How about them Phillies? After the season opener against the Texas Rangers it looked as if they were a completely different team at the plate. The team that had low expectations and struggled all spring hitting and scoring runs, managed to collect 17 hits and 14 runs. Something no one expected to see from the team, especially this early.
Unfortunately the two following games the Phillies managed to lose by just one run, scoring two in the first and three in the game after that. They did manage to collect a total of 17 hits between the two games, but continued to show their inability to score with runners on base. This is something that has been seen throughout the last couple games as well.
The Phillies have shown signs of hope. Runners on with two outs has been a bright light at times for this lineup Ruben Amaro Jr. has constructed. You don’t completely give up and walk away from the television just yet because there is a chance you’ll miss something. That’s more than you could have said for last season or during the spring.
The offense should be slightly improved from last season with everyone healthy. The issue that lies with the offense is the emphasis on “healthy.” If you can have Ryan Howard and Chase Utley in the everyday lineup, Domonic Brown will be able to get the pitches he needs to produce the numbers we expect to see from him. Those three paired with a productive Ben Revere and Carlos Ruiz could make this offense much more dangerous than anyone expects.
The truth is you should not get your hopes up. The team has shown signs of a better time, but they are still the same team you had very little faith in. I don’t see that changing too much. They will certainly have a good shot at winning more than 75 games this season, but I just don’t see them making a push with the line up they are holding onto.
And don’t get me started on Jimmy Rollins.
Guest Post By: Matthew Regan
Follow him on Twitter: @MattRegan5
Follow us on Twitter: @BroadStBeat
The Phillies have shown signs of hope. Runners on with two outs has been a bright light at times for this lineup Ruben Amaro Jr. has constructed. You don’t completely give up and walk away from the television just yet because there is a chance you’ll miss something. That’s more than you could have said for last season or during the spring.
The offense should be slightly improved from last season with everyone healthy. The issue that lies with the offense is the emphasis on “healthy.” If you can have Ryan Howard and Chase Utley in the everyday lineup, Domonic Brown will be able to get the pitches he needs to produce the numbers we expect to see from him. Those three paired with a productive Ben Revere and Carlos Ruiz could make this offense much more dangerous than anyone expects.
The truth is you should not get your hopes up. The team has shown signs of a better time, but they are still the same team you had very little faith in. I don’t see that changing too much. They will certainly have a good shot at winning more than 75 games this season, but I just don’t see them making a push with the line up they are holding onto.
And don’t get me started on Jimmy Rollins.
Guest Post By: Matthew Regan
Follow him on Twitter: @MattRegan5
Follow us on Twitter: @BroadStBeat
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