After two trades, Phillies still lacking power
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After two trades, Phillies still lacking power
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
He filled two holes in a lineup with many, so naturally, the question for Ruben Amaro Jr. was, "What else?"
Ben Revere and Michael Young certainly fill needs. How well, no one is sure. But that duo combined for eight home runs in 2012 and did not regularly hit for extra bases.
"We'd love to add more home runs," Amaro said. "But for me, again, it's about production. If we can produce runs – and I know that Ben can and I know that Michael can – and we have to get production out of the middle of our lineup. The guys we've paid to produce those runs. If we can get complementary [production] from Ben and Michael and get the kind of production we expect out of Ryan [Howard] and Chase [Utley], I think we're going to be fine."
Still, the overwhelming feeling is the Phillies are far from done. Not with the myriad questions in their outfield and a bounty of money to be spent.
Here is the 2012 Phillies' power production broken down by position with National League ranks in parentheses:
| POS | HR | SLG |
| C | 24 (3d) | .497 (1st) |
| 1B | 27 (4th) | .415 (11th) |
| 2B | 17 (5th) | .411 (2d) |
| 3B | 5 (16th) | .357 (15th) |
| SS | 23 (3d) | .413 (6th) |
| LF | 13 (11th) | .420 (10th) |
| CF | 16 (7th) | .412 (8th) |
| RF | 23 (7th) | .411 (11th) |
What is most interesting are the low ranks in slugging percentage at first base, third base, left field and right field. The corners are where power hitters traditionally reside. Up the middle, the Phillies were about as strong as possible.
The Phillies subtract this:
Shane Victorino: 9 HR, .401 SLG (431 PA)
Hunter Pence: 17 HR, .447 SLG (440 PA)
Placido Polanco: 2 HR, .327 SLG (328 PA)
Ty Wigginton: 11 HR, .375 SLG (360 PA)
Juan Pierre: 1 HR, .371 SLG (439 PA)
Jim Thome: 5 HR, .516 SLG (71 PA)
And what they've added, so far:
Ben Revere: 0 HR, .342 SLG (553 PA)
Michael Young: 8 HR, .370 SLG (651 PA)
The numbers from Carlos Ruiz and Erik Kratz were among the league's best. And, again, it's difficult to assume a repeat performance. Ruiz will miss the first 25 games due to suspension. He produced career-high figures in nearly every offensive category. Kratz wore down late in the season and still has plenty to prove.
Yes, there should be better production from first base in 2013. Remember, though, Howard's slugging percentage has declined in each of the last four seasons. There were red flags before the Achilles injury. Still, he did not play at 100 percent strength last season and the dip in slugging was was 65 points from 2011. There should be some normalization there.
Second base is a crapshoot, and that needs no further explanation.
It's difficult to do worse offensively at third base than the Phillies did in 2012. But notice that Young's numbers from 2012 do not represent a massive upgrade there. That is, unless Young recaptures his power stroke from seasons before.
Jimmy Rollins was one of the most productive shortstops in terms of power last season. He hit his most home runs (23) since 2009 and posted his highest slugging percentage since 2008. The Phillies will need a repeat performance.
The outfield was already in the bottom half of the league in slugging percentage even with four months of Victorino and Pence. Revere has never hit a major-league home run and has a career .323 slugging percentage. So assume centerfield will be near the bottom of the league in both categories for 2013.
And that leaves us with the holes in left and right field. They are the only positions where Amaro can seek an upgrade, and are traditionally power spots in a lineup. Take three available free agents for example:
THREE-YEAR AVERAGES (2010-12)
Josh Hamilton: 33 HR, .583 SLG (582 PA)
Nick Swisher: 25 HR, .478 SLG (631 PA)
Cody Ross: 17 HR, .434 SLG (519 PA)
The Phillies figure to sign one of the aforementioned. They have approximately $20 million (in average annual value) of payroll to spend. They have already traded away four chips from a deep pitching stable. Now it's time to spend money.
They have long been connected to Ross, the demon from October 2010. (Remember that time the Giants barely won a waiver claim?) They are not said to fancy Swisher, perhaps because of his price. That could change.
Hamilton is the white whale. He is seeking a long-term deal out of the Phillies range, but those demands could lower given the lack of a market for the enigmatic slugger. Amaro briefly showed what he thinks of Hamilton last week. With their payroll flexibility, the Phillies could offer Hamilton a short-term, high-value contract.
It fits Amaro's penchant for a big splash. Hamilton's agent, Michael Moye, is among the most private in the business. His client may not be the ideal target, but there is most definitely a fit.
