10 weeks to go, Phillies begin priming for 2019 playoff push

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Rhys Hoskins (L), Bryce Harper (R) lead Phillies attack

There are now 10 weeks remaining in the 2019 Major League Baseball regular season. That makes for the perfect beginning of a countdown. So, each Monday over these next ten weeks, I’ll update you on exactly where the Phillies stand in their attempts to return to the MLB postseason.

The last appearance by the Phillies in the MLB playoffs ended with first baseman Ryan Howard crumped on the ground at home plate after striking out to end the club’s disheartening defeat in Game 5 of the 2011 NLDS against the Saint Louis Cardinals at Citizens Bank Park.

That loss by a Phillies team that had won 102 games in the regular season became the swan song for a once-great aging championship team. Every starting position player was over the age of 30, with the exception of right fielder Hunter Pence. Three of the pitchers who made up the club’s vaunted “Four Aces” starting rotation were over 32 years of age.

Over the next half-dozen seasons, management would begin the process of slowly and systematically turning over the roster in what became a major, lengthy rebuilding program, one that would ultimately include a change in that management structure itself.

That rebuilding program took a major step forward in this past off-season when half the everyday lineup was turned over. Newcomers Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto, Jean Segura, and Andrew McCutchen brought excitement at the outset of the season that hadn’t been seen down in South Philly since those halcyon days way back at the start of the decade.

Ryan Howard is helped off field after crumpling to ground at end of winner-take-all defeat to Cardinals in the 2011 NLDS.

The Phillies bolted out of the gate, took over first place in the NL East Division on April 25, and held that top spot until June 12. Prior to Independence Day, the club was never lower than second place in the division standings.

But the Phillies have pretty much been treading water for the last two months. McCutchen was lost for the season, blowing out his knee and taking a huge piece out of the lineup. Since May 25, the Phillies record is just 21-27, and they have fallen to third place.

Look back at the Phillies in the MLB All-Star Game during the 2010's

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On right, Victorino, Polanco, Lee, Hamels repped Phillies in 2011

On Tuesday night, Major League Baseball will celebrate many of it’s top names with the playing of the All-Star Game at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio.

For Phillies fans, this 90th version of the Midsummer Classic will feature just one member of their favorite ball club. That has been the case in most recent years with the team usually in a non-contending position.

However, this second decade of the 21st century did not begin that way. When the decade opened, the Phillies were on top of the National League. The were two-time defending NL champions, had been legitimate contenders for most of the previous decade, and featured a star-studded lineup and pitching staff.

In the 2010 MLB All-Star Game at Angel Stadium of Anaheim, the Phillies had three representatives. First baseman Ryan Howard started and batted in the cleanup spot for the NL squad. Second baseman Chase Utley was voted as the starting NL second baseman for a fifth consecutive year, but sprained his thumb in late June and had to miss the game. Roy Halladay was one of the NL reserve pitchers.

Howard went 0-2 that night, striking out to leadoff the top of the 2nd inning against David Price. Halladay came on to pitch in the bottom of the 6th inning. He surrendered a leadoff single to Derek Jeter, but then got Paul Konerko to roll into a double play. After giving up a base hit to Josh Hamilton, the Phillies righty was lifted by manager Charlie Manuel.

The 2011 MLB All-Star Game was played at Chase Field in Phoenix, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks. For the first time since 2004, no Phillies position players were voted in as starters. However, Halladay was selected to start on the mound for the National League.

After Doc pitched two perfect innings, he was followed to the mound by rotation mate Cliff Lee. The Phillies lefty would retire the first five batters he faced before Adrian Gonzalez homered with two outs in the top of the 4th inning. It would be the only run allowed by NL pitching in a 5-1 victory.

The Phillies had three more All-Stars in 2011, but none got into the game. Those three were pitcher Cole Hamels, third baseman Placido Polanco, and center fielder Shane Victorino.

