They've Got High Hopes! A 2018 Phillies Dynasty

[AlpineSK]

June 1, 2020

NL East Standings:

Atlanta - 31-21
Philadelphia - 31-22 0.5 GB
Washington - 27-26 4.5 GB
New York - 26-26 5 GB
Miami - 25-28 6.5 GB

Lineup:

1. Ketel Marte 2B - .261; 1 HR; 16 RBI
2. Carlos Santana 1B - .247; 9 HR; 23 RBI
3. Nick Madrigal SS - .286; 1 HR; 9 RBI; .379 OBP; 10 SB in 35 Games
4. Rhys Hoskins LF - .284; 14 HR; 37 RBI; .261 OBP
5. Miguel Andujar 3B - .268; 8 HR; 29 RBI
6. Jorge Alfaro C - .306; 7 HR; 24 RBI; .351 OBP
7. Adam Haseley CF - .220; 1 HR; 6 RBI; 6 SB in 22 Games
8. David Peralta RF - .224; 4 HR; 12 RBI in 38 Games

Bench:

C Sandy Leon - .192; 3 HR; 6 RBI in 20 Games
1B/3B Chase Headley - .192; 1 HR; 4 RBI in 28 Games
IF Deven Marrero - .164; 0 HR; 4 RBI in 25 Games
OF Mickey Moniak - .163; 1 HR; 4 RBI; 5 SB in 34 Games
OF Kevin Pillar - .222; 1 HR; 9 RBI; 5 SB in 38 Games

Rotation:

RHP Aaron Nola - 5-3; 3.08 ERA; 78 K's in 12 Starts
RHP Chris Archer - 7-3; 4.41 ERA; 70 K's in 11 Starts
RHP Taijuan Walker - 4-6; 3.68 ERA; 65 K's in 11 Starts
LHP Jordan Montgomery - 2-3; 5.34 ERA; 54 K's in 10 Starts
RHP Alec Hansen - 2-3; 3.55 ERA; 27 K's in 5 Starts

Bullpen:

RHP Seranthony Dominguez - 3-0; 2.70 ERA; 26 K's; 20 BB in 19 Games
LHP Jared Miller - 1-0; 3.79 ERA; 28 K's in 18 Games
RHP J.D. Hammer - 0-1; 3.18 ERA; 14 K's in 9 Games
LHP Jake Diekman - 0-0; 2.20 ERA; 28 K's in 16.1 Innings; 20 Games
RHP Zack Burdi - 1-1; 2.05 ERA; 32 K's; 0.73 WHIP; 1 SV in 21 Games
RHP Riley Ferrell - 2-0; 3.12 ERA; 21 K's; 5 SV in 20 Games
RHP Craig Kimbrel - 3-0; 0.86 ERA; 33 K's; 12 SV; 0.62 WHIP in 22 Games

Disabled List:

RHP Gerrit Cole - 1-0; 4.12 ERA; 12 K's in 4 Starts Returns in one week
RHP Anthony Swarzak - 0-2; 6.14 ERA; 14 K's in 6 Games Out for Season

[AlpineSK]

As I pass 100 posts, I wanted to thank everyone who has been a reader. This still continues to be a lot of fun for me, even some 15 years after I started writing these sorts of things.

I've really become attached to this playthrough so I plan on keeping it going for a while, and trying to post some more "profile" style posts because I feel like they can really tell the story of what the team and the players are doing.

So again, thanks to everyone for continuing to read, and LES GO PHILLIES!

[AlpineSK]

June 5, 2020

PHILADELPHIA, PA - The Phillies made a move to strengthen their already outstanding bullpen on Thursday, possibly freeing them up to address other issues that they have. Philadelphia sent two minor leaguers to the San Diego Padres receiving LHP Eric Lauer and 1B Josh Naylor in return. With Jared Miller heading to the 10-day disabled list, the Phillies addressed an immediate need in their bullpen but also added a piece that might allow them to deal Miller once he's healthy in 10 days.

