OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - The Dead Zone: The Philadelphia Phillies (1984-

hillm2ca · 08-09-2019, 10:48 PM

There is some witty humor in this post. It had me laughing. QUOTE=The_Myth;4520676]Sept. 10, 1984

Before starting a series at Wrigley Field, time to make some offers to minor league coaches. Of course, that means deciding on our major league coaches’ futures, too.

Paul Owens will not be coming back to manage the Phillies in 1985. His bench coach J.P. Dissmore won’t be here, either. Since becoming hitting coach, Bobby Hagan hasn’t necessarily inspired great hitting. Then there’s Juan Casado, who’s been OK as pitching coach (we’re 4th in the NL in pitching WAR, middle of the pack in everything else, and I blame defense for some of our problems), so I may keep him on board.

Essentially, our front office has decided on an organizational philosophy built on speed and defense. If you’re not stealing bases and being aggressive on the basepaths, you’re not winning in 1984. Speed is available right now, and we have some of the best speed in baseball; meanwhile, teams aren’t prioritizing defense like they used to, and we can take advantage of it.

Down on the farm, that philosophy has to pervade, though I’d like a diversity of thought.

I know I’m ready to clean house in AAA and AA, bringing in a whole new group that stresses speed and defense but, more than anything, has reputation. Then there’s Peninsula, a successful affiliate, where manager Tim Terzic has done well while stressing power over speed. He’s very traditional, but he’s been good. If affordable, I’ll probably keep him, maybe giving him another year at Peninsula.

In R Bend, manager Nick Friedrich has done well emphasizing speed and small-ball approaches. But that’s about it; most of my coaches are old-school holdovers who prefer homers over anything. I’ll have to pick and choose.

(Also, I won’t go through all the offers I’m making; too tedious.)

Game 1984-144: Wrigley Field - Phillies 10, Cubs 1 / 62-82

Rick Reuschel allows just four hits in eight innings en route to his second win as a Phillie (he’s now 9-10 over three teams). Dave Stegman and Mike Diaz (who caught) both hit home runs, while Ivan de Jesus raps a double and a triple.

Sept. 11, 1984

Game 1984-145: Wrigley Field - Phillies 4, Cubs 3 / 63-82

Hey, no 100-loss season for us! Stegman hits a homer in his second-consecutive game, and it gives us the lead in the eighth. Jeff Stone triples again, and Juan Samuel doubles again. Good stuff. We finish the road trip 5-2.

Sept. 12, 1984

Von Hayes has been a positive in left field (+1.7 ZR, 1.011 EFF), but just to get Jeff Stone a couple more at bats, I’m going to move Hayes to right field for a couple games before the season ends. At the least I know Hayes is in left field this year. Just have to see what I have here.

Game 1984-146: Veterans Stadium - Phillies 3, Cardinals 2 / 64-82

It’s about time for us to have one of these games. Down 2-1 in the eighth, we get two runs. How? A mother-f’ing Juan Samuel walk, followed by a mother-f’ing Jeff Stone triple, followed by a mother-f’ing Mike Schmidt double. Also, Stone went 3-for-4 and is now hitting .500.

Hey - found out tonight that Peninsula took the Carolina League title! They won the series 4-2, with shortstop Ken Jackson (.474/.600/.842, 2 HR, 5 RBI) taking home MVP honors.

Also, the Reading Phillies’ season ended with a 70-70 record. Portland has another week and a half to play, but the reinforcements are heading west from Reading while a couple Beavers move up to Philly.

SS Steve Jeltz promoted to MLB Philadelphia
1B/RF Mark Funderburk promoted to MLB Philadelphia
SP Curt Young promoted to MLB Philadelphia
RP Chuck Cary promoted to MLB Philadelphia
2B/SS/3B Greg Legg promoted to AAA Portland
LF/RF Gib Siebert promoted to AAA Portland

Jeltz, who hit .242/.330/.319 with 12 SB (but also had a +9.2 ZR and 1.051 EFF) in AAA Portland, will get to start a decent number of games before the season ends. Funderburk is just going to hang out on the bench. I’ll move to a six-man rotation to give my veterans more rest and get Young a couple starts down the stretch, while Cary hopefully gets a couple innings in before we close out.