Phillies will try to take the series with Fish on Sunday

Phillies wrap Marlins series in South Philly

After the first-place Philadelphia Phillies (15-12) dropped the opener of this four-game series with the last-place Miami Marlins (8-19), an unlikely and troubling scenario was presenting itself.

The Phillies roster was noticeably improved this past off-season by an influx of free agents and trade acquisitions. Much was expected of a team that was viewed as a legitimate contender, and they got off to a hot start.

But that loss in the series opener left the Phillies just a game over the .500 mark and struggling. They had lost six of their previous eight games and had suffered a series of recent injuries that seemed to sap the life out of the squad.

In order to win a division crown or a Wildcard playoff berth, teams are going to need to find a way to overcome injuries and other challenges. They are going to have to win series. And they are especially going to have to win the series that they are supposed to win.

This series against a bottom-dweller team at home was one that the Phillies needed to win, injuries or not. Losing the opener meant that in order to accomplish that, the club would have to capture three straight.

Well, we are almost there. The Phillies have recovered to win on Friday and Saturday nights, setting up the chance to win the series with a Sunday afternoon victory.

They won on Saturday night after building up what seemed to be an insurmountable 10-1 lead after five innings. But the Marlins, who have made an early-season habit of playing their best baseball on Saturdays, roared back to cut the deficit to just 10-9. 

Rhys Hoskins stepped up with a huge two-run home run in the bottom of the 8th inning to clinch a 12-9 victory, setting up this Sunday opportunity.

Phillies shortstop Jean Segura, playing in his first game since being activated from the Injured List, was literally knocked out of the game on Saturday night when he was hit in the head by a pitch from Marlins starter Trevor Richards. His initial concussion examination came back negative, and after a re-evaluation this morning, Segura was cleared to play.

Phillies Nation wishes public address announcer Dan Baker well. An undisclosed illness caused Baker to miss his first game since Citizens Bank Park opened back in 2004. Generations of fans have listened as he introduced lineups, served as emcee for many events, and made numerous other announcements both at Veteran’s Stadium and CBP since 1972.

The Phillies currently are the only team in the National League East Division standings with a winning record. They hold a 1.5 game lead on the New York Mets, one game in the loss column. The Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals are both two games back in the loss column.

Phillies will try to snap out of a recent funk on Friday night at Citizens Bank Park

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Phillies look to get on track vs Marlins on Friday night

The Phillies (13-12) are scheduled to host the division-rival Miami Marlins (8-17) on Friday night at Citizens Bank Park. There is a high probability of rain in the forecast for around game time, so there could be at least a delay in the start of tonight’s game.

This is scheduled to be the second of a four-game long weekend series between the two teams. The Marlins took the opener last night on a two-run homer from second baseman Starlin Castro in the top of the 10th inning off Phillies reliever Hector Neris.

Marlins pitcher Caleb Smith tossed a gem for the second straight start against the Phillies. He previously one-hit them over six innings back on April 13. This time, Smith allowed a run on three hits while striking out eight and walking one in another six-inning outing.

The Phillies won two of three earlier this month against the Marlins, and will be looking to snap out of a funk that has seen them drop six of their last eight games. The Phils currently trail the New York Mets by a half-game in the National League East Division standings.

FRIDAY STARTING LINEUPS AND PREVIEW

PHILLIES LINEUP

1. Andrew McCutchen CF
2. J.T. Realmuto C
3. Bryce Harper RF
4. Rhys Hoskins 1B
5. Nick Williams LF
6. Maikel Franco 3B
7. Cesar Hernandez 2B
8. Sean Rodriguez SS
9. Jerad Eickhoff P

PHILLIES HOT & COLD

Cesar Hernandez had a pair of hits on Thursday night to remain hot. The much-maligned second baseman is now slashing .344/.403/.508 going back over his last 15 games and 67 plate appearances with seven runs scored and six extra-base hits.

