SCORES TWICE AFTER A PUCK TO THE FACE
Awards are dumb. MVP and Rookie of the Year are particularly dumb. At least the dumb Cy Young Award compares people who do the same job. But in weighing J.A. Happ versus Chris Coghlan versus Tommy Hanson versus Garrett Jones versus Andrew McCutchen, how do you compare a talented outfielder to a talented pitcher, anyway? That is just one of many reasons why I do not, and will never, vote for athletic awards.
The news today is that Coghlan beat Happ (and the others) for N.L. ROY. I don’t care, and I don’t recommend that you get bothered over it (caveat--the players care, and there is nothing wrong with that; it always feels good to be recognized, whether or not the award is dumb. Philly.com could give me the Pointless Post of the Day Award, and I'd probably feel all good about myself for a few hours).
But here’s the only important thing for baseball fans: All of these players will likely be fun and interesting to watch for several years. They are all talented, in different ways. They are all fun to watch, and they all deserve praise for strong performances in 2009. Why this annual need to categorize people with fuzzily-defined awards?
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The Phillies did some maneuvering of their 40-man roster today, removing utilityman Eric Bruntlett, RHP Tyler Walker, C Paul Hoover, INF Andy Tracy and RHP John Ennis. All are free agents.
If Bruntlett’s time in Philly is over—and he has seemed headed out of town for a while now--the Phillies Zone wishes him luck. A good guy, and scary smart (he holds a degree in economics from Stanford University, and scored a 1440 on his SATs), Bruntlett kept his on-field struggles in perspective this year, and always handled them with class.
Now, the Phils continue their search for a upgrade at the utility position—something that is increasingly essential, as Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins settle into baseball middle age and require more rest.
Bob Brookover and Matt Gelb team up for their third straight season covering the Phillies for the Inquirer and philly.com.
This is Brookover’s second stint writing about the Phillies, having joined the coverage team after seven years as an Eagles beat writer. Brookover was hired by The Inquirer in 2000 as the Phillies beat writer after spending 13 years writing about the team for two suburban newspapers. While on the Eagles beat, Brookover, who had covered just two winning Phillies teams in 15 seasons, saw the Phillies move into a cash-cow new ballpark and begin playing a brand of the game he found unrecognizable. Follow him on Twitter here.
Gelb is in his third season covering the Phillies. He was hired by The Inquirer in August 2009 after graduating from Syracuse University. He has also covered baseball at The Star-Ledger and Cape Cod Times. Born and raised in Bucks County, he attended Central Bucks High School West. Follow him on Twitter here.
To submit a question for Matt Gelb's Phillies mailbag, click here.
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