Eric Lauer, 25, was 2-1 in 22 games for the Padres, appearing in 27.2 innings. He adds another solid middle reliever to the team, giving them a left handed compliment to Seranthony Dominguez. Josh Naylor has spent his entire season in the minors. He's a powerful left handed hitter who will eventually fit in the middle of someone's order, however he is pretty abysmal defensively. Naylor, 22, could probably play in the majors tomorrow if they wanted him to, but keeping him on the shelf until 2021 is pretty likely for the Phillies.

With the addition of Lauer, Joe Girardi now has two relievers to turn to in the 6th and 7th innings who can go for two, at a minimum. That leaves right handers Riley Ferrell, Zack Burdi and J.D. Hammer to handle the 7th and 8th, and Jake Diekman to take care of any left handers they encounter in the late innings.

Now that brings us to Miller. With Lauer coming to town and the performance of Diekman, the sought after Miller can be moved for a piece that they need. The Phillies' outfield is in some trouble at the plate, especially against left handed pitching. Domingo Santana from Milwaukee could be available for the right price, and Miller might just be that price.

The 33-23 first place Phillies head to Washington, DC for a 4 game set against the 30-26 Nationals. With the Braves losing 6 in a row, this is a great chance for the Phillies to put some distance between them and their competition.

[MadBum]

Read through this today and been enjoying it, good work! What minor leaguers did you have to give up to get Lauer? Interested to see if they were good prospect, especially given you got Naylor too.

Interesting that Naylor's such a defensive liability, when his brother Noah is supposed to be a pretty darn good defensive catcher in the Indians org.

[moore4807]

As a former South Jersey resident and faithful Phillies follower, you have done a good job with our Phillies... One request for you. When you post your monthly reports, could you also snapshot the team page? A lot of info you are typing out is easily read there and can save you a lot of time (as long as the resolution is large enough to read of course). You obviously do your homework and know baseball! Thank you for writing this.

[AlpineSK]

Hey guys first of all, thanks for reading and commenting! Its great getting some feedback. For anyone else out there lurking in the shadows who might have a comment or a question, feel free to ask away. I love good discussions even if you're telling me I'm crazy for doing something.. Because lord knows I've pulled some stinkers! So now to address some of the questions that were raised:

1. How I write and such - I love doing screenshots, and now that OOTP has made it easier to include them, I WILL be doing it more. I always revert back to how I started doing these, and also I like to share my hierarchy and lineups. I've got a Flickr account too which should make all of that easier.

2. The Lauer Trade - This, in my opinion, was a great deal. I gave up Junior Tejada, a RHP who was actually ranked in the top 100 prospects by OSA but my scout, Johnny Almaraz, had him ranked considerably lower. I also had to include Francisco Morales, another RHP who is 20, and had been floundering a bit at AA. I was pretty loaded in the 8th and 9th with Ferrell, Brudi and Kimbrel so I thought that strengthening my 6th/7th inning was a smart move. He's got a stamina of 9 (1-20 scale), he's a control pitcher and just a general nice compliment to Dominguez.

As for Josh Naylor, Almaraz has a 1B rating of 4, a range of 2, error of 3, and DP of 3. He's also not very smart, so the fact that I've got him almost fully developed at age 22 is a plus for me. This is his first year at AAA. He's got 16 HR in 48 games. He hit 38 dingers in two years at AA with San Diego. He's a left handed power hitter who should fit nicely into the middle of the lineup.

So one might ask, what's my plan? Well, for one, I'm expanding the league next season. Its something I like doing. The AL and NL will each get a team. I'm thinking Portland will be one of them, and possibly New Orleans for the other, so the West will get a team, probably the AL West to create a rivalry with Seattle, and most likely the NL Central. So that brings up the issue of the expansion draft next year.

Carlos Santana is now 34 years old, and next year he has a team option worth $17.5M. He had an AMAZING first season for me: .275/38/122 with 121 walks, 42 doubles, and a .394 OBP! 2019 wasnt too bad, but was a far cry from 2018. He still was able to walk 114 times. He's off to a good start this year with a .241 average, 9 HR and 25 RBI, but I'm questioning if he's worth the $17.5M, and wondering if Naylor will end up being a decent replacement.

