My Thoughts On Opening Day

Ugly. Disappointing. Worrying. These are a few ways to describe the Phillies' first game of the season, coming off their NL East title. The Phillies offense was at full power, but the pitching met the same challenges as last season. Brett Myers went 5 innings- four were strong, but he allowed four runs in the fifth. The Nationals tagged on two more, but the Phillies, aided by homers by Utley and Rollins, climbed back to tie it at 6-6. It remained 6-6 until the top of the ninth, when Tom Gordon allowed 5 runs, handing the Phillies a disappointing loss and yet another 0-1 start.

The thing that worries me about this game is how quickly the pitching fell apart. Brett Myers crumbled in the fifth, leaving us to wonder if he's ready to start pitching more than 5 or 6 innings after closing last year. Gordon, who is key to the bullpen, earned himself an ERA of 135.00 in a terrible outing that earned him more boos than Adam Eaton received during the pre-game introduction (and you know how much Philly hates Adam Eaton).

One must wonder if this bullpen really will be stronger this year, or if the bullpen woes will continue into 2008.

Myers Makes a Bold Statement

Last Year, before the season began, Jimmy Rollins stated that he thought the Phillies were the "team to beat" in the NL East. Yesterday, Brett Myers made a bold statement of his own, one that I'd suggest keeping an eye on: Myers believes the Phillies have the best starting rotation in baseball.

I wouldn't rule this one out; all five of the Phillies starters (Cole Hamels, Brett Myers, Jamie Moyer, Kyle Kendrick, and Adam Eaton) have the potential to be solid starters, but the real question is whether they can avoid the problems they've faced. Hamels is quite prone to injury. Myers was a closer for most of last year, and was 0-3 as a starter anyway. Moyer is the oldest player in baseball. Kendrick is subject to the dreaded "Sophomore Curse". Eaton has been struggling with injuries, and hasn't been near 100% for quite a while now. I could see all of these guys with records of well above .500, but they have some problems, and potential problems, they need to deal with.

Garciaparra Down, Helms in for Dodgers?

As discussed earlier this month, there have been rumors of the Dodgers having interest in Wes Helms, who would play backup to Nomar Garciaparra at Third Base. Now, Garciaparra has broken his finger, making the chances of dealing Helms a bit more likely.

Lohse Finally Signed

Kyle Lohse's Scott Boras-induced nightmare is over. Lohse has reportedly signed a 1-year pact with the Cardinals, with $4 Million or $5 Million. Boras tried to sell Lohse at almost twice that much per year, over four years, but nobody bit. Lohse is lucky to even get a major-league deal at this point.

Hamels Punches Wall, Creates New Continent

Okay, obviously this isn't true, but the Serious Sports Network runs some pretty, well, unreal stories. And they are HILARIOUS. They do some great work over there, it's a wonder they haven't gotten more press coverage. A true pleasure for any fan of sports and satire. *Click here* to see the story from this post's title.

*Click here* to see another classic Cole Hamels one: "Hamels Performs own Tommy John Surgery, Recovers Immediately"

Helms to Dodgers?

With Third Baseman Andy LaRoche expected to be out for at least a couple months, the Dodgers have decided that Nomar Garciaparra will be manning the hot corner opening day. However, Garciaparra isn't expected to play in every game, so the Dodgers are looking for a backup to fill in once or twice a week. Joe Torre has said he prefers to look within the organization for that backup, but it's possible that they could make an offer for the Phillies' Wes Helms. Helms is now all but out of a job, due to the signing of Pedro Feliz.

If a deal happened, it would probably involve Helms going to the Dodgers for a draft pick (or draft picks), and maybe a pitcher if the Phillies are lucky. Acquiring Helms probably wouldn't be worth giving any sort of notable prospect for the Dodgers, and the Phillies don't need any more no-better-than-mediocre pitchers- they have plenty of those.

The Marlins and Braves have also shown interest in Helms. The Phillies seem to be aware of this, as they've been giving Helms a lot of playing time in Spring Training, despite the fact that he's a contender for the bench at best.

What might draw the Phillies into making a deal is getting Helms off the payroll. Helms is scheduled to make $2.15 Million this year. If the Phillies could get him off their payroll, they may have money to sign another free-agent- *cough cough* Kyle Lohse *cough cough* Armando Benitez. Then again, considering the Phillies' spending patterns, they could just pocket the money rather than use it towards winning a championship.

Projected 2008 Opening Day Roster (6th Edition)

SP Cole Hamels (Left-Handed)
SP Brett Myers
SP Kyle Kendrick
SP Jamie Moyer (L)
SP Adam Eaton
LRP Chad Durbin
LRP Francisco Rosario
SU Ryan Madson
MRP Clay Condrey
MRP J.C. Romero (L)
CP Tom Gordon
-- Brad Lidge*
1B Ryan Howard
2B Chase Utley
SS Jimmy Rollins
SS Eric Bruntlett
3B Greg Dobbs
3B Pedro Feliz
LF Pat Burrell
OF Geoff Jenkins
OF Shane Victorino
OF Jayson Werth
OF So Taguchi
C Carlos Ruiz
C Chris Coste

*Injured, but not on Disabled List

Notes:

• It remains to be seem whether Greg Dobbs or Wes Helms will be on the Opening Day roster. Having both is a very unlikely proposition, and would likely only happen if either of them are traded, or if Eric Bruntlett was sent down to AAA. The Phillies are unlikely to opt to have more than five bench players (five are shown here). At the moment, it looks like a toss-up between the two.
• Brad Lidge will probably not be fully ready for opening day (although it's looking like he might rush himself out of excitement), meaning that Tom Gordon will move from set-up man to interim closer.
• I wouldn't say Fransico Rosario is anywhere close to a definite; there will be a lot of competition for a bullpen spot or two, and there are a lot of contenders
• Adam Eaton will probably be on a short leash. Expect Kris Benson (once he's healthy) and Chad Durbin to be next in line for that rotation spot. Shane Youman and Travis Blackley are also options.
• I like what I've seen from Joe Savery during Spring Training. A bit further down the road this season, I wouldn't be surprised to see the Phillies give him a shot in the rotation, a la Kyle Kendrick.
• Kyle Lohse would be a huge boost, and his value has decreased from about 4 years $40 Million to 1 year $4 Million (another player screwed by agent Scott Boras). Still, the Phillies don't want to spend any more money. Lohse would be a huge boost to the rotation, and I fail to see why they won't take such an incredible bargain.