Sean Rodriguez smacked his first home run of the season last night. He was called up from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Wednesday and became the fourth player to start a game at shortstop for the Phillies this season. Though starting shortstop Jean Segura is due back tomorrow it may not be Rodriguez whose spot is in jeopardy since he can play every position on the diamond except perhaps behind the plate.

Chase Utley to join the broadcasting ranks during first season in retirement

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Officially retired as a player, Utley will remain involved in the game

The ball player who grew to be known around Phillies Nation as ‘The Man’ appeared in his final big-league game on September 30, 2018. Stepping to the plate as a pinch-hitter for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Utley struck out in his final plate appearance after 16 seasons in Major League Baseball.

Over parts of 13 years with the Phillies, Utley had become a heroic fan favorite. He banged out 233 home runs, drove in 916 runs, and crossed the plate with a run scored 949 times. He was a six-time National League All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger Award winner, and finished among the top 15 in NL MVP voting for five straight years.

Nearly seven years after helping the Phillies to win the 2008 World Series, Utley was traded out to his native California to play for the Dodgers. He would finish up his playing career in Los Angeles, getting back to the playoffs in four straight seasons but never winning another championship ring.

The Phillies announced months ago that Utley would join former teammates Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard in being officially honored by the team for which they played their greatest baseball.

At what is now a sold-out June 21st game against the division-rival Miami Marlins the Phillies will hold “Chase Utley Retirement Night” with a number of special events. Those will include a pre-game highlight package and a bobble figurine giveaway as Utley officially retires from baseball as a member of the Phillies organization.

However, just when it seemed as if he might ride off into the sunset, it turns out that Utley will not be away from the game after all during the coming season.

Phillies fans are going to love fiery new slugger Bryce Harper

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Harper plays the game the way Philly fans like - emotionally

He is a power-hitting version of Pete Rose. A fiery competitor who is a genuine superstar in Major League Baseball. Now, just as Rose did exactly 40 years ago, Bryce Harper will transform from a feared and hated rival to a revered hero in Philadelphia.

After a months-long pursuit of the 26-year-old free agent, the Philadelphia Phillies have come to a 13-year agreement that gives Harper the largest contract in U.S. pro sports history and will add him to what was already a vastly improved ball club.

In conjunction with other moves that the club had previously made this off-season, the Phillies now have to be considered as favorites to win the National League East Division crown. This addition helps to transform the team immediately into a World Series favorite as well.

Harper is a Las Vegas, Nevada native who became one of the most hyped young baseball players in decades. He had been called “Baseball’s Lebron“, referring to basketball superstar Lebron James, when Harper appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a 16-year-old high schooler a decade ago.

Drafted by the Washington Nationals out of a Nevada junior college with the first overall pick of the 2010 MLB Amateur Draft, Harper was selected two spots ahead of the other big name free agent whom the Phillies also pursued this off-season, Manny Machado.

In his lone full minor league campaign back in 2011, Harper blitzed through two levels with a .297/.392/.501 slash line. He banged out 17 homers and stole 26 bases in 109 games that summer, reaching Double-A as an 18-year-old.

After a brief stint to begin the 2012 season at Triple-A Syracuse, Harper received the call to Washington at the end of April. Other than a couple of injury rehab stints early in his career, he has never returned to the minor leagues.

It's time for the Phillies to finish off the Bryce Harper negotiations

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Middleton (L) hasn't had a slugger like Howard in years

"We’re going into this expecting to spend money. And maybe even be a little bit stupid about it.”

This was the statement made by Philadelphia Phillies principal owner John Middleton at the Major League Baseball owner’s meetings back in mid-November. His statement lit a spark that blazed up Hot Stove logs in the fireplace of Phillies fans everywhere.

We believed all along that Middleton was the ultimate answer to the Phillies returning to the consistent glory that so many in that fan base had come to expect. Remember, this was the man who, after the club had dropped the 2009 World Series in six games to the New York Yankees, made the following statement to Ryan Howard: “Ryan, I want my fucking trophy back. It’s fucking ours!” 

