The offseason build up for the Phillies’ pitching staff was through the roof. The expectations were overwhelming; many believed, or had hoped, the Phour Aces would each rack up 20+ wins with a sub 3.50 ERA.
Though, the numbers are a bit lofty, it wasn’t all that crazy to jump to conclusions with this phenomenal pitching staff. Of course, 20+ wins by four pitches is unheard of now-a-days but 15+ wins remains a possibility.
Either way, the unfair, yet somewhat expected expectations set on this pitching staff should not affect their performance or mindset this season.
But so far this season, the pitching staff has been…normal. Sure, Roy Halladay has done what he always does in terms of ERA (0.69), and Roy Oswalt has compiled the most wins (2), but it’s the other two that have been anything but ‘Pheared.’
Cliff Lee started with a terrific outing, but followed it up with a horrendous display — 6 ER in 3.1 IP. Cole Hamels began his season with a dreadful performance that warranted boos from the home crowd — 6 ER in 2.2 IP.
The pitching staff, which ranks 17th in the league in ERA (4.35) and 20th in WHIP (1.34), hasn’t lived up to the hype…yet.
While the Phour Aces look to find their groove, the Phillies have managed to start the season off with a 6-2 record because of one thing: the offense.
No Chase Utley or Domonic Brown? No worries.
The Phillies’ offense is ranked 1st in batting average (.337) and on-base percentage (.386) and rank 3rd in runs (46). They also boast a .446 slugging percentage, which ranks 8th in the league.
The biggest reason for the offense’s success: Ryan Howard.
The slugging first baseman leads the team in the following categories: batting average (.406), home runs (2), RBI (10), OBP (.432), and
hits (13).
Equally impressive is Ben Francisco, who is third on the team with 7 RBI’s and tied with Howard for most home runs (2). He is batting .333 with a .965 OPS.
No matter who you look at in the lineup, every player has made a major contribution. Whether it’s Placido Polanco and his 8 RBI’s, Shane Victorino and his .375 average, Raul Ibanez and his nine hits, or Wilson Valdez and his three doubles, the Phillies’ lineup is playing terrific 1-through-9.
Oh, and don’t forget about Carlos Ruiz, who knocked in five RBI’s, including a grand slam, in yesterday’s victory over the Braves.
The offense will win us many games, but there will come a point when the offense cools down. Hopefully by that point the pitching staff will be clicking on all cylinders and relying on just a few runs each game to earn the victory.
I think you got it wrong, Ryan Howard is not the biggest reason for the offenses suggest, Greg Gross is !!!
What’s been surprising to me is how well the Bullpen overall has pitched..
Baes,Romero,Herndon and Bastardo have all pitched very well out of the gate along with consistent Pitchers Madson & Contreras.. They have held their end of the Bargain, now the starters need to get rolling and more consistent
(Halladay & Oswalt look comfortable but the others need top pick it up a bit)
Phils winning with injuries, some inconsistency with starting pitching,but this will be a monumental season, 100+ wins, cy young again to Halladay, world series champions again, Charlie manager of year and the greatest manager/coach in philadelphia ‘s history, these things will all come to pass
pauli, so you see how life, and sports, can be unpredictable, and in fact usually are!?
i have been shocked by how well the bullpen has pitched…..er nevermind. just like i told everyone 2 weeks ago, the bullpen will be just fine. plenty of guys with good stuff, and how bout that 4-5 times a week that contreras will have to pitch paulman? he’s gonna have to throw today just to get him some work.
stutes is ready any time they need someone. he is flat out dominating in AAA. i couldn’t care less if lidge never comes back.
Lets see how they do today very RHP D Lowe who is a very tough pitcher having a very good start to his season.. He keeps the ball low and gets many ground ball outs.. If thePhils lay off his down out of the strike zone pitches and and can make him elevate just a tad,then they can tag him.. Should be a very good game and interested to see how Hamels rebounds.. I expect a well-pitched game from both sides with runs harder to come by in then the 1st 2 games, Phils Victory 4-2
Hamels has his “A” stuff today so far after the first 2 Innings.. He is at his best when he challenges the hitters,once ahead in the count, instead of getting too cute and wasting pitches. When he’s focused and has the attitude of “Here’s my best stuff and try to hit it”, this is when he’s a Top shelf Starting Pitcher
This may be a 2 hour game.. Go Phils
Paulman is hopping off the Braves bandwagon and trying to jump on the Phils now that he realizes that his predictions for both teams was wrong.
aren’t his predictions on everything wrong? even his analysis is off. Hamels had “A” stuff against the Mets also. his fastball was routinely 94, 95. the problem was his “F” command. paulman, id also like you to explain from a previous post on a different thread how you can say Hamels has “average” stuff? a guy who is a strikeout pitcher, and led the league in strikeouts the second half of last year doesn’t do that with “average stuff”.
Hamels has very good sdtuff, his head and his lack of focus/mental toughness brings him down to “average”, he rely’s on his Fastball a little too much this deep into his carreer and really needs to utilize and trust his curve/slider more that he does… Evern at 94-95 Mph, If MLB Batters are sitting on it will hit out of the Park.. I think Hamels is one of the Top Leaders in Home RUns Given up over the last 2-3 Seasons.. He has the tools to pitch great, like he did today, so as long as he continues to “pitch” and not just “throw”, then he will be fine.. But to be an elite top end Pitcher, he has to develop and have more pitches in his arsenal and use them more..
And THAT my friends, is why I CONFIDENTLY stated that Cole Hamels is a top ten pitcher.