2009 Phillies Offseason Thread

[MDS]

not getting anyone good. no good reliever is signing there knowing full well they could be a 7th inning guy. whether you like it or not lidge, madson and jc is the back end. thats set in stone.

[The BIGSTUD]

How about taking a gamble on Rich Harden as a top of the rotation guy? Injury history, but nasty stuff when healthy. lee, Harden, Hamels is a nice 1-2-3 punch. Then you sign a 3rd baseman(Figgins/Beltre) and fill out the bench and bullpen.

WFC part II.

[Sgt PSN]

they still need bullpen help.. preferably someone who can step in and close if for some ungodly reason lidge doesn't return to his former glory.  maybe they can get something packaging for moyer.  he's not even an option next year.. and if they can't get anything for him they need to force him into retirement.

munson's trailer has a higher trade in value than moyer.  even without the injury, 45 yr old pitchers don't tend to fetch very much on the trade market. 

[LBIggle]

not getting anyone good. no good reliever is signing there knowing full well they could be a 7th inning guy. whether you like it or not lidge, madson and jc is the back end. thats set in stone.

yeah, cuz that worked out so well this year.  no need to have any backup plan.
it might be hard signing someone to that role that's why i said packaging moyers ass out of here.. the bullpen was the weak link, and not far behind was the bench.
if they fail on that front.. then they need to consider resigning myers for that role.  he's valuable having closing, starting, and now a little setup experience and seems happy doing whatever.  hopefully they can get chan ho back but that might be reaching if he still thinks he's going to start after this years abortion of a try.

[MDS]

nobody wants moyer

they cant just sign free agents like the yankees. while they generate revenue, its not enough to pull the payroll past the $120 mil area its in right now. in fact, it might have to go down. also they have major raises coming to werth and vic. they have to talk long term to lee. they have to pay joey big nuts more.

what they have now is what theyll go with. it got them within 2 wins of the world series and that was with no closer and no starting pitching past 1 guy. id say thats pretty good.

[LBIggle]

right. not having a closer gets you within 2 outs, actually having those gets you the prize.. see last year.  that's why they need to make sure they have that taken care of for this year.  they need a healthy myers designated for that role or another option.  eaton, jenkins, and thome all come off the books this year.  if the bullpen stops the  bleeding in some of these games, maybe they would have pulled it off this year. 

[MDS]

they were an average lidge away from a game 7. might not have won that game 7 if it happened but no need to freak out over it.

there is no "safety" valve for the pen that exists. madson is your safety valve. jc is another. you can get chan ho again if he want to stay. or someone like him if he walks. some big name reliever isnt coming to here to mop up games and pitch the 7th inning. its not happening. they can make a trade for one but you have guys like condrey and matheison on the roster on the cheap. plug them in and see if they can do the job. if they cant, you make a trade or two by the deadline. the bullpen looks astronomically better with a fresh brad lidge and jc romero. plus they already have the nl east won, so really, this is a "problem" that needs to be fixed by september 2010.

lets talk then.

[The BIGSTUD]

The bullpen wasn't actually that bad in the playoffs considering all the injuries. It got hit around in a couple games to the Yankees. Ok, well the Yankees lineup is full of power. It happens sometimes. They will probably get another lefty or two for middle relief, but no big-time closer or setup man.

The main offseason will be spent upgrading the bench with some guys who they can actually feel comfortable with spelling Utley and Rollins, and possibly getting another starting pitcher with Pedro and Moyer most likely done here.

[ice grillin you]

they were an average lidge away from a game 7. might not have won that game 7 if it happened but no need to freak out over it.

you do know that lidge didnt blow a save he gave up runs in a tie game?

even if he gets out of that inning chances are the yankees win anyway as the phillies had one clutch hit the entire seriers and that was by p happy

either way to say they were right on the cusp of a game seven if not for lidge is a huge stretch

[reese125]

not to mention Lidge was average. He had 2 outs and blew a big hit---thats an average Lidge

[mpmcgraw]

There is no chance the payroll goes down this year.  It might not go up, but it won't go down. 

[Sgt PSN]

yeah, i can't see payroll dropping after coming off a 2nd consecutive ws appearance.  i could see it remaining about the same, but there's almost no way it goes down. 

[phattymatty]

Phillies hoping to get Brad Lidge going soon

Although Philadelphia closer Brad Lidge has struggled all season long, including a disastrous ninth inning in Game 4 of the just-completed World Series, Phillies manager Charlie Manuel says the team will remain patient with Lidge. "We know this guy's track record," said Manuel. "Just because the season is over, it's no time to panic. Brad will work his way through this. The consequences are too great for him not to." The Phillies say they are willing to wait it out. "We trust Brad," said team leader Jimmy Rollins. "If he sabotages our 2009 season, 2010 season, 2011 season and even beyond, that's okay. He had a good season in 2008 and the rest of us must respect that and be loyal to him regardless of his performance. Doing anything else would be crazy."

[MDS]

they were an average lidge away from a game 7. might not have won that game 7 if it happened but no need to freak out over it.

you do know that lidge didnt blow a save he gave up runs in a tie game?

even if he gets out of that inning chances are the yankees win anyway as the phillies had one clutch hit the entire seriers and that was by p happy

either way to say they were right on the cusp of a game seven if not for lidge is a huge stretch

looooooooooooooooooooool

phil coke in the 9th inning of a tie game? WIN. "clutch" doesnt exist you idiot. phil coke sucks. he wasnt getting out of the inning alive. cliff lee wins game 5, they back to ny up 3-2, lose game 6 and we have a game a 7.

its really simple when you think about it, actually.

[Sgt PSN]

when you had a series as bad as jimmy, of course you're going to back lidge.