And how about a scouting report for Cary, who’s making his major league debut: He throws mostly fastball and curveball, with the charlie nearly a plus pitch (50/55). The fastball comes in at about 90 and could be less straight. He also tosses in a mediocre sinker, but it could become a decent pitch in time (40/45). His command is OK but could also use work. Essentially he’s prone to giving up some home runs, but might be able to hack it as a middle reliever right now.

Sept. 13, 1984

The kids haven’t yet arrived from Portland, but we continue on with Jeff Stone, a lefty, getting a start against a lefty, while Hayes sits for a night.

Game 1984-147: Veterans Stadium - Phillies 3, Cardinals 2 / 65-82

Seven straight wins! Stone triples again! His fourth-straight game with a triple, and now I’m begging STATS Inc. to find out if it’s a record. Mike Schmidt hits homer No. 25, too. Bad news: Steve Carlton leaves in the fifth with a thumb injury, but it’s a day-to-day ailment. No time to miss.

Sept. 14, 1984

STATS Inc. informs me Jeff Stone has broken the Phillies record for most consecutive games with a triple. The all-time MLB record is five games, set by the Pirates’ Harry Davis in 1897, and the Pirates’ Chief Wilson in 1912. So Stone is on the verge of doing something that hasn’t been done in 72 years. Hell yeah!

Game 1984-148: Veterans Stadium - Phillies 1, Expos 0 / 66-82

Our eighth-straight victory is Charles Hudson at his best: 8 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 7 K, 3 BB. Don Carman picks up his third save with a spotless ninth. As for Jeff Stone? He hit a solid gapper in the first, but it wasn’t deep enough to get him three bags. Just a double, and the only RBI of the game. And with that, we’re now a game above the Cubs, out of the NL East basement.

Meanwhile in the AL East, Detroit scored six in the eighth to fly past Toronto, 8-2, and win its fifth-straight game and 13th in its last 14. The Tigers have suddenly opened up a three-game lead over the Blue Jays, who on July 15 had a 6.5-game lead in the division. But in other news, Kansas City now has just a 2.5-game lead over Seattle, who has never reached the postseason. They’re also playing this weekend.

Sept. 15, 1984

Game 1984-149: Veterans Stadium - Expos 5, Phillies 2 / 66-83

It’s bound to happen. I let Mike Diaz play third base and bench Von Hayes, and here’s a five-hit performance from the offense. Naturally, Jeff Stone has two of the hits. Tug McGraw gives up two runs late.

After beating the Reds in Cincinnati, the Dodgers sew up the National League West division title. It’s Los Angeles’ fifth division crown in eight seasons (between 1976 and ‘83 we also won five division flags).

And in the Northwest League championship series, the Bend Phillies tied the series with a 13-0 thrashing of Bellingham.

Sept. 16, 1984

Game 1984-150: Veterans Stadium - Phillies 3, Expos 1 / 67-83

We stay hot, with John Denny going 7.2 shutout innings, striking out three. Chuck Cary’s first work (one out) is successful, while Kenneth Walker gives up a run-scoring double to Tim Raines but saves the game - his first career save. Jeff Stone watch: 1-for-2 with a walk.