If I expose Santana and he gets picked up, which I feel would be likely, or I choose not to take on his team option, I think Naylor could be "the guy" against right handers. Option 1 in that case: run Rhys Hoskins in LF against RHP and at 1B against LHP. Then, I would have to find someone to play left against lefties. The second option would be to find a right hander to platoon at first base.

My outfield right now is in trouble. In right I have: David Peralta (.227/4/12) and Adam Haseley (.239/2/9). In center, I have Haseley or Mickey Moniak (.154/1/4) and Kevin Pillar (.232/1/10). Left field is the only place I really feel set right now with Hoskins (.271/14/37). In the minors, I have Cornelius Randolph (.148/0/8) who can play right or left. Pillar is a free agent after this year and might ask for $4.8M but man is he a good glove out there.

Also at AAA right now, I have my #1 prospect: Joshua Lowe. He's a left handed bat who I acquired as part of the Chris Archer deal. Right now, he can play 1B/3B/LF/CF. I'm currently trying to train him in right. If he can come close to duplicating his 16 rating in LF, I MIGHT have my answer to Peralta in right.

Randolph and Moniak are both young, 23 and 22 respectively, so they're technically still viable prospects. I COULD deal either of them to try and improve either center or right field as well. I've been eyeing up Domingo Santana from Milwaukee. He's arbitration eligible making $4M, and has 9 HR and 28 RBI with a .252 average. Milwaukee is 23-33 right now, so I'm waiting for the price to drop a bit with him.

I see my outfield right now looking something like this:

LEFT: Rhys Hoskins
CENTER: Adam Haseley vs. RHP / Kevin Pillar vs. LHP
RIGHT: David Peralta vs. RHP / ??????? vs. LHP

Moniak needs to head down to the minors. He's just not cutting it. I just dont have a replacement for him at the moment, so I'm keeping him for his wheels. He's a good pinch runner.

Also, I am actively looking to trade Jared Miller at this point. Diekman has been unbelievable. I just need to find the right deal for him, which I'm pretty sure I can do. I've seen a couple of high end relievers who might be an upgrade over J.D. Hammer who is playing well, but he still has some development to do.

So this brings me back to Santana. Depending on where I end up with for a budget in 2021, I currently have $21M available for extensions. Taijuan Walker is set to be a FA. If I let him go he'll almost definitely be compensation eligible. With Santana's contract feed up that would give me nearly $40M without a budget increase to take care of bringing back Diekman and possibly Pillar while still being able to bring in a starter to replace Walker.

So lastly, on the topics of Stinkers I've made, I looked at this over abundance of left handed hitting outfielders I had a few years ago and I opted to keep Andrew Pullin, who is still at AAA, over Dylan Cozens, opting instead to expose Cozens in the Rule 5 draft. Well, Arizona jumped on him, and boy has he been good. He's in his second year with Arizona. As a rookie, he hit .291 with 32 HR and 76 RBI. Already this year, he's hitting .304 with 20 HR and 53 RBI in 54 games. Boy am I kicking myself right now.

Any other questions, ask away, and as always, THANKS FOR READING!

[AlpineSK]

June 11, 2020



PHILADELPHIA, PA - With a glaring need in right field, the Philadelphia Phillies have appeared to taken care of that issue for years to come. GM Scott Kier stepped up to the podium today in a hastily called news conference on a day off to announce a seven player deal with the Boston Red Sox that brings one of the stars of the game to Philadelphia.

With the Red Sox posting an unusual record of 30-32, putting them 12.5 games behind their rivals, the New York Yankees, GM Francisco Garcia saw an opportunity to start a rebuild, but it cost him. The Red Sox sent star right fielder Mookie Betts, international bust Rusney Castillo and 75% of his contract, and minor leaguer Nelson Maldonado to Philadelphia. In return, they acquire Cornelius Randolph, the center piece of the deal, coveted left handed reliever Jared Miller, veteran outfielder David Peralta and minor league OF Jhailyn Ortiz.

