Skip to main content

A Brand New WEAK

By
It's bad enough that Team USA lost in the semi-finals of the WBC, but it's also Monday. Jimmy Rollins had four hits and got on base all five times at the plate in the semi-final match up with Japan on Sunday, but that wasn't enough to help the team advance as Roy Oswalt surrendered 6 runs in 3 2/3 innings, and the Americans could not catch up...losing 9-4. The rest of Team USA, not nicknamed J-Roll, went 5-for-32 (.156 avg.), in the loss.


And if the USA loss and the arrival of Monday don't have you feeling badly enough, former #1 Phillies draft pick Gavin Floyd has signed a 4-year, $15.5 million contract with the White Sox. The deal includes a 5th year team option worth $9.5 million. A change of scenery has surely proved positive for young Floyd. It's just a shame that Gavin couldn't achieve greater things in Philadelphia. We may never be sure why Gavin never developed well as a Phillie, and only time will tell if he can steadily be the 17-win/Sub-4 ERA pitcher that he was last season...but I must say that I can't help but feel a tad bitter when a guy stinks it up in red pin stripes, then moves on to become successful in another city.


Craving more weak news? The news of the day in baseball is Curt Schilling's retirement. Schill announced his retirement today, on his own blog. Sure, Curt hasn't been a Phillie in years, and yes, he moved on and helped Terry Francona win a World Series elsewhere. But Schilling has always been a Philadelphia guy to me, and I will not hesitate to admit that when Schilling wasn't facing our Phillies, I'd always root for him. Good luck, Schill and congratulations on a great career.

****

More of the Mondays...Lou Marson and Brad Harman were optioned to the minors today. Kyle Kendrick lost his battle for the 5th starter role. He was also demoted to the minors.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Lidge Shaky, T-Mac Honored in Trenton

By
TRENTON, NJ- Brad Lidge made his second rehab appearance for the Double A Reading Phillies on Thursday night and it didn't go as well as the veteran reliever or the team had hoped. Lidge struggled with his command and turned in a rather poor outing for the club that entered the night in a playoff race, 1 game behind division rival Trenton for the Wild Card spot in the Eastern Division. On the disabled list since spring training with a strained right rotator cuff, Lidge experienced an elbow strain when he was working back from that issue in late May. In his outing against the Yankees affiliate in Trenton, Lidge displayed difficulty with his control as he threw three wild pitches, hit two batters, walked another and gave up a single, all while letting up two earned runs on 28 pitches in 2/3 of an inning. After the disappointing performance, Lidge was composed and focused on some positive aspects, having reached 89 and 90 MPH on scouts' radar guns, according to some reports. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Q&A with Tim Gradoville

By
Tim Gradoville is a career minor league catcher, who once, as a September call up, was up with the big club for the proverbial cup of coffee. Slated to be the Phillies bullpen catcher, at a later date, Gradoville is currently assigned as a special instructor with the Lakewood BlueClaws. I had the opportunity to speak with Tim and here's how that went down... What's the atmosphere with the BlueClaws like so far this season? Well, I think we have a good mix of players. We have some veteran guys, and some young guys too, so it makes for an interesting mix. I think the guys like to have a good time, and they're pretty loose and that translates into winning games. They have a good time. With a young team, you never know what you're gonna get, sometimes, but they seem to gel pretty well together, so that helps to build team unity, helps guys get along. They're having fun, they're enjoying baseball. This game can be a grind sometimes, if you're not having fun. What...
Post a Comment
Read more

Mike McGuire Living a Dream With Favorite Team

By
LAKEWOOD, NJ- Every young ballplayer grows up wishing he could play for his favorite team. Mike McGuire has an opportunity to do just that after signing with the Phillies organization in July. McGuire was a 43rd round draft pick taken by the Cleveland Indians in the 2008 amateur draft out of the University of Delaware. Early scouting reports liked McGuire's abilities, despite some arm trouble. He advanced as far as High A Level Kinston last season. While there, he posted an 0-3 record with a 5.46 ERA in 9 games, 8 of which were starts. The Indians weren't happy with McGuire's efforts this spring and released him. McGuire caught on with the Sussex Skyhawks of the independent Can-Am League, where he stayed in shape and pitched against other formerly affiliated minor leaguers. As a starter with the Skyhawks, McGuire went 3-4 with a 5.29 ERA in 8 outings. From there, just as all players in those independent leagues hope for, the 24-year-old McGuire got noticed. The Phillies wer...
3 comments
Read more