed like a couple of bowling pins with King Kong Bundy splashing down on them!
This year, there are 15 teams still vying for 10 playoff spots. So far the only probable locks are Washington for a playoff spot-and Cincinnati to probably win their division The player races for all of the categories is almost as fascinating. Will Andrew McCutcheon catch Melky Cabrera for the Batting title? Or will 2012 be forever cemented in baseball folklore by a stained player like Cabrera? He could still end up determining who wins the World Series in the Fall Classic by his Testosterone filled antics in his MVP ALL-Star Game. The big question is, will the San Francisco Giants fans cheer for him if he comes back in the playoffs? They cheered for another league leader before when it was obvious he was guilty. Right now if you are the Giants, you will take an opportunity to boo or cheer for Cabrera because that means you would be in the playoffs.
Will the spending happy Dodgers have to wait another year to capitalize on their new plan to make the playoffs? If they ultimately miss the playoffs outright, are they going to buy every player they can in the off-season? I sure hope Magic knows that there are Luxury Tax penalties for spending over 178 Million Next Year. 1st year fine is 22.5%, 2nd year is 30%, 3rd year and beyond is 40%. So if they plan on having a 250 Million Dollar Payroll in 2013 (by adding 2 or 3 more top Free Agents) will the Dodgers just forego the worry of any financial penalties on a yearly basis– just to dominate the whole National League (plus baseball for that matter.) Every other team has to consider the urgency in cashing out a World Series right now while the Dodgers have not had a full off season with the new management yet. Can Oakland and their ‘New Money Ball philosophy’ make it to the playoffs for the first time since 2006?
The Best Players over the last month were: Buster Posey, Prince Fielder, Giancarlo Stanton, Adrian Beltre, Josh Hamilton, Yovani Gallardo, Kris Medlen, Adam Wainwright, Aroldis Chapman and Felix Hernandez. The best teams have been Oakland, Washington, San Francisco, San Diego, Baltimore and Texas. The worst teams have been Houston (at least its better to go down hard and stockpile #1 Draft Picks guys.) I have a feeling you will be there for a while with the division you are heading into and may even challenge the 120 Loss Single Season Record. At least you are not going into the NL West to compete with the LA Dodgers! The Cleveland Indians have fallen to an epic drop-off as well. Toronto misses their top sluggers. What has happened to the Minnesota Twins? The Mets have ownership and payroll problems, so at least they have an excuse. Plus they lead the world in guys being hurt. When David Wright has been your healthiest player, you know the season has been backwards! So sit back, get your notebook and popcorn ready for this Month’s Rankings! Read the rest of this entry
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