Vince Velasquez still trying to prove he is a long-term starting pitcher

Many still feel Velasquez would be better as a reliever

After spending the last 10 days on the disabled list, Vince Velasquez returns to the mound for the Philadelphia Phillies. 

He will be activated in time for tonight’s scheduled 7:10pm EDT series finale with the division-rival New York Mets at Citi Field.

The right-hander will be trying to show that he is fully recovered, physically and otherwise, from a nasty comebacker that drilled off his arm during his last start.

On June 30 at Citizens Bank Park, Velasquez left a breaking ball rover the middle of the plate to Adam Eaton of the Washington Nationals. Eaton crushed a line drive at 97 miles per hour back at him, smashing Velasquez on his right pitching forearm just below the elbow.

Velasquez, who is ambidextrous, recovered instinctively and pounced on the ball, firing a strike to first base to retire Eaton by a half step. It was a sensational play, demonstrating the athleticism possessed by the 26-year old pitcher.

Proving that he is physically healthy will not be the only challenge tonight for Velasquez. He will also continue trying to prove that he can be an effective long-term member of the Phillies starting pitching rotation as the club plans for the future in its return to contending status.

Velasquez is now in his third full season with the Phillies. He was the lead piece in the package acquired from the Houston Astros in exchange for closer Ken Giles back in December 2015.

Thus far, Velasquez has fashioned a 15-21 record with the Phillies over 56 appearances, all of them starts. He has given up 283 hits over 291.1 innings, surrendering 49 home runs, and has a 327/113 K:BB ratio with the club. Velasquez has a 4.31 FIP and 1.359 WHIP mark with the Phillies. He has been worth a -0.02 WAR figure to the team over that time.

Most concerning to many observers has been the pitcher’s inability to consistently deliver quality performances. Only 21 of those 56 appearances (37.5%) have resulted in a Quality Start of six or more innings pitched allowing three or fewer earned runs.

Velasquez has only seen the seventh inning on 11 occasions. He has been on the mound in the eighth just once, way back on April 14, 2016 in his second career start. That complete game outing in which he struck out 16 while allowing just three hits in a shutout of the San Diego Padres got Phillies fans excited that the club had found a future ace.

He has never really demonstrated that same dominance since that day. However, Velasquez may finally be maturing a bit here in the 2018 season. Eight of his 17 starts this season have been of that Quality Start variety. Twice more, he barely missed.

Velasquez has an outstanding 107/34 K:BB ratio this season. His 4.69 ERA is largely bloated by a trio of real bombs.

In his very first start on March 31 at Sun Trust Park, the host Atlanta Braves rocked him for seven runs, four of them earned. The Braves rapped out nine hits and worked a pair of walks off Velasquez that night, driving him from the mound in the third inning of a 15-2 rout.

ALDS Prediction: Houston Astros over Boston Red Sox

One ALDS opens this afternoon with Houston hosting Boston

The Division Series open today in the American League, and each series features a strong AL East contender.

I'm picking both of these "beasts of the east" to go down at the hands of what like slightly more talented opponents.

In one ALDS, the Houston Astros, champions of the AL West, will be facing the Boston Red Sox, champs of the AL East. In the other series, the Cleveland Indians, champions of the AL Central and the defending American League champs, will be taking on the wildcard New York Yankees.

Let's take the Houston-Boston matchup first. The Astros won 101 games during the regular season, running away with the AL West crown by 21 games.

It was the franchise' first division title since 2001, and puts them into the postseason for the second time in three years. In 2015, Houston was edged out in a five-game ALDS by the eventual World Series champion Kansas City Royals.

The Red Sox went 93-69, and held off the Yankees down the stretch to capture their second consecutive division title, their third in five seasons. The Bosox were swept out of the ALDS a year ago by Cleveland.

Astros threaten to make a mockery of AL West race

The rampaging Houston Astros are threatening to make a mockery of the American League West Division race, and we're only six weeks into the 2017 Major League Baseball regular season.

The Astros have jumped out to a 25-11 record through games of Friday, May 13. That is the best record in baseball, and leaves the club eight games in front of their nearest divisional rivals.

Since their Saturday afternoon matchup with the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium was rained out, Houston will take that mark into a makeup day-night doubleheader on Sunday.

Part of the equation in building such a huge lead has been that their chief expected challenger for the AL West crown, the in-state rival Texas Rangers, have been decimated by key injuries.

However, that takes nothing away from what Houston has been able to accomplish of their own accord. With 173 runs scored, the Astros are third in the American League. The cumulative pitching staff Batting Average Against is just .226, the best mark in all of baseball.

