Tag Archive: ryan howard

Are They Who We Thought They Were?

June 5, 2013 Randy Neil

Fresh off the longest win-streak of the 2013 season, the Philadelphia Phillies are back at .500 (30-30) which leaves a very important question to be asked: Who are these guys?

I don’t know. Charlie Manuel doesn’t know. Ruben Amaro Jr. definitely doesn’t know. In the not so distant future, the front office of this ball club is going to have to make a definite move that shapes the remainder of the season.

Certainly, Domonic Brown is having the best season of his career. Leading the national league in home runs, being named the NL Player of the Month, and earning the NL Player of the Week award back-to-back are all incredibly positive feats that can offer hope for this ball club.

Roy Halladay gave more hopeful news in his press conference this week, alluding to the fact that he will return this season and his surgery went successfully as expected. Doc even noted that his range of motion, even a mere week after the surgery, is better than it has been in years. All signs point to him returning to the lineup this summer, possibly healthier than he’s ever been in a Phillies uniform.

Howard, Utley, and Ruiz were all playing at the start of this season, but have had their own obstacles to overcome. Howard has been consistent, but below average, in his offensive output and would even tell you himself that he’s not living up to his potential. Utley and Ruiz have both been riddled with injuries that leave question marks around their contributions come “make-a-run” time, if that ever happens.

Which leads to the less-desired question that the Phillies front-office will have to answer: Is it time to abandon ship?

Up until 4 days ago, the Phillies looked all but doomed. Michael and Delmon Young have just not lived up to the expectations we had going into this season. Michael Young is second in the league for GIDP and boasts a meager 10 RBIs. Their defense has definitely been the major reason for their playing time.

No one expected Cole Hamel’s record to be 2-9 at this point, but our offense (and his pitching in some cases) has been less than consistent. Cliff Lee trade rumors have been coming out of the wood-works. Lee, when questioned on whether he thinks he will get traded or not, even admitted that he thought it was likely. He certainly stands as the most valuable commodity the organization has, and if they decide to pump the brakes for this season, consider him gone.

That’s what it really all boils down to for this club. The consistency just simply hasn’t been there. Winning spurts like the one we are currently in (knocks on wood) are few and far between. The losses have been just too discouraging at times. The next month is going to be pivotal. The hump of .500 has finally been conquered, but all too often do I hear the phrase “gain some momentum” being used without any follow through.

I’ve seen stranger things happen… but just don’t get your hopes too high Phillies fans.

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It’s About To Be Hittin’ Season Boys

May 4, 2013 Randy Neil

Last night we saw a little resurgence in the Phillies’ lineup. After a dismal 2-run production against the Indians this weekend (in the entire series), the Phillies bounced back and scored 11 runs in the past 2 days which included 2 home runs by the young Domonic Brown.

Can I just throw out the nickname, “Little Piece?” Domonic Brown is starting to hit like his spring-training numbers, and I think it’s about time that fans embraced him.

We’re getting an inconsistent offense right now, but it shows enormous potential. Certainly more than last year. It’s hard to say how the Phillies can go from sweeping our division rival the Mets, to being swept by the Cleveland Indians, only to win the next two against the Marlins. Charlie has been switching around the lineup since the additions of Delmon Young and Carlos Ruiz, and I think that as time goes on, the hitters are only going to get more comfortable.

It’s not as though we ran into stellar pitching over the weekend. If anything, the Mets probably boasted the best rotation of the 3 teams, and yet we were still able to muster wins out of all of them.

Speaking of pitching, do you know who has the best win percentage out of all of our pitchers right now? It’s freakin’ Pettibone! He picked up his second win last night to make his record 2-0. Even stranger, the next guy on that list is Kyle Kendrick with a 3-1 record. Those are our only 2 pitchers above the .500 mark.

I’m not going to jump on the crazy wagon, because it’s insane to think that we can ride those two guys out to a wild card spot, but after 5+ years of watching Kendrick get destroooyyyyyed, it’s nice to finally see some consistency out of him. There’s actually some surprising stats in this great article by Todd Zolecki that will blow your mind, but the most notable was that he is 10-5 with a 2.75 ERA in his last 19 starts. Wow.

I think it’s pretty safe to say that Halladay won’t be winning any more Cy Young awards, BUT, I think I feel pretty confident in saying that he’s going to be alright this year. He’s getting old, and he definitely doesn’t have the same stuff, but he’s wising up to that fact and pitching accordingly. I say this after Halladay’s implosion against the Indians, but didn’t you already see that coming? He just had 3 incredibly solid starts. I think that’s the sort of roller coaster we can expect from him this season. It will be, strangely, consistent.

