Hey Charlie, World Series win in 2012
CHARLIE MANUEL had already talked for nearly a half-hour. He had answered questions about how his hitters had again disappeared in the playoffs.
CHARLIE MANUEL had already talked for nearly a half-hour.
He had answered questions about how his hitters had again disappeared in the playoffs.
He had addressed the biting offensive assessment delivered Tuesday by general manager Ruben Amaro Jr.
By the time the Phillies' media-relations people had decided to cut things off, Manuel had discussed his aging lineup, leadership in the clubhouse, players listening to him, Jimmy Rollins, John Mayberry Jr. and every other thing about this lost season that held such promise but ended in such disappointment.
He even apologized to a region still reeling in disbelief that the Phillies won't be holding a World Series parade down Broad Street in a couple of weeks.
"Our expectations coming out of spring training, we wanted to win the World Series," he said. "That was our ultimate goal.
"Baseball is a game [in which] you're asking a whole lot when you say we gotta win a World Series. That's high stakes. With the talent assembled on our team, people and the media put expectations that we had to win the World Series. It didn't happen . . . I'm sorry for that."
I'm not sure that Manuel needed to apologize repeatedly for not winning a World Series. Sports is arbitrary like that. A championship is never guaranteed. But that doesn't mean that any of the expectations for the Phillies were wrong.
Even in hindsight, even after the flaws of this team were displayed throughout the season and exploited by the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLDS, nothing about the goal for this team was understated.
In Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt, this team assembled one of the greatest starting rotations in the history of baseball.
It had a lineup that featured two former NL MVPs and five All-Stars. It added a sixth All-Star when it traded for rightfielder Hunter Pence.
Nobody was wrong for believing this team was going to win the 2011 World Series.
It didn't happen, and that will lead to an intriguing offseason of necessary tweaks and changes.
There are serious issues to address with an offense that has been all-or-nothing the last two seasons.
There are free-agent decisions to be made with closer Ryan Madson and shortstop Jimmy Rollins.
There are upgrades that must be made.
So what should that change about the expectations for 2012?
Not a thing.
Next year, the Phillies will be coming out of spring training with the same expectation: to win the World Series.
Why should it be different?
Obviously, the sting of the NLDS loss is the freshest thing in everyone's mind, but this team did win 102 games.
No, that does not limit the disappointment or somehow make it a successful season. This team was supposed to win the World Series and didn't. Nothing can change that.
But that doesn't mean the opportunity to win a championship is gone.
This wasn't a one-shot deal.
The fortunes of this team were hitched to a dynamite starting rotation.
Even if the option on Oswalt's contract is not picked up, Halladay, Lee and Hamels still give the rotation a top three that every team will envy.
"Our pitching was even better than what I thought it would be," Manuel said. "Pitching covered over some of our mistakes."
The offense obviously will be the issue - just as it has been the last 2 years. Age and/or injury resulted in the decline of the core of this batting order.
"We're talking about guys anywhere from 31 to 34 years old," Manuel said. "That's at the backside of their career, but still near the top of what their production should be.
"Being healthy and being on the field is going to take care of a lot of things."
I can't get with the notion offered by Amaro and Manuel threw out that, "if healthy," guys such as Chase Utley, Shane Victorino, Placido Polanco and even Ryan Howard can be .300 hitters again because they have been in the past.
I don't think you can talk lifelong free swingers into suddenly becoming cerebral at the plate.
Still, this team didn't win all of those 102 games by scores of 2-1 or 1-0.
Up until that Game 5 loss to St. Louis, the formula the Phillies developed for winning the World Series worked.
Some upgrades are needed, but the basic plan still will be in place next season.
"Absolutely not," Manuel said when asked whether the expectations for 2012 should be lowered. "That's the way I like it.
"When we go to spring training, what we will be talking about is getting to the World Series and win."
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