The Phillies' Mid-Season Report Card

By Chris Pollay

At the midpoint of the 2009 MLB season, the Phillies remain safe at first in the National League East with a record of 48-38. Most of their four-game cushion over Florida is due to the team catching fire of late, winning nine of its last ten games.

While first place is exactly where the Phils would hope to be at this point, it’s hard to imagine that the team is completely satisfied with its overall performance. Sure, they have suffered quite a few injuries and they’ve overcome some occasional bouts of bad luck and streaky superstars, but most probably feel that they are better than their current record indicates.

Regardless, the team has been impressive at times in the first half of 2009 and I have a good feeling about the rest of the year. In fact, two comeback games, one early in the year and one more recently, have convinced me that this team will be THE FORCE to be reckoned with come October.

Remember back in April when the Phillies received their 2008 Championship Rings? The Braves had beaten them up during the first two games of the season and held a 10 to 3 lead heading into the bottom of the 7th when the Phillies erupted for eight runs to take the lead: 11 to 10. They held on to win, refusing to lose on the day that honored last year’s World Series win.

Then, just this past Saturday, the team was up against the ropes, down 7 to 3 in the bottom of the ninth. Before you could blink, Stairs connected for a solo shot and Howard tied the game up with a three-run bomb. The Phils won shortly after by an 8 to 7 margin with no need of extra innings.

This team is absolutely fearless and can step it up a notch or three when they have to mainly because they have the one of the most dangerous offenses in the National League. In fact, they are first in the NL in the following category totals: runs (460); home runs (122); slugging percentage (.452); OPS, a.k.a. on base plus slugging percentage (.793); and total bases (1,343).

Five players earned All-Star bids this year (Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Shane Victorino, Jayson Werth and Raul Ibañez), three of which comprise arguably the MLB’s best outfield. They are complemented by a very strong infield, as well.

Four players on the team have hit at least 20 home runs already: Howard (22), Ibañez (22), Werth (20) and Utley (20). Not surprisingly, those four players have also hit over 50 RBIs: Howard (67), Utley (61), Ibañez (60) and Werth (56).

Having such an arsenal at its disposal has helped the team achieve an outstanding road record (and MLB best) 26-15. It also helps that the team leads the NL with the best fielding percentage of .990.

Another good sign for the ballclub is that Manager Charlie Manuel has trusted in his players to show up when its needed the most. He did call for a recent “closed door meeting,” but Manuel does not ride the team too hard. He has no need of it. He knows what they are capable of achieving. After all, the team completely dominated the Mets in a crucial series a little over a week ago showing that the team will show up when first place is on the line.

There has been a lot to be happy about, to be sure, but there have been a few alarm bells, as well. The pitching has been quite uninspired, both starting and bullpen, though the starting pitchers especially need to improve much more in the next few months. The team ranked badly in the National League in many pitching categories: total losses (38), 15th; home runs allowed (123), 16th; earned runs (398), 14th; hits allowed (809), 13th; and runs scored (412), 11th.

Some of the pitching problems may be addressed before the upcoming trade deadline, but the team’s regular workhorses (Hamels 4.87 ERA, Blanton 4.44 ERA, Moyer 5.99 ERA, etc.) need to be far more consistent and give up a lot fewer runs. Understandably, some of it is due to pitchers staying on the mound despite injuries (Lidge 7.03 ERA, for example), but the numbers are simply too high for a championship ballclub.

It also should be noted that J.A. Happ has been outstanding this season with a 6-0 record and an ERA of only 2.90.

Another weakness to be addresses is that the team needs to win more at home. Their record is only 22-23. However, the team seems to be in the process of correcting this flaw as it had won five straight home games heading into the All-Star break and nine out of its last ten.

One bad symptom for the team that bothers me personally has been its interleague record. Everybody says such games mean nothing, and yet, the Phillies would be up by seven games in the division right now if they had only won half of them.

Instead, the AL East pounded the Phils this season, winning 12 of 18 games (.333 winning percentage for the Phillies). Of course, there won’t be anymore interleague games in the regular season but it would be nice to know they play the American League better in case they meet up again in the World Series.

Overall, though, the prognosis is positive. Despite some tough times, inconsistency and injuries, the team has stayed at first in its division since May 30. With a few more players healing up more, a few heating up more (Rollins in particular) and a few key acquisitions (Halladay and Martinez?), the Phils could stand to improve immensely and will undoubtedly be the heavy favorites come the playoffs.

It will be interesting to see if the Phils can turn things on again come September, like they have the past two seasons. In fact, last October, they were almost unbeatable (11-3). This year’s team could duplicate that feat if all the cylinders are firing at the right time.

For now, the team gets a solid B for its mid-season grade. The complaints are relatively minor. They have some weaknesses, but management seems to be addressing them and the team is definitely regaining its focus. I believe the pitching will improve quite a bit. No doubt, the Phils will be back up to their “A” game before too long.