From 2001 through 2012, a period of a dozen seasons, the Phillies were playoff contenders nearly every year. But then the bottom dropped out, and for five years the team and those fans wandered through the darkness of a bleak losing wilderness.

For the first decade after Citizens Bank Park opened in 2004 those fans swarmed to the beautiful South Philly ballpark. More than three million tickets were sold in eight of those 10 seasons, including a half-dozen in a row. The ballpark was the place to be, a social happening every single game.

But as the losing began and club management and ownership seemed to give up on putting out a winning product, fan interest waned. The Phillies didn’t even draw two million for three straight years from 2014-17.

Things appeared to be turning around last season. The club was a surprising contender for much of the summer, leading the division for more than a month from July 6 through August 12. Fans responded to the winning and some strong promotional events by filling more than 30,000 seats for 18 games between late-June and mid-August.

But as the team collapsed to a 12-28 record over the final six weeks, fan interest dried up. The Phillies drew that 30,000 figure just five more times. All of those were on weekends, with three specifically for Sunday promotions.

The message from last year when viewed against the previous handful of seasons is clear to Middleton. Do your job and put a winning team on the field and fans will respond. The message from a decade ago is also clear. Put players on that winner who those fans can relate to and who excite them, and they will come out in droves.

General manager Matt Klentak has performed well thus far. In what has been by far his best off-season to date the GM has signed free agents Andrew McCutchen and David Robertson and swung trades to bring in Jean Segura and J.T. Realmuto.

Middleton does understand. He is one of us in this regard: he is also a fan. He is driven. He wants to win. That is why he fueled up his private jet with the red Phillies “P” branded on the tail and had the pilots fly him out to Las Vegas, hometown of the biggest fish in this off-season’s large free agent lake, Bryce Harper.

But it isn’t enough. Look around at the other National League contenders. The Phillies are improved, but so are any number of other teams that already appeared to be ahead of them. The fans realize that this team has a chance to contend for a Wildcard spot now. But that is not what spending “stupid” money is supposed to get you.

2008 Phillies reunite to celebrate Chase Utley's 40th birthday

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Utley ends his big-league career after 16 seasons, 13 with the Phillies

Time and tide wait for no man. That goes for all of us, including our most beloved sports heroes. On Tuesday, December 18, Chase Utley turned 40 years old.

Utley is arguably the most popular Phillies player of the last quarter-century. You would have to go back to the scruffy National League champions of 1993 to find any Phillies player who was and continues to be as warmly embraced by the often difficult to please Philadelphia sports fan base.

Chase is not only popular among the fans, but also among his former teammates. To celebrate the milestone birthday he was joined for a Mexican vacation by Ryan Howard, Pat Burrell, Cole Hamels, Brad Lidge and a number of other friends and family members.

Ryan Howard

✔@ryanhoward

Always great hanging with these guys. Love em. Happy B Day to the #Silverfox

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11:20 PM - Dec 18, 2018 · Baja California Sur, México

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Utley has announced that the 2018 season would be his last. He finishes up a memorable 16-year career, with the most significant and memorable spent in a Phillies uniform.

After spending parts of his first 13 seasons with the club, Utley ranks high on a number of all-time Phillies statistical lists: Hits – 1,623 (9), Home Runs – 233 (6), RBI – 916 (7), Runs – 949 (6), Doubles – 346 (5).

Utley was also a 6x National League All-Star as well as a 4x NL Silver Slugger Award winner at second base. He received National League Most Valuable Player award votes in five different seasons. During his 2005-09 peak, Utley was the best all-around second baseman in baseball.

Remembering the Jim Thome Era in Philadelphia

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Thome's arrival as a big-ticket free agent signaled a new era of winning for Phillies

With this MLB off-season so highly anticipated here in Philadelphia, I decided to take a look back during this month at some of the more important Hot Stove moments over the course of Phillies history.

