Philadelphia Phillies: over reliance on their pitching line-up
Everyone is well aware of the world class pitching line-up that the Philadelphia Phillies boast of. With aces like Roy Holladay and Cliff Lee on board is that all that Philadelphia have that is worth mentioning? Can their offence and the rest of the line-up
match up to the expectations set by the pitchers?
With reliable players like Pat Burrell and Jayson Werth out of the pictures this year, it is feared that both, age and injuries are starting to catch up with the Phillies’ players.
Ryan Howard is one of their healthy prospects but he had a slow season last year. Despite missing a month of play due to injuries he managed to hit 31 homers and drove in 108 runs. This year, with him being as healthy as he can be, he is expected to hit
around 35-40 home-runs.
Shane Victorino, at the age of 30, has three straight National League Gold Gloves under his belt and came third in the league in regard to the number of triple and stolen bases.
It may be Rual Ibanez’s last season with the Phillies given that he is turning 40. Even with his age, he has shown the capability of having a .270-20 homer-80 RBI season.
Carloz Ruiz is known for his catching-throwing skills and being able to handle a pitching staff. Along with that he is a marvellous clutch hitter.
All the players mentioned above are as good as it gets for the Phillies. The rest of the batting may make or break the entire season for the team. After Werth’s departure it was expected that Dominic Brown would go up against veteran Ben Francisco to replace
him, but due to Brown breaking his hamate bone, Francisco would be starting the season. Placido Polance is the third baseman who had an elbow injury last season but this year he is expected to do more for the team than just six home runs and 25 RBIs, given
that he is healthy now.
The big questions arise when talking about the phenomenal combo of short-stop Jimmy Rollins and baseman Chase Utley. Both turned 32 recently and missed major parts of last year’s games due to injuries. Rollins is on the road to recovery and it is expected
that he would return to being the mega-talented driving force at the top of the team’s batting order. Sadly, Utley seems to have many more concerns waiting for him that simple rest is not doing any wonders for his cranky right knee. It is expected that he
will start the season on the Disabled List and would probably stay off the field till May.
The Phillies can probably manage going on without Utley given that the rest of the squad, of Rollins, Howard, Ibanez, Polanco, Victorino, Francisco and Ruiz, maintain their health. They have plenty of strength in their offence that will complement their
flawless pitching. Wilson Valdez who filled in for Utley, Rollins and Polanco will likely be at 2nd base for defence purposes.
Other than the loss of Utley and Brown, the Phillies bull-pen is where another problem lies. Brad Lidge, their closer is cursed with injuries as he will start the season being in the Disabled List for the third time, out of the four seasons he has been with
the Phillies. He performed very well in the 2008 World Series but 2009 was just not the year for him whereas in 2010 he rebounded nicely. The rest of the bull-pen will come from a combination of Danys Baez, Scott Mathieson, Antonio Bastardo and Mike Zagurski.
The amazing pitching line-up that the Phillies possess will be looking for some much needed runs support from their offence.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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