Balls, Sticks, & Stuff | Phillies, Eagles, golf and other matters of great importance...

Rockies, Mets -- Are You Crying?

A week or two ago, the Mets, right after Johan Santana had and implosion for the ages, accused the Phillies of stealing signs between their catchers and pitchers.  Recently, the Rockies leveled the same accusation.

The Inquirer's beat writer, Matt Gelb, got a response from Charlie Manuel:

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   magelb Why have the #Phillies been accused of stealing signs? "Because we beat them," Manuel said. "That's why. Keep crying." 12 May 2010 from web

For more commentary, we turn to Jimmy Dugan:

Curious Trade Deal in the NL East

The Mets continue to confound logic.  As a Phillies fan, this doesn’t really trouble me, but nevertheless, you do have to wonder what in the world goes on in the head of Omar Minaya, the Mets general manager.

Yesterday, the Mets sent Ryan Church to the Braves in exchange for Jeff Francoeur.  Now for whatever reason, Ryan Church and the Mets management did not get a long very well, and sometimes there is something to be said for addition by subtraction.  After all, the Phillies certainly got a lot better once Bobby Abreu was traded away.  But Ryan Church has proven to be a bona fide major league caliber player, whereas Jeff Francoeur has no business playing above AAA, if that.

Using advanced statistics like wOBA to evaluate offense and UZR to evaluate defense [each found at fangraphs.com], Church has produced at a level equivalent to 3.9 runs above that of a replacement level player, while Frenchy has “produced” at level 5.7 runs below that of said replacement level player.  That’s a difference of 9.6 runs which is typically worth approximately one win over the course of a season.

Minaya said of Francoeur, “One thing we like about Francoeur is the amount of games he plays.”  Sorry Omar, but with production like that, I’m not sure you want him playing as many games as he can.

My dream is to one day see Omar Minaya and Ed Wade make a deal.  As a Phillies fan it would rank pretty high on the unintentional comedy scale.

How Long Before the "MVP!" Chants Begin?

Given the way the three-game series unfolded in New York (30 total innings played), and given the chilled, damp weather, the latest installment of Phillies/Mets felt like a playoff game.  Two take two of three and extend the lead in the NL East to four games is very important for your Fightins.

No one was more important in Thursday night’s Phillies’ 6-3 victory than Raul Ibanez.  Going into the top of the 10th inning, Ibanez was 0-4, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t chipped in.  Earlier in the game in the fourth inning, David Wright hit a ball hard off the leftfield wall, which Ibanez quickly fielded with his back to the infield.  Just as quickly, he turned and fired a bullet to Chase Utley at second base to throw out Wright.

But in the 10th inning of course, was the game-winning home run.  A home-run that capped off a 7-3 road trip in which the Phillies swept the Padres and broke their 10-game win streak, split four games with the best-record-in-baseball Dodgers, and then 2 of 3 from their arch nemesis Mets.

Afterwards, Ibanez said in a post-game interview, after downplaying his contributions, that he was “proud to be associated with this team.” Well Raul, I think I speak for a lot of phans when I say we’re proud to root for you every night. 

Somewhere Up There, Harry is Smiling

After Chase Utley's game-winning home-run in the 11th inning over the Mets, we need to hear Harry's classic call.  Click here [original entry here].

Welcome Mets Fans, to the Home of the WFC Philadelphia Fightin' Phillies

It's that time of year again.  Several times a summer, New York Mets fans invade Philadelphia for the series with the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park -- the normal sea of red and white in the seats at the ballpark takes on a rude orange tint.

Typically, the influx of Mets fans in our stadium annoys me.  I'm proud of the home field advantage fans provide for the Fightins and so when Mets fans fill up a third or more of the stadium...  I just don't like it.

But this year, in a way, I'm almost looking forward to it.  I want those New Yorkers to see the 2008 flag flying high, the 2007 and 2008 NL East flags right next to them.  I want them to see the small smiles that haven't left our faces since October, I want them to hear the "Rah-ooooool!" that greets Raul Ibanez and see how the whole place subconciously bobs their heads when Chase Utley's "Kashmir" plays over the public address system.  I want them to feel the bass-y ring of liberty bell in right field.   Suck it in friends to the north, suck it in...

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Given the championship celebrations, the rainy weather, and of course the untimely passing of Harry Kalas, we as phans have been kind of wrapped up in our own little world, not paying much attention to what has been going on with the Mets (9-12).  This morning, I took a quick run through the Mets-centric blogosphere.  Here's a smattering:

• Phillies-killer Brian Schneider is on the disabled-list and is eligible to be activated for Sunday's game, though it looks like his return has been pushed back. [Metsblog]

• "I realize the lack of solid pitching and clutch hitting will take precedence here, but I am equally concerned with our alarming rate of errors (both mental and physical) in the last two weeks. It seems the team doesn’t have an edge and lacks focus at the worst possible times." [Brandon Eddy, Metsblog]

• Though the Mets are getting on-base at a nice clip (.362), they aren't driving those runners home. [Baseball Crank]

• An examination of the worst view at Citi Field, the Mets new home.  It's obstructed, yet unobstructed. [The Mets Police]

• "Sure it’s a big series but I think it’s to the Mets benefit that they are playing in Philly since they are so concerned about fan reaction. Remember the words of Bobby Knight, 'when you start listening to the people in the stands, you end up joining them'. It seems that it’s not a lack of focus with the Mets but misplaced focus that is doing them in." [The Eddie Kranepool Society]

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