For Philadelphia, this game begins and ends with Mookie Betts. Betts, 27, is one of the best hitters in baseball. So far this season, he is hitting .297 with 5 HR and 27 RBI. In 2019, he hit .330 with 32 HR and 115 RBI. He also has one of the best outfield arms in the game. The only thing that makes this deal a difficult one for Philadelphia to swallow is his contract. Starting next season, Betts will make a guaranteed $21 million through the 2024 season. He will be 31 when he is eligible for free agency. The Phillies can afford his contract, with out a doubt. With the team's current success, and what Betts can bring to the table, the Phillies could find themselves with some extra cash for contract going into the 2021 campaign anyway.

Philadelphia now has their answer to Atlanta's Bryce Harper. The right fielder joined the Braves prior to the 2019 season. Betts' former teammate Chris Sale joined Atlanta this past off season. Atlanta and Philadelphia have kept pace with each other this year witht he Braves sitting just 1.5 games back in the NL East.

"This is a big deal for us," said GM Scott Kier, "we put a lot of time and thought into this deal, and we really feel like this could be the move that pushes us over the top. Mookie Betts is one of the best right fielders in the game and frankly, that position was probably our biggest area of need. There were a lot of moving parts here, but I am very satisfied with what we acquired."

Rusney Castillo was a necessary evil for Philadelphia in this deal. While Boston is not cash strapped, Castillo's $13.5 million contract had been a black hole for the Red Sox over the past couple of seasons. Kier and the Phillies will have some opportunities to get out from under the deal this off season which will definitely improve their financial situation. Castillo was immediately placed on waivers but he is expected to clear.

The 38-24 Phillies take their near perfect 7-2 record back to the diamond to take on the San Diego Padres tomorrow. The Padres currently sit in third place in the NL West with a 31-31 record.

MOOKIE BETTS' CAREER STATISTICS

[AlpineSK]

July 1, 2020

Click on the pictures to enlarge.

[AlpineSK]

July 5 2020

PHILADELPHIA, PA - The NL East has developed into a two horse race, and its only half way through the season. The Philadelphia Phillies, winners of their last 5 straight, and 7-3 in their last 10, have been doing everything in their power to catch the Atlanta Braves but they keep coming up short. Brian Snitker's Atlanta team still holds a 2.5 game lead over the Phillies. They are currently riding a 10 game winning streak of their own, having won 14 of their last 15 games. The two teams have the best two records in the National League. The next closest team in the NL East is the 38-44 Washington Nationals who are 16 games back.

The Atlanta Braves have been movers in the last couple of seasons. The team already had hitters Ronald Acuna, Ozzie Albies, and the hard hitting Freddie Freeman, and then GM Alex Anthopoulos went out and signed Bryce Harper. Harper went on to hit .320 with 49 HR and 116 RBI with a .452 OBP and 141 walks.

Chris Sale was the next addition for the Braves. The darling of the 2019 free agency class, Sale has posted a record of 13-2 this season with a 2.87 ERA and 109 K's. Lastly, a front runner for rookie of the year, RHP Kyle Wright, the team's first round pick in 2017 is 7-1.

[AlpineSK]

Had a slight mishap with my laptop and lost about two weeks of game time. I replayed it so if anyone notices some stats being different going forward that's why! Man I need a new laptop lol

[AlpineSK]

July 15, 2020

MILWAUKEE, WI - After the month of June that featured the red hot Braves getting the best of the Philadelphia Phillies, the teams have swapped roles. With Atlanta cooling off at just the right time, the Phillies have usurped their rivals to take over first place in the NL East. The Phillies are 14-1 in their last 15 games while the Braves are 4-8 in their last 12, allowing Philadelphia to leap frog over the Braves, and pad their lead.

The bulk of the Phillies turnaround came following the acquisition of Mookie Betts from the Boston Red Sox. Since Betts' arrival, the Phillies are 23-7. Their new right fielder has contributed in a number of ways. While his .244 average might be underwhelming, Betts has been consistent defensively and he's been a leader in the club house.

