Video: Can Howard and Utley save the Phillies?
Video: Will Ryan Howard and Chase Utley rescue the Phillies? Matt Gelb and Bob Brookover of the Inquirer join David Murphy of the Daily News to discuss the odds of salvation in the latest episode of "That's Baseball."
Video: Can Howard and Utley save the Phillies?
Philly.com Staff
Video: Will Ryan Howard and Chase Utley rescue the Phillies? Matt Gelb and Bob Brookover of the Inquirer join David Murphy of the Daily News to discuss the odds of salvation in the latest episode of "That's Baseball."
Comments (86)
Could happen if they actually were playing but ...... ???— shawnmac- The CARDINALs starting pitching is NOT nearly as good the Phillies - although it's not bad--- and they lost Pujols. They' are in first place with the best record in NL. How come there has been no drop off there? ANSWER compare La Russa vs Cholly.— wxdavid
- Hate to tell you but LaRussa retired after last season. — jburd641
- was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?
who logs you on, wxdavid?
Philadelphia, home of some of the smartest fans in sports!— ekw555 - The only way you get a healthy Howard and Utley is if you break out the DeLorean and go back to 2007.— Bobphxville
- The only way you will know if they come back healthy and the Phillies are thru is "Go Back To The Future" and grab yourself another copy of that sports almanac. "See You In September", we can compare notes.
— DUDESKINS - The very premise of this question is absurd. It is true that the loss of players like Howard and Utley who at full power and health will give you 70 HRs and 200 RBIs is significant. One could make the case that any team that loses that much power for half a season or a full season is going to struggle. The problem is that since 2008 when the Phillies scored 848 runs... those had been in a huge decline. Even if Howard & Utley comeback they will not be at full strength... and the 2012 may not socre 640 runs this season. The 2010 NLCS and the 2011 NLDS show that if the Phillies not hitting the long ball they do not know how to push across one run... Whereas the Giants under Bochy and the cardinals under La Russa CAN and DID in every single postseason game against the Phillies.. The simple fact is that the Phillies were l built for power but ow they do not have that power ....so they have to play " small ball" ... which means that the manager has to get involved. Manuel is a dope. Anybody who saw the games vs the Nationals and the Mets had to have been stunned by some the idiotic managerial moves of Cholly. And this really becomes noticeable in the postseason when superior managers such as Bochy and La Russa outfox and outthink and out manage Manuel in every way
— wxdavid - No, a revamped bullpen will help the team.— Bruno Sammartino
- Howard and Utley are no longer hitting stars. Throw junk to Howard and he Ks. Throw balls to Utley and he Ks. He was named Chase without reason.— 4thand10
- What a stupid premise. Utley is shot and the Nose is a strike out machine.— Wilhelm Von Humboldt
- La Russa retired. Next— dconnor38
- "Fire Charlie!"— Rutgers82
- Thank you dconner, some people don't think before they post...— PhilliefaninAZ
- Videos don't work for me on this website. Adverts do. So that's fun.— jthyron
- One player does not a team make; or even 2 players. Who knows whether or not Howard or Utley will ever regain their previous form.
To: wxdavid, Just to inform you, Larussa is no longer the Cardinal's manager.— oneway - I think Charlie has to go but the sad part is, this season I find hard to blame on Charlie. The bullpen is the worst in the NL and they have no bats. Still, it's time for some new blood.— jburd641
- Absolutely not much better or rescued with Howard and Utley, and anyone who thinks that is like Manuel and lives in the past! Only need to look at the significant and consistent decline in numbers over the years even with these guys in the line-up since the World Series. They need new, younger bats and management with completely new and unbiased, historical thinking. Manuel is way too loyal and living in the past. Look at how he keeps putting arollins at lead off. He is worst lead off hitter in baseball at 227 BA and his numbers have declined significantly since MVP year. They are at best, mediocre with the offense they have--even with Howard and Utley.— cu2ny
- Utley and Howard are hardly super anymore. Howard is putting up about 67% of the numbers he did when he landed his big fat extension, Utley far less. Still they would be a big improvement over Galvis and whoever is at first that day.— lazyboy
- Howard and Utley should start there application for Medicaid now. All the talk from Amaro is a farce.— tulsaphil
- Both of them are now on the diminishing returns side of the production ledger. Phillies should release Utley and try to move Howard at the deadline. However, no confidence in Amaro to get any good return back for Howard.— muckets
- Maybe Utley will never be the player he was, because this is now a recurring injury. Howard, if he returns healthy, is still among the very best RBI producers in MLB. From the time he came up in his rookie sason until the end of last season who drove in more runs? Pujols? ARod? NOBODY!!!! Jimmy Rollins is right about you bandwagon fans.— Paul SoTX
- WXDavid ... agree with some of your stuff. hang in there.
