The Monday night Phillies-Dodgers game was the first-time former Phil and current Dodgers shortstop Jimmy Rollins got his first chance to play against his old team. Rollins has struggled this season at the plate, but he hasn’t been struggling against the Phils this week.
Like his former teammates Ryan Howard and Chase Utley, Rollins is getting close to the end of the road, but he’s still having fun because he’s playing for a contender. The former Phillie looks like he’s going to be able to leave the game on his own terms because he got out of here at the right time.
J-Roll left here with a year or two of playing ability left and now he has the chance to go to the playoffs with the Dodgers. He’s in a positive atmosphere on a contending team, and everybody’s talking about what HE STILL CAN DO rather than what HE CAN’T DO. In L.A. right now, Rollins is appreciated for his steadying influence in the field and in the clubhouse and whatever he does offensively is looked on as a bonus.
If the Phils had a team full of young studs and were contending, Howard and Utley wouldn’t be villains, they would be appreciated for what have done in the past and the things they can still do.
Chase and Ryan are still here in Phillies uniforms and who knows how their careers are going to end. It might be over for Utley now as it looks like he’s being shown the door by the Phillies brass and Howard will get the same treatment, when he contract ends. All three of these guys have been good to the city of Philadelphia and it’s shame they can’t go out in a positive way. I think Rollins got it right, by getting out of this disaster when he did.
J-Roll is hitting only .213, but he still has some pop in his bat with eight home runs and 29 RBI’s. The former N.L. MVP reached down deep this week and found a way to get some big hits against the Phils.
In the seventh inning of the first game on Monday night, Rollins stepped to the plate with runners on second and third and the score all knotted up at seven. The shortstop stroked a go-ahead two run single by going the opposite way to leftfield. He had two hits in that game and scored two runs, while leading the Dodgers to a 10-7 victory.
Last night in the third game of the series, Rollins was at again, this time he hit a three-run homer that broke open the game and allowed Clayton Kershaw to cruise to a nine-inning 5-0 shutout. He got a hold of a Adam Morgan 2-1 pitch and hit it on a line into the first row of the left-field stands at Dodger Stadium.
After rounding the bases and heading into the dugout, you could see that big J-Roll smile. That smile takes me back to the good times for the Phils and Rollins, Utley and Howard helped to put together the greatest run in Phillies history and they should always be remembered for it.
Time Marches on for all Players, the Teams that don’t manage their Rosters/Contract better and keep Players around for sentimental reasons end up back in the basement like the Phillies are..
Today’s Winning Franchise’s & GM’s stay away from sentiment and don’t get caught with long-term bad deals with half their Rosters and also don’t overpay to keep Players once they become Free-Agents..
Look at the Cardinals who have Won a Couple of WS and seem to be in the thick of it every Season and they let future HOF Albert Puljos walk, they trade WS Hero’s Allan Craig & Steve Freeze, Let Carlos Beltran Walk and keep their eye on the Future and got younger and more athletic..
Look at the SF Giants who have Won a Couple of WS the last Few Years and they let Free Agents Juan Uribe Walk, Let Pablo Sandoval Walk , Go out and sign a few Players here and there that fit their Roster and still Compete almost every year in and year out …
Look at the Red Sox who have a Couple of WS Banners in Recent Years and have rebuilt their Team and Roster after each WS Victory followed by a average Season only to bounce right back into the thick of it…..
The Let popular Johnny Damon walk, J Ellsbury walk, Let J Papelbon Walk, Trade John Lackey, J Lester, and keep moving forward…
The Point is, The Top Teams do no stand pat and hope for the Best and reminisce about the good old days, their GM’s and Front Office continue to look forward and give their Franchises and Fans Opportunities to compete every Season on a Consistent Basis..
The Phils have Great Fans, a Great Park and More Resources than 90% of MLB Teams that are out there and there really should be no reason that they should only be competitive for a few Seasons every 15-20 Years.. They should compete each Season and hopefully new President McPhail and his incoming Front Office Staff that he hire’s will do just this..
The Phils are Immature as an Organization, they will have a 4-5 Year Run and then stink for 10-12 Years… Philly Fans in General, are so desperate to Win that they hang on to their Players & Coach’s way too long and become attached emotionally too strong … it’s one thing to be Passionate and Supportive of your Teams and Players, but you have to look at things in real time and in the present and not hope about yesteryear or the glory days..
No Long Term Contracts.. No Signing Players to Big $$ once they reach 31-32 Years Old.. It’s a Sports/Entertainment Business and should be run as such based on Productivity and not Emotions..
Jimmy Rollins should have not been Re-signed once his last Contract was up in 2012, Chase Utley should not have been Re-Signed after his last Contract was up in 2013 … As a GM, you have to manage with your Head and not your Heart… you are in the Business to Win and to Compete, not to live in Past, no matter how glorious it may have been…
As far as J-Ro, good for him that he’s still playing and on a Competitive Team.. there’s little doubt that he’s going to get up big time and play well versus his former Team.. but his best days were behind him as is Utley’s
jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesus paul what is wrong with you? you just wrote an essay and posted in the comment section of a blog. do you not talk to people in real life? 55502953402 posts over a holiday weekend, wtf man?
and for the 934593726662 time its J ROLL not J RO
The Phillies are getting exactly what they deserve… There’s no one to Blame but Themselves..
fraud you wanted them broken up in 09–
why shouldn’t jimmy have been resigned in 11? for a measly $11? he won a GG for them, hit 20 HR- then they got a couple of decent prospects for him
obviously injury and age caught up with them and there should have been re-tooling, their minor leagues failed them, D brown in particular, tommy joseph getting hurt–those two guys should have been major cogs in this thing and both have failed–
Try like 2011 is when the rebuilding & retooling of the Phils should have started
It’s 2015 from crying out loud.. GM Amaro’s wish of the Core Players could all bounce back to Career Stats and remain Healthy has been a losing strategy since 2011…
It was 09-10 paul- you were your typical self– ‘third place finish’ ‘fire manuel’ ‘replace rollins’ blah blah– don’t argue it since you always say the same stuff regardles of sport.
LOL
It wasn’t too many years ago that players with 2or 3 years of good playing time left in them were traded for a younger player ready to break out. This has all changed for fear of getting the older player angry , sulking. no trade clause ultra =powerful unions ,salaries that put the players in total control and players making so much money ,plus endorsements, that they are working on making their grandchildren millionaires as well.Not much can be done about it as both clubs, players. agents and their posses have changed the game dramatically,Everything changes , not too many things remain the same except for the average Joe schmoe eeking out a living.