"Mookie's leadership and experience is invaluable," manager Joe Girardi said, "I managed against him when I was in New York and always had a lot of respect for him. Now that I have him in our clubhouse, it is easy to understand why so many players spoke so highly of him during his days in Boston."

Along with Sandy Leon, the Phillies now have two leaders with post season experience. Add in guys like Gerrit Cole and its easy to see why the Phillies now find themselves with a record of 61-31, 30 games over .500, with a 5 game lead in the NL East.

Last night, the Phillies concluded their 3 game series with the Milwaukee Brewers. They then boarded a plane bound for Atlanta where they take on the Braves in what will be their most important series to date. Gerrit Cole finished the Milwaukee series with a 7-1 complete game win, which gave the team's bullpen a much needed day off.

[MadBum]

Looks like your outfield's not in trouble anymore congrats on getting Mookie, even if it looks like it cost you quite a bit of financial flexibility down the road. How good of a prospect is Randolph?

[AlpineSK]

Randolph seemed like a solid prospect, but he wasnt panning out for me, and he was another left handed bat. I've already got three: Moniak, Haseley and Lowe, who can all play his position and are better players. Since going to Boston he's hitting .236 with 5 HR and 16 RBI. He does have a .340 OBP.

I wont offer Castillo arbitration next season so I wont have to worry about his contract, but the prospects of signing Walker at this point seem bleak. Truth be told: I thought the price I was paying was a little low which is why I added Ortiz to the deal. I dont really like fleecing the AI. If it was a team like the Marlins or something then maybe, but the Red Sox front office seems smarter than that to me, so throwing in another prospect was okay with me.

[AlpineSK]

July 21, 2020

NEW YORK, NY - With the All-Star weekend upon us, Major League Baseball also made the much-anticipated announcement of the cities that will receive expansion teams this season. As expected, Portland and New Orleans will be receiving Major League teams.

The Portland Mavericks will be joining the AL West. The Mavericks are named after the city’s 1970’s independent league baseball team that played in the Northwest league from 1973-1977 who were owned by Bing Russell, the father of Hollywood actor Kurt Russell. The younger Russell, who is rumored to be a silent partner with the new incantation of the Mavericks, even played with the team in their inaugural 1973 season.

The New Orleans Brass, named for the team’s rich music culture, will be joining the NL Central. Minor League baseball has a rich history in New Orleans, as does football with the success of the New Orleans Saints. This will be The Big Easy’s first dive into Major League baseball.
The Philadelphia Phillies return to the diamond to take on the Washington Nationals tomorrow.

[AlpineSK]

July 22, 2020

PHILADELPHIA, PA - Two seasons ago, many thought that Jorge Alfaro was on his way out of Philadelphia. The young catcher had been passed up on the depth charts by veteran Sandy Leon. Leon’s leadership in the clubhouse and defensive ability behind the plate made him a valuable piece for the Phillies. There were talks about possibly bringing in Salvador Perez in from Kansas City for a little more offensive pop, but that trade fell through. GM Scott Kier decided to keep Alfaro around, deciding to go with a more defensive approach to their backstop. In all reality though, Alfaro’s offensive contributions were not that bad in his rookie season. He hit .253 with 9 HR and 40 RBI in 82 games.

2019 was a year of regression for Alfaro. He hit just .224 with 4 HR and 21 RBI, again appearing in 82 games. He made 30 less plate appearances as Sandy Leon grabbed a bigger share of the workload. Things were looking down for Alfaro. Then Philadelphia hired their new manager and former Major League catcher Joe Girardi. The team’s new boss spent a considerable amount of time with his 26 year old backstop. The hard work has paid dividends.

Alfaro has seized control of the starting role behind the plate. He has appeared in 76 games, starting 67 of them, already one more than he started last season, already having made 4 more plate appearances. In those 76 games he is hitting .298 while setting career highs in home runs with 18 and RBI with 49. Although he has done a poor job with his plate discipline, walking just 11 times so far this year, he still has posted a .346 OBP. His 14 runners thrown out ranks 5th in the NL, and his 3.39 CERA is the third best.