Re: Small ball........
I say small ball, shmall ball ...doesn't work. And outside a very few special seasons (82 cards) doesn't score a lot of runs.
FYI ... Phillies outscored SF 20-19 in 2010. SF small ball produced 3.17 runs per game.
Phillies outscored StLouis 21-19 in 2011. STL small ball produced 3.8 runs per game.
Current Phils Small ball is producing 3.94 Runs per game. That's about what you get if ya can't go yard once in a while.
Currently, the LaRussa-less, small-ball-NOT, Cards lead the National League in HomeRuns. Primarily because their high priced power hitters are not hurt.— zubzub - The blame is on Charlie and Amaro.
Amaro is to blame for selecting this bench and failure to realize the condition of the mystery twins. Also for the con job he fell for with Rollins contract for more than 1 year.
Manuel's failure to organize the bull pen and his constant lineup changes.
— tulsaphil - From the sounds of it, neither Howard nor Utley will be back soon. Want to be optimistic? Howard's back by mid-June and Utley's career isn't over. I'm not Johnny Raincloud but this may simply be a lost season with two crippling injuries, a jumbled bullpen, left-field platoon that hasn't met its potential, etc. What do we do? Be grateful for the run we just had -- and plan for 2013. Hamels, Victorino, Polanco, Blanton all have trade value and are not under contract here next year. Halladay and Lee would have great trade value as would Pence. Obviosly, you don't trade everyone; the point is we have pieces of value -- and it's time to transition back to where we were in 2005 and 2006.— eman
- E - sounds about right. I will start enjoying the season moreso immediately if I lower my expectations. Words of wisdom. Nice post.
— zubzub - "Enjoying, there is no enjoying in Baseball" Don't pollute this pristine domain with that poppycock.
(disclaimer-sarcasm)— DUDESKINS - @Paul So - Who also struck out the most and was swinging at curve balls well in the dirt?......Howard— Fade2blck
- Sure!!!— pedge
- Who is less literate, Phillies fans or Flyers fans? The grammar in some of the comments on this site hurts my head. Phillies need to trade for a bat if they want to contend, but outside of Hamels, have nothing to offer.— le sigh
- No these two cannot save this team...the problem is with the bullpen and the manager.— CGPhilly
- 2006/07- Oops it's 2012. Utley is shot and is a DH at best. Howard may have something left - but comparing him to his former self is laughable. Nope - sorry - they will provide little help.— Northcountry
- Firing Charley is not the answer. I would like to see a new hitting coach GG is a great guy, but I would like to see someone like GG in the front office. Rubin Amaro is still doing a half decent job, but paying Howard more then he deserved is hurting the payroll. Howard had four great years, but he is not discipline enough at the plate, and that will be his undoing. The definition of a moron is doing the same mistake over and over, and not willing to change. Ryan will never get into the hall of fame he's to undisciplined, and refuses to play the game the right way. It's a dam shame about Ryan Howard because he has the talent. The team is getting to old, and the fill ins are sub par. I would rather have the organization bite the bullet now so we don't have to wait another 10 years to have a solid team.— philly27
- You think the Phils stink now wait to Howard returns. At least those who play first now can catch and throw the ball. Can someone tell me the BA of all who regarly played first base this season? I bet it over .251.— Borkey
- Its not Charlies fault that the bullpen has not showed up like they have been. Get rid of Kyle Cantdodik, Dirty Sanchez, Drowning Schwimmer, and the Green mile Contreras....LMAO! We need some replacements and we need them yesterday!!!! Everything else is starting to come together, well, better than it was, but the bullpen is HORRIBLE!!!!!— huntnmike3666
- "LMAO!"