So far we’ve traveled back to re-examine big free agent signings of Pete Rose in 1978 and Jose Mesa in the winter of 2000. We also took a look back at a pivotal 1981 trade in which catcher Bo Diaz came to Philly from Cleveland as part of a three-team swap which sent outfielder Lonnie Smith to the Cardinals.

This time around we’re going to take a look back at two different Hot Stove moves from the first decade of the 21st century. One is a free agent signing, the other a trade. Both involve the same centerpiece player, Phillies Wall of Famer and Baseball Hall of Famer Jim Thome.

To understand the motivations for the Phillies deciding to open up their wallets and bring Thome to Philadelphia you need to remember the context of where the franchise was and who the player was at that time.

From 1987 through 2002, a period that spanned the final years of Mike Schmidt‘s career through the final year of Scott Rolen‘s career with the Phillies, the team suffered through 14 losing campaigns over 16 seasons.

The 1993 National League champions had proven to be an oasis in a long, wide desert of losing years. But things began to change as the new century dawned.

Under popular and fiery new manager Larry Bowa the Phillies had nearly captured the 2001 NL East crown. Thanks to a stretch of nine losses in 11 games to open the month of September, the 2002 Phillies finished 80-81. Though it was another losing record, something was obviously different.

The Phillies had a talented core group of position players featuring veteran catcher Mike Lieberthal, exciting youngsters Pat Burrell and Jimmy Rollins, and the power-speed combination of an entering-his-prime Bobby Abreu.

Also, the club was preparing to say goodbye to Veteran’s Stadium. The 2003 season would be the 33rd and final one on turf for the team. A brand new facility to be named Citizens Bank Park was under construction and would open for 2004.

Phillies chairman Bill Giles, club president David Montgomery, and GM Ed Wade knew that there would be major financial benefits coming with the new ballpark. They wanted to make a push to excite the fan base even further, and so went into that off-season on the hunt for marquee names to add to the roster.

On December 2nd they signed 30-year-old free agent David Bell to play third base. This would allow Placido Polanco, obtained the previous summer in trade for Rolen, to shift over to second base, strengthening the overall lineup.

But what the lineup really needed was one truly menacing presence in the middle. A big bopper to serve as an anchor, a game-changing threat with the kind of true power that hadn’t regularly plowed the baseball trade in South Philly since Schmidt’s retirement more than a decade earlier.

As good fortune would have it, just such a talent was coming available on the free agent market. Thome was a 32-year-old veteran of a dozen big-league seasons who was one of the most feared power-hitters in the game at that time.

The Phillies have been involved in three winner-take-all postseason games

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Garry Maddox delivered the winning hit and recorded final out in 1980 NLCS

The Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers by a 7-2 score on Friday night. The victory by the Brew Crew forces an ultimate Game 7 in the National League Championship Series tonight at Miller Park in Milwaukee.

There have now been 136 seasons of baseball in the history of the Philadelphia Phillies franchise, 14 of which have resulted in a postseason appearance. None has ever resulted in the Phillies participating in a Game 7.

However, the Phillies and their fans have experienced the nervous energy and thrill of some winner-take-all drama on three occasions.

The first was Game 5 of the National League Championship Series back in 198o. The following year during the first-ever National League Division Series held because of the split-season due to a player strike, it happened again. Three decades would then pass before the next in Game 5 of the 2011 National League Division Series.

The Phillies have enjoyed the thrill of victory just once, in that 1980 NLCS. They went down in heart-breaking fashion in both 1981 and 2011. The two losses came as a result of similar circumstances.

The 1980 series between the Phillies and Houston Astros was perhaps the greatest NLCS in history. All three were close, dramatic games, with the last four all ending in extra-innings.