With the Phillies finding themselves in first place at this point in the season, it is undeniable that Jorge Alfaro is a big part of their success. Is this season just a flash in the pan? Is this kid with a cannon for an arm just a late bloomer? Time will tell.

[AlpineSK]

July 30, 2020

PHILADELPHIA, PA - With just a couple of days before the non-waiver trade deadline, the Philadelphia Phillies have made their first move, and its one that adds a valuable veteran to their bench. Philadelphia sent minor leagues Jesus Alastre and Enyel De Los Santos across the state to the Pittsburgh Pirates receiving Jason Kipnis in return.

Kipnis, a second baseman, was signed by the Pirates to a one year deal this past offseason. He has played in 68 games for the Pirates, mostly as a pinch hitter. A left handed bat, Kipnis is hitting .265 this year with 7 HR and 23 RBI. He is a hard working, well liked player in the clubhouse who also has postseason experience with the Cleveland Indians. in 2016, he hit .377 in postseason play.

Jesus Alastre, an outfielder, has largely flown under the radar for Philadelphia. He spent all of this season in Reading due to the overfilled outfield in Lehigh Valley. Against AA competition, he is hitting .311 with 10 HR and 47 RBI. De Los Santos is more widely known in the Phillies' minor league system. He osted a 7-9 record with a 3.89 ERA in Lehigh Valley. He is most certainly a starter with Major League potential.

To make room for Kipnis on the roster, Mickey Moniak was sent to AAA Lehigh Valley. Once a starter, Moniak was passed in the depth chart by Adam Haseley. He hit just .165 with 1 HR and 7 RBI for Philadelphia this season.

The Phillies currently find themselves with the best record in the Majors. Their 68-34 record puts them just 4.5 games ahead of the Atlanta Braves though. Their divisional rivals have kept pace with Philadelphia, who have been completely unable to pull away despite putting up a 37-12 record since June 1st.

With the trade deadline roughly 24 hours away, Kier could certainly stand pat at this point. He's assembled a roster capable of holding the top spot in the NL East. The one questions mark is J.D. Hammer. The rookie has done a fantastic job having appeared in 28 games this season with a 2.01 ERA and a 3-2 record, but should the Phillies wish to add one more veteran pitcher he would find himself as the odd man out. Adding another pitcher is not written in stone, but it certainly would not hurt Philadelphia as the postseason approaches.

[AlpineSK]

July 31, 2020

PHILADELPHIA, PA - As expected, Scott Kier and the Philadelphia Phillies made one last trade prior to the 4pm trade deadline, this time making a deal with the Kansas City Royals for a pitcher who won a World Series with the Astros last year. The Phillies sent Austin Bossart, a AA level catcher with a very low ceiling to the Royals receiving Brad Brach in return.

Brach, a right handed pitcher, is 34 years old. He had a record of 6-3 and a 2.44 ERA for the 53-50 Royals who are sliding down the standings in the AL Central. A free agent after this season, Brach spent last season with the Houston Astros. He made 6 appearances in the postseason and did not give up a run in his 7.2 innings.

That will most likely spell the end of the moves for the Phillies. To make room for Brach, as expected, J.D. Hammer was sent to AAA Lehigh Valley where he will be the team's closer.

[AlpineSK]

August 1, 2020

[AlpineSK]

August 1, 2020

[AlpineSK]

August 8, 2020

PHILADELPHIA, PA - The Phillies will be without the services of rookie outfielder Adam Haseley for the remainder of the season. In Friday night's game, he slid hard into third base with Kris Bryant coming down awkwardly on his leg. The diagnosis: broken patella.

Haseley started the season at AAA behind former #1 pick Mickey Moniak on the depth chart but he quickly passed the fellow rookie to take over the starting job in center field against right handed pitching. Haseley hit .330 this season in 66 games with 7 HR and 25 RBI. He also posted a .426 OBP which was helped along by his 32 walks.

In the short term, Moniak was recalled from Lehigh Valley. He will look to improve on his .165 major league average. There is always the possibility though that Kier will go out and try to "rent" an outfielder for the remainder of the season. Time will tell.