And, ha, we’re 14th in the power rankings. The new top-five:

1. Detroit Tigers - 99-50
2. Pittsburgh Pirates - 90-60
3. Seattle Mariners - 86-64
4. New York Yankees - 81-68
5. Toronto Blue Jays - 94-55

The Jays are falling apart. The Tigers swept them out of Detroit and now hold a commanding five-game lead in the AL East. The Mariners are just 0.5 back of the Royals in the AL West after taking two of three against them. Coming up, Seattle has to play a bad Cleveland team and the .500 White Sox, while Kansas City faces California and Oakland, two of the worst teams in baseball.[/QUOTE]

08-09-2019, 10:48 PM	#48
hillm2ca Major Leagues Join Date: Mar 2016 Posts: 306	There is some witty humor in this post. It had me laughing. QUOTE=The_Myth;4520676]Sept. 10, 1984 Before starting a series at Wrigley Field, time to make some offers to minor league coaches. Of course, that means deciding on our major league coaches’ futures, too. Paul Owens will not be coming back to manage the Phillies in 1985. His bench coach J.P. Dissmore won’t be here, either. Since becoming hitting coach, Bobby Hagan hasn’t necessarily inspired great hitting. Then there’s Juan Casado, who’s been OK as pitching coach (we’re 4th in the NL in pitching WAR, middle of the pack in everything else, and I blame defense for some of our problems), so I may keep him on board. Essentially, our front office has decided on an organizational philosophy built on speed and defense. If you’re not stealing bases and being aggressive on the basepaths, you’re not winning in 1984. Speed is available right now, and we have some of the best speed in baseball; meanwhile, teams aren’t prioritizing defense like they used to, and we can take advantage of it. Down on the farm, that philosophy has to pervade, though I’d like a diversity of thought. I know I’m ready to clean house in AAA and AA, bringing in a whole new group that stresses speed and defense but, more than anything, has reputation. Then there’s Peninsula, a successful affiliate, where manager Tim Terzic has done well while stressing power over speed. He’s very traditional, but he’s been good. If affordable, I’ll probably keep him, maybe giving him another year at Peninsula. In R Bend, manager Nick Friedrich has done well emphasizing speed and small-ball approaches. But that’s about it; most of my coaches are old-school holdovers who prefer homers over anything. I’ll have to pick and choose. (Also, I won’t go through all the offers I’m making; too tedious.) Game 1984-144: Wrigley Field - Phillies 10, Cubs 1 / 62-82 Rick Reuschel allows just four hits in eight innings en route to his second win as a Phillie (he’s now 9-10 over three teams). Dave Stegman and Mike Diaz (who caught) both hit home runs, while Ivan de Jesus raps a double and a triple. Sept. 11, 1984 Game 1984-145: Wrigley Field - Phillies 4, Cubs 3 / 63-82 Hey, no 100-loss season for us! Stegman hits a homer in his second-consecutive game, and it gives us the lead in the eighth. Jeff Stone triples again, and Juan Samuel doubles again. Good stuff. We finish the road trip 5-2. Sept. 12, 1984 Von Hayes has been a positive in left field (+1.7 ZR, 1.011 EFF), but just to get Jeff Stone a couple more at bats, I’m going to move Hayes to right field for a couple games before the season ends. At the least I know Hayes is in left field this year. Just have to see what I have here. Game 1984-146: Veterans Stadium - Phillies 3, Cardinals 2 / 64-82 It’s about time for us to have one of these games. Down 2-1 in the eighth, we get two runs. How? A mother-f’ing Juan Samuel walk, followed by a mother-f’ing Jeff Stone triple, followed by a mother-f’ing Mike Schmidt double. Also, Stone went 3-for-4 and is now hitting .500. Hey - found out tonight that Peninsula took the Carolina League title! They won the series 4-2, with shortstop Ken Jackson (.474/.600/.842, 2 HR, 5 RBI) taking home MVP honors. Also, the Reading Phillies’ season ended with a 70-70 record. Portland has another week and a half to play, but the reinforcements are heading west from Reading while a couple Beavers move up to Philly. SS Steve Jeltz promoted to MLB Philadelphia 1B/RF Mark Funderburk promoted to MLB Philadelphia SP Curt Young promoted to MLB Philadelphia RP Chuck Cary promoted