Would .500 Really Have Been an Improvement for the 2017 Phillies?
After going 71-91 in the 2016, the Phillies were hoping that they were on the road to improvement. The team finished better than its 63-99 record in 2015, and were not even in last place in its division. The fans got an opportunity to see some of its promised young talent during the season. Surely, the Phillies could show that they were on their way to rebuilding a contending team.
In the off season, Manager Peter Mackanin expressed his hope that the Phillies could finish at .500 in the 2017 season. He pushed General Manager Matt Klentak to go after more hitters, and shore up what had been a dismal offense in 2016. Klentak seemed to respond, signing professional hitter Howie Kendrick and left handed hitter Michael Saunders.
In addition to trying to strengthen the offense, Klentak went after veteran pitching, re-signing Jeremy Hellickson, who posted fairly solid numbers on a losing team in 2016, and obtaining Clay Buchholz, who had had some good years with Boston. The Phillies also obtained a solid veteran reliever in Pat Neshek.
And so, before the season, there was some hope that the Phillies could improve to a .500 team.
But could going .500 this year, with its opening day roster, really be considered an improvement? All of the free agents acquired in the off season were signed to one year deals. It was no secret that Klentak's strategy was to hope that the veterans had good enough seasons that they could be traded before the end of July to inject talent into the Phillies' minor league system. Even if the Phillies showed improvement, there was little chance that this class of veteran free agents would be around for the next playoff run.
More than that, the outfield appeared set with Kendrick and Saunders surrounding center fielder Odubel Herrera. This was despite having Aaron Altherr on the major league roster and rising talent Nick Williams available in AAA. Arguably, by signing veteran outfielders, the Phillies were blocking the young talent from showing what they could do at the major league level.
What good would a .500 record be on a team that was put together solely for a single season?
But as things turned out, injuries hit the team hard. Buchholz was lost for the season early. Kendrick spent a significant amount of time on the disabled list. The gamble on Saunders failed to pay off.
While the team mired in failure on the field, some bright spots emerged. Altherr got more playing time than was expected, and proved to be a bright spot in what otherwise was a horrid first half of the season. The injuries to the outfield gave Nick Williams an opportunity to demonstrate his offensive prowess. While the young pitchers may have lacked consistency, a few have shown hope, such as Mark Leiter, Jr and Ben Lively.
Then, Rhys Hoskins emerged as a potential dominating batter in AAA. Pressure grew on the Phillies to call him up from Lehigh Valley, with his impressive minor league season. Further injury in the outfield gave Hoskins the opportunity to show some versatility, and that he could play a position other than first base. So far, he has not disappointed, hitting near .300 and blasting 16 home runs faster than anyone in baseball history in just 32 games.
The record for the 2017 Phillies may be a major disappointment, as the team struggles in the last two weeks to avoid a 100 loss season. But amid all of those losses, there has been improvement in this team. In fact, there has arguably been more improvement than if the Phillies had gone .500 with its opening day roster. The team's early failures gave fans a chance to see the team's young talent. Along with Williams and Hoskins, the Phillies have given prospects Jorge Alfaro and JP Crawford a stage to demonstrate what the future might be. And second baseman Scott Kingery appears to be knocking on the door. Even with a losing record this year, discerning fans now have hope that in the future the team just might be the contender we expect.
William J. Kovatch, Jr.
In the off season, Manager Peter Mackanin expressed his hope that the Phillies could finish at .500 in the 2017 season. He pushed General Manager Matt Klentak to go after more hitters, and shore up what had been a dismal offense in 2016. Klentak seemed to respond, signing professional hitter Howie Kendrick and left handed hitter Michael Saunders.
In addition to trying to strengthen the offense, Klentak went after veteran pitching, re-signing Jeremy Hellickson, who posted fairly solid numbers on a losing team in 2016, and obtaining Clay Buchholz, who had had some good years with Boston. The Phillies also obtained a solid veteran reliever in Pat Neshek.
And so, before the season, there was some hope that the Phillies could improve to a .500 team.
But could going .500 this year, with its opening day roster, really be considered an improvement? All of the free agents acquired in the off season were signed to one year deals. It was no secret that Klentak's strategy was to hope that the veterans had good enough seasons that they could be traded before the end of July to inject talent into the Phillies' minor league system. Even if the Phillies showed improvement, there was little chance that this class of veteran free agents would be around for the next playoff run.
More than that, the outfield appeared set with Kendrick and Saunders surrounding center fielder Odubel Herrera. This was despite having Aaron Altherr on the major league roster and rising talent Nick Williams available in AAA. Arguably, by signing veteran outfielders, the Phillies were blocking the young talent from showing what they could do at the major league level.
What good would a .500 record be on a team that was put together solely for a single season?
But as things turned out, injuries hit the team hard. Buchholz was lost for the season early. Kendrick spent a significant amount of time on the disabled list. The gamble on Saunders failed to pay off.
While the team mired in failure on the field, some bright spots emerged. Altherr got more playing time than was expected, and proved to be a bright spot in what otherwise was a horrid first half of the season. The injuries to the outfield gave Nick Williams an opportunity to demonstrate his offensive prowess. While the young pitchers may have lacked consistency, a few have shown hope, such as Mark Leiter, Jr and Ben Lively.
Then, Rhys Hoskins emerged as a potential dominating batter in AAA. Pressure grew on the Phillies to call him up from Lehigh Valley, with his impressive minor league season. Further injury in the outfield gave Hoskins the opportunity to show some versatility, and that he could play a position other than first base. So far, he has not disappointed, hitting near .300 and blasting 16 home runs faster than anyone in baseball history in just 32 games.
The record for the 2017 Phillies may be a major disappointment, as the team struggles in the last two weeks to avoid a 100 loss season. But amid all of those losses, there has been improvement in this team. In fact, there has arguably been more improvement than if the Phillies had gone .500 with its opening day roster. The team's early failures gave fans a chance to see the team's young talent. Along with Williams and Hoskins, the Phillies have given prospects Jorge Alfaro and JP Crawford a stage to demonstrate what the future might be. And second baseman Scott Kingery appears to be knocking on the door. Even with a losing record this year, discerning fans now have hope that in the future the team just might be the contender we expect.
William J. Kovatch, Jr.
Last year Herrera, Hernandez and Franco seemed to be the fuel for he future on the offense. Less Franco , the Future of the Phils has sparkled in Hoskins, Williams and Alther is fun to watch. Leiter is the senior at 26 on the starting staff. There is hope for us cool aid drinkers after all
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