Posts Tagged ‘B.J. Rosenberg’

Sure, We Love Chip and the Eagles … But the Phillies Are Still Worth Watching Too!

September 13th, 2013 by Jim Chesko | 2 Comments | Filed in Baseball, General, Phillies

rynesandberg

Yes, football season is here, and thanks to an amazing first-half offensive onslaught that carried the Eagles to a season-opening win over the host Washington Redskins, most Birds’ fans are ready to proclaim rookie head coach Chip Kelly the new Vince Lombardi.

So the question is: Are you still keeping tabs on the Phillies? (Remember them? The baseball team?) If you’re a die-hard Phils fan, there’s actually a good bit of intrigue to the final few weeks of this disappointing 2013 season. Among the key issues that may or may not become clearer between now and Sept. 29:

Is Ryne Sandberg the right manager for this team going forward? Well, that will be up to General Manager Ruben Amaro to decide, but with the team showing significantly more life since Sandberg succeeded Charlie Manuel last month and a 14-11 record (through Wednesday), the guess is that the Hall of Famer has almost certainly earned the job on a full-time basis. Of course, if the Angels fire Mike Sciosca after the season and he wants to return to his Philly-area roots, that could complicate the decision for Amaro.

Has Carlos Ruiz earned another season in Philly? Around Aug. 1, it seemed like a sure bet that “Chooch’s” days as a Phillie were numbered. But Ruiz has really picked things up over the past six weeks or so offensively (batting well over .300 in that time, with some renewed power as well), and his handling of the pitching staff has always been a major positive. So, the odds have improved greatly that he’ll be back for at least one more year. But keep an eye on that situation over the rest of September,

What will the Phillies’ bullpen look like next year? Amaro’s vow to improve the team’s 7th and 8th inning relief corps last offseason didn’t work out so well, and closer Jonathan Papelbon has been less reliable since July 1, so the performance of guys like Jake Diekman and B.J. Rosenberg here in September will go a long way to Amaro’s thought process about the Phils’ 2014 bullpen. Rosenberg looked pretty comfortable in finishing off the Braves on Sunday for his first save. Just sayin’.

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