Philadelphia Baseball History

Going into the 2016 baseball season, we all knew that the Phillies were not likely going to be competitive. The fact is that neglect of the farm system from the front office combined with the aging of the star players from the 2008 World Championship team left the Phillies depleted. A sad comment on the organization was that the highlight of the 2015 season was the firing of Ruben Amaro, Jr. as the General Manager. Although there was a degree of optimism when Andy MacPhail and Matt Klentak took over the front office, the amount of damage done to the Phillies organization meant that there would be no quick fix. Many pundits picked the Phils to lose 100 games in 2017.   Surprising many, the Phillies not only avoided losing 100 games, but also climbed out of the basement of the National League East, finishing with a better record than the Atlanta Braves. Along the way, the Phillies showed signs of improvement, giving their fans hope for a better future. This season may not ...

In last night's game with the Braves, Phillies outfielde, Tyler Goeddel went 1 for 4 with a single. While his sixth hit of the season was encouraging, his other three at-bats, despite being outs, were equally encouraging. That is because he put the ball in play all three times.  Goeddel came into the game last night having only played in 17 other games, and striking out 11 times. Early in the season, Goeddel was only being used in games against left-handers, which severely limited his playing time.  More recently, Pete Mackannin has given Goeddel more playing time, including the last game against the Marlins, where Goeddel had a double and 2 RBIs. Goeddel is hitting .167, and for a team that is having its offensive struggles with outfielders, it may seem strange to say he needs more playing time. But the Phillies picked up Goeddel in this winter's Rule 5 draft, and he is still a player in development.  In the Rule 5 draft, any team can pick any player from another team's ...