2017 Phillies Spotlight Pitcher: Vince Velasquez

The Philadelphia Phillies spent roughly six weeks down in Florida for spring training this year. And for a second straight spring, Vince Velasquez demonstrated power pitching in the Grapefruit League.

Last year, Velasquez was competing to become the team’s 5th starter. He pitched so well that awarding him that role right out of 2016 spring training was an easy decision for manager Pete Mackanin.

This year, Velasquez dazzled once again. Over five spring starts, the right-hander allowed just 12 hits over 19.7 innings with a 25/9 K:BB ratio. He registered a 2.75 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP, with opposing batters hitting just .171 off him.

Those nine walks, however, are still a bit too high. But the other numbers continue to reveal his dominating stuff.

Velasquez has a chance to pitch at the very top of the Phillies rotation in the next few years. Of course, his continuing command and discipline issues, and the development of other options, could force him to a high-leverage bullpen role just as easily.

Phillies Say Goodbye to a Number of 2015 Players

While the Philadelphia Phillies have brought in a number of new players for 2016, the club has also lost a few from the organization.

Aside from the obvious loss of closer Ken Giles in the big trade for five young pitchers, there are a number of other players who contributed significantly to the 2015 big league club, to other recent Phillies teams, or who were long time minor league prospects, who will not return to the organization next year.

The biggest name is also the one that was most obviously not returning, former lefty ace Cliff Lee, who has unsuccessfully battled injuries over the last two seasons.

The now 37-year old Lee is a free agent, and has been linked to a number of teams including the Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Cleveland Indians, and Kansas City Royals. 

Lee is most likely to catch on with a contending team on a non-guaranteed contract with a spring training invitation, assuming he can play at all.

Three starting pitchers who took the mound for the Phillies in 2015 will also not be returning. 

Phillies 2016 Closer Options

With the trade of Ken Giles to Houston, the Philadelphia Phillies have a few options for the 2016 closer role.

Giles was always considered the heir apparent to Jonathan Papelbon, took over that role when the veteran was dealt to the Washington Nationals at the trade deadline this past season, and succeeded as most evaluators believed he would.

In fact, Giles was so impressive as both a setup man and in the closer role that he became easily the team’s most valuable remaining trade piece following the deals involving Papelbon and ace Cole Hamels.

Now that he is gone, the closer role would appear to be wide open. While that is likely to remain the case when the club reports to Clearwater for spring training, there is a clear frontrunner to fill the role.

Yesterday, on the same day that Giles talks were heating up and the deal being finalized, the Phils announced the signing of free agent David Hernandez to a one-year contract. 

That contract reportedly included incentives based on games finished. So it would appear that GM Matt Klentak was already thinking contingency plans with the Hernandez signing.

Ken Giles Remains on Hot Stove Front Burner

The Philadelphia Phillies have young closer Ken Giles boiling on the Hot Stove front burner at the baseball Winter Meetings.

There are still a number of things that Phillies GM Matt Klentak can accomplish before leaving Nashville in a couple of days. 

One thing that he will not do is deal away his strong, young closer quickly. At least not without someone meeting the rebuilding Phillies’ reportedly high price.

While some fans have wondered why a rebuilding team would want to trade away one of it’s best young players, especially one with a favorable contract situation, the fact is that the Phillies simply cannot dismiss anything that could land them multiple pieces in exchange for one.

“We like Ken Giles. We want Ken Giles on our team. We want more players like Ken Giles,” Klentak said, per Philly.com’s Matt Breen. 

“But we also have to be opportunistic when opportunities present themselves to make us better in both the short and long term. And we’re going to explore that and other things while we’re here.”

The Phillies are in a favorable position with Giles where the closer market is concerned as well. 

Phillies Thanksgiving 2015

The Philadelphia Phillies organization and fan base have much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving.

That statement might seem a bit misguided considering that the Phillies finished with the worst overall record in Major League Baseball during the 2015 season.

The Fightin' Phils finished in last place in the NL East for a 2nd straight season, and finished with a losing record for a 3rd straight season.

However, there are very real signs that the organization problems may have bottomed out. While real, measurable, on-field improvement may still take another year, there is now hope for the future.

First, consider the major changes in the management and ownership situations. 

We began the 2015 season with Pat Gillick still in charge on behalf of an old-school mentality ownership. Ruben Amaro Jr, who had overseen the demise of the club at the Major League level, was still the general manager. Ryne Sandberg, who seemed unable to make a real connection with his players, was still in the dugout.