The Funniest jokes are only funny when other people laugh!(LOL)— DUDESKINS - ANSWER ....N O. When Howard returns he will not be 100% he won't be healthy till the middle of next year.Chase I'm sorry to say is done.He will give as much as last season I hope.— tobyjoe
- how long will the sellout streak last?— nazblueeagles11
Comment removed.- Apparently Diekman, Valdes and Luna are coming down on Friday.— zubzub
- Diekman, Valdes and Luna, sounds like a law firm.
Here is one for the consiracy folk ; The real reason the Phillies signed Raul Ibanez, Raul Valdees, Wilson Valdez is just to confuse the fans from knowing who it really is they are complaining about. Plans are secretly underway as trade talks with S.D. for Chase Headley begin in anticipation of Chase Utley's return. This move, it is hoped, will complete the process.— DUDESKINS - wxdavid, Unless Utley and Howard can pitch in Relief, I doubt that they would help this team. Sure the Phillies might (a big Might) score more runs, but if your pen has the highest ERA in the major leagues and give up 8 runs to the Mets in 3 innings, it wouldn't matter if your lineup had: DiMaggio, Ruth, Aaron, Griffy Jr., Arod, Mays, on any of the past greats, you'd still lose.— muddpitt34
Not sure if Rubes and Monty are reading this but your not fooling anybody anymore in case you haven't noticed fans aren't buying the horse bleep your selling. You ruined this team with your pie in the skies four aces fantasy. This roster was showing signs of age well before binocular gate, that simply sealed your fate. You shoulda traded the core 3 YEARS AGO. And yes pitching does win, when you can score more than 1 run a game against good pitching and guess what you can't. Chase Utley is playing a shell game to get his salary before he announces his retirement, NEVER going to help this team again. Howard stopped progressing right around the time you gave him 120$ million reasons not to anymore. Nice guys, no longer top players in MLB. Thanks for the ring and the memories and I wish you well.- i think this team was doomed all the way back toward the end of last year, and that was WITH howard and utley. the pitching we got last year cannot be duplicated. it was so amazingly good -- it was once in a lifetime good, and that masked how terrible the offense had become. the pitching is much more average and the bull pen is the worst we've had since the early 2000s. add that to the same anemic offense -- howard and utley included -- and it's a recipe for a mediocre, .500 team.— tockeyhockey
- wow we have some uninformed readers here, first larousa is working for mlb not the cardinals and the japs bombed pearl harbor not the germans. But the point is valid chally is not a good coach and never has been, what he is good at is being loyal to his vets. I say get rid of all the garbage on the team. chally, his progical son, and the defector is a nice start, loike to see what ryno can do with this guys.— wildgreenman
- I knew a girl named Pearl once, man, she was no joke! — DUDESKINS
- Comment removed.
- "even a Ted Williams or a Babe Ruth wouldn't be able to rescue them. We need to get real here and Amaro is playing us all for jerks if he thinks we believe this B.S."
The Babe is in Gate of Heaven Cemetery in New York since 1948 R.I.P. and Ted Williams Head is frozen in a Jar somewhere. Tasteless ,sure it is, but a fitting response. These guys really are thru and you can believe it, its not B.S.
— DUDESKINS - Can they help? Sure they can help but nothing is certain. Howard has been knocking in 120 RBIs every full season. Ryan also has been declining to some degree. Part is he goes out of the strike zone (per Baseball America) and during the times he goes out of zone he is a below 200 hitter. The same with Pujols. If Howard can reduce this he can get back to his first 3 seasons. Utley because of his health issues is more problematical. Then again everyone was saying adios to Jeter last year. As a fan we can hope fo the best.— Don w
- The Phils had the lead in all 3 Mets games and lost them all. Bullpen is the problem right now. Next week it will probably be the hitting. The following week it will probably be Charlie's bad decisions. Utley probably won't play and Howard who knows how he will perform after injury. The Phils will be sellers in July. See no other way to improve in the future.— Pap
- Utley is done. and Howard will be slower than slow. Teams can play him halfway to outfield now and still get him out at first.bring back Gillick and rail out of town wade and amaro— sammydelphia
- I hoped for the best but does anyone really believe Utley is coming back as an everyday player let alone an impact player? As Bob Dylan said, "It's not dark yet but it's getting there." At least Ryne could help.— TomO
- Add Stevie Wonder to the bullpen staff. It would be an upgrade.
