BY SCOTT LAUBERST. LOUIS -- Good afternoon, and welcome to St. Louis. We're a few blocks from the famous Gateway Arch and the new Busch Stadium, where the Phillies will open a brief two-game series tonight against the red-hot Cardinals (more on them in a moment). Couple of bits of St. Louis trivia: Did you know that Harry Kalas' voice can be heard on the self-guided tour of the Arch? Also, did you know the Anheiser-Busch brewery is here, and at the end of the brewery tour, you can consume two free adult beverages? It's been several years since I took the tour, although whenever I come to town, it's tempting.
But you came here to talk baseball, right? So, since we're an hour behind y'all on the East Coast, I'll leave you with this topic to discuss while you wait for the Phillies -- and your humble scribe at Philled In -- to arrive at Busch Stadium in a few hours:
Charlie Manuel loves offense, but he understands that it was pitching, namely the work of the starting rotation, that won the World Series for the Phillies last year. And this season, the pitching, namely the work of the starting rotation, has been horrendous, as colleague Martin Frank wrote in today's News Journal. The Phillies' starters have the worst collective ERA of any rotation in the majors (6.71). It's nearly a full run worse than the next-worst team, the Red Sox (5.75). Think about that for a minute: The Phillies' starting rotation has given up nearly a full run more per game than any team in the American League, where there's a designated hitter. That's amazing.
So, I'll ask you this: How much confidence do you have in the Phillies' starting rotation?
Obviously, it'll help to have Cole Hamels on the mound for a full start, and the Phillies are hoping Hamels' sprained left ankle will allow him to pitch Friday night at home against the Braves. But what about the other starters? What about Brett Myers (1-2, 4.83) and Jamie Moyer (3-1, 5.65) and tonight's starter, Joe Blanton (0-2, 8.41)? What's your confidence-level in those guys being able to bounce back from shaky starts? And what should the Phillies do about the No. 5 starter? Should they stick with Chan Ho Park (0-1, 8.75) and hope he can recover his spring-training form, or should they turn to J.A. Happ or even Kyle Kendrick, Carlos Carrasco, Rodrigo Lopez or Drew Carpenter at triple-A Lehigh Valley?
OK, you have the floor. Go ahead, discuss. I'll be back in a bit from Busch Stadium.
3 comments:
Chad Billingsley, whom the Phillies hit very well against in the NLCS, has more wins by his lonesome than the entire Phillies starting rotation.
I see Jamie Moyer leading the team in wins with an ERA closer to 5.00 than 4.00. But that should be enough out of the 47-year-old starter. I do not think anyone expected him to repeat last season's performance, but his overflowing knowledge of the game and ability to mentor J.A. Happ and other young pitchers got him a 2-year-deal.
However, repeated performances were to be expected from the other starters. Namely Chan Ho Park repeating an impressive spring and Joe Blanton following up a half-season where he did not lose a game. Spring training is said to be misleading, but Park was succeeding with a sharp K:BB ratio. His control should carry over into the season, right? To me, Blanton's windup looks eerily similar to that of Adam Eaton. Little athleticism and movement which seems to translate into predictability for the batter.
Once Brett Myers can accent his curveball with his fastball, I feel everything will fall into place for him. His walks will decrease, as will his home runs allowed. He has the talent, but hopefully he can get the kick in the butt that turned him around last year without a demotion.
As for Cole Hamels, who knows? Seriously. He may feel like he has to make up for lost time and overthrow his arm this Friday, if he does make the start. But with his luck, the St. Louis Arch will collapse on him before he has the opportunity to pitch again.
Then there is he who was flown under the radar throughout the first month: Rich Dubee. Does he shoulder any of the blame?
I think things will get lots better now that we have Ruiz back behind the plate. His handling of the pitching staff makes all the difference. He knows all the hitters in the league, their weaknesses and he exploits that knowledge and calls a game that is more of a mental chess match for the oponents. Ruiz is that critical difference that takes the predictability out of the pitching staff's game. I see the era dropping at least one point because of him.
Larry in Port A
They need to take a close look at
Dubee & his methods. Most teams with an era like this would be interviewing pithing coaches.
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