Flash forward to the end of the season, and the two months since it drew to a close. 

New, aggressive ownership has stepped forward with the public emergence of John Middleton as the face and voice of the group. 

Andy MacPhail has taken control as team president. Matt Klentak has been hired as a young, new-wave, Ivy League educated general manager. 

Pete Mackanin has been given the opportunity to skipper a team into spring training for the first time in his career.

Every one of these developments is a positive one for fans to bank on moving forward. We will no longer see the same old mentality. 

Phillies 2015 TBOH Award Winners

As the 2015 regular season came to and end this past weekend, the staffers at TBOH were polled for their opinions on the Philadelphia Phillies top performers in the categories of Starting Pitcher, Relief Pitcher, Offensive Player, Surprise Player, and Rookie of the Year.

Our staffers were also asked for their favorite moment from this past 2015 season. In what was a difficult year for the team and it's fans, there were still a few great moments to look back on, and those great moments will come in a separate piece tomorrow.

For today, we'll go through the categories listed above, and find out what the results were in polling of our current half-dozen staffers: myself, Ethan Witte, Tyler DiSalle, David Mosemann, Ryan Gerstel, and Alexis Girardo.

Not all of the categories were unanimous, but there was a clear result in each. The following were our honorees for the 2015 season:

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Jul 31, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Hamels speaks with the media after being traded from the Phillies. (Photo Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports)

Just because it was rumored for months, the reality of Cole Hamels being traded away to the Texas Rangers still came as a shocker to many Phillies fans. At 31 years of age, Hamels was still in the prime of his career.

He had been the club's 1st round pick in the 2002 MLB Amateur Draft, had won 114 games over a decade with the team, and was both the 2008 NLCS and World Series MVP for the 2nd championship team in Phils' history.

Hamels was the unanimous choice of the half-dozen TBOH staffers as the Phillies 2015 Starting Pitcher of the Year. 

He pitched at the front of the team's rotation for nearly four full months, from Opening Day right up to the MLB trade deadline.

On that deadline, Hamels was dealt to the Rangers along with reliever Jake Diekman for pitcher Matt Harrison and five prospects, at least three of which are highly rated.

In the end, Hamels was an easy choice, because the rest of this year's Phillies rotation was made up of marginally talented journeymen like Aaron Harang and Jerome Williams, or rookies who didn't pitch more than a couple of months, such as Aaron Nola and Adam Morgan.

Hamels made 20 starts for the Phillies in 2015, forging a 6-7 record for a team that was 27 games below the .500 mark following his final victory. 

That last win in a Phils uniform was a memorable one, with Hamels throwing a no-hitter at Wrigley Field vs the Cubs.

The veteran lefty had a 3.64 ERA, 1.181 WHIP, and a 3.27 FIP. He allowed 113 hits in 128.2 innings, with a 137/39 K:BB ratio.

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Sep 8, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Phillies closer Giles (53) reacts after strike out to end game at Citizens Bank Park. (Photo Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports)

The Phillies were finally able to unload controversial closer Jonathan Papelbon just before the 2015 MLB trade deadline, shipping him off to the Washington Nationals on July 28th for minor league pitcher Nick Pivetta. 

Papelbon was pitching well, with 17 Saves, a 1.59 ERA, and status as the lone Phils' NL All-Star rep.

But Papelbon had burned his bridges with the team's fans a year earlier, and despite becoming the franchise' all-time Saves leader earlier in the 2015 campaign, most couldn't wait for him to be gone.

Once he was gone, another moment that fans were looking forward to finally came to pass when fireballing righty Ken Giles ascended to the closer role. 

"100-Miles" Giles had been the primary setup man almost from the moment of his call-up to the big leagues in mid-June of 2014.

Giles was the unanimous choice of our TBOH staffers as the Phillies 2015 Relief Pitcher of the Year. 

The right-hander recorded his first Save of the season on the same day that Papelbon was dealt away, and would finish with 15 Saves over the final two months. 

Giles had an outstanding 1.71 ERA, allowed 20 hits in 26.1 innings, and had a 33/5 K:BB ratio in that time frame as closer.

Overall on the 2015 season, Giles had a 6-3 record and those 15 Saves over 69 games. 

He had a 1.80 ERA, 1.200 WHIP, and 2.13 FIP. He allowed 59 hits in 70 total innings, with an overall 87/25 K:BB ratio.

The 25-year old Giles is now the subject of growing speculation as a possible off-season trade chip for the Phillies. 