The point is, GET BACK ON THE WAGON PHILLIES FANS. This season has just begun.

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Don’t Tug on Superman’s Cape

September 4, 2011 Adam Thomas

1.) Grantland, it’s bad enough that all you turned out to be is a massive disappointment, churning out articles that read like a “try to write like Bill Simmons” contest, but now you’re going after the Phillies, and more specifically, Ryan Howard. In his article “Father Time and the Philadelphia Phillies,” Rany Jazayerli takes on the Phillies and how they are old and won’t be good in the not so distant future. A few points about this article:

He writes: “We’re almost halfway through this column and I haven’t mentioned a hitter yet. There’s a reason for that — the Phillies’ offense isn’t particularly good. After finishing first or second in the NL in runs scored every year from 2005 to 2010, the Phillies have dropped to sixth this season.”

First of all, sixth is not all that bad, especially not when you have top pitching.  But it should be noted that while the Phillies are sixth for the season, they are the second highest scoring offense since Chase Utley returned. Before Utley returned, they were 12th in the NL.  They are now 6th.  That is a pretty significant jump, and since they acquired Hunter Pence, they have been the best offensive team in the NL. (Thanks to the goodphight.com for the stats).

Does the author mention this?  Nope.  He just says that the offense is bad.

On Ryan Howard, Rany says that he is “Clearly past his prime.” Which is funny because he posted this the day after Howard hit 2 HRs and reached another 30 HR, 100 RBI season.

Here is what really pissed me off about this article, he mentions how the Atlanta Braves have two stud rookies this year, and they had Jason Heyward last year who, “had one of the best seasons by a 20-year-old hitter in decades.”

But that’s it for Heyward, he had a good season LAST year. Why doesn’t Rany bring up the fact that this year, Heyward is TERRIBLE. Here are his stats: .220, 13 HR, 39 RBIs, 43 R, 6 SB.  Holy shit!  Watch out Philly!

Now, am I saying that Heyward is going to suck like this forever?  No.  Maybe he is just having a down year.  But to bring up a guy who had a good year last year and then not mention that he is horrible this year is bad writing. You can’t use that to strengthen your argument, especially while shitting all over Ryan Howard in the process.

You want a Ryan Howard stat?  Here’s one: most RBI’s through 1000 games in MLB history 1.) Ted Williams 2.) RYAN HOWARD 3.) Babe Ruth.   Most HR through 1000 games: 1.) RYAN HOWARD 2.) Ralph Kiner 3.) Babe Ruth.

I’m sure mad that the Phillies have that guy on their team for the next five years…

Also, if the Phillies mortgaged their future to win it all this year, and they actually win the World Series, who gives a shit?  You think the Giants would trade in their World Series last year just to be competitive for the next 5 years?  Cause I don’t.

2.) I read an article in Sports Illustrated about the Brewers and here are some highlights.  Nyjer Morgan walks around the clubhouse covered in baby oil, they play naked golf in the clubhouse and they growl at each other like the monsters in Monsters Inc. after they get hits.  If I were the Phillies I would be peeing myself in fear.

3.) Of all the WWE Attitude Era catch phrases, one that doesn’t get enough love is “Welcome to…RAW…IS…JERICHO!” Another thing about the Attitude Era that I feel gets forgotten is just how terrible HHH was.  He literally married the boss’s daughter and then inserted himself into the main events.  I always remember thinking, “Get out of here HHH!”  You’re getting in the way of The Rock vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin!

That’s it.  I’m in the final week of wedding planning and am incredibly tired. This is my last column for 2 weeks as I go off and tour Costa Rica. So Randy and a NEW writer (I’m not gonna spoil the surprise) will handle things.

Thanks for reading and I’ll see you all with the NFL picks later in the week!

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The 2011 Philadelphia Phillies Opening Day Lineup

April 1, 2011 Randy Neil

Yea, yea, Opening Day was yesterday. But we’re in Philadelphia. Opening Day starts today. First pitch starts (hopefully) at 1PM ET at Citizens Bank Park. I’ve seen flurries and rain all morning, but talk is that the game will be played as scheduled. Yippie.

The Lineup

1. Shane Victorino CF
2. Placido Polanco 3B
3. Jimmy Rollins SS
4. Ryan Howard 1B
5. Rauuuuul Ibanez LF
6. Ben Francisco RF
7. Carlos Ruiz C
8. Wilson Valdez
9. Roy Halladay

LETS GO PHILLIES!!

(God that’s an awful Photoshop job I know. Wasn’t me!)

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