I can see ole' Stevie now...out there on the mound, head wobbling back & forth and delivering a pitch to Brian Bowker Schneider which is more accurate than anybody on the current Phillies bullpen staff.— kelprod2 - A healthy Howard and Utley would save the Phillies (or at least help A LOT). BUT, Howard won't be fully healthy until next year and Utley may never be healthy again. So, no, don't expect any saving this year.— kmillerwdc
- Only addition of Kemp and Hamilton could save this season. May also need Strassburg.— 4thand10
- no one can save the phillies..not even the lord,,they re doomed for the next 5 to 10 years— hardball
- no one can save the phillies..not even the lord,,they re doomed for the next 5 to 10 years— hardball
- The "lord" can't save the Phillies?? I'm pretty sure if the lord gave a hoot about the Phillies that he could save them. For example, the lord could have made it rain really hard immediately after the 6th inning last night.
Sorry, hardball. You just don't know much about baseball.— zubzub - You cured me and back then you weren't even scary. — DUDESKINS
- Well, let's see. Utley can't play defense, a huge part of his game, and even when he is better, his knees will immediately regress once he starts playing every day. Howard has always had a hard time getting rolling, and as a big guy, if his trunk isn't right, he won't be able to hit with power. Both players are closer to 35 than 30. I'd love to see me some vintage Utley & Howard this summer, but these guys are showing all the signs of aging like beer and not like wine. Please, let me be wrong...— Bobby G
- No they won't help. Their best days are long past.
Even in last few years,Ryan was and always will be a strike-out machine.Pitchers have no trouble geetin him out when they have to.
30-35 meaningless home runs a year.— Eaglejay - My head hurts reading all these comments, about as much as it hurts watching the current homestand. No one could foresee the injuries this team has had, even given the age of the players. If any other team in MLB had these injuries to this many guys and two of their core players out long term, the results would be the same. Sadly, as I have said for a long time, professional athletes who get their fame and glory or just money, don't have a reason to play up to or above their full potential anymore. Too many multi year contracts for $$$$$ millions have led to team wide lethargy. Put a lot of career minor leaguers, a few castoffs and a couple of hungry vets and you should get a winner. Just seems like every button Amaro pushed this offseason has backfired in some way. Don't see this season getting any better, and just wonder at what point Cole will break off negotiations and Doc and Lee will waive their no trade clauses? There could be a small mutiny coming soon, the seas, they are a boiling........and oh yeah....could somebody please by Billmyer a new small inconspicuous pair of binoculars?— Mark1npt
- I'm sorry but so many people have such short memories. Without the key threat which is Howard, any pitcher has no reason to pitch to anyone. Ryan Howard was 10 RBI behind the MLB leader, Matt Kemp, last year. Ryan Howard had 116 RBI. Matt Kemp 126. Eff the strikeouts. Stop with the strikeouts. Consider the threat that the opposing pitcher has to face just knowing that Howard is up at bat that inning. Come on. Consider the nature of the game. Howard is the key to this entire lineup. Change your thinking. Amaro didn't prepare for this and I'm just as p!$$ed as everyone else. It is what it is. Howard strikes out. He gets runs in. Without him we're cooked. In the line up, we have a punchers chance. Be game smarter than a Boston fan and don't look for the homerun. Be smarter than the New York fan and don't look at the averages. 116 RBI last year. Pitchers have to throw to the 3 and 5 hole hitters with Howard in the lineup. They can pitch around everyone in this lineup. Consider the game.— BudSelig_isthenext_MrBurns
- can utley play the outfield or first base?— garyp
- I agree with those who say it's the manager. He has one strength -- keeping calm. But he makes horrible game decisions. Late in the first game against the Mets -- letting Mayberry go up there swinging, and he does nothing; letting Galvis hit when he has Orr (and maybe Nix) to pinch hit, and he does nothing. There were much better choices in both cases. You have to make the moves to win the game you're playing, and he doesn't do that. It's been like that for years. Enough!— bartoron
