Wednesday, January 24

The Phillies Super Value Menu

Other blogs have discussed the value of Utley relative to his recently signed contract. This got me thinking, how valuable are our players relative to the Phillies. I have compiled my top 5 most valuable Phillies (not including prospects). Taken into account, I considered their value for the present (2007 season), their position played and their future value (next 3-4 years). Age is also taken into account.

1) Chase Utley
To me, Utley is the best Phillie currently on the team and will be for the years to come. Howard is VERY close but I have to give Chase the slight edge. Utley's position is my main reasoning. A power hitting second baseman is a lot harder to find than a power hitting first baseman. He is a tremendous baserunner, plays solid defense, hits for average, and has solid numbers with RISP. I don't see him tailing off anytime soon and he leads purely by example. If it is late in a close game, there is no one I would rather have up to the plate than Chase.

2) Ryan Howard
He was almost number 1 and it was hard to pick against him. It was like picking a favorite son if you are a parent or picking a favorite Jack Bauer moment if you are a 24 fan. Howard is our main run producer and that is how you win games. He is young and will be a Phillie hopefully his entire career. He is just entering his prime and seems like we can count on him for over 40 homeruns a year. I guess all I really have to say is most VALUABLE player. He did just win that after all.

3) Cole Hamels
If Utley and Howard aren't the future of this franchise in your eyes, Hamels has to be it then. At 23, he is still 5 years away from what analysts consider his 'prime' and he may very well be our ace by June. He has a changeup that should be illegal and if he stays healthy the rest of his career, will probably lead the league in Ks at least once. The Majors are starved for pitching now which raises his value even more. He could develop into one of the top pitchers in the National League which is something the Phillies haven't had since Schilling. Pitching wins championships and Hamels seems to be our best shot.

4) Jimmy Rollins
The classic statement "When Jimmy goes, the offense goes" couldn't be truer. When Rollins goes into his week-long slumps where he goes 7-38, you can obviously see that the Phillies rely on pitching to win those games. Rollins causes disturbance when he is on base, finds ways to always be in scoring position and knocks in his fair share with his newly found power. I will be alone on this next statement but I consider him a top notch leadoff hitter. He scores runs in bunches and is truly the catalyst of the team. His slumps are frustrating and can equate to losing streaks but he is a necessity for the Phillies to score. Also, I consider him the best leader on the Phillies which is extremely valuable in my eyes.

5) Brett Myers
This spot was a tough decision for me. I had it narrowed down to Myers, Victorino and Garcia. Victorino will possibly end up being our center fielder (an extremely important position) for the next couple of years. Garcia, if signed beyond 2007, can be a dominant force on our staff. Myers, however, can be brilliant if he gets his head together and is also 5 years younger than Garcia. And like I said earlier, pitching is at a premium. The better a player makes our team's staff, the more valuable he is. Myers indeed will battle Hamels for the title of 'ace' for years to come.

All five players listed are Phillies homegrown talent, so we should give credit to our farm system. It isn't spectacular but has produced very valuable players for us in the recent years. All five players can be counted on to be with Philadelphia for the next half-decade and are still hitting their primes. These five are our best shot at a championship. This was a tough list to narrow down and many players can be flip-flopped. Feel free to call me wrong.

7 comments:

furiousBall said...

Great article, but I have to disagree with you on J-Roll being an ideal lead-off man. He doesn't see enough pitches and doesn't walk enough. You've heard that before I'm sure. But the real reason is what you stated, when he slumps the entire offense does. You know why? He doesn't allow his teammates to see enough pitches and even a good leadoff guy gets on base during slumps (aka getting walks)

Pete said...

Great analysis. I was thinking about it, and I agree with each ranking. As much as I hate to say it, Howard isn't as close to #1 as you may think. While he's not a one-dimensional player, he has two pretty big flaws, being his defense and lack of speed on the basepath. And while his monster home runs more than make up for that, he's no Chase Utley. Utley is a legitimate 5 tool player. His defense has mightily improved since his days in the minors. And his hussle and speed on the basepaths give pitchers one more thing to worry about while Howard is up.

GM-Carson said...

If Brett Myers can concentrate solely on bullying the competition rather than his wife and being pissed at himself, we will witness him turn into an ace. Which makes for a great rotation when Hamels and Garcia are added to the bunch.

Utley is my favorite Phillie!

Skeeter said...

utley is a baseball god.

Apparently Mutts fans hate him the most out of all Phils. This enrages me. I can't possibly see one possible thing to hate about utley. He is silent and just plays hard. Not cocky at all. Mets fans are so freakin lame.

Skeeter said...

and furiousball...I know Rollins is frustrating since he doesn't see shit at the plate. I still see him as an amazing man to have at the top though. And even if I'm wrong...he is currently our best option

BloodStripes said...

I certainly hope all 5 Phillies mentioned are Phillies for a long time to come. Your top 5 are indeed my favourites along with Victorino.

I agree Rollins should see a few more pitches as lead-off. I would like to see him be a little more selective when going for the big hit. At times last year he wanted a homerun when all the team needed was a good AB with a hit or walk. But in saying that, his power helps make up for it. Ain't nothing better than a run scored. The Phils offense was mighty last year, so I reckon there isn't much reason to try and change it. Let Jimmy continue on as in the past.

With J-Roll and Vic in the 1-2 hole the Phils have a good speed power combo to worry pitchers with Utley and Howard to follow.

Man I love our lineup.

Patrick said...

I think I would really have to put Howard ahead of Utley. Obviously there are arguments both ways and it is super close. But...I give it to Howard based on the following reasons:
-Howard is slightly younger (I know only one year)
-both hit for average and strike out a lot but Howard hits about double the amount of dingers as Chase
-Howard's D isn't as bad as it was last year and Utley's is good but not great by any means.

Chase is my favorite Phillie, but I just feel Howard is slightly more valuable for now and for the future