No, the Phillies do not need home runs to win. They need production, as Amaro terms it, and even after two trades it is still lacking.
Have a question? Send it to Matt Gelb's Mailbag.
- LOL, hey dopey idiot there are 2 NL teams with better odds to win the WS. Don't let the facts get in the way of your stupidity. Dopey tool
— DogBiscuitthedope - When the ESPN rankings come out, there will be at least 5 or 6 NL teams raked ahead of the Phillies ... unless Rube-the-Boob trades even more prospects (do we even have any left??) for a couple of real starting OFers, a pitcher for the 8th inning, 4th and 5th starters, some team leaders, and some decent bench players. Oh - and he might need a manager with a functioning brain. — Copper34
- Also, if the Michael Young deal is to be a stopgap for Cody Asche.... why not just not Youk to the one year deal he is looking for? Then you didn't have to give away Bonilla who was rock solid last year as a reliever. I understand the Phils have a lot of pitching talent in the minors... but that doesn't mean you need to needlessly throw some of it away. I really hope Worley/May/Bonilla don't end up being impact pitchers in the majors. A solid 3/4/5 starter in a rotation (at an economical price) is a prized commodity that should not be discounted.— bdd5014
- the fact that someone remembers the trade of ronny paulino for jack tashner, much less lists it among mistakes made by a gm, is just troubling on several levels.
by the way, he got a 50 game suspension in 2010- thats about all that "valuable" catcher has in common with Chooch.— jim715 
Funny stuff here. After the 2007 season, Patt Gillick made some moves.
1-He signed a .250 33 year old third baseman
2-He traded Michael Bourn for a relief pitcher who just lost his closer job
3-He gave the right field job to Geoff Jenkins and a journeyman 28 year old named Werth
4-He let Rowand go after a GG and all-star season
5-He let Lohse go and kept Eaton
Yes, in hindsight everyone thinks him a genius. But at the time, seriously, did anyone really, really think a WS was a-comin?
Point is, ya can't put together the perfect team and ya can't win a WS on paper.— zubzub- Funny stuff there. Pat Gilick won 3 championships, and re-built 4 teams into championship caliber --while making many errors and many brilliant moves...comparing a cluless imbecile and the dumbest g.m. in baseball to a Hall of Famer like Gillick is like comparing Mike Martinez to Roberto Alomar— warbiscuit
- You mean the same Gillick that is an employed advisor of the Phillies? Dopey moronic tool — DogBiscuitthedope
- Here is where the obsession with power gets us: 6th inning, Phillies down by 1. 1 out men on first and second. Every batter swings for the fences with every swing. The best we get is a limp pop up, the worst we get is a double play. Not one of them gets a hit or even moves the runner let alone scores one. That is where the obsession with power gets you. Think Jimmy, Shane, and Pence in all of these situations.— flyersj1978
- Howard's contract remains the biggest anchor around the Phillies' neck. He will continue to diminish his productivity. The Phillies are on the hook for $128M more dollars (including his $10M buyout in 2018) over the next 5 seasons. Talk about buyer's remorse. Jeez, what a horrible deal that is. To get back into contention, they need to acquire two of the three mentioned players and Hamilton must be one of them. Their lack of hitting has primarily caused their decline since 2010. They've always had very effective pitching and still do.— joemotrucks
- on what evidence? does baseball or reality ever enter into your decision making or is it just reflexive hyperbole?
- @joemotrucks --your basic premise is correct, but before some morons jump on you for your inaccuracy, please note that Phils are currently on hook for a minimum of $105 million on the Howard contract over next 4 yrs (2013 $20mil, 2014-16 $25 mil. each, buyout of $10mil) (note: I'll list 40 things, and someone will point out his issue with 1 of then, as if that disproves every other point made...)— warbiscuit
- @DogBiscuitthedope, you really like to rag on @warbiscuit, don't you, LOL? He really does incoherently rant and ramble about nonsense most of the time, so I generally tune him out. How can one person be so wrong about so many things so often? I think it's funny how you "hound" him.— joemotrucks
- @warbiscuit, good point, thanks for the clarification. One thing Rube did well is extend Hamels for 6 years last season based on what Greinke got from Dodgers.— joemotrucks
- In any case, let's hope that Rube isn't done with his signings and that he adds a few more good parts to get the team relevant and contending once again.— joemotrucks
- @warbiscuit's list of 40 things is pretty impressive. In fairness, Rube's done some good, which cannot be denied. However, he sure has had his share of miscues that resultd in the team regressing.— joemotrucks
