Game 51: Brown sits again, but Manuel endorses him
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Game 51: Brown sits again, but Manuel endorses him
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
NEW YORK -- A week from today, the Phillies will have an interesting roster move to make. If all goes well in Shane Victorino's rehab from a strained right hamstring, he will be activated June 3.
The question is, who goes?
At first glance, Michael Martinez makes sense. The Rule 5 pick has stuck around this long without any overwhelming performance. If he clears waivers, the Phillies must offer him back to the Washington Nationals for $25,000.
But if Martinez goes, that puts six outfielders on the 25-man roster. (We are counting Ross Gload as an outfielder even though he can play first. But we're not even sure how much time in the field Gload can handle with his hip injury.) That means Wilson Valdez is the only backup infielder.
If the Phillies want Chase Utley to have regular rest, Valdez would start and that leaves no other infielders available without Martinez.
Both Domonic Brown and John Mayberry Jr. have options remaining. Brown is sitting again Friday with another lefthanded starter on the mound and the Phillies are scheduled to face two more lefties in the next five days.
Brown had an impressive Thursday, going 2 for 4 with a double, single and a walk but was still held out of the lineup.
Charlie Manuel strongly hinted Brown is not going anywhere.
"First of all, we brought Domonic up here and he's going to get a chance to play," Manuel said. "We're going to get a look at him. Yeah, he has to hold his own and stuff like that. But I would never, ever send him a message that we're going to send him down, or that we're thinking about sending him down. Because I'm not thinking that way at all."
As assistant general manager Scott Proefrock pointed out, "If they're all here, somebody's not getting at-bats." By keeping Martinez, no one is losing at-bats.
Both Manuel and Rich Dubee said the team is not comfortable going with an 11-man pitching staff.
So does that mean Mayberry could go down? I'd say it's possible reading the tea leaves. This next week of games could decide a lot.
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Brad Lidge takes a big step Saturday: He will throw in his first extended spring training game. Lidge will probably need eight to 10 outings like a regular spring training before he's ready. So he's still a bit away.
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Wilson Valdez's hat from the 19-inning game is headed to Cooperstown for inclusion in the Hall of Fame's regular exhibits. That's pretty cool for a 33-year-old journeyman from the Dominican Republic who had never played more than 51 games in a season until last year.
Have a question? Send it to Matt Gelb's Mailbag.
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If Gload is still hurt, then sure, sending him to DL makes sense.
But Mayberry looks so much more polished than Brown and I'd hate to see him not get more of a chance to get his offense together. He looks great in center.— VicM- My favorite option would be getting rid of Francisco, who has shown he is not an everyday player, either offensively or defensively.
But I'm not sure he has options or that you can get much of anything for him— VicM - This question of who to send down is easy-----JOE BLANTON !!!! Unfortunately, he's on the DL. In fact, send him to the Little League affliate hen he finally recovers.— TEDcGEGI
- These are all good problems to have! We might be more stacked in the outfield this year than we were last year, even without Werth. That's a big MIGHT BE, but Mayberry and Brown are solid and could be spectacular by year's end. Ibanez and Francisco are streaky but both are capable of putting up good numbers. I think Gload to the DL makes the most sense right now. He can't play in the field and needs to be pulled for a pinch runner (Martinez tonight) for a while so DL him and give Brown + Mayberry more time to stick in the majors.
- When are they going to trade Lidge, Kedrick, Romero and improve the team? There minor league teams are fillwed with lweft handed players and few have any power. The Phils need to add scouts from Texas, Minn.Atlanta is loaded with left handed pitchers waiting for the Phils.— tulsaphil
- In case nobody noticed, Martinez sucks— xenocide72
- I simply do not understand the "love affair" with Dominic Brown at the moment. Ibanez is hot (left handed outfielder). Victorino is the center fielder. Francisco/Mayberry Jr. are a good platoon/fielding tandem. Gload is ANOTHER left hander off the bench. As good as Brown is (4 for 19), he has YET to totally dominate AAA the way he should if he is big league ready. His defense is questionable, while he still swings at really bad outside breaking pitches (I know, so does Howard, but Howard has 35-45 HR power). We all know Dom Brown will take over left/right field when Ibanez' contract is up at the end of this year. Playing with only one reserve infielder (Valdez) is tricky. The Martinez experiment has failed miserably. He can't get over the Mendoza line and is simply over matched at the plate. Lastly, if the Phillies need defense in the outfield, Scott Podsenick is a very very GOOD defensive outfielder with a good BA/speed. The goal this year is to win it all, not cultivate future talent.— drhoffman
- Put Gload on the DL. Look to move Francisco at some point, as Mayberry is a quality defensive centerfielder and can play first; Howard definitely needs a blow now and then. Brown is looking more and more comfortable, particularly at the plate. Those posters who say Brown is a bust or not ready are ridiculous; sending him down to AAA to hit .340 is a waste of time and talent.— chuckw
- The decision is Martinez!!!!!!— shawnmac
- Jayson Werth is already unhappy in Washington due to the losing.....maybe he's available at the right price!— sonnybuoy01
- It's a good point about Pence ending up overpaid. Would he really be worth the type of money he'll want? He's also less versatile defensively. I think he's pretty much just a right fielder. I've never liked the idea of trading Brown for Pence. Brown is 5 years younger and has better all-around tools. Pence, for example, is never going to have Brown's speed and be a stealing threat. Pence is definitely an upgrade over Francisco and Mayberry. I like what Mayberry's showing but he's been inconsistent so if he can show enough to have trade value I'm not against it. Francisco has pretty much shown he's not a starter. I like Ben off the bench but Gload is better. Ibanez complicates things since he'll be gone next year. Mayberry or Francisco as a bench player is fine but just one -- not 6 outfielders. Maybe that's the case for sending Mayberry down? Keep him around until next year. He would also be a September call-up.
Regardless of how you feel about Brown, I think he needs a good long look before the all-star break. Now is the time really. It's still early in the season and the Phils are winning. He needs to get a good number of major league starts so they can see what he can do. He's only played in 41 major league games.— s - It have to be one of the outfielders, either Gload to the DL, Brown to the minors or trading Francisco. Gload to the DL seems like the obvious choice from afar, but he's our best pinch hitter and he is not going to get better until he goes under the knife. Brown, regardless of what Charlie says, it's the obvious choice. He's now a platoon player and not a very good defensive player.— EL Zorro
- It has— EL Zorro
- Although Gload is the Phillies best pinch hitter, right now he uses up two players each time he gets on base, as he cannot run. He needs to go on the DL.— chuckw
- A Pence deal involving Dom Brown seems like its something that could happen. If the Phillies were to include one of their promising young minor league starting pitchers and also include maybe a guy like Mike Martinez I think a deal could be had. Pence would give the Phillies a solid righty bat who is in his prime and plays a really good all around game. Pence has burned the Phillies repeatedly in the past and the fans here would love to see him on our side. His aggressive style of play would fit perfectly with guys like Victorino and Utley who also go all out on every play. If I were Amaro, I'd keep pushing with Wade to see if a deal could be worked out to get Pence to Philly.— bradco
