Young Phillies fans willing to be patient | Marcus Hayes
GM Matt Klentak knows it will take time for his team to become a contender, and so do the fans he wants to court.
MATT KLENTAK knows his audience.
Friday was his second home opener as Phillies general manager. He is the archetype of the new-age executive: young (36), Ivy (Dartmouth), fully committed to analytics and building with fresh, cheap talent. This archetype immerses itself in a process and hopes it will eventually bear fruit, even if that means massive changes over and over. For the third consecutive season the Phillies have replaced more than half of 25-man their roster from the previous home opener.
Asked Monday when the Phillies might show a semblance of stability, Klentak replied:
"Who knows?"
Asked Monday whether such a response was kosher with them, a pair of 24-year olds essentially replied:
"Who cares?"
It was a wise and proper response, and one to which sports fans in Philadelphia have become accustomed. Traditionally obsessed with winning at any cost, the Flyers are now waiting for a crop of young players to develop. Jeffrey Lurie acknowledged recently that his Eagles must be patient for a few seasons. And, of course, the Sixers are the Pennsylvania Turnpike of franchises: always under construction.
Even so, the Phillies, whose 2008 title is the most recent in town, clearly are furthest from relevance. That didn't bother Eric Shields, from Norwood, Pa., or his buddy Jeff Brooks, from Broomall, Pa. They're all-in with the citywide makeover, and they're the precise demographic the Phillies are hope to attract and retain.
"We're not looking for a World Series this year," said Shields, his long hair flying in the wind as he pulled another craft beer from a cooler on the tailgate of his pickup truck. "We're not looking for a World Series next year."
That's good, because there's no World Series on the Phillies' horizon. A quick pregame canvas of the parking lots around Citizens Bank Park revealed that Shields and Brooks seemed typical of the wait-and-hope atmosphere in Philly. The next title might come thanks to Carson Wentz or Joel Embiid or Ivan Provorov or . . . who, exactly?
"I'm all for trading J.P. Crawford and Nick Williams for Mike Trout," Shields said. "As long as they can sign him to an extension."
"Yeah," said Brooks from the depths of his Penn State hoodie. "Or bringing in Bryce Harper. Or that third baseman in Baltimore, Manny Machado."
Indeed, Klentak said that, at the right moment, the Phillies ownership would be willing to trade for an expensive, talented player. Trout, 25, fits that description. He is in the third season of a six-year, $144 million deal and might be underpaid, considering he won two of the last three American League MVP awards.
Klentak said ownership is willing to eventually sign a big-name free agent, too, which would mesh nicely with the talent expected to come free after the 2018 season. Any suitor might need more than $400 million to land Harper, 24, who won the 2015 NL MVP and popped a two-run homer in the Nationals' 7-6 win over the Phillies on Friday. It might take just as much money to land Machado, 24, who is a three-time All Star.
"That time is coming," Klentak promised. "It's a matter of whether it's this coming offseason, or the following year. And it's not limited to free agency. We could just as easily make an investment in the form of a trade, acquiring a big contract. That time's coming."
And so the fans bide their time, monitor the progress of the prospects and witness the development of the young big-leaguers, such as starters Jerad Eickoff, who pitched well Wednesday in Cincinnati; Vince Velasquez, 23, who Friday struck out 10 batters in four innings . . . and also gave up four runs; and Aaron Nola, 23, who on Saturday pitches for the first time since July, when an elbow injury ended what would have been his first full season. They see Freddy Galvis and Aaron Altherr hit two-run homers, and they hope for the best.
Shields, who wears a No. 37 T-shirt with the phonetic spelling of All Star centerfielder Odubel ("OHDOOBULL") Herrera on the back, knows the system like the back of his calf, which carries an 8-inch skull-and-top hat tattoo. He knows that Crawford, a shortstop, and Williams, an outfielder, both might get promoted from Triple A before long. He believes Galvis has a good enough glove to stay in the lineup no matter what. He's OK if the Phillies move Maikel Franco from third base to first if they eventually land Machado, and he knows that would mean the end for second-year slugger Tommy Joseph and Triple A first baseman Rhys Hoskins.
He doesn't know that it would take a lot more than Crawford and Williams to land Trout, but that's not the point; the point is that he, and legions like him, are invested in Klentak's plan.
For the moment, anyway.
"I was in 10th grade when the Phillies won the World Series," Brooks said. "It's been a while."
"I've got friends in Boston who talk about going to (10) parades in (15) years," Shields said.
"Yeah," said Brooks, sobered. He did the math.
"I've been to one parade in 24 years."
@inkstainedretch