The Phillies won the opener at Veteran’s Stadium by a 3-1 score behind a Steve Carlton gem and a Greg Luzinski home run. Houston then scored four runs in the top of the 10th to even the series at Veteran’s Stadium in Game Two.

Back home at the Astrodome for Game Three, the Astros got a leadoff triple in the bottom of the 11th from Joe Morgan off Tug McGraw in a 0-0 game. Following two intentional walks, Denny Walling scored Morgan with the walkoff, putting Houston within a game of their first-ever World Series appearance.

The Phillies fought back, rallying from a 2-0 deficit in Game Four to score three times in the top of the 8th inning. After Houston tied it up in the last of the 9th, the Phillies scored twice in the top of the 10th to win it. That rally was highlighted by Pete Rose plowing into Bruce Bochy with the go-ahead run.

With the NLCS tied at two games apiece, the decisive Game Five would take place once again in Houston. This time the Astros had a literal ace-in-the-hole in Nolan Ryan, and the big right-hander rolled into the top of the 8th inning with a 5-2 lead.

The Phillies then scratched and clawed their way back, scoring five times in that 8th inning to take a 7-5 lead. Houston refused to die, scoring twice in the bottom of the frame to tie it up, and again the two teams headed to extras.

2018 Paul Owens Award winners as top Phillies minor leaguers

Paul Owens (center) was with Phillies for half-century
(Photo: Matthew Veasey)

The Philadelphia Phillies established the annual Paul Owens Award back in 1986 to recognize the top performing player and pitcher in their minor league organization.

The award was named in honor of Owens, the 10th person selected to the franchise Wall of Fame back in 1988, the first non-player enshrined there by the team.

Owens spent nearly a half-century with the organization from 1955 through his death in 2003 as a minor league player and coach, scout, farm director, manager, general manager, and executive.

The GM and architect of the 1980 World Series championship team, Owens also managed the club during two stints which included guiding the 1983 club to the National League pennant.

The winners of the 2018 Paul Owens Award were announced today. The pitching honors went to David Parkinson, while the hitter honors were bestowed upon Austin Listi.

Parkinson is a 22-year-old left-hander who was the Phillies selection in the 12th round of the 2017 MLB Draft out of the University of Mississippi. A 6-2, 210lb native of Henrico, Virginia, Parkinson went 11-1 across 22 games, 21 of them starts, in a season spent with stints at both High-A Clearwater and Double-A Reading. He allowed just 91 hits over 124.1 innings with a 141/35 K:BB ratio.

Listi also split his season between Clearwater and Reading. The 6-0, 218lb 24-year-old was the club’s 17th round MLB Draft choice a year ago. A native of Huffman, Texas, Listi slashed .312/.412/.502 with 18 homers, 25 doubles, 84 RBI, and 63 runs scored this year. A first baseman and outfielder on defense, Listi actually appeared in more games as a DH than at any defensive position.

Parkinson is currently ranked at #19 on the MLB.com list of top Phillies prospects. He ranked 18th on our own Phillies Nation top 20 Phillies prospects list published on August 8.

The well-respected prospect evaluator John Sickels of Minor League Ball commented in his August 22 review of the Phillies farm system that “Parkinson has gone from a Grade C into the B range somewhere with a brilliant season in A-Ball (1.43, 130/32 K/BB).”

Previous Paul Owens Award recipients include Wall of Famers Mike Lieberthal (1992) and Pat Burrell (1999). Also honored previously were 2008 World Series heroes Jimmy Rollins (1997), Ryan Madson and Chase Utley (both 2002), Cole Hamels and Ryan Howard (both 2003), and Howard again in 2004.

Current Phillies players to take home the honors include Maikel Franco (2013), J.P. Crawford (2014), Andrew Knapp (2015), Dylan Cozens and Rhys Hoskins (both 2016), and Scott Kingery (2017).

Originally published at Phillies Nation as "Phillies name 2018 Paul Owens award recipients"