The logic there is that the Phils are likely to still be in building mode as Giles moves towards his prime, and because of his age and talent, he could bring back at least one, and possibly two, high-valued prospects to help advance the rebuilding process.

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Jun 26, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Phillies center fielder Herrera (37) runs out of the batters box at Citizens Bank Park. (Photo Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports)

On December 11th, 2014 the Phillies selected outfielder Odubel Herrera from the Texas Rangers in the Rule 5 Draft. 

Herrera had won the Venezuelan Winter League batting crown with a .372 average, that following a season in the Rangers' minors system in which he hit for a .315 combined average across stops at two levels.

The Phillies would have to either keep Herrera on the big league roster all season, or offer him back to Texas, or work out some deal to keep him. 

Herrera made the decision easy, almost from the beginning of his time with the club in spring training.

For his offensive performance, Herrera won the balloting as the Phillies 2015 Offensive Player of the Year, receiving the 1st place vote from 5 of our 6 staffers. 

He also took home the 2015 Rookie of the Year honors as well, receiving 4 of the 6 votes, with the other two 1st place ballots going to rookie pitcher Aaron Nola.

The man affectionately known as "El Torito" (little bull) had never played the outfield on a regular basis, but the team put him out their in the spring and let him learn on the job. 

As the season wore on, Herrera cemented himself as the Phillies' starting everyday center fielder.

While his routes and timing were sometimes off, his speed and hustle also allowed him to play the position well. 

That combination of athleticism and inexperience came together in perhaps his defensive season highlight, making the final catch to seal Cole Hamels' no-hitter vs the Cubs.

Offensively, Herrera led the club regulars in batting average (.297), on-base percentage (.344), runs scored (64), and with 30 doubles. His 16 steals were 2nd on the team.

Just yesterday, it was announced that Herrera was nominated by the Phillies for the MLB Hank Aaron Award, which goes to the top offensive player in each league. 

While he has no chance to actually win that honor, just the fact that he was nominated as the Phils' top offensive player is a tremendous accomplishment for a player who was left unprotected by his former team less than a calendar year ago.

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Oct 4, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Francoeur (3) prepares to throw his jersey into crowd after final game of the season. (Photo Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports)

On November 13th, 2014 the Phillies unexpectedly signed then 30-year old outfielder Jeff Francoeur as a free agent. 

Expectations were low, with the hope that he could perhaps come to spring training, be a "solid citizen" positive influence, and maybe become a valuable AAA outfielder that could help the club at some point in the season.

Francoeur won a split-decision ballot as our TBOH Phillies Surprise Performer of the Year, edging out Herrera and pitcher Jerad Eickhoff in the balloting by receiving 1st place votes from half of our six staffers.

Anyone who watched "Frenchy" all year knows just how much of a positive influence he was, supplying a handful of the most memorable and exciting moments of the season, from walk-off homers to tremendous throws from the outfield.

None of those was more memorable than his laser beam to nail a Pittsburgh Pirates runner at the plate, clinching Papelbon's franchise record Save.

At the plate, Francoeur received 343 plate appearances, his most in the big leagues since the 2012 season. 

Despite the fact that he was usually a part-timer, he still finished 3rd on the team with 13 homers, and 4th with 45 RBI. 

His 5 outfield Assists were tied with Herrera, who played in approximately 400 more innings, for the team lead.

Mitch Williams Interview

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Williams (center) during his stint as an analyst with the MLB Network

Mitch Williams is one of the most colorful, controversial, and popular athletes in Philadelphia sports history. "The Wild Thing" who heroically shut down the Braves to clinch the 1993 National League Pennant, then became a publicly vilified goat on yielding Joe Carter's World Series-winning homerun just 10 days later.

Williams rose from the ashes of that emotional '93 devastation to eventually be forgiven and embraced again by Phillies fans, and ultimately beloved by them. He did it by never shirking responsibility, and by always displaying openness and candor in handling the situation.

I was fortunate enough to be able to interview the former Phillies closer this week. In our conversation, Mitch showed that he is as feisty, frank, and competitive as ever.

We covered a wide range of topics, from his current internet talk show "Unleashed with Mitch Williams", to last year's incident that resulted in his being fired by the MLB Network, to his opinion on the current Phillies bullpen of Jonathan Papelbon, Ken Giles, Jake Diekman, and Justin De Fratus.

Along the way there were detours to Curt Schilling's Hall of Fame worthiness, his relationship with Lenny Dykstra, and even a more recent run-in with former Phils pitching coach Rich Dubee involving both Diekman and Phillies pitching great Roy Halladay.