• March 28, 2024

No Major Changes Expected In Phils Pitching Rotation

The Phillies’ rotation was the back end of a lot of problems the team faced this post-season. Granted Roy Holladay and Cole Hamels pitched up to expectations, Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt were non-existent. In Oswalt’s case I’m not surprised, but Lee’s lack of dominance really turned some heads.

There is no denying he is one of the best pitchers in the game and you can’t take that claim away from him because he blew one 4-0 lead in the post-season. There is always room for improvement, but Philadelphia still has the most dynamic pitching staff in all of baseball, so are drastic changes really necessary?

I don’t think so. It’s evident that Halladay and Lee will be returning to the Phil’s next year but for some odd reason, talks about Hamels returning to the team aren’t as certain.

There having been rumors circulating in blogs about a potential trade of Hamels, but I’ll put that to rest right now. Hollywood is still under contract next season, although he will be able to file for arbitration at the season’s end, he will not be traded. He is the third ace in a rotation full of talent, and with Halladay and Lee already in their mid-30s, Philadelphia needs some younger stability. And that’s what the 27-year-old ace brings to the rotation.

Fact-of-the-matter is Hamels is going nowhere this off-season and if he does get traded; Philly will have made a huge mistake.

I’m excited to see Vance Worley come into his own in the Fightin’s rotation. Eleven and three is no joke of a record and after his stellar rookie season, I’d expect nothing but the same success next year. His era was 3.01 which is better than most teams’ number two pitcher and unless a sophomore slump is on the horizon, expect to see Worley sitting in the fourth spot of the rotation next year.

So what will the Phil’s do with that fifth spot? Well first things first, Roy Oswalt needs to be bought out. He put up nothing this season and the aged former all-star doesn’t have much left in his tank. Sure he could be a quality number five pitcher, but for what Philly is paying him, he should have his bags packed and a one-way ticket out of the city. The only way Oswalt puts on a red-striped uniform next year is if his contract is restructured and he takes a significant pay decrease for the coming season.

Joe Blanton and Kyle Kendrick will be in the mix for the fifth spot in the rotation, but neither one makes me double take. Kendrick is the younger of the two, 27-years-old, and is who I’d have to say is the front runner for the final spot in the rotation. The Texan went eight and six last year, but posted a sub four ERA. He isn’t going to dazzling anyone with the numbers he brings to the mound, but Kendrick will finish the year with a winning percentage over 500 and a whip below two which is really all you can ask of your number five pitcher.

If anybody on the Phillies’ roster is more washed up than Oswalt, I’d have to say it’s Blanton. Since the day he was acquired, he never impressed me. He won 12 games in ’09 and followed that up with another nine in ’10, but his era was always above four. He will not be pitching as high in the rotation as he had been those years, but he’s over-weight, unathletic and has trouble hitting 93 miles-per-hour on the radar gun. Sure if you need a pitcher to pinch hit, Blanton’s your guy. But if you need a pitcher to buckle down and get wins down the stretch, he’d be the last player I’d send to the mound.

The Phillies have no need to sign a new starter. Sure they can, but there are way more important issues that need to be addressed before Amaro worries about signing a new guy for the rotation. The Phils’ staff, if they stay healthy, will look extremely similar to the way it did last year. And chances are, they will be just as dominant.

Richard Greco

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paulman
paulman
October 21, 2011 7:25 am

They need to address LF,3B and Backup Catcher and at least 1 more Bench/Role players and also need another 1 more Left-Handed PItcher out of the Bullpen so Bastardo isn’t the only option

Erock
Erock
October 21, 2011 9:44 am

I’d agree with that Paul. Get some bench guys in here too. Legit ones.

And next year ,your not allowed to pick the Braves.lol

jakedog
jakedog
October 21, 2011 10:14 am

why are we talking about who will be the Phillies fifth stArter, isn’t this football season, oh, damn, forgot, birds are a pathetic 2-4, ok, go with sloppy Joe, Kendrick as long relief.

paulman
paulman
October 21, 2011 10:19 am

My Picks for the NL East for the 2012 Season are in

#1) Nationals 92-60 (sign FA Pticher CJ Wilson)
#2) Braves 91-61
#3) Phils 89-63
#4) Florida 80-82
#5) Mets 72-90

reed_richards
reed_richards
October 21, 2011 10:32 am

paulman, as usual, your numbers are OFF. Its impossible for the Phillies to go 89-63 when they were 102-60 this past season. not to mention the braves going 91-61 and the nats going 92-60.. go back to the drawing board and re-calculate your predictions…

bobbyuk
bobbyuk
October 21, 2011 11:04 am

So Paulman, when did the league go to a 152 game schedule???? The Nats will not win the East in our lifetime–okay, that’s a bit harsh, but I don’t see them winning anything anytime soon. I know that’s what everyone said about the Rays at one point, but I don’t see the talent level with the Braves and Phils dropping off that much. For one, Reuben won’t allow it to happen and another thing is that all of this young talent the Nats are supposed to have are really a MASH unit in disguise; Werth is getting older, no doubt the injury bug will start hitting him soon; Zimmerman missed most of this season and a good portion of last season if I’m not mistaken; and I don’t think they outbid the Yankees for Wilson–or Boston for that matter. Or, now that he’s in Chicago, Epstein either.

paulman
paulman
October 21, 2011 12:39 pm

Nats sign Pitcher CJ Wilson, have a healthy Strasburg and Wang return with
Pitchers Lannan to go along with their very good Bullpen..
They have a solid line-up with probably the best and youngest IF in the NL East with 1B Morse, 2B Espinoza, SS Desmon, 3b R Zimmerman and an excellent young Catcher in W Ramos.. Throw in some veteran OF’s like Werth,Ankiel,L Nix and Johhny Gomes.. and if this teams gets CJ Wilson and return with a healthy Wang & Strasburg, this Team is going up, up, up.
This Yong IF is only going to get better and if Zommerman can stay healthy and they get anything from Werth, they will be in a lot of games..

Braves get rid of Lowe,McClouth and that’s about it..
Still have a Line-up of Bourne,Prado,McCann,Freeman,C Jones,Uggla,
Heyward,Gonzales which is superior, younger than the PHils (outside of Chipper Jones)
Starters will be T Hudson,T Hamson, J Jurgens, and youngeters Brandon Beachy & J Tehran, which is not as good as the Phils at the Top, but is still a godo Rotation
Bullpen is superior with Moylan returning, to go along with Set-up Relievers O’Flahrerty,& Venters with Kimbrel as the Closer..

paulman
paulman
October 21, 2011 1:13 pm

Phils Starters Numbers for 2012

#1) Halladay 19-11 with 3.46 ERA and 225 Innings
#2) Lee 16- 9 with 3.78 ERA and 200 Innings
#3) Hamels 21-10 with 3.25 ERA and 215 Innings
#4) Worley 9-11 with 4.50 ERA
#5) Kendrick 6-9 with 4.75 ERA