With the remainder of the MLB season winding down, I will be previewing the upcoming offseason for our Philadelphia Phillies. Over the next set of articles, I will take an in-depth look at each aspect of the Phillies team, where they currently stand, and how/if they can make themselves better in the upcoming offseason. First up, is the Phillies rotation, which has been just dreadful this season. Now, let’s get started.
Entering this season, there was much hope for an aging rotation that consisted of a 35-year-old Cliff Lee, 37-year-old AJ Burnett, and a 30-year-old Cole Hamels. However, that hope quickly turned to dismay, as Hamels started out the season on the DL, Lee served a 2 month DL stint early on in the season, and Burnett quickly struggled in pinstripes. To top it off, back-end starters Roberto Hernandez and Kyle Kendrick struggled mightily as well.
Cole Hamels, arguably the Phils best pitcher, currently has a record of 6-6, with a 2.37 ERA. After starting the season in ugly fashion, posting an ERA over 3.50 in both April and May, Hamels has lit the NL ablaze since June. He has posted 2 1/2 months of baseball, with a sub-2.00 ERA, and a sub-.225 opposing avg. Compiling 100 SOs since the month of June, Hamels’ tally is now up to 144 on the season. However, with trade rumors swirling around him, Hamels’ future in pinstripes is uncertain-to say the least. If I had to guess if Hamels would be the Phils 2015 Opening Day starter, I’d say it’s highly unlikely.
Cliff Lee has struggled this season. Posting a 4-5 record with a 3.65 ERA, Lee has yet to find his “stuff”, finding himself on the DL for two months early in the season, and than once again just weeks ago. The latter trip to the DL has ended Lee’s bad season, and it remains to be seen whether Lee will ever appear in red and white pinstripes again. If Lee returns next season, he will be 36 years old and have many questions surrounding his performance.
AJ Burnett just never really seemed to find his feet in the city of Brotherly Love. Despite his horrendous 6-13 record with a 4.35 ERA, not all of this season can be blamed on AJ. He hasn’t really received great offensive support, an issue that I’ll tackle in a future article. I’m pretty sure that if AJ was provided with more offense, his record would look much different than it does now. However, at 37 years of age, Burnett’s clock is ticking with father time, and his career will eventually come to a close. Many are speculating that due to his terrible season, he’ll cut his losses and hang up the cleats.
Kyle Kendrick has just been all around terrible this season. The 29-year-old, Houston native ranks at the bottom of baseball in all categories. With a 5-11 record, and a 4.88 ERA, Kendrick has surrendered at least 5 ERs in 4 of his last 7 starts. With Kendrick, as an impending free agent, it’s widely expected that the Phils move on from him….and deservedly so.
Roberto Hernandez wasn’t looking terrible, boasting a 7-8 record with a 3.72 ERA, including his game with the Dodgers. He was on pace to be the Phillies best pitcher this season, behind Hamels. After Hernandez’s departure, David Buchanan became more of a prominent figure in the rotation, and he’s done well to this point. Behind a 6-6 record, Buchanan is silently putting together a solid campaign. The only sliver of concern is his ability to throw “gopher” balls that tend to find their way out of the park. He has given up 9 homers on the season, in 12 games….that’s almost 1 homer per game. If David can work on his control, he could become a solid middle rotation guy for the future.
As you can see, heading towards the twilight of this season, the Phillies rotation is in trouble. With Kendrick practically out the door, and questions surrounding both Lee and Burnett, the only sure things to this point are Buchanan and Hamels. Keeping that in mind, one of the ways the rotation can be upgraded is by promoting home-grown talent to the major league level. Top prospect Jesse Biddle and 2014 #7 overall draft pick Aaron Nola, seem like the most obvious candidates to get the call. But, dark-horse hurlers Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez and Jonathan Pettibone could pose for better short-term results than Biddle and Nola. Biddle and Nola are both currently part of the Double-A Reading Phillies rotation, while Gonzalez and Pettibone have spent the entire season at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. While that truly has no impact on potential call-ups, it could factor into this decision as you don’t want to rush younger prospects, that aren’t ready to make the jump.
Another way, in which the Phils can upgrade the pitching staff, is via Free Agency. There will be plenty of names out there on the pitching market for the Phils to target. Names ranging from Max Scherzer to Hiroki Kuroda to James Shields to Francisco Liriano, the list goes on and on. There are also some lower tier names like Ryan Vogelsong, Jason Hammel, Justin Masterson, and Brandon McCarthy among the most notable. There shouldn’t be any shortage of pitchers hitting the open market this winter, and if the Phillies aren’t comfortable in putting trust in their youngsters…they need to hit the market, and hard.
In conclusion, with many questions surrounding the Phillies heading towards this winter…the primary concern still remains the rotation. There are many avenues for the Phils to explore when attempting to rebuild and retool their rotation. Avenues raging from Free Agency to Calling Up Youngsters, all options need to be on the table for Phillies brass come November. In my next article, I’ll tackle the mystery that is known as the Phillies bullpen. Players from Jonathan Papelbon to Phillippe Aumont, whether they’ll stay or go, and in which ways can the team upgrade themselves at that position.
Tags: philadelphia sports, Phillies News, Phillies Off-Season, Phillies rotation, Phillies Sports News, Ryan Waterman, Talk Sports Philly, TalkSportsPhilly.com, TSP
You must be logged in to post a comment.