to MLB Philadelphia 2B/SS/3B Greg Legg promoted to AAA Portland LF/RF Gib Siebert promoted to AAA Portland Jeltz, who hit .242/.330/.319 with 12 SB (but also had a +9.2 ZR and 1.051 EFF) in AAA Portland, will get to start a decent number of games before the season ends. Funderburk is just going to hang out on the bench. I’ll move to a six-man rotation to give my veterans more rest and get Young a couple starts down the stretch, while Cary hopefully gets a couple innings in before we close out. And how about a scouting report for Cary, who’s making his major league debut: He throws mostly fastball and curveball, with the charlie nearly a plus pitch (50/55). The fastball comes in at about 90 and could be less straight. He also tosses in a mediocre sinker, but it could become a decent pitch in time (40/45). His command is OK but could also use work. Essentially he’s prone to giving up some home runs, but might be able to hack it as a middle reliever right now. Sept. 13, 1984 The kids haven’t yet arrived from Portland, but we continue on with Jeff Stone, a lefty, getting a start against a lefty, while Hayes sits for a night. Game 1984-147: Veterans Stadium - Phillies 3, Cardinals 2 / 65-82 Seven straight wins! Stone triples again! His fourth-straight game with a triple, and now I’m begging STATS Inc. to find out if it’s a record. Mike Schmidt hits homer No. 25, too. Bad news: Steve Carlton leaves in the fifth with a thumb injury, but it’s a day-to-day ailment. No time to miss. Sept. 14, 1984 STATS Inc. informs me Jeff Stone has broken the Phillies record for most consecutive games with a triple. The all-time MLB record is five games, set by the Pirates’ Harry Davis in 1897, and the Pirates’ Chief Wilson in 1912. So Stone is on the verge of doing something that hasn’t been done in 72 years. Hell yeah! Game 1984-148: Veterans Stadium - Phillies 1, Expos 0 / 66-82 Our eighth-straight victory is Charles Hudson at his best: 8 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 7 K, 3 BB. Don Carman picks up his third save with a spotless ninth. As for Jeff Stone? He hit a solid gapper in the first, but it wasn’t deep enough to get him three bags. Just a double, and the only RBI of the game. And with that, we’re now a game above the Cubs, out of the NL East basement. Meanwhile in the AL East, Detroit scored six in the eighth to fly past Toronto, 8-2, and win its fifth-straight game and 13th in its last 14. The Tigers have suddenly opened up a three-game lead over the Blue Jays, who on July 15 had a 6.5-game lead in the division. But in other news, Kansas City now has just a 2.5-game lead over Seattle, who has never reached the postseason. They’re also playing this weekend. Sept. 15, 1984 Game 1984-149: Veterans Stadium - Expos 5, Phillies 2 / 66-83 It’s bound to happen. I let Mike Diaz play third base and bench Von Hayes, and here’s a five-hit performance from the offense. Naturally, Jeff Stone has two of the hits. Tug McGraw gives up two runs late. After beating the Reds in Cincinnati, the Dodgers sew up the National League West division title. It’s Los Angeles’ fifth division crown in eight seasons (between 1976 and ‘83 we also won five division flags). And in the Northwest League championship series, the Bend Phillies tied the series with a 13-0 thrashing of Bellingham. Sept. 16, 1984 Game 1984-150: Veterans Stadium - Phillies 3, Expos 1 / 67-83 We stay hot, with John Denny going 7.2 shutout innings, striking out three. Chuck Cary’s first work (one out) is successful, while Kenneth Walker gives up a run-scoring double to Tim Raines but saves the game - his first career save. Jeff Stone watch: 1-for-2 with a walk. And, ha, we’re 14th in the power rankings. The new top-five: 1. Detroit Tigers - 99-50 2. Pittsburgh Pirates - 90-60 3. Seattle Mariners - 86-64 4. New York Yankees - 81-68 5. Toronto Blue Jays - 94-55 The Jays are falling apart. The Tigers swept them out of Detroit and now hold a commanding five-game lead in the AL East. The Mariners are just 0.5 back of the Royals in the AL West after taking two of three against them. Coming up, Seattle has to play a bad Cleveland team and the .500 White Sox, while Kansas City faces California and Oakland, two of the worst teams in baseball.[/QUOTE]