OK, yes it’s December, and it is a bit premature to think the roster of any Major League Baseball team is etched in stone right now. Injuries, hot spring trainings and shrewd deals all play a part in setting the starting nine for April… but still, there is a small undercurrent of dread running through me right now, because honestly, I don’t see the plan for the 2008 Phillies outfield.
Pat Burrell is part of the Phils' outfield going into the 2008 season. Which other inconsistent players will join him?
This feeling of uncertainty comes on the heels of the news that Aaron Rowand just signed a five-year/$60 million deal with the San Francisco Giants. Now, don’t get me wrong, after the season was over, I saw the signs pointing to him leaving for greener, longer pastures. And I was OK with that. I knew he was looking for a long-term contract, and with the way he throws his body around in the outfield, coupled with a high strikeout total, I didn’t think it was a good fit.
But perhaps it wouldn’t have been the worst thing in the world to lock him up. Because now that he’s gone, we can really focus on the outfield and see that it’s uh, well…um… interesting.
Burrell, coming off a great second half in 2007, is in left. I guess at some point in time he dosed Philadelphia’s water supply to make sure no one remembered anything before that. Seriously, I have a vague recollection of him jumping back from a called third strike over the plate once or twice, but can’t seem to figure out where that memory came from. Oh well. If only that was the Phillies’ major problem.
I really like Shane Victorino. In fact, I think he’ll play better in centerfield than Rowand. He’s quicker and has a great arm. He’s also the reason I at first didn’t mind seeing Rowand leave. But now there are two things that make me wonder if the Phils made a mistake. The first is Victorino’s offensive potential. He did well last year, batting .281/.347/.423 with speed; perfect for a two-hole hitter. Of course, it remains to be seen if those numbers will be acceptable for 2008, or if we will need him to step up. And the more important part – can he step up?
The other thing that makes me wonder? With Victorino now taking over center, that leaves right field to be patrolled by…Jayson Werth? Really? Look, he had an awesome last month or so of great baseball. But is he ready to take over full time? I mean, it seems to me the only reason he’s being considered is because he made those two steals against Wagner. And yes, they were awesome, but at this point, Charlie Manuel could have stolen off Wagner. He’s not exactly Terry Mulholland.
My point is this – I’m not sure the Phillies really should be going into the season with two unproven guys in the outfield. And that’s not including Burrell. No matter how much water I drink, I still have the nagging suspicion he could regress.
I’m praying Gillick has an ace up his sleeve and can turn something into gold before April. Because if not, we lost a pretty important chunk of the offense when Rowand signed in San Francisco. And my stir-crazy outfield fantasy with Milton Bradley involved is now impossible with him going to the Rangers. Is Gillick creative enough to come up with something else? Time will tell.
No comments:
Post a Comment