- The clean up position in the line-up for the Phillies is on a pace to drive in 118 runs in 2012. The first base position is hitting .305/.364/.449 with an .813 OPS. That's virtually equivalent to what Howard ended up with last year, which makes two points: 1. Howard won't represent significant improvement even if he miraculously replicates last year's form and 2. for all you sabermetric cynics who are skeptical that Howard's WAR is always so low, there you go. An ordinary gang of replacement players have been able to deliver essentially the same production Howard brings you. You go through more food and with 3-or-4 guys, but far, far less money than what Amaro decided to pay Howard.— jtj10
- jtj10 - I agree. Wigginton and Nix are providing plenty of offense, and Juan Pierre is a useful addition. After the erratic start, the offense has turned out to be fine. That is not the problem. The problem is that night after night, the managing choices late in games, whether about pitching or hitting, are costing us games.— bartoron
- Hey Mactool, Nats win again!— seth169
- NO & NO. Utley and Howard can NOT save the PHILLIES. Their production was declining even before the injuries. One can only imagine how productive they will be after suffering serious injuries and getting even closer to 40 years old. It's over BOYZ................Time to start rebuilding Rube!— cleusner
- did not know germans bombed pearl harbor when did that happen? it certainly was not 1941 as for howard and utley returning they are older now and oft injured don't expect balls to land in the upper deck in right center field regularly this is not 2005-2009 deal with it.— only 9
- and on the 4th day, the Phils rested .. and did not lose ... and the omniscient warbiscuit could not gloat and tell everyone how he was proven right in his amazing prophesy that Ruben Amaro's method of acquiring a multitude of bad baseball players would indeed result in a bad baseball team becuase indeed such is the natural law— warbiscuit
- Damn it, Biscuit. I said Boo ! — zubzub
- "and on the 4th day, the Phils rested .. and did not lose ... and the omniscient warbiscuit could not gloat and tell everyone how he was proven right in his amazing prophesy"
Tell us that one again about Johna and the whale, remember, where the the whale swallowed up Reuben? One of your golden oldies. Hang on brother, the wagon is on the way. Those men in the white coats, they are guardian angels. GEEEZ
— DUDESKINS - a bunch of kids, aided and abetted by a really sound coach (who himself was once an all-star), just demonstrated that believing in themselves, hustling their tucheses off and overcoming their adolescent-like mistakes can power a team to the second tier of playoffs. what a contrast to the fumblinmg, bumbling, aging, tired, overpaid lot we're discussing here.— bubba church & granny hamner
- Three big ifs: If Howard and Utley are able to come back, if they straighten out the wretched bullpen and if they are able to stay within striking distance of at least a wild card by August, they have a chance. Unfortunately, those are three very big ifs.— Dragon13
- I am so glad my cousins up north are wasting money buying tickets and jerseys to see these fools play.— sammydelphia
- NO— Phil Lee
- Do people even follow the players. Howard went from a 45/145 monster to a 32/110 good power bat. He's particularly good at hitting bad pitchers which is an important skill during the season and completely irrelevant in the playoffs. Of course he will help, and Utley at 50% is still 200% better than Galvis so he will add depth to the lineup as well. I see the Phils winning a lot of games once those two are back if only because other teams are not nearly as good as their records indicate. Now the question is when will they be back? July is probably too late.— lazyboy
- Time for new management— bowski222
- Comment removed.
- Hey all, who needs Utley/Howard...when John Mayberry Jr. has as many HR's as Albert Pujols. Come on now...and a lot cheaper than Prince Albert too...lol— drhoffman
- As much as I like Chase, he won't be anything more than a pinch hitter the next two years. His knees are shot.— workin365
- NO! And I'll say it again. NO! For those of you who think Yes. Keep Dreaming!— Grapost
- According to ESPN, Hamels & Victorino will be traded by July trading deadline since talks to resign either have totally stalled and both think the winning days are over in Philly. Looks like a youth movement in the works. Means Charlie has to go before his contract ends in 2013.— sonnybuoy01
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